Baranwal tabbed to head GAIN Initiative
Dr. Kemal Pasamehmetoglu, associate lab director of Idaho National Laboratory’s Nuclear Science & Technology directorate, announced the selection of Westinghouse executive Dr. Rita Baranwal to serve as director of the INL-led Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear (GAIN) initiative. As GAIN director, Baranwal will lead efforts to support the development of innovative reactor technologies in the U.S.
Pasamehmetoglu has served a dual role leading the GAIN program since it launched in late 2015, as well as INL’s Nuclear Science & Technology directorate at the nation’s lead nuclear energy laboratory. The addition of Baranwal will enable further growth as GAIN continues to expand. She began her new role on Aug. 22.
“Rita brings a wealth of industry experience and nuclear fuels and materials science expertise to her new role,” Pasamehmetoglu said. “I’m confident that she will provide strong leadership for the GAIN program as it continues to grow as a catalyst for innovation in advanced nuclear technologies.”
Baranwal served most recently as director of Technology Development in the Engineering Center of Excellence at Westinghouse Electric Corporation and has held many other roles in nuclear fuel design and engineering. She holds a doctorate in materials science and engineering from the University of Michigan.
INL is one of the DOE’s national laboratories. The laboratory performs work in each of DOE’s strategic goal areas: energy, national security, science and environment. INL is the nation’s leading center for nuclear energy research and development. Day-to-day management and operation of the laboratory is the responsibility of Battelle Energy Alliance.
Cheng Sun awarded Russell L. Heath position
University Partnerships is proud to announce that the inaugural Russell L. Heath Distinguished Postdoctoral Associate position has been awarded to Cheng Sun. He will join INL in September to conduct research at the Materials & Fuels Complex under the direction of Jian Gan.
Russell L. Heath Distinguished Postdoctoral Associates must display extraordinary ability in scientific research and show clear promise of becoming outstanding leaders. This highly competitive appointment is intended to recognize and provide distinguished postdoctoral associates with experience, mentoring and training to develop their capabilities.
Sun earned his Ph.D. in materials science and engineering from Texas A&M University, a Master of Science in materials science and engineering from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, a Bachelor of Science in materials science and engineering from Huazhong University of Science and Technology, and is now a postdoctoral researcher with Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Sun’s research interests include advanced structural materials under irradiation environments, process-microstructure-mechanical property relationships of materials in extremes, the development of nanostructured materials for nuclear energy systems and the application of in situ techniques for structural materials research.
“We are pleased to welcome Cheng to INL. His innovative concepts and ambition will be an incredible asset and help to enable INL’s mission,” said Mark Peters, INL lab director. “Please welcome our first distinguished postdoctoral research associate.”
Watch for more information regarding Sun’s proposed research program.
Contact Jessica Dixon (526-9087) for more information on the Russell L. Heath Distinguished Postdoctoral Associate or other postdoc positions.
ATR transition earns sustainability award
The ATR "Transition from Diesel to Commercial Power with UPS Backup" modification project was recently selected to receive a 2016 Department of Energy Sustainability Award. The project transitioned critical electrical loads from 50-year-old diesel-powered generators to commercial power and an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS).
By replacing diesel power with electricity, INL is slashing its carbon footprint by 892 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent annually and expects fuel savings of $548,000 a year.
Last year, flagship construction magazine Engineering News-Record named this project the first-place winner in the energy-industrial category of its 2015 Best Projects competition for the mountain states. See pages one and four of the newsletter DOE Sustainability SPOtlight.
Stacey testifies before Senate subcommittee
Brent Stacey, INL National & Homeland Security associate laboratory director, testified before a Senate subcommittee July 12 on Senate Bill 3018, the Securing Energy Infrastructure Act. The Subcommittee for Energy of the Senate Committee on Energy and Resources is chaired by Idaho Sen. James Risch, who is a co-sponsor of SB 3018.
The hearing was webcast live on the committee’s website, and archived. You can find the video here at http://www.energy.senate.gov.
Invitation to submit proposals
This is an invitation to submit joint proposals under the United States-Euratom International Energy Research Initiative (INERI) in support of the collaboration with Euratom for the research and development (R&D) objectives of the Department of Energy's Office of Nuclear Energy (DOE-NE).
The joint miniproposals submitted in response to this announcement must reflect collaborative arrangements for cooperative R&D involving at least one participant from the DOE national laboratories and/or U.S. universities and one participant from Euratom. The United States and Euratom participants must be funded under separate financial support from their countries and must identify such funding in the proposal. Collaborative arrangements may involve additional U.S. and Euratom federal and nonfederal organizations.
More information can be found here (International Nuclear Energy Research Initiative).
Please submit miniproposals/abstracts by close of business Sept. 1 to rfisubmissions@inl.gov for internal review and approval. Final miniproposals/abstracts are due to DOE-NE Sept. 22.
