The National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) are teaming up to optimize coal gasifier operation through neutron imaging — an effort that could lead to more efficient energy production than that of conventional methods. The collaboration brings together NETL’s expertise in fossil energy and computational modeling with ORNL’s capabilities in neutron imaging. The research team will use neutron imagining techniques to observe coal gasifier behavior during operation and then validate results from computer-simulated models used for design and optimization. Gasification is the process that converts bio- or fossil-based feedstocks into syngas, which can be used for highly efficient energy and chemical feedstock production. Syngas, composed primarily of carbon monoxide and hydrogen, can be used in a variety of ways. It can aid in the production of fuel and chemical feedstocks, and CO2 removed from syngas prior to combustion helps enable carbon capture and sequestration. This makes gasification a critical technology in the search for clean energy supplies and domestic energy security.

At NETL, maintaining responsible stewardship of the environment is crucial to the Lab’s mission of finding innovative solutions to America’s energy problems. Earth Day, celebrated since 1970, aligns closely with NETL’s vision while emphasizing the importance of recycling, conserving energy and improving air quality. Every year, NETL hosts an annual poster contest encouraging elementary school students at schools near NETL’s sites in Albany, Oregon; Morgantown, West Virginia; and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to showcase their favorite ways to protect the environment. This year, students were asked to design their posters around the theme, “Protect our Earth’s Plants, Care for its Creatures,” in recognition of this planet-centric day. We have shared the first-, second- and third-place winning entries, as well as honorable mentions, at each grade level here. The top entries are also displayed at U.S. Department of Energy headquarters in Washington, D.C., and all NETL sites through May 10, 2019.

NETL’s world-renowned computer modeling capabilities are front and center in a pivotal collaboration with West Virginia University (WVU). Computational modeling is a critical tool in technology development, and the forward-looking efforts by the NETL-WVU research team are improving the accuracy of fossil-fuel energy systems models — work that will ultimately help provide the nation with cost-effective, sustainable and efficient clean energy. The NETL-led team is investigating gasification, a promising technology that can convert fossil fuels like coal into a highly useful mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide called synthesis gas or syngas. Because it can be used directly as fuel and as a precursor to an array of chemicals and products, syngas could become a major game changer in the fossil fuel industry. The NETL-WVU team is seeking to understand how to optimize gasification and syngas production. 

NETL is bringing uncommon skills, equipment, analysis and communication tools to the work of a national laboratory consortia working to understand and improve how biomass feedstock integrates with combustion processes in biorefineries. NETL Director Brian Anderson, Ph.D., announced that the Laboratory, one of 17 Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratories, has officially joined the DOE Biomass Energy Technology Office’s Feedstock-Conversion Interface Consortia Research program. Other consortia members include Argonne, Sandia, Los Alamos, Berkeley, Idaho, National Renewable Energy, Oak Ridge, and the Pacific Northwest national laboratories. According to DOE, a feedstock is any renewable, biological material that can be used directly as a fuel or converted to another form of fuel or energy product. Biomass feedstocks are the plant and algal materials that can be used to create fuels like ethanol, butanol, biodiesel, and other hydrocarbon fuels. Biomass feedstocks include corn starch, sugarcane juice, crop residues such as corn and sugarcane bagasse, purpose-grown grass crops, and woody plants. They are considered renewable resources.

NETL is using powerful computational tools to identify advanced membrane materials that can cut carbon capture costs to less than $50 per metric ton, an achievement that will boost the viability of the nation’s coal-fired power fleet to meet America’s growing energy needs. Polymer-based membranes provide a simple means of separating carbon dioxide (CO2) from post-combustion flue gas to meet federal emissions requirements at coal-fired power plants. However, identifying optimal materials that offer high permeability and selectivity at an affordable cost is a challenge, with millions of possibilities. NETL partnered with the University of Pittsburgh to investigate the use of mixed matrix membranes (MMMs), which incorporate porous nanoparticles known as metal-organic frameworks into the matrix of a sturdy polymer to enhance its capabilities. The team — led by NETL’s Jan Steckel, Ph.D., who worked with Pitt’s Chris Wilmer, Ph.D., and Lab colleagues Olukayode Ajayi, Ph.D., and Samir Budhathoki — modeled more than 1 million possible MMMs to evaluate their properties and estimate the associated cost of carbon capture.

In a cost-saving computer modeling effort, the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) assisted in solving a critical technical issue at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Environmental Management (EM) Integrated Waste Treatment Unit (IWTU), preventing a long-term delay of start-up operations. IWTU is an Energy Department facility designed to treat 900,000 gallons of radioactive liquid waste by heating and essentially drying it into a solid granular material for long-term storage. The heat required in this process is created by a piece of equipment called a denitration mineralization reformer (DMR), in which coal, steam, air and oxygen interact. Because this mixture contains multiple phases of matter (i.e., solids and gases), an understanding of multiphase flow is critical for design and troubleshooting. “NETL is a globally recognized leader in multiphase flow,” said NETL researcher Chris Guenther, who worked on the project. “So, when IWTU encountered an issue with their DMR, they called on the Lab’s expertise.”

North Allegheny Senior High School Team 1 (Wexford), and Marshall Middle School (Wexford) claimed victory at the 28th annual Western Pennsylvania Regional Science Bowl (WPASB), organized and co-sponsored by NETL. The high school and middle school events were held Feb. 23 and March 2, 2019, respectively, at the Community College of Allegheny County’s (CCAC) South Campus, in West Mifflin, Pa. About 40 teams from high schools and 32 teams from middle schools in 19 regional counties throughout western Pennsylvania participated in the competition. The WPASB tested students’ knowledge of math and science with round-robin and double-elimination competition rounds. This year’s WPASB competition included welcoming remarks from NETL Director Brian Anderson for the high school competition and NETL Deputy Director Randy Gentry for the middle school competition, as well as representatives from CCAC.

Registration is now open for two workshops hosted at NETL-Pittsburgh for teachers in April. NETL’s educational workshops provide middle and high school teachers with tools and resources to bring science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) into the classroom. These annual gatherings serve to “educate the educator” and inspire the next generation of innovators through fun activities teachers can take back to share with their students. The Light, Color and Spectroscopy for Kids workshop, being held April 4, 2019, explores a wide variety of activities for educators to use to assist their students in understanding important concepts about light and color. The two-day workshop is held in partnership with the Spectroscopy Society of Pittsburgh, and teachers receive most of the materials needed to perform the activities in their own classrooms.

Inspiring the next generation of scientists, engineers and other STEM professionals means showing children and youth how science and math form the foundation of the world around us. It means demonstrating to middle and high school students how these fields are fun and fascinating, and it means welcoming college and graduate students into the lab to advance their research skills and instill a passion for lifelong learning. NETL researchers are proud to share their expertise and STEM enthusiasm with students in our local areas. Here are few examples of how NETL scientists and engineers are making a difference in their communities.

Developing turbines and other advanced energy systems that can operate at extremely high temperatures boosts efficiency, thereby cutting operating costs and offering potential savings for consumers. Monitoring is critical to ensure that these complex systems run safely and effectively, with minimal downtime; however, the necessary ultra-high temperatures also introduce challenges in developing sensors that can withstand such harsh environments. A recently completed NETL-managed project with Colorado-based Sporian Microsystems, Inc., produced smart temperature sensors that can operate up to 1800 degrees Celsius as well as pressure sensors that operate at temperatures up to 1600 degrees Celsius for improved performance in monitoring gas turbines, combustion systems and more. Extensive testing in relevant environments shows that the developed sensors offer the potential for greater durability, functionality and reliability at a more affordable price than existing alternatives.