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Key discoveries in chemical and bio-based products recognized for advancing scientific discovery

COLUMBUS, Ohio, July 13 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Battelle and the national laboratories it manages or co-manages for the U.S. Department of Energy won 12 R&D 100 Awards in this year's edition of the "Oscars of Innovation."

Bio-polyols and ferrates certainly wouldn't make it into any Oscar-worthy movie title, but in the world of science and technology, notable advances in these areas have the potential for great societal impact.

R&D Magazine presents the awards annually to honor the year's most significant scientific and technological innovations. Battelle won two awards, while the national laboratories Battelle manages or co-manages for DOE won 10 awards for technologies dealing with everything from advanced materials to solar energy. Oak Ridge National Laboratory won six awards, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory won three, and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory won one.

The 12 new awards increase the total number of R&D 100 Awards for Battelle and the national labs it manages or co-manages to 170. The magazine has been presenting the awards since 1969.

"Once again, we are extremely proud of the accomplishments being recognized by R&D Magazine," said Battelle President and CEO Carl Kohrt. "These awards represent a great deal of hard work, dedication and imagination among staff all across our Battelle family."

The winning Battelle technologies are:

Reactive Bio-Polyols (joint submission with the Ohio Soybean Council,
Columbus, and the United Soybean Board, St. Louis.)
* Polyols are valuable chemical intermediates used primarily for the
production of flexible and rigid foams, various types of coatings, and
composites. The U.S. market for polyols is over three billion pounds
per year and the worldwide market is about 2.5 times this amount.
Currently, almost all polyols are derived from petroleum-based
feedstocks, which are becoming more costly due to the dramatic price
increase of these feedstocks. The Battelle-developed novel bio-based
polyols are derived from soybean oil and other vegetable oils -- which
are renewable resources -- and low-cost glycerin. Glycerin, a co-
product from the biodiesel refinery operations, is projected to be in
oversupply and very inexpensive as a result of rapid growth in this
industry. The projected costs of Battelle polyols are expected to be
significantly less than polyols derived from petroleum sources.
Furthermore, coatings prepared from Battelle polyols significantly
out-perform coatings prepared from competing bio-based polyols and
have comparable characteristics as coatings prepared from petroleum-
based polyols.

Battelle Ferrate (VI) Products
* The Battelle Ferrate (VI) Process is the first technology that
produces potassium ferrate and other ferrate salts continuously at
high purity levels using inexpensive and readily available feed
materials. While ferrate has been known since the early 1700s, it has
been relegated to exist as a laboratory novelty because there has been
no reliable, cost-effective production process to supply demand. The
Battelle Ferrate Process is based on fundamental electrochemical,
general chemistry, and engineering economic principles and paves the
way to move ferrate salts from the research bench to widespread
commercial, consumer and government use. Potential applications range
from specialty chemical uses such as decontamination and personal care
to antifouling and general water disinfection.

All of the R&D 100 Award winners will be honored at a ceremony later this year.

Details on the technologies that won awards from the national laboratories are available by contacting the public affairs offices of those labs.

Battelle is the world's largest non-profit independent research and development organization, with 20,000 employees in more than 120 locations worldwide, including five national laboratories Battelle manages or co-manages for the U.S. Department of Energy. Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, Battelle conducts $3.8 billion in R&D annually through contract research, laboratory management, and technology commercialization. As a non-profit charitable trust with an eye toward the future, Battelle actively supports and promotes science and math education.

For more information, visit http://www.battelle.org/ or contact National Media Relations Manager Katy Delaney at (410) 306-8638 or at delaneyk@battelle.org.

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:

Source: Battelle

CONTACT: Katy Delaney, National Media Relations Manager of Battelle,
+1-410-306-8638, delaneyk@battelle.org

Web site:

http://www.battelle.org/

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