{"id":2149,"date":"2025-06-17T22:02:15","date_gmt":"2025-06-18T05:02:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/?page_id=2149"},"modified":"2025-06-18T10:23:29","modified_gmt":"2025-06-18T17:23:29","slug":"blog","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/blog\/","title":{"rendered":"Blog"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull is-style-section-1 has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-510d5bb5 wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained is-style-section-1--1\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--80);padding-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--80);padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40)\">\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" style=\"font-size:clamp(1.976rem, 1.976rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 2.391), 3.5rem);\">Blog<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:clamp(0.875rem, 0.875rem + ((1vw - 0.2rem) * 0.588), 1.25rem);\">Articles by NRG<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-query is-layout-flow wp-block-query-is-layout-flow\"><ul style=\"border-style:none;border-width:0px\" class=\"alignfull wp-block-post-template is-layout-flow wp-container-core-post-template-is-layout-d25ea1a2 wp-block-post-template-is-layout-flow\"><li class=\"wp-block-post post-1841 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-news category-research\">\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);box-shadow:var(--wp--preset--shadow--natural)\"><figure class=\"wp-block-post-featured-image\"><a href=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/2024\/04\/04\/destroying-forever-chemicals-using-supercritical-water\/\" target=\"_self\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"560\" height=\"425\" src=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/reactors.jpg\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"Destroying \u201cForever Chemicals\u201d Using Supercritical Water\" style=\"aspect-ratio:3\/2;width:100%;object-fit:contain;\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-post-title has-x-large-font-size\"><a href=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/2024\/04\/04\/destroying-forever-chemicals-using-supercritical-water\/\" target=\"_self\" >Destroying \u201cForever Chemicals\u201d Using Supercritical Water<\/a><\/h2>\n\n<div class=\"entry-content alignfull wp-block-post-content has-medium-font-size has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-post-content-is-layout-constrained\"><p>\u201cForever chemicals,\u201d named for their ability to persist in water and soil, are a class of molecules that are ever-present in our daily lives, including <a href=\"https:\/\/www.epa.gov\/pfas\/our-current-understanding-human-health-and-environmental-risks-pfas\">food packaging and household cleaning products<\/a>. Because these chemicals don\u2019t break down, they end up in our water and food, and they can lead to health effects, such as cancer or decreased fertility.<\/p>\n<p>Last month, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency <a href=\"https:\/\/www.epa.gov\/newsreleases\/epa-proposes-designating-certain-pfas-chemicals-hazardous-substances-under-superfund\">proposed to give two of the most common forever chemicals, known as PFOA and PFOS, a \u201csuperfund\u201d designation<\/a>, which would make it easier for the EPA to track them and plan cleanup measures.<\/p>\n<p>Cleanups would obviously be more effective if the forever chemicals could be destroyed in the process, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2022\/08\/18\/science\/pfas-forever-chemicals.html\">many researchers have been studying how to break them down<\/a>. Now a team of researchers at the University of Washington has a new way to destroy both PFOA and PFOS. The researchers created a reactor that can completely break down hard-to-destroy chemicals using \u201csupercritical water,\u201d which is formed at high temperature and pressure. This technology could help treat industrial waste, destroy concentrated forever chemicals that already exist in the environment and deal with old stocks, such as the forever chemicals in fire-fighting foam.<\/p>\n<p>The team <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/pii\/S1385894722045429\">published these findings <\/a> on Sept. 7 in Chemical Engineering Journal.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washington.edu\/news\/2022\/09\/13\/uw-researchers-develop-reactor-destroy-forever-chemicals\/\">here<\/a>!