Award Data

Project Description and Objectives:The overarching goal of this SBIR project is to develop a cost-effective, small-scale milk processing line for HTST pasteurization as a pathway to increased revenue and profitability for small and mid-size dairy farms. Intensive research will answer critical questions in two key areas: 1) Technical Feasibility - analysis of currently available processing line com ...

Statement of the problem or opportunity:The conventional approach to industrially producing nitrogenous fertilizers helps feed about half of the world's population but is energy inefficient and requires extensive infrastructure. Together, the conventional Haber and Ostwald use about 1 - 2 % of the world's produced energy and produce almost 3 % of anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions. A r ...

Shellfish aquaculture is a rapidly expanding agricultural industry in the United States, with landings more than doubling in the last 5 years and creating many new jobs. Culture techniques and the water-filtering nature of oysters make them a very low impact crop with arguably, a net benefit to the environment (a unique trait compared to other intensively farmed proteins). Comprised of salt and br ...

Waste, non-food biomass has little value and is often sent to landfill. Methods to convert this mass into value-added compounds deserve attention, especially ones that lead to biofuels and biochemicals that historically are only obtained from non-renewable petroleum sources. A novel catalytic process which operates using recyclable supercritical water will be used to produce bioproducts from bioma ...

Vertical growing systems allow high density crop production, which increases yields per square foot while conserving natural resources. They have traditionally been used in conjunction with hydroponic methods, which often diminish produce quality and restrict the number of growers who adapt the technology. We will research and develop soil based methods that increase plant densities compared to fi ...

Through the proposed USDA SBIR program, NanoSonic will provide wildland firefighters with lightweight, highly breathable, 2-way stretch fire protective garments with a previously unavailable combination of breathability, thermal protection, flexibility, and comfort during wildland firefighting operations. While current PPE garments meet NFPA 1977 standards, they are often criticized for their infl ...

Large-scale swine production has grown dramatically in the past two decades, creating adverse environmental and health effects. In North Carolina alone, health impacts of atmospheric emissions are estimated to exceed $300 million. Coupled with environmental damages, this has resulted in moratoriums on new facilities, as well as tougher regulations for waste streams. An effective treatment and odor ...

The food supply chain consists of many potential contamination points including growing, harvesting, post-harvest handling, transport, processing, distribution, storage and packaging, and finally preparation by the consumer. There are 9.6 million cases of foodborne illness annually in US with an annual economic impact of $15.5 billion. Contamination also leads to spoilage of food and significant l ...

Food-borne illness remains a top concern within the food processing industry. This phase I Small Business Innovation Research projectputs forth a set of technical objectives and a series of tasks that when completed wil result in a product that will significantly impact food safety. Using patent-pending antimicrobial technology, we will create a rechargeable antimicrobial polyethylene material int ...

Influenza virus causes significant economic losses to the swine industry due to disease and decreased growth rates. Additionally, swine influenza viruses are zoonotic and represent a threat to public health. Both inactivated and live swine influenza virus vaccines are commercially available but are generally considered to lack efficacy to genetically diverse viruses circulating in the field. Here ...