Sol-Gel Technologies Ltd.

SBIR II "LERGE SOL-GEL MONOLITHS FOR OPTICAL POWER LIMITING"

STTR PH II HIGH-SPEED, LOW VOLTAGE, MINIATURE ELECTRO-OPTIC MODULATORS BASED ON HYBRID PHOTONIC-CRYSTAL/POLYMER/SOL-GEL

SBIR II: ULTRAHIGH DIELECTRIC STRENGTH BIOTRONIC CAPACITORS BASED ON SOL-GEL/DNA-CTMA BLENDS

THE WORK PROPOSED HEREIN FOCUSES ON WASTE SUBSYSTEMS WITH EMPHASIS ON ODOR CONTROL ASSOCIATED WITH VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS (VOCS). THE DEVELOPMENT OF EFFICIENT ODOR REMOVAL SYSTEMS FOR USE INSIDE LUNAR ARCHITECTURES IS ONE OF NASA'S CRITICAL NEEDS (2008 SBIR TOPIC X2.03). BECAUSE OF THE LIMITED SPACE AND RESOURCES IN BOTH EXPLORATION VEHICLES AND NON-MOVING HABITATS, A TREATMENT SYSTEM MUST BE COMPACT, LIGHTWEIGHT, AND ROBUST, AND HAVE LOW ENERGY AND MATERIAL INPUT REQUIREMENTS, WITH FOCUS ON REDUCING EQUIVALENT SYSTEM MASS (ESM). WE HAVE DEVELOPED A NOVEL, ROBUST, AND HIGHLY EFFECTIVE SILICA-TITANIA COMPOSITE (STC) TECHNOLOGY CAPABLE OF ADSORBING AND OXIDIZING VOCS TO HARMLESS BYPRODUCTS WHEN IRRADIATED WITH UV LIGHT. THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE TECHNOLOGY FOR REMOVAL OF ETHANOL FROM AIR WHEN IRRADIATED CONTINUOUSLY WITH UV WAS PROVEN UNDER PHASE I. THIS PHASE II PROPOSAL WILL FOCUS ON THE DESIGN, FABRICATION, AND EVALUATION OF A PROTOTYPE EMPLOYING THE STC TECHNOLOGY WITH UV LEDS AS THE LIGHT SOURCE, CHALLENGED WITH SEVERAL VOCS SIMULTANEOUSLY. THE PROTOTYPE WILL BE DESIGNED BASED ON THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE LUNAR HABITAT IN NASA'S LUNAR OUTPOST MISSION. REVISED ESM CALCULATIONS WILL BE COMPLETED AFTER SYSTEM OPTIMIZATION, AND A FINAL PROTOTYPE WILL BE DELIVERED TO NASA FOR FUTURE TESTING.

