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Two Argonne inventions have won R&D 100 awards, given annually byR&D Magazine to the 100 most significant technical products of the year.
The two inventions are a device to improve efficiency and performance of diesel engines, developed by Ramesh Poola and Raj Sekar (both ES), and an improved device for accomplishing a standard chemical procedure, developed by Joe Gregar and Ken Anderson (both CHM).
The clean diesel device is an energy and environmental breakthrough that should enable diesel engines to operate more cleanly and efficiently. The new technique controls fuel and oxygen levels in diesel engines, reduces particulate and nitrogen oxide emissions and increases power. Nitrogen oxide -- NOx -- is a precursor to ozone and contributes significantly to smog.
Diesel engines are the most efficient internal combustion engines, but the smoke and particulate emissions have prevented them from becoming a "clean" propulsion system. The new technology is expected to be more cost effective than alternative exhaust control systems currently being developed.
The work was conducted with partners Electro-Motive Division of General Motors and the research arm of the Association of American Railroads.
The other invention, called the "Gregar extractor," promises to render obsolete a standard device used in virtually every high school, industrial and university chemistry laboratory in the world.
The new device performs one of the chemistry lab's most basic day-to-day activities: It extracts chemicals from a solid and places them in a liquid, the form needed for most chemical analyses. And it does so more efficiently, more reliably, and usually faster than the Soxhlet extractor, which has been the chemist's workhorse for this task since the middle of the 19th century.
The Gregar extractor also eliminates many of the operational problems associated with the Soxhlet extractor and performs additional chemical extractions. The Gregar extractor uses a porous glass "frit" instead of filter paper and replaces the cyclic siphoning action with a continuous solvent flow.
In addition, the glass device's arms have been redesigned, and two valves have been added that allow the Gregar extractor to perform extractions that are impossible with a Soxhlet extractor.
Six Argonne-West employees were recognized in April for their contributions in making the Idaho Hispanic Youth Symposium a success.
John Sackett, deputy associate laboratory director for Argonne-West, awarded Terry Brooks (RPS), Jesse Ruiz (OD), Carlos Martinez (OD), Pete Italiano (RPS), Rigo Gonzales (ED) and Bryan Forsmann (ED) with certificates of appreciation. A special award was presented to Paul Martinez (OD) for his years of service to the symposium.
This is the tenth year of this annual program, in which Hispanic high school students from around Idaho participate and are encouraged to stay in school.
This year, 300 students participated in seminars and meetings with college representatives in helping to plan their futures. Sackett attended this event and delivered the official welcoming speech to the students.
More than 300 students and faculty members from colleges and universities all over the nation gathered at Argonne Friday and Saturday, July 16-17, for the first-ever conference on the educational opportunities available to them through DOE's Energy Research Undergraduate Laboratory Fellowship (ERULF) Program.
"I'm pleased Argonne is hosting this conference because it's important to let students know about the unique opportunities available for participating in cutting-edge research at laboratories like Argonne," said Argonne Interim Director Frank Fradin.
"One of DOE's important goals in sponsoring this conference is to involve an ever more diverse group of students and faculty," said Sam Rodriguez, DOE assistant director of science.
In his speech to the conferees, DOE Chicago Operations Office Manager Robert L. San Martin said, "I hope that many of you here today will be excited and stimulated by the opportunities for involvement in cutting-edge science at our laboratories. I hope you will be motivated to join us in the adventure of scientific discovery within the DOE system."
The two-day conference allowed students to explore research areas they could pursue through student-mentor appointments at DOE laboratories.
The conference featured tours of Argonne facilities and presentations by more than 100 scientists and their undergraduate students from Argonne, Brookhaven, Lawrence Berkeley, Oak Ridge, Pacific Northwest, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.
Current ERULF Program students held poster sessions on their own summer research. "Through this internship, I have gained skills needed for all future work in my field," said Chad Eller, a current ERULF student at the conference. "This experience is good preparation for future work with the DOE."
During the science and educational policy forum, students heard from panelists representing the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Association of Women in Science, National Academy of Sciences, the Science Service and the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Students.
Following the forums, students attended workshops on choosing graduate schools or careers, and faculty attended a workshop on leveraging federal resources.
Students came from undergraduate majors in science, mathematics, engineering, technology and computer sciences. Faculty came from academic institutions that receive less than one million dollars in federal research and development.
"Telepresence microscopy" technology pioneered at Argonne may help save the life of a researcher with a medical emergency at the South Pole.
