US Department of Energy

​Lightweight and shatterproof, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic is recyclable, although most items made from it don't get recycled. This is because reclaimed PET (rPET) just isn't as good as the original material. A new "upcycling" process, however, is claimed to make it even better.

Last year, ORNL scientists revealed they were working on ultrasonic clothes drying technology. At the time, they said they planned to implement the technology in a press dryer and a clothes dryer drum. A new video shows they've been true to their word.

Scientists are looking at how ultrasound can be used to dry laundry. They've already developed technology that they say could make clothes dryers 70 percent more energy-efficient than they are now. ​

Back in 2009, the US Department of Energy issued its SuperTruck Challenge. It invited truck manufacturers to design a prototype that was at least 50 percent more freight-efficient than a baseline truck. Daimler Trucks North America recently unveiled its response – the Freightliner SuperTruck.

Dendrites – thin conductive filaments that form inside lithium batteries – reduce the life of these cells and are often responsible for them catching fire. Now researchers claim to have produced an electrolyte that completely eliminates them while also boosting carrying capacity and efficiency.

If you had a big enough 3D printer, one of the first things you might do is print a replica of a vintage 1965 Shelby Cobra sportscar, and that's what the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) did for the 2015 North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) have developed a new nanoparticle-based material that promises to improve the efficiency of concentrated solar power (CSP) plants with its ability to absorb and convert over 90 percent of the sunlight it captures into heat.

Researchers have created a dye-sensitized solar cell that stores its own power by "breathing" air to decompose and re-form lithium peroxide. Its creators believe the device, which effectively combines a battery and a solar cell in one, could reduce renewable energy costs by 25 percent.

The US Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has developed a smartphone attachment, that turns the phone into a 1,000x microscope. What's more, it's made from less than one dollar's worth of material.

Using high-powered laser interferometers to determine if space-time is a quantum system made up of countless tiny bits of information, Fermilab scientists are conducting an experiment to see if the universe is "real" or a holographic 3-D illusion.

There may soon be a new use for discarded tires. Researchers from the US Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory have devised a method of harvesting the carbon black from them, and using it to make anodes for better-performing lithium-ion batteries.

A team of researchers is seeking to challenge the theory that the anode, cathode and electrolyte of a battery can only work independently, experimenting with a dual functioning electrolyte that supplements the cathode, resulting in a significant improvement of the battery's capacity and lifespan.