IGF::OT::IGF SOL-GEL BASED MATRIX FOR INCREASED STABILITY OF THERAPEUTIC REAGENTS

TO ADDRESS NASA GODDARD SPACE FLIGHT CENTER'S NEED FOR IMPROVED COST-EFFECTIVE, LOW MASS AND LOW VOLUME DEVICES OR METHODS TO STORE ELECTRICAL ENERGY ONBOARD LONG DURATION (100-DAY MISSION) BALLOON FLIGHTS AT MID-LATITUDES AND ALTITUDES OF 30-40 KM, LUMINIT, LLC, PROPOSES TO DEVELOP A NEW CARBON NANOTUBE-BASED SUPERCAPACITOR (CANS) WITH OUR MATURE CHEMICAL SOLUTION DEPOSITION (SOL-GEL) TECHNOLOGY. THIS APPROACH INCORPORATES NEW CNT-SOL-GEL BASED ELECTRODE MATERIALS AND ALIGNMENT OF CNT IN THE SOL-GEL, WHICH ENABLES US TO MEET NASA REQUIREMENTS FOR COST-EFFECTIVE, LOW MASS AND LOW VOLUME, 28 V DC AND 100 WATT TO 1000 WATT POWER LEVEL. CANS OFFERS VERY HIGH POWER AND ENERGY, MILLIONS OF CHARGE/DISCHARGE CYCLES, RAPID CHARGE AND DISCHARGE TIMES, HIGH EFFICIENCIES (98%), AND CYCLE LIFE>15 YEARS, AND FUNCTIONS AT EXTREME TEMPERATURES. IN PHASE I, LUMINIT WILL DEMONSTRATE THE FEASIBILITY OF CANS BY FABRICATING UNPACKAGED PROTOTYPE CNT-SOL-GEL BASED SUPERCAPACITORS AND COMPARING THEIR PERFORMANCE TO THAT OF COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE RECHARGEABLE BATTERIES, WHICH WILL REDUCE DEVELOPMENT RISK IN PHASE II. IN PHASE II LUMINIT PLANS TO CONTINUE THE RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE CANS FABRICATION PROCESS, OPTIMIZATION OF ELECTRODE MATERIAL, COMPUTER SIMULATION TO MAKE A LARGE SUPERCAPACITOR USING CANS (ONE CANS CELL WILL PROVIDE 2.5 V TO 3 V) TO ACHIEVE NASA'S REQUIREMENTS. THE DEMONSTRATED RESULTS WILL OFFER NASA CAPABILITIES TO PROVIDE POWER STORAGE. CANS IS CURRENTLY AT TRL #2 AT THE BEGINNING, BY THE END OF PHASE I IT IS ESTIMATED THAT IT WILL HAVE REACHED TRL #3.

THIS SBIR PROJECT WILL DEVELOP A MANUFACTURING METHOD FOR NUCLEAR FUELS THAT CAN BE UNIVERSALLY APPLIED FOR SPACE-POWER SYSTEMS THAT UTILIZES A DUST-FREE URANIUM OXIDE PRODUCTION UNIT. FOR THE PARTICULAR APPLICATION TO NUCLEAR THERMAL PROPULSION, IN WHICH ONE WISHES, (1) TO MAXIMIZE HYDROGEN PROPELLANT HEATING, AND (2) TO REDUCE FISSION PRODUCT GAS RELEASE AND REACTOR PARTICULATES INTO THE ENGINES EXHAUST STREAM, IF AN ENSEMBLE OF FINE PARTICLES CAN BE CONTROLLABLE FABRICATED IN SOLUTION AND BONDED INTO A SOLID DURING SOLUTION DRYING, THEN THE RADIATION-HAZARD CAN ALSO BE AVOIDED. FURTHERMORE, HAVING FINE CONTROL OVER THE PARTICULATE GEOMETRY CAN ALLOW ONE TO TAILOR THE FUEL GEOMETRY SUCH THAT THE HYDROGEN HEATING IS MAXIMIZED AND THE FISSION-PRODUCT GAS RELEASE IS MINIMIZED. THE FABRICATION TECHNOLOGY WILL ACHIEVE HIGH THROUGH-PUT GRANULE FORMATION WITHOUT THE FORMATION OF HAZARDOUS PARTICULATES IN AN AQUEOUS SOLUTION VIA EITHER INTERNAL GELATION SOL-GEL METHODS OR COLLOIDAL ASSEMBLY. PREVIOUS WORK WITH CERIUM, A SURROGATE FOR URANIUM AND PLUTONIUM, HAS DEMONSTRATED THE PRODUCTION OF MONODISPERSE MICROSPHERES (~ 3 % DIAMETER UNCERTAINTY) OF CERIUM DIOXIDE, SHOWING THAT THE DESIRED SIZES CAN BE PRODUCED, PURITY REQUIREMENTS CAN BE MET, AND THAT PRESSURIZED WATER TREATMENTS MODIFY MICROSPHERE PROPERTIES SUCH THAT THEY DO NOT PRODUCE FINES OR STRONGLY AGGLOMERATE DURING HEAT TREATMENTS. NANOSTRUCTURED METAL-OXIDES PROVIDE PATHWAY THROUGH WHICH HIGHER PURITIES AND GREATER DENSIFICATION CAN BE ACHIEVED. DURING PHASE I, WE WILL OPTIMIZE THE STARTING MATERIAL RECIPE FOR THE HIGH-THROUGHPUT GROWTH OF STABLE, CONDUCTIVE FUEL-PELLETS, USING CERIUM OXIDE AS A URANIUM SURROGATE, SO THAT THE URANIUM OXIDE FUEL MANUFACTURING PROCESS CAN BE OPTIMIZED DURING PHASE II.

