Director’s Corner

by Brian Anderson, Ph.D.

In its broadest sense, innovation is simply the introduction of something new. For technology developers like NETL, the spark of something new is just the beginning.

Innovations require years of work to become technologies that make a difference in commercial markets and positively benefit the nation, the environment, and our citizens. For example, the favorite invention of innovator Thomas Edison was the phonograph, which he invented in 1877 and continued to improve over the next 50 years.

The concept of innovation, of finding the new idea that will launch tomorrow’s game-changing technologies, drives what we do at NETL and we’re working diligently to innovate new methods and technologies that provide clean, reliable and affordable energy to meet America’s ever-increasing needs.

NETL has a legacy of innovation success, and I’m proud to share with you an impressive slate of noteworthy technologies:

• Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy — a cost-effective, rapid and precise method for determining the elemental composition of field samples.
• Basic Immobilized Amine/Silica Sorbent — an effective carbon capture method that cuts costs, maximizes carbon capture removal capacity, reduces energy loss and minimizes moisture.
• Offshore Risk Modeling Suite — a suite of computing tools that address critical concerns associated with offshore oil and gas operations to evaluate relationships, trends, spill risks and uncertainty.
• Cobalt-Based Nanocrystalline Alloys and Permeability Engineering Through Strain Annealing — a novel alloy and manufacturing process that can produce inductive components with unprecedented electromagnetic capabilities for next-generation power technologies.

Each of these technologies is worthy of recognition for its potential to make a global impact, and their successful development is the result of years of commitment to explore, initiate and advance a technology through exhaustive research and development.

You can read more about these innovations throughout August in our newsroom. It’s an honor to showcase the results of our researchers’ hard work and describe innovative technologies that offer far-reaching benefits to the American public and beyond. Their achievements underscore the important work our Lab undertakes in its mission to discover, integrate and mature technology solutions to enhance the nation’s energy foundation and protect the environment for future generations.

Photo caption: NETL researchers Chris Wilfong and Mac Gray (right) use BIAS sorbents to extract solubilized rare earth elements from aqueous solutions.