Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Oak Ridge National Laboratory is a public administration that is part of the pulse of the water sector. Here we bring together everything it publishes on Smart Water Magazine: its news, its blogs and the events it takes part in.
Scientists add the human element to long-term flood predictions
To better predict long-term flooding risk, scientists at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory developed a 3D modeling framework that captures the complex dynamics of water as it flows across the landscape. The framework seeks to provide valuable insights into which communities are most vulnerable as the climate changes, and was developed for […]
Drone and geospatial team becomes first to map the Coca River in the Amazon basin
The geology along Ecuador's Coca River is moving in fast-forward. In a scientific field where natural wonders form over millennia, but natural disasters occur in minutes, speed is less than desirable. Over the last four years, the river and its surrounding area within the Amazon basin have experienced a lava dam collapse, 500 million tons […]
Scientists reveal molecular mysteries to control silica scaling in water treatment
Collaborative research that combined experiments at Yale University and molecular dynamics simulations at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory provides new insights into solving a major technical obstacle to efficient and sustainable industrial operations. Silicon is the second most abundant element in the Earth's crust, and in natural water sources, it is commonly […]
Analyzing a flood of data to prepare for climate change
Climate change often comes down to how it affects water, whether it’s for drinking, electricity generation, or how flooding affects people and infrastructure. To better understand these impacts, Oak Ridge National Laboratory water resources engineer Sudershan Gangrade is integrating knowledge ranging from large-scale climate projections to local meteorology and hydrology and using high-performance computing to […]
Existing water infrastructure may hold key to generating more hydropower
Millions of miles of pipelines and conduits across the United States make up an intricate network of waterways used for municipal, agricultural and industrial purposes. In a new report, researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory have found potential opportunities in all 50 states to efficiently utilize existing infrastructure to harvest this […]
Adsorbent material filters toxic chromium, arsenic from water supplies
Researchers at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory are tackling a global water challenge with a unique material designed to target not one, but two toxic, heavy metal pollutants for simultaneous removal. ORNL’s Santa Jansone-Popova of the Chemical Sciences Division, and Ping Li, now at Elementis Global, have discovered an adsorbent with high […]