(Press-News.org) Buildings - The mirage effect
A team of researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory has developed a method to detect and measure air leaking from a building's walls and roof that is quicker, cheaper and less disruptive to occupants.
Current air leak detection options, such as using a blower door and smoke or infrared thermography, are costly and invasive. ORNL's method is conducted from outside, using an imaging technique to visualize the flow of air leaks and calculate the volumetric flow of air based on the refraction effects imaged by cameras.
"Similar to a mirage over a black top road in the middle of summer, which looks fuzzy because air above the road is hotter than surrounding air, a building's wall becomes blurry when indoor air meets outdoor air," ORNL's Philip Boudreaux said. "Refraction imaging allows us to see this."
Correcting excess air leakage can decrease energy consumption in buildings and reduce potential for mold growth.
Media contact: Jennifer Burke, 865.414.6835, burkejj@ornl.gov
Image: https://www.ornl.gov/sites/default/files/2021-05/buildings_giphy-4.gif
Caption: ORNL's non-disruptive air leak detector captures air escaping from exterior walls and uses refractive imaging to calculate the leakage flow rate. Credit: ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy
Microbes - Carbon to chemicals
A research team led by Oak Ridge National Laboratory bioengineered a microbe to efficiently turn waste into itaconic acid, an industrial chemical used in plastics and paints.
Producing itaconic acid currently involves fungi feeding on relatively pure sugars, which can be expensive. In ORNL's demonstration, the team used lignin, a waste product from biorefineries and paper mills, to grow the bacterium Pseudomonas putida for potentially cheaper itaconic production.
The trick was to separate the microbes' growth phase from itaconic production using dynamic controls. ORNL designed and deployed a biosensor that triggers the metabolic pathway for itaconic acid production only after the microbes consume all the nitrogen that fuels their growth.
"This technology could provide additional revenue for biorefineries by turning lignin into a high-value chemical," ORNL's Adam Guss said. "One strain achieved nearly 90% of theoretical yield during the production phase and could be further optimized. We can also apply these methods to a range of carbon waste streams."
Media contact: Kim Askey, 865.576.2841, askeyka@ornl.gov
Image: https://www.ornl.gov/sites/default/files/2021-05/Putida_forAdam_2clr.jpg
Caption: Scientists genetically engineered bacteria for itaconic acid production, creating dynamic controls that separate microbial growth and production phases for increased efficiency and acid yield. Credit: NREL
Manufacturing - Recycling goes large
Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers, in collaboration with Cincinnati Inc., demonstrated the potential for using multimaterials and recycled composites in large-scale applications by 3D printing a mold that replicated a single facet of a precast concrete tool.
The team added a dual feed system to the Big Area Additive Manufacturing machine that enabled printing with multiple materials in a single build using one extruder. Within seven hours, the large 3D printer produced a 400-pound mold measuring 10 feet in length made of recycled carbon fiber reinforced thermoplastic and syntactic foam.
Large-scale printing with multimaterials and recycled composites is anticipated to lower the cost of tooling and open opportunities for printing structures with lightweight cores and tailored properties.
"New mechanical responses can be achieved with multimaterial printing such as soft and rigid segments within a part and impact resistant structures," said ORNL's Vidya Kishore.
Media contact: Jennifer Burke, 865.414.6835, burkejj@ornl.gov
Image: https://www.ornl.gov/sites/default/files/2021-05/baam_recycling_gif.gif
Caption: ORNL, in collaboration with Cincinnati Inc., used the Big Area Additive Manufacturing machine to 3D print a mold made of recycled thermoplastic composite and syntactic foam, demonstrating the potential for multimaterials in large-scale applications. Credit: ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy
INFORMATION:
BURLINGTON, VT -- In the aftermath of George Floyd's 2020 murder by former police officer Derek Chauvin, many families may find themselves actively engaging in--or uncomfortably fumbling around--discussions about race. For white parents looking to clearly communicate antiracist ideologies with their preadolescent children, a new study offers some insight.
"There's a difference between saying race "shouldn't" matter and race "doesn't" matter," explains Jamie Abaied, professor of developmental psychology at the University of Vermont and lead author of the study, ...
