Mike Whittaker, research scientist in the Energy Geoscience Division, is a co-founder of the Lithium Resource Research and Innovation Center-a group that researches how to satisfy the increasing lithium demand as renewable energy sources become essential to achieving net zero emissions. On January 19, Whittaker led a virtual event, “Critical Materials and Minerals (CMM) Town…
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Induced seismicity refers to typically minor earthquakes and tremors triggered by human activity, deliberate or not. Rarely are humans aware of these mostly low-magnitude events occurring deep underground. However, some regions have over the past decade shown quite significant earthquakes, such as a few larger than magnitude 5 events in Oklahoma, which have been linked to wastewater injection…
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Mineral surface area largely controls the interactions of minerals with fluids and microbes, and the rate of chemical reactions, including mineral dissolution, precipitation, and oxidation-reduction which involves a transfer of electrons between two species. New research from EESA explores the impact of surface roughness on mineral dissolution rates in micro-fractures within rocks deep underground.…
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A Cyclotron Road company hosted by EESA was part of a new $4.45 million award from the Department of Energy in support of its work to improve enhanced geothermal systems. Founded in 2017, Fervo Energy set out to overcome the technical challenges keeping geothermal energy from becoming a commercially viable form of clean energy in…
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Within the Department of Energy complex of national laboratories, the Geosciences Measurement Facility (GMF) at Berkeley Lab is distinguished by its ability to build, test, and deploy customized instrumentation and innovative data acquisition and telemetry solutions, which are enabling scientists to address some of the most critical Earth, energy and environmental challenges that we face.…
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Isotope geochemists at Berkeley Lab are the first to establish the degree of Potassium (K) isotopic fractionation by plants. Isotopes are atoms of the same element that have a different number of neutrons. Scientists have just in the past decade begun studying for key nutrient elements (other than C,…
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A new instrument developed at the Geosciences Measurement Facility at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory will help scientists working to identify ways to improve enhanced geothermal systems technologies to expand access to clean energy. Two of the instruments, called SIMFIP (Step-Rate Injection Method for Fracture In-Situ Properties), were installed in late May nearly 5,000 feet below…
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EESA Scientists were able to use the new synchrotron Infrared Nano Spectroscopy (SINS) capability at Advanced Light Source. Above: Diagrams of the setup of (a) the Germanium-hemisphere enhanced attenuated total reflection (Ge micro-ATR) and (b) the resonance enhanced SINS. Berkeley Lab scientists have identified a way to use machine learning to connect fine-…
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Jeff Chambers, faculty scientist within the Climate and Ecosystem Sciences Division at Berkeley Lab, provided testimony during a recent informational hearing of the California State Assembly focused on the impact of climate change on wildfire risk. Chambers was among a number of subject matter experts called upon to share knowledge relevant to the lawmakers’ consideration…
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On April 10, Berkeley Lab and France’s Geological Survey, BRGM (Bureau de Recherches Géologiques et Minières), signed a Memorandum of Understanding representing their intent to expand a collaborative partnership. The French geological survey is one of Berkeley Lab’s key European counterparts in working to address the need to protect and sustain Earth’s energy and environmental…
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