A 3D movie moment as Ernie Majer (far right) accompany Marianne Walck (Sandia National Lab) and Dan Arizvu (Director, National Renewable Energy Laboratory) moments before the exhibits open. Image courtesy of National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
Organized by DOE Secretary Ernest Moniz, the second National Lab Day was held this month (July 8, 2015) on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. to help explain the impact of science conducted within the U.S. DOE National Laboratory System to Congress. Congressional members and staffers got to see and hear, “up close,” the often amazing work done at the various national laboratories throughout the country.
This July’s event was focused on Energy: Research for America’s New Energy Infrastructure, and is where Berkeley Lab’s Earth Science Division (ESD) played a significant role in leading the preparation of the showcase presentation and the discussion of several topics within the theme of Subsurface Science and Technology.
Led by Associate Lab Director of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Susan Hubbard, 11 of 17 National Labs on Subsurface Science and Technology team presented key topics critical to Revolutionizing the Use of Earth’s Subsurface to Secure America’s Energy Future, which included Geothermal Energy, Shale (Unconventional) Hydrocarbon Production, and Utilization and Safe Subsurface Storage of CO2.
Within these topics, areas of ESD’s work were represented including Ernie Majer’s real-time monitoring system for induced seismicity related to enhanced geothermal systems and led by Tim Kneafsey, some 3D movies visualizing realistic aspects of unconventional reservoirs such as a micro-CT fractures occurring in shale material were prepared by Marco Voltolini and Jonathan Ajo-Franklin. The “Earthquake energy in a box” also made its return featuring an interactive demonstration of seismic monitoring, complete with materials that represent the safe harnessing of energy from the Earth’s environment.
Underlying the Subsurface Science and Technology theme the group represented the efforts of DOEs Subsurface Technology and Engineering Research, Development, and Demonstration (SubTER) Crosscut, which aims to address the “grand challenge” of mastering the subsurface for energy production and storage and management of energy waste streams. The SubTER crosscut identifies common research, development, and demonstration and policy challenges across DOE and enables programs to work together toward solutions.
To read more about National Lab Day, go to:
Meet the National Labs 2015
National Lab Day 2014
Flickr Photo Gallery
Thx #NationalLabs #LabsRoadShow Subsurface Sci & Tech team & @BerkeleyLab @lbnl_esd http://t.co/zYyPqG5TSw #SubTer pic.twitter.com/Ol8IfmmSw5
— EESA at Berkeley Lab (@eesalbnl) July 23, 2015
Special Thanks to the Subsurface Science and Technology National Lab Participants
Argonne National Laboratory
Berkeley Laboratory
Idaho National Laboratory
Livermore National Laboratory
Los Alamos National Laboratory
Sandia National Laboratories
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory
National Energy Technology Laboratory
National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory