Award Data

Organophosphorus chemical warfare nerve agents (OP-CWA) are attractive to terrorist groups and rogue states as an inexpensive and accessible technology for chemical warfare. OP-CWA and organophosphate pesticides cause severe neurological symptoms and death by inhibiting the enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE); the resulting excess acetylcholine accumulates and overstimulates the human or animal bo ...

This Phase 2 project targets the completion of the development of an improved system for the broadcasting of the WWVB signal, as a direct continuation of the Phase 1 project, which successfully validated the proposed approach through a feasibility study and analyses. Objectives of this project include the design of the new modulation scheme and protocol, the development of a new time-code generato ...

Aerosols represent one of the more efficient methods to distribute biological and chemical agents throughout the atmosphere. Small aerosol droplets can be readily inhaled and easily penetrate deep into the lungs where they lodge in bronchial alveoli. Within the alveoli, chemical and biological agents can breach epithelial and endothelial cell layers and enter the bloodstream, where they cause da ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI) occur in gt40and of the 21-50% patients that are administered indwelling catheters, annually costing a staggering 421- 451 million in medical intervention, antimicrobial treatments and frequent catheter replacements in the US alone. Increased patient trauma cannot be overlooked: when a CAUTI episode becomes ...

Nanometrology International, Inc. (NMI) proposes to demonstrate the feasibility of 3-dimensional (3D) characterization of nanoscale objects using scanning probe microscopy (SPM) with a measurement uncertainty of less than 0.7 nm. To accomplish this task, we propose a novel method of 3D tip characterization and use of an innovative surface reconstruction algorithm recently introduced by NIST and th ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Oil spills can cause tremendous environmental damage and are a serious threat to public health. Petroleum contains many toxic compounds such as polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Some PAH compounds are highly carcinogenic and cause DNA mutations in humans. When petroleum is spilled into the sea, PAH compounds rapidly spread through the marine environment and eve ...

Currently, the accepted standard experimental model for measuring protective efficacy against botulism is the Mouse Lethality Neutralization (MLN) assay. Botulism poisoning is a life threatening condition that is not only a public health concern, but could also be a potential biological weapon. With seven serotypes of botulinum neurotoxins, there is need for an alternative to the MLN assay due t ...

We propose a metamaterial-enhanced microbolometer with strong absorption over a narrow band that is dynamically tunable over the 8-10 micron band. A single-layer photonic metamaterial consisting of a thin metal film perforated with a 2-D array of dielectric apertures will be deposited on an amorphous-Silicon layer acting as an absorber and bolometer. The metamaterial, in conjunction with planar di ...

Identification of organophosphates (OPs) based nerve agents, is vital to the protection of U.S. armed forces personnel. Existing detection methods use bulky and expensive laboratory equipment, negating their battlefield use. Colorimetric indicators such as the currently deployed M8 and M9 detection papers are the fastest, cheapest, and easiest type of detector to use; however, these cannot detect ...

Biological weapons are among the most serious threats facing the United States defense forces, today. Currently available bioaerosol sampling systems and cassettes require both sample preparation and a well equipped laboratory for analysis. Other detection methods rely on fragile bio-molecules for recognition of the target analyte. These systems are not suitable for onsite analysis. Infrared spec ...