CHICAGO--May 3, 2021-- Patients with one or more health conditions are more likely to be screened for colorectal cancer than those without comorbidities, according to new research in the Journal of Osteopathic Medicine. However, patients with five or more health conditions are also less likely to be screened than patients with two to four health conditions.
Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in the U.S. resulting in more than 53,000 deaths each year. Regular colorectal screenings, whether colonoscopy or at-home stool test, ...
Chestnut Hill, MA (5/3/2021) -- The billion-year-old fossil of an organism, exquisitely preserved in the Scottish Highlands, reveals features of multicellularity nearly 400 million years before the biological trait emerged in the first animals, according to a new report in the journal Current Biology by an international team of researchers, including Boston College paleobotanist Paul K. Strother.
The discovery could be the "missing link" in the evolution of animals, according to the team, which included scientists from the U.S., United Kingdom, and Australia. The microfossil, discovered at Loch Torridon, contains two distinct cell types and could be the earliest example of complex multicellularity ...
ITHACA, N.Y. - A new Cornell University-led study examines how temperature affects fishing behavior and catches among inland fisher households in Cambodia, with important implications for understanding climate change.
The research, which used household surveys, temperature data and statistical models, revealed that when temperatures rise, people fish less often. At the same time, the study's authors indirectly found that stocks of fish and other aquatic foods also rise with temperatures, leading to slightly larger catches each time peopled fished. Without careful analysis, it would appear that overall fish catches appear unchanged annually, when in fact, more nuanced dynamics are at play.
The study highlights why it's necessary when studying changing environmental ...
Researchers at the University of Haifa, the Weizmann Institute and the Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG) have built the first atlas of all of the different types of cells in Stylophora pistillata, a reef-building stony coral native to the Indo-Pacific oceans. Published today in the journal Cell, the study is the first to detect the presence of specialized immune cells in corals.
The findings provide new insights into the molecular biology and evolution of corals and will aid present and future conservation efforts to protect coral reef ecosystems threatened by rising temperatures and ocean acidification.
The map reveals that Stylophora pistillata has 40 different cell types over the three main stages ...
What The Study Did: The findings of this study suggest an association between county-level income inequality and COVID-19 cases and deaths.
Authors: Michelle C. Odden, Ph.D., of Stanford University in Stanford, California, is the corresponding author.
To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/
(doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.8799)
Editor's Note: The article includes conflict of interest disclosures. Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, author contributions and affiliations, conflict of interest and financial disclosures, and funding and support.
INFORMATION:
Media advisory: The full study is linked to this news release.
Embed this link to provide your readers free access ...
What The Study Did: This study of registry patients evaluates whether any changes in the in-hospital COVID-19 mortality rates during the first nine months of the pandemic were associated with individual characteristics of patients with COVID-19.
Authors: Gregory A. Roth, M.D., M.P.H., of the University of Washington in Seattle, is the corresponding author.
To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/
(doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.8828)
Editor's Note: The article includes conflict of interest and funding/support disclosures. Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, author contributions and affiliations, ...
What The Study Did: Study results suggest underuse of coronavirus testing in patients with fever may contribute to community transmission.
Authors: Mark J. Pletcher, M.D., M.P.H., of the University of California, San Francisco, is the corresponding author.
To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/
(doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.8500)
Editor's Note: The article includes conflict of interest and funding/support disclosures. Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, author contributions and affiliations, conflict ...
What The Study Did: Households and not schools were the major route of transmission among children and youths with COVID-19 in Hong Kong, these study results suggest.
Authors: Mike Yat Wah Kwan, M.Sc., M.R.C.P.C.H., of the Princess Margaret in Hong Kong, and Patrick Ip, M.P.H., of the University of Hong Kong, are the corresponding authors.
To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/
(doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.8824)
Editor's Note: The article includes conflict of interest and funding/support disclosures. Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, author contributions and affiliations, ...
What The Study Did: Inquiries to a child abuse hotline during the COVID-19 pandemic compared with inquiries during the same period the previous year are assessed in this study.
Authors: Robin Ortiz, M.D., of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, is the corresponding author.
To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/
(doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2021.0503)
Editor's Note: The article includes conflict of interest and funding/support disclosures. Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, author contributions and affiliations, conflict of interest and financial disclosures, and funding and support.
INFORMATION:
Media advisory: The full study is linked to this news release.
Embed ...
