Projects

The effect of trace element content on the rate of biotic and abiotic pyrite oxidation

Lead Institution

University of California, Riverside

Principal Investigator

Timothy Lyons

Project type

Exploratory Research

The oxidation of pyrite is a common source of toxic trace elements and acid generation in many contaminated systems. A key component in understanding the potential threat to ecosystems and possible…

Controlling topotactic phase transitions in oxide thin films

Lead Institution

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Principal Investigator

Yingge Du

Project type

Exploratory Research

The objective of this research is to understand, predict, and control the phase transitions occurring in structurally ordered thin films to enable the rational design, synthesis, and utilization of…

Towards Complete Characterization of Gas-Phase Organic Compounds Emitted from Biomass Burning

Lead Institution

University of California, Riverside

Principal Investigator

Kelley Barsanti

Project type

Exploratory Research

Biomass burning emits teragrams (1012 g) of gaseous organic compounds to the atmosphere. In-plume chemistry leads to the formation of secondary pollutants and short-lived climate forcers, including…

Water condensation in unsaturated mineral-organic assemblages

Lead Institution

Umea University

Principal Investigator

Jean-Francois Boily

Project type

Exploratory Research

This objective of this work is to predict condensation of atmospheric water vapor in the vadose zone of organic-bearing soils. It will primarily develop knowledge on the formation of condensed forms…

Infrared Nanoscopic Imaging of Structural and Globular Proteins

Lead Institution

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Principal Investigator

Joanna Atkin

Project type

Exploratory Research

This work uses infrared near-field optical spectroscopy to investigate the secondary structure of fiber-forming and globular proteins with nanoscale spatial resolution. These protein classes are…

Life in the deep terrestrial subsurface: microbial metabolism before and after shale gas extraction

Lead Institution

Colorado State University

Principal Investigator

Michael Wilkins

Project type

Exploratory Research

Black shales underlay much of the continental U.S., and are a critical component of current and future energy resources. To extract hydrocarbons from these formations, shales are hydraulically…

Understanding enzymatic depolymerization of lignin

Lead Institution

Sandia National Laboratory

Principal Investigator

Michael Kent

Project type

Exploratory Research

Producing fuels and chemicals from lignocellulosic biomass is a promising technology to meet the nation's goal of a secure and sustainable energy future. Valorization of lignin is a key…

Identifying the mechanism of bacterial extracellular electron transfer via conductive pili proteins

Lead Institution

Yale University

Principal Investigator

Nikhil Malvankar

Project type

Exploratory Research

Microbial metabolism plays an important role in the global cycling of carbon, nutrients, and metals. Recent discovery of microorganisms sharing energy using direct electrical connections might…

Speciation of trivalent actinides and lanthanides in the ALSEP solvent extraction system

Lead Institution

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Principal Investigator

Tatiana Levitskaia

Project type

Exploratory Research

Nuclear energy is a clean, carbon neutral energy source that can mitigate the effects of climate change in the coming decades by replacing fossil fuel energy sources. Political and societal…

Oxidation of lead sulfide surfaces in the presence of phosphate: nanoparticle formation.

Lead Institution

Georgia Institute of Technology

Principal Investigator

Andrew Stack

Project type

Exploratory Research

The understanding of galena (PbS) oxidation in the presence of phosphate containing solutions is important because lead contaminated soils and mine wastes are often treated with phosphate as a…

TEM and SEM investigation of non-pathogenic bacterial cultures.

Lead Institution

Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory

Principal Investigator

Alice Dohnalkova

Project type

Exploratory Research

Trasmission and scanning electron microscopy is a key element in investigations of the morphology and reduction products that occur during exposure of bacteria to various experimental environments…

Variable temperature XRD studies of Ge/SiO2/Si system

Lead Institution

Motorola

Principal Investigator

Yong Liang

Project type

Exploratory Research

This user proposal focuses on using the variable temperature X-ray diffraction capability in EMSL to investigate temperature dependent lattice parameters of a semiconductor system. Specifically, we…

Observations of Scytonema-colonized and
non-colonized fiber cement roofing shingles.

Lead Institution

Lab/Cor, Inc.

Principal Investigator

Barbara Reine

Project type

Exploratory Research

Fiber cement roofing shingles colonized with Scytonema sp. and other cyanobacteria are failing. One mechanism proposed to explain the observed deterioration is the breakdown of the cementicious…

Single particle analysis of smoke aerosols during the Summer 2002 Yosemite Aerosol Characterization Study

Lead Institution

Colorado State University

Principal Investigator

Jenny Hand

Project type

Exploratory Research

The role of smoke aerosols from biomass burning in visibility degradation is poorly understood because few studies exist that have fully characterized their physical, optical, chemical and…

Determining Protein Interactions Involving Essential Genes of Unknown Function

Lead Institution

University of Delaware

Principal Investigator

Mark Blenner

Project type

Exploratory Research

The DOE's goal of advancing biological and environmental research for the development of renewable and sustainable sources of biofuels and bio-based chemicals from biomass relies on our ability…

Protemic Analysis of Naturally Ocurring Methane Oxidizing Archaeal Communities

Lead Institution

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Principal Investigator

Edward DeLong

Project type

Exploratory Research

Microbial mediated anaerobic methane oxidation (AOM) in marine sediments represents a significant but poorly understood carbon sink throughout the world's oceans. Mounting geochemical and…

The composition, transport, and fate of soil organic matter and pyrogenic carbon after prescribed burning

Lead Institution

University of Georgia

Principal Investigator

Rebecca Abney

Project type

Exploratory Research

Prescribed burning has exponentially increased in the United States over the past five years due to growing research into its use for land management and recent changes in legislation. While the…

Synthesis and Characterization at Atomic Level of Novel Nanocrystalline Metal Oxide Structures

Lead Institution

Nanjing Normal University

Principal Investigator

Zhongqing Yu

Project type

Exploratory Research

This project will focus on two objectives: 1) controllable formation of cooper oxide (Cu2O) quantum dots (QD) using oxygen plasma assisted molecular beam epitaxy (OPA MBE); 2) analysis of grown…

Characterizing the impact of soil phosphorus on soil organic matter stabilization

Lead Institution

Ohio University

Principal Investigator

Jared DeForest

Project type

Exploratory Research

Phosphorus (P) is an essential nutrient for life, but its role in mediating important biogeochemical cycles is often overlooked or misunderstood due to the emphasis on carbon (C) and nitrogen (N)…

Biomolecular linkages between detrital inputs and soil organic matter decomposition across temperate forest regions

Lead Institution

Oregon State University

Principal Investigator

Kate Lajtha

Project type

Exploratory Research

Limited knowledge of the molecular mechanisms behind soil organic matter (SOM) stabilization and destabilization processes impedes improving models of earth systems and global carbon dynamics, as…