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n<div style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40)\" class=\"wp-block-post-date has-small-font-size\"><a href=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/2024\/04\/04\/destroying-forever-chemicals-using-supercritical-water\/\"><time datetime=\"2024-04-04T01:19:03-07:00\">April 4, 2024<\/time><\/a><\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/li><li class=\"wp-block-post post-1356 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-news category-research\">\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);box-shadow:var(--wp--preset--shadow--natural)\"><figure class=\"wp-block-post-featured-image\"><a href=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/2020\/07\/27\/creating-a-safer-hospital-environment\/\" target=\"_self\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"474\" src=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/safer-1.png\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"Creating a Safer Hospital Environment\" style=\"aspect-ratio:3\/2;width:100%;object-fit:contain;\" srcset=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/safer-1.png 1200w, https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/safer-1-744x294.png 744w, https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/safer-1-768x303.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-post-title has-x-large-font-size\"><a href=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/2020\/07\/27\/creating-a-safer-hospital-environment\/\" target=\"_self\" >Creating a Safer Hospital Environment<\/a><\/h2>\n\n<div class=\"entry-content alignfull wp-block-post-content has-medium-font-size has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-post-content-is-layout-constrained\"><p>\u201cHow can we make our operating room safer during the pandemic?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>When Dr. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uwmedicine.org\/bios\/james-hecker\">James Hecker<\/a>, an anesthesiologist at UW Medical Center, heard this question from a fellow physician, he thought about the problem not just as a doctor but also as an engineer.<\/p>\n<p>Hecker, who has a PhD in chemical and biomedical engineering, knew about the risks of airborne transmission of the novel coronavirus. It can remain in the air for hours on microdroplets released after someone with the virus coughs, sneezes or talks. These aerosols can also be produced during medical procedures, raising concerns for both patients and health care workers.<\/p>\n<p>But how such infectious aerosols might spread indoors\u2014particularly in medical centers\u2014is not well understood.<\/p>\n<p>To learn more, Hecker and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.me.washington.edu\/facultyfinder\/igor-novosselov\">Igor Novosselov<\/a>, research associate professor in Mechanical Engineering and adjunct research associate professor in the Department of Environmental &amp; Occupational Health Sciences (DEOHS), launched a study to track the movement of aerosols in operating rooms using state-of-the-art sensors designed by Novosselov.<\/p>\n<p>The project recently <a href=\"https:\/\/comotion.uw.edu\/comotion-announces-new-directors-award-for-uw-innovations-that-address-a-pressing-societal-need\/\">received $25,000 in funding<\/a> through the new Director\u2019s Award from <a href=\"https:\/\/comotion.uw.edu\/comotion-announces-new-directors-award-for-uw-innovations-that-address-a-pressing-societal-need\/\">UW CoMotion<\/a>, a university hub supporting collaborative research. The team includes <a href=\"https:\/\/deohs.washington.edu\/faculty\/edmund-y-w-seto\">Edmund Seto<\/a>, associate professor in DEOHS, <a href=\"https:\/\/deohs.washington.edu\/faculty\/martin-cohen\">Martin Cohen<\/a>, DEOHS principal lecturer and assistant chair and many other UW physicians and researchers.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am trying to help to bring the incredible talent and technology at the UW into the sometimes insulated environments of our hospitals,\u201d Hecker said.<\/p>\n<h2>Fishing for aerosols<\/h2>\n<p>Last week, the team began its first on-site experiments in UW Medical Center\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/wish.washington.edu\/\">WISH<\/a>, a simulated operating room\u00a0used for training. They outfitted the room with dozens of Novosselov\u2019s air monitoring sensors, each about the size of a deck of cards.<\/p>\n<p>Then the researchers used a medical nebulizer to create harmless saline particles that mimic aerosols and followed them to see where they went.<\/p>\n<p>They are searching for spots where air currents might trap aerosols and keep them from being flushed out by the hospital\u2019s ventilation system.<\/p>\n<p>Novosselov likened these areas to a bend in a stream, where eddies form. \u201cThat\u2019s where you want to go fishing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>The sensors report particle counts in real time, allowing the scientists to model the distribution of aerosols at different heights and locations in the room, and to see how they are affected by people moving through the space.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe&#8217;re trying to characterize the entire room,\u201d Novosselov said.