THIS PROJECT AIMS TO DEVELOP FOOD PACKAGING TECHNOLOGIES FOR EXTENDING SHELF-LIVE TOWARD MAINTAINING HEALTHY DIET AND PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL BEING OF THE SPACE CREW. THE UNDERLYING TECHNOLOGY BUILDS ON SOL-GEL CORE COMPETENCY OF THE COMPANY. INNOSENSE LLC (ISL) WILL COLLABORATE WITH THE FOOD TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT AT OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY (OSU) FOR INDEPENDENT TESTING OF THE FLEXIBLE ORMOSIL NANOCOMPOSITE (FLEXORNTM) BARRIER MATERIALS. THROUGH AN ITERATIVE PROCESS OF COATING AND TESTING, THE PHASE I PROJECT WOULD DEMONSTRATE: (A) THAT THE FLEXORN BARRIER CAN BE DEPOSITED ONTO POLYMERIC SUBSTRATES AND CAN BE ADHESIVELY BONDED TO A POLYPROPYLENE LAYER FOR FOOD PACKAGING APPLICATIONS; (B) ACHIEVEMENT OF WATER VAPOR TRANSMISSION RATE (WVTR) < THAN 1 G/M2-DAY AND OXYGEN TRANSMISSION RATE (OTR) < THAN 1 CC/M2-DAY FOR THE FLEXIBLE THIN-FILM BARRIER. THE FOCUS OF PHASE II WILL BE OPTIMIZATION OF THE BARRIER ARCHITECTURE, AND THE EVALUATION OF PROTOTYPE FLEXIBLE POUCHES FOR THEIR MECHANICAL AND BARRIER PROPERTIES AFTER RETORTING, A PROCESS TYPICALLY USED TO PACKAGE REHEATABLE FOODS IN FLEXIBLE PACKAGING APPLICATIONS. PROMINENT MEMBERS OF THE CENTER FOR ADVANCED PROCESSING AND PACKAGING STUDIES (CAPPS) AT OSU (E.G., KRAFT FOODS) HAVE EXPRESSED STRONG INTEREST IN APPLYING THIS NASA-FUNDED TECHNOLOGY TO EXPAND THEIR MARKET SHARES.

