ORNL

OAK RIDGE, Tenn., June 2008 — The Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory and General Electric have collaborated to finalize, test and market the first product from a major brand to meet DOE's new Energy Star criteria for electric heat pump water heaters.

The GE ® Hybrid Water Heater is affordable and designed to be 50 % more energy efficient than a standard 50 gallon electric water heater, which should help reduce carbon emissions associated with standard electric storage water heaters in the average home.

GE and Oak Ridge National Laboratory entered into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement where ORNL and GE will jointly test and market the units, which could be available in home improvement centers by late 2009.    » read more »

OAK RIDGE, Tenn., May 20, 2008 — Whether for stopping cars or bullets, titanium is the material of choice, but it has always been too expensive for all but the most specialized applications.

That could change, however, with a non-melt consolidation process being developed by Oak Ridge National Laboratory and industry partners. The new processing technique could reduce the amount of energy required and the cost to make titanium parts from powders by up to 50 percent, making it feasible to use titanium alloys for brake rotors, artificial joint replacements and, of significant interest now, armor for military vehicles.    » read more »

OAK RIDGE, Tenn., March 12, 2008 — With a proposed fiscal year 2009 budget of $20 million, the effort by the Department of Energy, Oak Ridge National Laboratory and partners to develop grid-appropriate reactors is gaining steam.

Grid-appropriate reactors are typically between 250 megawatts and 500 megawatts, making them far more affordable and practical for developing nations than the typical 1,300-megawatt commercial light-water reactor. This is in part because these nations have smaller power grids and less well-developed technical infrastructures.    » read more »

OAK RIDGE, Tenn., Jan. 9, 2008 — The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) today announced that SuperPower Inc., a Schenectady, N.Y., superconducting wire manufacturer, has signed a license agreement to use an ORNL-developed technology that can lower the cost of producing superconducting wires for more efficient transmission of electricity.    » read more »

OAK RIDGE, Tenn., Oct. 4, 2007 — A new Oak Ridge National Laboratory initiative could help avert disasters in Tennessee, Mississippi and South Carolina and also lead to more information about climate change.

The new Community and Regional Resilience Initiative (CARRI) will be implemented in Gulfport, Miss., Memphis, and Charleston, S.C., to increase "resilience" - the ability to prepare for, respond to and quickly recover from natural and man-made disasters - of the three communities.    » read more »

OAK RIDGE, Tenn., Oct. 1, 2007 — Energy is the theme of a business competition and venture forum to be held for the second year at Oak Ridge National Laboratory under a new name, Global Venture Challenge.

Formerly called Nano Nexus, the event has been broadened this year to embrace a wider suite of technologies coming out of research institutions and the private marketplace. The event will be held April 2-4, 2008, at ORNL and is designed to accelerate the discovery and development of innovative ideas, with the ultimate goal of launching new entrepreneurial ventures.    » read more »

OAK RIDGE, Tenn., Sep. 14, 2007 — Solar energy will be in the spotlight as researchers, engineers, architects and other renewable energy experts from the region convene at Oak Ridge National Laboratory Oct. 24-25 for the first Southeast Solar Summit.    » read more »