Modification of polymeric membranes via sequential infiltration synthesis (SIS) to promote membrane resilience, prolong membrane lifetime, and mitigate fouling. Membranes include an inorganic material in the surface and a polymeric core. The polymer may be removed leaving an inorganic material patterned from an initial polymeric membrane. More

A new coating process and chemical structure that provides catalytic activity, strongly enhanced by light, to both mitigate fouling and break down various organic pollutants in the process stream. More

Cellulose Nanocrystals are of considerable interest for a number of industrial applications, but commercial adoption has been impeded by the high cost of producing them at scale.

This invention is a scalable process for the production of CNCs at industrial scale, with a significant reduction in capital and operating expenses over current alternatives. This novel process is optimized for the use with high-consistency pulp, is intensified, and incorporates resonant acoustic mixing.

The invention represents the first industrial-scale process for the production of CNCs from biomass and the first use of combined bleach generation, bleaching, and hydrolysis steps.

The invention embodies the method of mixing in a single reaction vessel a cellulose pulp, an acidic solution; and sodium chlorite, wherein the sodium chlorite reacts to form a bleaching agent, chlorine dioxide, wherein bleaching and acid hydrolysis of the cellulose pulp occurs in the single reaction vessel. Additionally, the invention embodies the method of mixing with a resonant acoustic mixer a high consistency cellulose pulp with an acidic solution in a reaction vessel. Related methods, compositions, and articles of manufacture are also covered in this invention.

The invention comprises a method to automate the process of identifying grains in a polycrystalline material, and hence can process large volumes of data with enhanced accuracy.

Applications:

Such a technique is vital for the real time analysis of data from large characterization facilities such as synchrotrons but is also applicable to any 3D crystallographic data of polycrystalline samples. The algorithm  provides a method to quickly identify, track faults and quantify features that affect material properties. This is potentially of interest to:

• Defense industry (e.g., armor integrity analysis)
• Infrastructure (e.g., steel and other metal processing companies)
• Electronics industry (e.g., thin film microstructure)
• Manufacturing companies (e.g., automotive, aerospace, etc.)

The National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Program is working towards establishing a comprehensive network comprising of 500,000 electric vehicle charging stations along designated alternative fuel corridors. Through the NEVI Program, individual states will receive dedicated funding to strategically deploy electric vehicle charging infrastructure, fostering an interconnected network that facilitates data collection, ensures accessibility, and enhances overall reliability (NEVI - Environment - FHWA (dot​.gov)).

With the implementation of the NEVI Program, there arises a demand for both AC and DC chargers. To enable DC charging, a supply equipment communication controller (SECC) must be implemented in the DC charger. The SECC acts as a bridge between the DC charger power electronics and the electric vehicle’s battery management system implementing high level communication via the HomePlug GreenPHY (HPGP) power line communication (PLC) standard. The Argonne SpEC module can be configured as the main controller of an AC or DC charger.

Custom firmware has been written to support the following standardized communication protocols:

• ISO-15118-20
• ISO-15118-2
• DIN 70121
• SAE J2847/2

The Argonne SpEC module is also capable of digitally interfacing with all Tesla models via the Tesla proprietary CAN protocol via Single-Wire CAN (SWCAN) over the control pilot. 

In addition to electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) to plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) communication, the SECC also supports OCPP 1.6J for charger to charge station management system communication.  This implementation has been self-certified utilizing the OCA 1.6J OCTT.

Features

The SpEC module can be configured as both an SECC or EVCC.  Most applications to date have focused on the SECC application (both AC and DC). The controller board is based on a 500 MHz ARM Cortex-A5 CPU. The SpEC module supports the latest Linux kernels and distributions. In addition to HPGP over the pilot, the SpEC module also supports PLC over the AC mains with a 2^nd dedicated HPGP circuit. The SpEC module has all of the analog interfaces to support both SECC and EVCC deployment for both AC and DC charging. The SpEC module supports CAN, I2C, SPI, USB, SWCAN and Serial communications. The SpEC module also has a built-in AC/DC Energy meter. The controller board natively supports Ethernet communication and all other forms of IP based communication via USB adapters (Wi-Fi, Cellular, etc.). 

Current Challenges 

Coolant radiators in highway trucks are designed to transfer maximum heat at a ​“design condition.” The current standard design condition is a fully-loaded truck climbing up Baker Grade on the hottest summer day. The coolant system, including radiator, is sized to remove 100% of the required heat from the engine at the design condition without boiling the coolant, which results in a large radiator. Consequently, the radiator is oversized for most driving conditions. In some applications the radiator size is limited by the vehicle frontal area, and the engine power may be limited by the radiator size. The key factor affecting the radiator size is the heat transfer coefficient of the outside air flowing over it. If this coefficient is increased, the radiator can be more efficient. A smaller radiator may be sufficient for the same engine, or more heat could be transferred from an existing radiator, allowing for a bigger engine. 

The Solution 

Researchers at Argonne National Laboratory have made novel modifications in the design of coolant radiators that provide a better air-side heat transfer coefficient. The new design is a Hybrid Radiator-Cooling System that utilizes conventional finned air cooling under most driving conditions that would be sufficient to remove all of the required engine heat. Under extreme driving conditions, additional active evaporative cooling is employed to remove the total heat load. In this Hybrid Radiator-Cooling System, depending on the need of heat transfer, only at or very near the thermal design condition, the active heat transfer mechanism is deployed increasing the heat transfer coefficient in a conventional radiator. In detailed computational analysis, the Hybrid Radiator-Cooling System increased heat transfer rate up to 46%. 