<\/p>\n<p>Find out more about how NRG is helping monitor the hospital&#8217;s air <a href=\"https:\/\/deohs.washington.edu\/hsm-blog\/can-coronavirus-spread-hospital-air\">here<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n<div style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40)\" class=\"wp-block-post-date has-small-font-size\"><a href=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/2020\/07\/27\/creating-a-safer-hospital-environment\/\"><time datetime=\"2020-07-27T14:55:13-07:00\">July 27, 2020<\/time><\/a><\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/li><li class=\"wp-block-post post-1351 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-award category-research\">\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);box-shadow:var(--wp--preset--shadow--natural)\"><figure class=\"wp-block-post-featured-image\"><a href=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/2020\/06\/22\/nrg-wins-comotions-first-directors-award\/\" target=\"_self\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"630\" src=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/comotion.jpg\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"NRG Wins CoMotion&#8217;s First Director\u2019s Award\" style=\"aspect-ratio:3\/2;width:100%;object-fit:contain;\" srcset=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/comotion.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/comotion-744x391.jpg 744w, https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/comotion-768x403.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-post-title has-x-large-font-size\"><a href=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/2020\/06\/22\/nrg-wins-comotions-first-directors-award\/\" target=\"_self\" >NRG Wins CoMotion&#8217;s First Director\u2019s Award<\/a><\/h2>\n\n<div class=\"entry-content alignfull wp-block-post-content has-medium-font-size has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-post-content-is-layout-constrained\"><p><span class=\"break-words\"><span dir=\"ltr\">We are pleased to announce that NRG is the recipient of a new CoMotion award that will support the development of University of Washington (UW) innovations that have potential for transformational impact in areas of pressing societal need.\u00a0 Led my Professor Igor, we are joined by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uwmedicine.org\/bios\/james-hecker\"><strong>James Hecker<\/strong><\/a>, Associate Professor of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine and Neuroanesthesia, <a href=\"https:\/\/deohs.washington.edu\/faculty\/edmund-y-w-seto\"><strong>Edmund Seto<\/strong><\/a>, Associate Professor of Environmental &amp; Occupational Health Sciences, and <a href=\"https:\/\/deohs.washington.edu\/faculty\/martin-cohen\"><strong>Martin Cohen<\/strong><\/a>, Principal Lecturer in Environmental &amp; Occupational Health Sciences to tackle the problem of aerosol fate and persistence in medical environments.\u00a0 The team intends to deploy low-cost sensor networks in operating rooms to map out the spatial and temporal distribution of long-lived aerosols that may contain SARS-CoV-2 or other infectious agents in real time. \u201cThis information will help medical professionals develop effective mitigation and decontamination measures and save lives,\u201d Igor says. The team is already thinking about how their technology might be deployed to facilitate the return to the workplace in post-COVID-19 times.<br \/>\n<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>For more information, check out the CoMotion&#8217;s article <a href=\"https:\/\/comotion.uw.edu\/comotion-announces-new-directors-award-for-uw-innovations-that-address-a-pressing-societal-need\/\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n<div style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40)\" class=\"wp-block-post-date has-small-font-size\"><a href=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/2020\/06\/22\/nrg-wins-comotions-first-directors-award\/\"><time datetime=\"2020-06-22T09:30:00-07:00\">June 22, 2020<\/time><\/a><\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/li><li class=\"wp-block-post post-1348 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-competition category-milestones category-news\">\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);box-shadow:var(--wp--preset--shadow--natural)\"><figure class=\"wp-block-post-featured-image\"><a href=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/2020\/05\/16\/nrgs-aquagga-wins-2020-alaska-airlines-environmental-innovation-challenge\/\" target=\"_self\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"850\" height=\"478\" src=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Brian-with-UW-Reactor.jpg\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"NRG&#8217;s Aquagga Wins 2020 Alaska Airlines Environmental Innovation Challenge\" style=\"aspect-ratio:3\/2;width:100%;object-fit:contain;\" srcset=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Brian-with-UW-Reactor.jpg 850w, https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Brian-with-UW-Reactor-744x418.jpg 744w, https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Brian-with-UW-Reactor-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-post-title has-x-large-font-size\"><a href=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/2020\/05\/16\/nrgs-aquagga-wins-2020-alaska-airlines-environmental-innovation-challenge\/\" target=\"_self\" >NRG&#8217;s Aquagga Wins 2020 Alaska Airlines Environmental Innovation Challenge<\/a><\/h2>\n\n<div class=\"entry-content alignfull wp-block-post-content has-medium-font-size has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-post-content-is-layout-constrained\"><p>The 2020 <a href=\"https:\/\/foster.uw.edu\/centers\/buerk-ctr-entrepreneurship\/entrepreneurship-competitions\/eic\/\">Alaska Airlines Environmental Innovation Challenge (EIC)<\/a>, hosted by the UW Foster School\u2019s Buerk Center for Entrepreneurship, <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.foster.uw.edu\/2020-virtual-environmental-innovation-challenge\/\">named<\/a> Aquagga, co-founded by Brian Pinkard of UW Mechanical Engineering (ME) Novosselov Research Group and the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF), as $15,000 Alaska Airlines Grand Prize winners, extending the ME department\u2019s and specially the Novosselov Research Group streak to two years in a row.