Advancing nuclear science: The contributions of INL’s Russell L. Heath Distinguished Postdoctoral Associates
Lisa Scott, an INL postdoc administrative assistant, grew up next to Russell L. Heath. “Our backyards touched,” Scott said. “As a young girl, I never knew the extent of Russ’ education and contributions to the INL research. He was always a kind, genuine neighbor and family friend. He had a talent for restoring old Model […]
Driving into the future: Four decades and counting of battery research
Known as the nation’s nuclear laboratory, Idaho National Laboratory is not as widely recognized for its leadership in battery research. Yet, INL experts have conducted energy storage systems research for four decades of the lab’s 75-year history, almost as long as the nation has invested in electric vehicle technologies. In 1976, Congress passed the Electric […]
The old, the new and the industry: Worlds collide through chemical separation
In July 2022, amidst a mechanical hum and complicated array of equipment filled with technicolor liquids, newly hired chemical engineering intern Rachel Umpleby learned, hands-on, about solvent extraction at one of Idaho National Laboratory’s (INL) many pilot programs. What’s more, she was learning from experienced aqueous separations and radiochemistry scientists, whose industry connections put them […]
Idaho’s Wireless Test Bed provides 20 years of service to the nation
In early 2006, James Hanneman was 18 months into his first job at Idaho National Laboratory’s Wireless Test Bed when his program manager asked him to attend a trade show. With two hours’ notice, he hopped on a plane to San Jose, California, to learn about wireless “backhaul technologies” for cellular communications. INL’s test bed […]
Lab program offers free expertise to Idaho Falls Power
Utilities with hydroelectric power generation need solid data for day-to-day operations and long-term planning. So, when managers at Idaho Falls Power wanted to explore the potential of their power generation assets, they turned to Idaho National Laboratory for help. Because of location, the pairing is a natural one. Idaho Falls Power, an electrical utility owned […]
Idaho National Laboratory selects new deputy laboratory director, chief research officer
Todd Combs, a highly respected leader and seasoned national laboratory expert, was selected this week as Idaho National Laboratory’s next deputy laboratory director for science and technology and chief research officer. Combs replaces Marianne Walck, who left INL earlier this year to become the laboratory director at the National Energy Technology Laboratory. Combs’ hiring follows […]
GAIN vouchers at INL support two dramatically different industry projects
With assistance from the Department of Energy’s Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear (GAIN) voucher program, Idaho National Laboratory researchers are lending their expertise to two very different companies. In one corner is Dow, the giant plastics and chemicals manufacturer, that is exploring using microreactors to reduce carbon emissions. In the other corner, Curio Solutions, […]
The true cost: Deploying electric vehicle charging infrastructure nationwide
When President Biden signed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law in 2021, he announced a goal to install 500,000 new electric vehicle chargers across the nation by 2030. The Department of Energy’s Vehicle Technologies Office has tasked the experts at Idaho National Laboratory to answer big questions surrounding this goal. One of those questions involves determining the […]
Idaho National Laboratory seeks small hydropower utility for case study
Idaho National Laboratory (INL) is seeking a hydropower utility to collaborate on a case study, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO), to understand how small hydroelectric plants operating at 10 megawatts or less can be upgraded to provide emergency power to critical loads (e.g., hospitals and emergency service providers) […]
Family connection: EBR-I visit leads to unexpected emotions for atomic pioneer’s grandson
History has a way of sneaking up on a person. In Cuyler Cameron’s case, it was in the summer of 2022, when he was on a road trip from Colorado to Oregon. Westbound on U.S. Highway 20, he saw the Idaho National Laboratory sign, which made him think immediately of his grandfather, Reid Anderson Cameron […]
Rigby students compete in ‘hopper challenge’
Two teams from Rigby High School competed March 29 in the first Pathways Student Challenge, sponsored by the Department of Energy’s Feedstock Conversion Interface Consortium and supported with grants from Battelle Energy Alliance. The student teams were given a budget of $2,000 to design and build machines that could continuously grind biomass feedstocks like wood […]
Seaborg Institute: Highlighting our postdoc talents
Glenn T. Seaborg (1912-1999) was an influential American chemist most renowned for discovering plutonium in 1940. He also helped produce and isolate several additional synthetic transuranium elements and defined the actinide series. Seaborg received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1951, had an element named after him (Seaborgium), and chaired the Atomic Energy Commission. Importantly, […]
From Florida floods to Idaho desert: Understanding impacts of flood damage on vehicle batteries
Out on the Idaho National Laboratory desert Site sits an electric vehicle (EV) enthusiast’s dream: nine high-performance, battery-powered cars including four Tesla models (S, 3, X and Y); a Porsche Taycan and a Lucid Air. Each car boasts some of the most advanced EV technology available, allowing drivers to accelerate from zero to 60 mph […]
Lab, industry partnership leads to tech success
Twin Falls entrepreneur and inventor Mark Melni is on top of the world. The U.S. Department of Energy selected his small business, Melni Technologies, to receive funding to redesign and develop its medium-voltage power cable connector, which can make underground electrical repairs faster, safer and more reliable. Melni’s business was one of 12 companies nationwide […]
From copper wires to supercomputers
Telecommunications in eastern Idaho today are vastly different from how they were in 1949, the year the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) founded the National Reactor Testing Station, now Idaho National Laboratory. The days of copper wire, switchboard exchanges and phone numbers beginning with names (JAckson for Idaho Falls, SUnset for Blackfoot, SHerwood for Rigby) have […]
Externally Funded Internships: Sponsoring for tomorrow’s workforce
Idaho National Laboratory welcomes hundreds of college and graduate interns every year. In the competitive field of scientific research, externally funded internship programs have emerged as vital sources of funding support. One example is the Department of Energy Office of Science, which plays a key role in attracting college and graduate students to contribute to […]
Diverse collaborations expand employees’ professional development
For 75 years, Idaho National Laboratory has been at the forefront of nuclear energy and technology research. This research includes the nuclear fuel cycle, a multistep process that covers the entire life cycle of nuclear fuel, from mining uranium for use in a reactor to the safe management and disposal of spent, or used, fuel. […]
Idaho National Laboratory prepares to operate its first new reactors in 50 years
In 1951, the desert of eastern Idaho hosted Experimental Breeder Reactor-I, the first nuclear reactor to generate a usable amount of electricity. Four years later, researchers followed that success with BORAX-III, the first reactor to power an American city. The next two decades saw a flurry of research and development at that desert site — […]
An international resurgence of female representation in nuclear
Women played an instrumental role in shaping the field of nuclear science. Nobel Prize-winner Marie Curie was part of a team that discovered radioactivity. Katharine Way, a leading scientist on the Manhattan Project, analyzed and interpreted foundational nuclear data. Physicist Chien-Shiung Wu tested and disproved a widely accepted atomic science theory. Despite these historical contributions, […]
Alyssa Spence takes reins at the Advanced Test Reactor Critical Facility
Throughout its 75 years, Idaho National Laboratory’s ranks have been filled with multi-generational family members, many of them cases of the apple not falling far from the tree. For Rob and Alyssa Spence, however, the fact that both work at INL’s Advanced Test Reactor today is where the coincidence ends. When Alyssa was getting ready […]