1663 Los Alamos Science and Technology Magazine: Following the Flow (Spring 2024)
Abstract not provided.
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
Engineering topics
McDonald, Rebecca E.
Publications and source records attributed to McDonald, Rebecca E..
On display: Replica instruments used to discover electrons, neutrons and more
Believe it or not, the electron was discovered in 1897 using only a hand-blown glass tube, a vacuum pump and some electrodes. Historical instrument replicas now on display in the lobby of the J.R. Oppenheimer Center give visitors a chance to remember the elegance — and relative simplicity — of the instruments scientists built and used to make pivotal discoveries.
47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
Co-processing Part 3: LANL Studies Quicker Method to Identify Renewable Carbon Percentages in Fuel Blends [Success Story]
Upgrading bio-oils with petroleum feedstocks at existing refineries—known as “co-processing”—could offer a fast pathway for lowering the carbon footprint of today’s transportation fuels. With equipment and infrastructure already in place, more than 100 refineries across the country are equipped to integrate bio-oil into their processes. But just where might companies insert sustainable bio-oils into existing refinery systems like fluid catalytic crackers and hydrotreaters? If successful, just how much of that renewable or “green” carbon makes it into final fuel products? In this three-part blog series, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), and Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) offer insights into these pressing coprocessing questions—and others—amid the push to dramatically expand the production of climate-friendly fuels. Read part 1 and part 2.
02 PETROLEUM↗
Global Disease Modeling & Forecasting Center [PowerPoint]
The Global Disease Modeling & Forecasting Center works in union with academia, industry, the US Government and global partners to develop, validate, and operationalize epidemiological models to combat infectious diseases. It's mission is to Apply multi-scale modeling and advanced data science to help the world detect, understand, forecast, prevent, and provide decision support in response to emerging and re-emerging disease outbreaks. The presentation explains LANL's role in more detail.
59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
Strain Improvements that Keep Algae Ponds Growing Strong
A challenge for algal biofuel development is finding strains of algae best suited for producing copious amounts of oil quickly and under industrial-scale conditions. Furthermore, maintaining pond health is also challenging—deteriorating health in a small fraction of algal cells within a pond can quickly lead to the death of the entire pond’s population. To overcome these challenges, Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) scientist Christina Steadman and team designed a process to optimize algal physiology and metabolism in cultures by interrogating specific characteristics of the algae cells. This process uses flow cytometry methods and solves two problems: the LANL team can quickly detect potential pond problems, and use this process to streamline the screening of potential algae candidates for biofuel production.
59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