A female staff member at Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station discovered a lump in her breast but cannot be evacuated until the long Antarctic winter ends in October. It is mid-winter at the South Pole, with temperatures reaching minus 65 degrees C (minus 85 F) and 24-hour darkness that precludes aircraft landings. The station is operated by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF).
Nestor Zaluzec (MSD), who heads Argonne's TelePresence Microscopy Project, was contacted by Antarctic Support Associates, a private company that contracts with National Science Foundation to provide support at the station. The company was seeking advice on equipment needed to set up a "telepresence site" so that tissue specimens can be examined microscopically in near real-time by experts in the United States. The necessary equipment had to be air-dropped in a 6,000-mile flight that required aerial refueling.
Zaluzec, a research scientist, has studied microstructural characterization using both electron and optical techniques for more than 20 years. He developed several original techniques for determining the elemental composition of materials and continues to work on new technologies and instruments for materials characterization.
His most recent research centers on Argonne's Advanced Analytical Electron Microscope and telepresence microscopy, in which scientists can conduct microscopy studies via the World Wide Web. He is co-principal investigator in the Materials MicroCharacterization Collaboratory (MMC), which allows researchers to control the microscope, interact with other, geographically distant researchers and consult with experts while conducting research.
"I ended up spending most of a day collecting information and talking to a coordinator at Antarctic Support Associates who was frantically trying to get the right equipment together," Zaluzec said. He provided advice on microscopes, high-resolution digital cameras, video conferencing software and computer hardware which would be suitable to the task and rugged enough to travel to the pole and survive an air drop.
The July 11 delivery comprised two complete sets of supplies and equipment, in case one was lost to a parachute malfunction or dropped so far from the station that the extreme cold damaged the contents before they could be brought inside.
Station personnel will assemble the instruments, prepare samples and then transmit images via the Internet to a pathologist in the United States. The pathologist will view the samples, diagnose the medical problem and then advise the South Pole team on what steps to undertake.
"I'm on call, so to speak, if they have problems getting any of the microscopy gear running, but there shouldn't be a problem if everything arrived in one piece," Zaluzec said.
The woman, who was not identified, is part of a 41-member team maintaining the station and conducting experiments in atmospheric science, astronomy and astrophysics. She also happens to be the lone doctor at the base, which has a simple clinic.
For more information on the TelePresence Microscopy Project, see the Web site at http://tpm.amc.anl.gov.
-- Dave Jacqué
This year's Argonne Combined Appeal raffle raised $2,699 for the laboratory's annual charity drive. Remaining money was contributed to various charities and emergency relief funds.
Winners were announced at the Argonne-East employee picnic. The grand prize, two United Airline round trip tickets, went to Linda Wang (OPA). "For someone who has never won anything in her life, this is a nice way to start," said Wang.
Other winners were:
Jen Logan (CMT) and Andrea Robinson (EQO) -
10-bucket driving range cards from Village Links
of Glen Ellyn.
Debi O'Rourke (EEST) - set of nails from Nails
Galore.
Cynthia Powell (PFS) - $40 gift certificate to
Meson Sabika.
Greg Robinson (DIS) and Bob Kampwirth (MSD) - free
massages from Quality Life Center.
Bert Toppel (RA) - Weber Go-Anywhere Charcoal
Grill.
Jack Ditmars (EA) - one season ticket to the
Theatre of Western Springs.
Orlando Auciello (MSD) and Lisa Reyes (ESH) -
tickets to Second City.
Dawn Howard (DIS) - $25 gift certificate to Sure
Fire Auto Parts.
Anthony Gorski (ASD), Mike Hall, Thomas Johnson
(PFS) and Elane Streets (CMT) - $25 gift
certificates to Giordano's.
Sandy Classen (LEG) - $25 gift certificate to
Maggiano's Little Italy.
Mary Stanley (CMT) _ dinner for two at Traverso's.
George Vukovich (DIS)- $20 gift certificate to
Lemont Street Café.
Sally Peters (OCF-PRO) - $20 gift certificate to
Barnes & Noble.
Karen Czerwiec (OCF-PRO) - tickets to a White Sox
game.
Karen McClatchy (OCF), Doris Huff (CMT) and Dana
Abbas-Zahraee (OCF-ACT) - music CD gift
certificates.
Dave Miller (EAD), Cathy Eyberger (ASD), Brad
Micklich (TD), Marianne Nielsen (XFD) and Jeff
Rest (ET) - $10 gift certificates to Nick's
Tavern.
Don Graczyk (CMT) - $10 gift certificate to Early
Riser Bread and Bakery Café.