There are two primary applications for the Hybrid Radiator-Cooling System. An existing engine can function with a smaller radiator and cooling system, or an existing radiator and cooling system can support a larger engine. Both applications are of interest to segments of the automotive industry. 

Benefits 

The Hybrid Radiator-Cooling System that:

• Delivers a 46% higher heat removal over conventional radiator. 
• Has a smaller radiator that reduces parasitic losses and provides for a more aerodynamic front design. 
• Makes it possible to equip highway trucks with higher horsepower engines.

Applications and Industries 

A better cooling system for 

• highway trucks; and 
• other diesel engines 

Development Status 

The Hybrid Radiator-Cooling System was analyzed numerically at Argonne National Laboratory in combination with a 500 horse power Cummins Class 8 diesel engine and its performance compared with the conventional cooling system. 

The Invention

A ​“smart” frequency-based charge controller (FBCC) system for electric vehicles and a method for implementing demand response and regulation services to power grids.

As plug-in hybrid electric vehicles and battery electric vehicles become more popular, they create additional demand for electricity. Their emergence also raises a host of issues regarding how, where and when car batteries should be charged—and the resulting load on the power grid.

Electric utilities strive to avoid large fluctuations in the power supply and keep the system’s frequency stable at 60 Hz. In this way, they maintain balance in supply and demand and avoid severe imbalances that could lead to a system blackout. Large numbers of cars needing a charge at the same time could potentially tax the power grid unduly.

To counter these challenges, Argonne’s system uses frequency-sensing charge controllers that provide automatic demand response and regulation service to the grid by reducing or turning the charging load completely off if the system frequency falls below given threshold, and turning it back on after the balance of supply and demand has been restored. The system minimizes the burden on the power grid and provides significant benefits to electric utilities by providing a frequency-responsive load.

Current systems that regulate electric power lie almost exclusively on the supply side, requiring utilities to constantly adjust the power output of their generating units to match consumer demand. By contrast, the Argonne-developed system operates from the demand side, relying on a highly responsive frequency-sensing charge controller. The controller continuously monitors power grid frequency and compares it to a predefined tolerance band, then applies it to a programmable logic controller. A charge controller and a switch connected to a battery charger receive respective identified control actions for managing the charger. The controller responds automatically to large drops in grid frequency by shedding the vehicle’s charging load, and resumes charging once the grid disturbance has passed. In this way, it turns the charging load of electric vehicles into a frequency-responsive load which helps regulate system frequency from the demand side and reduces the need for under-frequency shedding of other consumer loads.

Benefits

• Small, inexpensive to manufacture and easy to install
• Can be installed on a vehicle or its battery charger
• Requires no maintenance
• Operates automatically; does not need signals from the utility dispatch center 
• Permits better integration of intermittent renewable energy sources into the power grid by quickly compensating for their variability 
• Safe: not vulnerable to cyber attack or terrorist threat 
• Increases the reliability and security of the power supply and reduces the risks of power outages 

Applications and Industries 

• Power industry 
• Automotive industry 

Developmental Stage 

Ready for commercialization 

The Pt-cluster based catalysts outperformed the very best reported ODHP catalyst in both activity (by up to two orders of magnitude higher turn-over frequencies) and in selectivity. The results clearly demonstrate that highly dispersed ultra-small Pt clusters precisely localized on high-surface area supports can lead to affordable new catalysts for highly efficient and economic propene production, including considerably simplified separation of the final product. The combined GISAXS-mass spectrometry provides an excellent tool to monitor the evolution of size and shape of nanocatalyst at action under realistic conditions. Also provided are sub-nanometer gold and sub-nanometer to few nm size-selected silver catalysts which possess size dependent tunable catalytic properties in the epoxidation of alkenes.

Invented size-selected cluster deposition provides a unique tool to tune material properties by atom-by-atom fashion, which can be stabilized by protective overcoats.

Subnanometer and nanometer catalysts, method for preparing size-selected catalysts (ANL-IN-07-067)

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Presented here is a novel application of size-preselected metal-containing clusters under realistic high temperature catalytic conditions. More specifically, the invention produces and utilizes size selected sub-nanometer metal cluster-based catalysts and up to several nm size-selected nanoparticles for chemical conversions such as epoxidation and dehydrogenation.

Subnanometer and nanometer catalysts, method for preparing size-selected catalysts (ANL-IN-07-067B)

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The invention provides a catalytic electrode for converting molecules, the electrode comprising a predetermined number of single catalytic sites supported on a substrate. Also provided is a method for oxidizing water comprising contacting the water with size selected catalyst clusters. The invention also provides a method for reducing an oxidized moiety, the method comprising contacting the moiety with size selected catalyst clusters at a predetermined voltage potential.

The methods utilize in-situ reaction of kerogen involving liquid phase chemistry at ambient temperatures at pressures for the subsurface shale formation. These methods rely on chemically modifying the shale-bound kerogen to render it mobile using metal particulate catalysts. In the methods disclosed herein a fluid comprising metal is provided to the subsurface shale formation comprising kerogen in an inorganic matrix. A reducing agent is provided to the subsurface shale formation. The kerogen is converted by contacting the kerogen with a metal particulate catalyst formed from the metal; and a mobile kerogen-based product is formed. At least a portion of the mobile kerogen-based product is recovered. The kerogen-derived product can be upgraded to provide commercial products.