Award Data

DTRA and other DoD agencies are currently seeking earth penetrators with higher efficiency for reaching deeply buried targets. Current penetrator materials and designs suffer from high levels of frictional drag, unbalanced resistance due to lateral forces and localized melting of the warhead leading to shape change and further instability. General Sciences, Inc. (GSI) has developed a method for en ...

The objective of this proposal is to develop enabling technology for the production of bulk scintillating nanocomposites that have gamma radiation detection properties of single crystal NaI but with the manufacturability of plastic scintillators. These performance criteria may be met by developing nanoparticle polymer composites with ultra-high nanoparticle loadings. These ‘ultra-composites’ w ...

Analysis of nuclear material samples in the field has many advantages over laboratory analysis. Laboratory analyses can be slow, involve increased expense, lead to additional waste generation and disposal problems, and may introduce errors due to sample degradation or mishandling. In situ analysis mitigates all of these problems. The specific aim of this project is the development of a truly por ...

As a nation, we are faced with multiple challenges from global climate warming, rapid depletion of fossil oil, a strong desire to become independent from foreign oils, and a moral obligation to preserve our environment for future generations. In response to these challenges, many consumers have changed their purchasing behavior, preferring bio-based products over fossil-based products with a willi ...

This SBIR project proposes a new approach to making liquid fuels from cellulosic biomass sources (a Biomass-to-Liquids or "BTL" process) that would significantly reduce the cost and complexity of production. The project uses innovative chemistry and reactor designs to enhance efficiency, selectivity, and reduce operating condition severity. Phase I aims to demonstrate process feasibility by determ ...

In the 2007 State of the Union address, President Bush called for 35 billion gallons of alternative fuel use in the US by 2017 which would replace 20% of the nation's petroleum consumption. It is apparent that this goal cannot be achieved with existing technology and existing feedstocks alone. New technology is needed to improve the conversion of non-grain (cellulosic) feedstocks. In the US, total ...

Situation or Problem In order to provide timely and reliable assessments of the global crop market, it is necessary to move from limited, in situ crop assessments to operational crop monitoring on regional and global scales with multi-temporal remotely sensed (RS) data. Due to timeliness requirements and large volumes of imagery needed for operational agricultural monitoring, it is important that ...

In the US, Paralichthyd flounder, summer (Paralichthys dentatus) and southern (P. lethostigma) flounder on the east coast and California halibut (P. californicus) on the west, are high-value finfish with established markets worldwide. While the demand for flounder remains high globally, fishing pressure has significantly reduced wild catches, such that demand often exceeds supply. Meeting the incr ...

PROBLEM: Efforts to control balsam woolly adelgids (BWA) with conventional pesticides have failed, and natural enemy populations are too sparse to effectively control BWA, an exotic pest destroying natural and cultivated firs in the US, including Fraser firs in Christmas tree plantations. We propose to develop the technology for a diet-based mass rearing system for brown lacewings to control BWA i ...

The demand for seafood in the United States is increasing and will continue to increase. Recent federal health guidelines call for Americans to double their consumption of seafood. The U.S. would need an additional 4 to 6 million metric tons of seafood per year over current levels if we doubled our consumption. If consumption remains at the current per capita levels, the U.S. will still require an ...