Researchers at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory are breathing new life into the scientific understanding of neptunium, a unique, radioactive, metallic element—and a key ...

Oxidation is the process where atoms lose electrons during a chemical reaction. Among the radioactive elements, neptunium and plutonium are much harder to oxidize than uranium. To study these elements ...

Lasers, heat and a notoriously tricky element are at the center of a quiet revolution in how the United States plans to power missions far beyond Mars. At Oak Ridge National Laboratory, researchers ...

Not much is known about the properties of neptunium, a highly radioactive man-made material that is a byproduct of nuclear reactors, except that it emits alpha, beta and gamma radioactivity. The ...