Researchers have initiated operations at a pilot-scale production facility to scale up technology developed by NETL to extract rare earth elements (REEs) from coal fly ash produced by power plants and transform a waste byproduct into a valuable feedstock.

When NETL celebrated its 25th anniversary as a Department of Energy national laboratory late last year, its busy Advanced Alloy Signature Center at its Albany, Oregon, site was highlighted as a national resource that bridges the gap between laboratory research and production for evolving metal alloys that are helping America develop more efficient and lasting energy systems.

For her work in developing microwave ammonia synthesis and enhancing America’s energy security and prosperity in the process, NETL’s Christina Wildfire won a 2025 Outstanding Researcher Award from the Federal Laboratory Consortium (FLC).

NETL helped scientists at Montana State University evaluate microscopic cementing agents developed by the University that can more effectively penetrate microfractures to improve underground storage of carbon dioxide (CO2), enhance gas well efficiency and seal fluid pathways in shales fractured for natural gas recovery.

North Allegheny’s Marshall Middle School Team 1 captured first place in the 2025 Western Pennsylvania Science Bowl (WPASB) middle school contest held Saturday, March 1, at the Community College of Allegheny County-South Campus in West Mifflin.

The NETL-led Critical Materials Supply Chain Research Facility (METALLIC) kicked off its five-year mission last year to develop a national capability for establishing new domestic critical minerals and materials (CMM) supply chains, from extraction to manufacturing.

Nature Portfolio’s Communications Engineering publication designated a technical article authored by a team led by key NETL researchers for editor’s choice. The article, which discusses a process for using coal as a manufacturing feedstock for high-tech products like computer microelectronics, was one of only 14 selections for the recognition.

Hard work and preparation paid off for North Allegheny Team 1, the winner of the 2025 Western Pennsylvania Science Bowl (WPASB) high school contest held Saturday, Feb. 22, at the Community College of Allegheny County (CCAC)-South Campus in West Mifflin.

NETL researchers are reporting a breakthrough in efforts to extend the life and improve the efficiency of energy-producing gas turbines by refining a process that can simulate how corrosion-causing thermally grown oxide (TGO) develops and causes cracking in the environmental barrier coatings (EBCs). This development is crucial for protecting next-generation turbine blades from thermal cycling damage.

NETL researchers have developed and patented a novel catalytic steam gasification process for producing nitrogen-free, hydrogen-rich syngas streams from coal and biomass — a method that can reduce the cost of traditional syngas production.