News By Location

Researchers at the US Department of Energy's Idaho National Laboratory, in partnership with three other science and engineering powerhouses, reached a major domestic milestone relating to nuclear fuel performance on March 8.

Researchers at Montana State University and Idaho National Laboratory embarked on one of the first comprehensive, long-term characterizations of hot pool ecosystems in Yellowstone National Park. The results help shed light on how viruses survive in hostile surroundings, migrate from pool to pool, and may help control hot pool environments.

Along with researchers from three Idaho universities, geologists from Idaho National Laboratory (INL) in Idaho Falls will test how well the volcanic rocks abundant below the Columbia and Snake river plains store carbon dioxide. Researchers from INL, the University of Idaho, the Boise State University, the Idaho State University in Pocatello and the Battelle Pacific Northwest Division in Richland, Wash., are now making preparations to inject the gas into the subterranean volcanic basalt rock and monitor whether the rock can hold it.

To help a NASA rover eventually hunt for life on Mars, scientists are writing a chemical guidebook to aid the search for extraterrestrial life.

The United States is moving forward decisively on its commitment to destroy thousands of chemical munitions, thanks in part, to the efforts of engineers, scientists and technicians at the U.S. Department of Energy's Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory.

INEEL's tests of remotely-operated unmanned aerial vehicles has caught the interest of NASA scientists and U.S. Forest Service personnel. They are looking at the possibility of using these small, robotic planes to support fire fighting. The planes would be equipped with sensors or cameras for surveillance. The information they provide could help detect forest fires and help the Forest Service make decisions about where to place firefighters and equipment.

Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory Director Paul Kearns and INEEL Chief Scientist Richard Jacobsen have jointly announced five INEEL scientists and engineers honored as Laboratory Fellows.

Researchers at the US Department of Energy's Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory and Ceramatec, Inc. of Salt Lake City are reporting a significant development in their efforts to help the nation advance toward a clean hydrogen economy.

In the steamy waters of Yellowstone National Park's hot springs lives a type of bacterium that could help make industrial bleaching cheaper and more environmentally friendly. Scientists have found Thermus brockianus bacteria produce a hardy enzyme that can break down hydrogen peroxide in industrial wastewater, producing only harmless oxygen and water as byproducts. Most important, the so-called extremozyme endures harsh industrial conditions better than currently available alternatives and lasts thousands of times longer.

Chemicals buried underground don't always sit still. Sometimes, hazardous waste can travel out of landfills, wandering through soil layers near aquifers. Technology exists to monitor landfill perimeters, but scientists would prefer to keep an eye on contaminants long before they leave the area. Now with a new underground probing system from the Department of Energy's Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, scientists can safely and more accurately sample and monitor soil in hazardous waste sites.