Award Data

Avian influenza is a highly contagious disease that can spread rapidly in a susceptible population. Thus, avian influenza may have devastating effects on the poultry industry. Because of potential interspecies transmission, as evidenced with the avian influenza virus H5N1, avian influenza may have devastating effect on public health as well. It is therefore important to prevent and/or to promptly ...

There continues to be need for production of fuel grade ethanol (FGE) from biomass. This has many advantages including: development of fuel independence; zero net greenhouse gas emissions; strengthen U.S. agricultural base; and excellent replacement for MTBE as oxygenate. CMS has identified novel membrane systems and novel processes for reducing the cost for drying fuel grade ethanol (FGE). Limite ...

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 our Phase I test, Green Eyes successfully demonstrated the feasibility of a Coastal Long-Term Automated Self-Calibrating Profiler (CLASP) system capable of autonomous operation for one year. The feasibility prototype also incorporated two-way telemetry and near real-time display of processed data. CLASP uses a profiling pump to deliver water to a flow-through multi probe sensor and additional ...

This proposal describes the application of a mature nanotechnology-based crack arrest / structural repair technology as a novel crack arrestor tool for high-strength pipelines. The crack arrestor would comprise a thin layer or sleeve of electrodeposited nanocrystalline material applied to the outside of the pipe either in the coating mill during fabrication or in-field during or following constru ...

This proposal describes the application of a mature nanotechnology-based crack arrest/structural repair technology as a novel in-field pipeline repair tool. The repair would be comprised of a thin layer or sleeve of electrodeposited nancrystalline material applied to the damaged region of the pipe in order to utilize the "crack filling" characteristic of the process. The concept proposed has alr ...

Laser Technology Inc. (LTI) proposes a Phase II SBIR research project to further develop a Compact Shearography System, Analysis Method and Software for micro-crack detection in concrete. There is an urgent need to detect and characterize fine cracks in concrete that form because of various damage mechanisms including alkali-silicate reaction, delayed ettringite formation or frost damage. Fine s ...

This research examines the use of solid metal catalysts to solve two interrelated problems associated with current biodiesel process technologies: the use of toxic chemicals in the conventional production process and the economic feasibility of processing feedstock with high water and free fatty acid content. The potential gains include the reduction of toxic chemicals in the process, the eliminat ...

A novel third rail insulator cleaner and novel cleaning tool - the Spin Wedge, will be developed. The novel cleaner is a skate that rides directly on the third rail and is attached to a service vehicle. Four Spin Wedges, attached to the skate, direct a very rapid series of high pressure water jets arcs, like hammer blows, only on the surface to be cleaned. As the skate moves forward at high spe ...