PHASE I SBIR FEASIBILITY RESEARCH PROJECT ENTITLED: "CHEMICAL AND PROPELLANTLESS PROPULSION FOR DEEP SPACE", UV-CURABLE HYBRID NANOCOMPOSITE COATING TO PROTECT TETHER POLYMER MATERIALS THIS IS A SBIR FOR THE UV-CURABLE HYBRID NANOCOMPOSITE COATING TO PROTECT TETHER POLYMER MATERIALS; THE VENDOR (LUMINIT, LLC) WILL ADDRESS THE NASA NEED FOR COATINGS TO PROTECT AND STRENGTHEN TETHER MATERIALS FOR MOMENTUM-EXCHANGE ELECTRODYNAMICS REBOOST TECHNOLOGY. LUMINIT PROPOSES TO DEVELOP A NEW UV-CURABLE HYBRID NANOCOMPOSITE TETHER COATING MATERIAL MATRIX BASED ON HYBRID SOL-GEL TECHNOLOGY. ITS PRINCIPAL INNOVATIONS INCLUDE (1) SYNTHESIS OF TITANIUM DIOXIDE AND ZINC OXIDE NANOPARTICLES BY A SOL-GEL METHOD TO FORM A COATING PROTECTING AGAINST ULTRAVIOLET (UV) RADIATION AND ATOMIC OXYGEN (AO) AND (2) NOVEL USE OF 3-AMINOPROPYYLTRIETHOXYSILANE AS A COUPLING AGENT THAT STRENGTHEN THE MATERIAL MATRIX, AND PROMOTES ADHESION TO TETHER MATERIALS. THE INNOVATIONS ENABLE THE UVHN TO MEET THE NASA REQUIREMENTS FOR COATINGS THAT PROTECT EXISTING TETHER TECHNOLOGY FROM THE EFFECTS OF UV AND AO IN THE LEO ENVIRONMENT, WITH IMPROVED TENSILE STRENGTH AND LONGEVITY OF EXISTING TETHER. IN PHASE I LUMINIT WILL DEVELOP A GLASS-LIKE POLYMER HYBRID SOL-GEL UVHN PROTECTIVE COATING FOR NASAS TETHER POLYMER MATERIALS, AND DEMONSTRATE THAT IT IS RESISTANT TO UV AND AO. IN PHASE II LUMINIT WILL SCALE UP AND OPTIMIZE THE UVHN PROCESS TO COST EFFICIENTLY PRODUCE UVHN MATERIAL MATRICES FOR MORE COMPREHENSIVE UV AND AO RESISTANCE TESTS. THE RESULTING PRODUCT WILL MAKE MXER PROPELLANTLESS PROPULSION MORE RELIABLE IN RAISING AND MAINTAINING SPACECRAFT ORBITS. POTENTIAL NASA APPLICATIONS OF THE UVHN COATING MATERIAL MATRIX WILL NOT BE LIMITED TO PROTECTING POLYMERIC TETHER MATERIALS FROM THE EFFECTS OF ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION AND ATOMIC OXYGEN. IT HAS DIRECT APPLICATION AS A TRANSPARENT ABRASION-RESISTANT COATING FOR SPACECRAFT AND AIRCRAFT WINDOWS AND MANY OTHER USES THAT REQUIRE DURABLE EXTERIOR COATS WITH GOOD ADHESION PROPERTIES AND LONG LIFETIMES AND CAN RESIST DEGRADATION DUE TO SOLVENTS, ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION, AND SCRATCHING. THE UVHN MATERIAL CAN BE INCORPORATED INTO THE TRANSPARENT CONDUCTIVE COATING FOR AIRCRAFT CANOPIES AND LANDING GEAR.

DURABLE DUST REPELLENT COATING FOR METALS THE DURABLE DUST REPELLENT COATING (DDRC) CONSISTS OF NANO-PHASE SILICA, TITANIA, OR OTHER OXIDE COATINGS TO REPEL DUST IN A VACUUM ENVIRONMENT OVER A WIDE RANGE OF TEMPERATURES. THE COATINGS ARE ENGINEERED WITH DIELECTRIC PROPERTIES TO STRONGLY REPEL PARTICLES FROM SURFACES. DURABILITY IS ATTAINED BY APPLICATION METHODS SUCH AS SOL-GEL COATING OR PHYSICAL VAPOR DEPOSITION ONTO STATIONARY AND ROTATING SURFACES OF EVA EQUIPMENT, HATCHES AND SEALS, LUNAR MODULES, ISRU HARDWARE, AND HABITATS PRIOR TO ASSEMBLY. THE APPLICATION OF THE COATING IS FOLLOWED BY ANNEALING AT ELEVATED TEMPERATURES. INITIAL DEVELOPMENT IS PLANNED FOR STAINLESS STEEL, FOLLOWED LATER BY OTHER METALS AND PLASTICS. IN ADDITION TO DUST REPELLENCY, THE DDRC PROVIDES ABRASION RESISTANCE TO LUNAR HARDWARE. SOME OF THE DDRC COATINGS ALSO IMPART UV RESISTANCE TO THE SUBSTRATE. UNLIKE CONVENTIAL DUST REMOVAL METHODS SUCH AS BRUSHING OR BLOWING THAT MAY RESULT IN DEEP INFILTRATION OF PARTICLES, DUST CAN BE READILY REMOVED FROM DDRC SURFACES BY TILTING OR MILD VIBRATION.