<\/p>\n<p>In a competition that was held completely virtually and included a strong showing from ME with four teams named as finalists, Aquagga\u2019s patented technology for destroying toxic and hard-to-treat PFAS chemicals wowed judges and earned them both the grand prize and the $1,000 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gcil.uw.edu\/\">UW Grand Challenges Impact Lab<\/a> domestic prize.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"break-words\">More Information can be found <a href=\"https:\/\/www.me.washington.edu\/news\/2020\/04\/24\/environmental-innovation-winner-aquagga\">here!<\/a><br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n<div style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40)\" class=\"wp-block-post-date has-small-font-size\"><a href=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/2020\/05\/16\/nrgs-aquagga-wins-2020-alaska-airlines-environmental-innovation-challenge\/\"><time datetime=\"2020-05-16T13:22:19-07:00\">May 16, 2020<\/time><\/a><\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/li><li class=\"wp-block-post post-1339 post type-post status-publish format-standard hentry category-journal category-research\">\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);box-shadow:var(--wp--preset--shadow--natural)\">\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-post-title has-x-large-font-size\"><a href=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/2020\/03\/11\/supercritical-water-gasification-offers-promising-waste-to-energy-technology\/\" target=\"_self\" >Supercritical Water Gasification Offers Promising Waste-to-Energy Technology<\/a><\/h2>\n\n<div class=\"entry-content alignfull wp-block-post-content has-medium-font-size has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-post-content-is-layout-constrained\"><p>In a recently accepted article in the <em>ACS Sustainable Chemistry and Engineering <\/em>journal, NRG student Brian Pinkard explores the reaction behavior of complex molecules such as methanol, ethanol and isopropyl alcohol in supercritical water.\u00a0 Working with Professor Kramlich and Professor Novosselov of UW&#8217;s Mechanical Engineering department, Pinkard proposes global reaction pathways in addition to discussing the mechanisms for free radical reaction initiation, propagation and termination.<\/p>\n<p>More information on this recent article can be found <a href=\"https:\/\/pubs.acs.org\/doi\/10.1021\/acssuschemeng.0c00445\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n<div style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40)\" class=\"wp-block-post-date has-small-font-size\"><a href=\"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/2020\/03\/11\/supercritical-water-gasification-offers-promising-waste-to-energy-technology\/\"><time datetime=\"2020-03-11T09:04:00-07:00\">March 11, 2020<\/time><\/a><\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignwide has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\"><nav class=\"alignwide wp-block-query-pagination is-horizontal is-content-justification-space-between is-layout-flex wp-container-core-query-pagination-is-layout-7c8f1bd6 wp-block-query-pagination-is-layout-flex\" aria-label=\"Pagination\">\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-query-pagination-numbers\"><span aria-current=\"page\" class=\"page-numbers current\">1<\/span>\n<a class=\"page-numbers\" href=\"?query-25-page=2\">2<\/a>\n<a class=\"page-numbers\" href=\"?query-25-page=3\">3<\/a><\/div>\n\n<a href=\"\/nrglab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2149?query-25-page=2\" class=\"wp-block-query-pagination-next\">Next Page<span class='wp-block-query-pagination-next-arrow is-arrow-arrow' aria-hidden='true'>\u2192<\/span><\/a>\n<\/nav><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Blog Articles by NRG<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":5,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2149","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2149","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2149"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2149\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2179,"href":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2149\/revisions\/2179"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/depts.washington.edu\/nrglab\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2149"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}