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Battelle Memorial Institute

Type	Private Nonprofit Charitable Trust
Founded	Columbus, Ohio (1929)
Headquarters	Columbus, Ohio
Key people	Jeffrey Wadsworth, President and CEO
Industry	Business Services
Products	Technical & Scientific Research Services
Revenue	$5.2 BUSD
Employees	20,400
Website	http://www.battelle.org

Headquarters in Columbus

The Battelle Memorial Institute is a private nonprofit applied science and technology development company headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. Battelle is a charitable trust organized as a non-profit corporation under the laws of the State of Ohio and is exempt from taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code because it is organized for charitable, scientific and education purposes. The institute opened in 1929 but traces its origins to the 1923 will of Ohio industrialist Gordon Battelle which provided for its creation. Originally focusing on contract research and development work in the areas of metals and material science, Battelle is now an international science and technology enterprise that explores emerging areas of science, develops and commercializes technology, and manages laboratories for customers.

Business

Battelle has three business divisions:

• National Security – Detection and protection against weapons of mass destruction, emergency preparedness/response and protection of critical infrastructure; focuses on integrating policy, operational, technological, and logistical parameters.

• Energy Technology – Diversifying sources of energy, ensuring reliability of the energy system, and maximizing productivity for economic advantage. Includes industrial initiatives like FutureGen and coal conversion, developing commercially viable fuel cells, and energy storage beyond conventional batteries.

• Health and Life Sciences – Proteomics, advanced computational biology, and medical device development. Includes initiatives such as sequencing the human genome.

Battelle contributes to education initiatives in Ohio and elsewhere in the United States, especially in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. Contributions include a million dollar donation to the National Society of Black Engineers to building Metro High School.

National laboratory management

In addition to operating three of its own research facilities, as of 2008, Battelle manages or co-manages on behalf of the United States Department of Energy the following national laboratories:

• Brookhaven National Laboratory (through Brookhaven Science Associates, LLC – a collaboration between Battelle and Stony Brook University)
• Idaho National Laboratory (through the Battelle Energy Alliance – a collaboration between Battelle, BWX Technologies, Inc., Washington Group International, Electric Power Research Institute and an alliance of universities)
• National Renewable Energy Laboratory (in partnership with Midwest Research Institute)
• Oak Ridge National Laboratory (through UT-Battelle, LLC – a collaboration between Battelle and the University of Tennessee)
• Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
• Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (through Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC – a collaboration between Battelle, BWX Technologies, Inc., Washington Group International, the University of California, Bechtel National, and The Texas A&M University System)

Technological and medical advances

View of Columbus facilities from King Ave.

In 1944, Battelle researchers, including William Bixby and Paul Andrus, developed Chester Carlson's concept of dry copying, which eventually led to the first commercial xerography equipment, and the corporation Xerox. Battelle developed the first nuclear fuel rods for nuclear reactors, numerous advances in metallurgy that helped advance the United States space program, algorithms and coatings that led to the first optical digital recorder developed by James Russell, which paved the way for the first compact disc, and the first generation jet engines using titanium alloys.^[1]

Other advances included the armor plating for tanks in World War Two, Snopake, the first correction fluid, developed in 1955; the fuel for the first nuclear submarine, the Nautilus; development of the Universal Product Code in 1965, cruise control for automobiles in 1970, and the first all-sputtered photovatic cell for solar energy in 1974. In 1987, PIRI, a fiber-optics venture with Mitsubishi and NTT, was launched, which resulted in a $1.8 billion market. A fun note, Battelle Geneva developed "No-melt" chocolate in 1988.

Battelle has made numerous medical advances, including a reusable insulin injection pen developed with Eli Lilly and Co. recently, and in 1972 had a breakthrough with the development of special tubing to prevent blood cots during surgical procedures.^[2]

See also

• Chester Carlson
• Raymond Davis, Jr.

References

External links

• Battelle Memorial Institute Web site
• Battelle for Kids Web site