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Physical and Life Sciences
Earth's core metals react well to electrons
At temperatures and pressures found on Earth’s surface, metallic elements are electropositive and lose their valence electrons to form positively charged cations. Metals have free electrons that naturally form compounds with electronegative elements. For example, iron reacts with oxygen to form Fe2O3 – commonly referred to as rust. In contrast, noble gas elements (NGEs),…
Pushing Boundaries in Plasma Physics: Michael Campanell Brings His Revolutionary Model to LLNL
When Michael Campanell was a graduate student at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, he noticed something unusual: the boundary physics simulation he was running wasn’t behaving the way it was supposed to. A century of plasma theory predicted one thing, but Campanell’s simulation was doing another. This was the impetus for his thesis, and a big challenge to the status…
Forensic Science Center earns 8th straight ‘A’ in OPCW tests
During their 15 years as a certified laboratory for the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), a score of LLNL chemists have developed some first-rate habits. One of them is earning “A” grades on the organization’s environmental proficiency tests. In recently-announced results, LLNL earned its eighth straight “A” grade during last fall’s OPCW…
Scientists find 'frustration' in battery materials
Adding carbon atoms to a new type of solid lithium ion battery could make it charge faster and more safely. Solid-state lithium-ion batteries can provide dramatically improved safety, voltage and energy density compared with today’s batteries, which use liquid components. They could be used in electric vehicles, as well as in power electronics. However, they are still in…
Drones deliver green transportation option
By getting your next package delivered by drone, you could be saving energy, but only if companies deploy drones sensibly. New research by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Carnegie Mellon University, SRI International and the University of Colorado at Boulder shows that drone-based delivery could reduce greenhouse gas emissions and energy use in the…
Protein that prevents further cartilage damage
There may be a protein in the body that hinders cartilage degradation in patients with a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) scientists performed in vivo experiments on animal models of post traumatic osteoarthritis and found that sclerostin (a protein that in humans is encoded by the Sost gene), acts as a protective…
Hayward fault earthquake simulations increase fidelity of ground motions
In the next 30 years, there is a one-in-three chance that the Hayward fault will rupture with a 6.7 magnitude or higher earthquake, according to the United States Geologic Survey (USGS). Such an earthquake will cause widespread damage to structures, transportation and utilities, as well as economic and social disruption in the East Bay. Lawrence Livermore (LLNL) and…
Go-getter undergrad lands second-author credential for 'hydrogen-getters' research
It’s rare for an undergraduate science student to appear as an author on a scientific journal paper, and when they do, theirs is usually the last name on the list. However, Elizabeth Sangalang, a graduating senior studying biochemistry at California State University East Bay, has landed a second-author credential through the research she completed as a summer intern at…
First experimental evidence for superionic ice
Among the many discoveries on matter at high pressure that garnered him the Nobel Prize in 1946, scientist Percy Bridgman discovered five different crystalline forms of water ice, ushering in more than 100 years of research into how ice behaves under extreme conditions. One of the most intriguing properties of water is that it may become superionic when heated to several…
Researchers characterize membrane behavior
An article authored by a team of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) scientists has characterized how different cell membranes behave. "Different membranes in different parts of the body have different barrier strengths that are required for drugs to penetrate them to reach the organ," said Tim Carpenter, a computational biophysicist in the Lab’s Biosciences and…
LLNL’s Academic Collaboration Team Focuses on Strategic Partnerships
The High Energy Density (HED) Science Center at LLNL participates in the Laboratory’s Academic Collaboration Team (ACT), established in early 2018, which also includes LLNL’s Inertial Confinement Fusion and Weapon Physics Design programs. The goal of this multidisciplinary team is to advance LLNL’s strategic partnerships with universities, and the HEDS Center contributes…
Scientists discover ideal material for smart windows that convert sunlight to electricity
Imagine a smart window that becomes transparent when it is dark or cool but darkens when the sun is bright, converting that sunlight into electricity. Typical smart windows absorb or reflect sunlight without actually converting the solar energy into a useful form. However, the new photovoltaic windows would convert the sunlight on bright days into energy that provides more…
Lab earns DOE grant for collaboration to improve growth, efficiency of biofuel-producing algae
The Department of Energy has awarded Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) a three-year, $1.5 million grant to improve the growth and efficiency of biofuel-producing algae through the alteration of their microbiomes. The work, which is led at LLNL by Xavier Mayali and Ty Samo in the Physics and Life Sciences Directorate, will be done in collaboration with the San…
Alan Hidy's global travels lead to a CAMS career
The bookcase in Alan Hidy’s office is loaded with carefully labeled bags of rocks -- some the size of a fist, others pulverized into dust. The granite in these bags is destined for isotope ratio measurement at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's Center for Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (CAMS). "These are from the Sierras," Hidy said, referring to his ongoing study of…
Looking to the sun to create hydrogen fuel
When Lawrence Livermore scientist Tadashi Ogitsu leased a hydrogen fuel-cell car in 2017, he knew that his daily commute would change forever. There are no greenhouse gases that come out of the tailpipe, just a bit of water vapor. The market for hydrogen cars is growing. According to a recent report by the California Energy Commission and the California Air Resources Board…
Meteorites reveal story of Martian climate
Liquid water is not stable on Mars’ surface because the planet’s atmosphere is too thin and temperatures are too cold. However, at one time Mars hosted a warm and wet surface environment that may have been conducive to life. A significant unanswered question in planetary science is when Mars underwent this dramatic change in climate conditions. New research by Lawrence…
Newly developed tunable, green detergents could be 'made-to-order' for industry
That mascara that your colleague is wearing may contain components from a microorganism. Detergents, also known as surfactants, are used extensively in the cosmetics, oil, food, agriculture, healthcare and pharmaceutical industries. Their sales are projected to reach $42 billion by 2020. The majority of surfactants are petrochemicals, i.e. are synthesized from petroleum…
Workshop Explores National Security Dimensions of HED Science
LLNL’s High Energy Density (HED) Science Center helped organize a two-day workshop regarding national security and HED science, held in January 2018 at the University of California (UC) San Diego. The workshop offered an introductory exploration of the national security dimensions of HED science from technical, policy, and international perspectives. Scientists from…
Project to study climate effects on California water systems from headwaters to groundwater
To address future climate change effects on water resources, scientists at five UC campuses, and Lawrence Livermore and Lawrence Berkeley national laboratories will study California’s water systems, from the headwaters in the Sierra Nevada, through rivers, reservoirs and groundwater in the Central Valley. The "Headwaters to groundwate resources in a changing climate"…
LLNL nanolipoprotein technology licensed
A Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) biomedical technology that can deliver vaccines and drugs inside the human body has been licensed for use in cancer treatments to a Michigan company. The Livermore-developed technology, using nanolipoprotein particles (NLPs), has been licensed to Ann Arbor-based EVOQ Therapeutics for cancer immunotherapy, which deploys the…
