Award Data

Over the next decade there will be a renewed emphasis on the production of chemicals and liquid fuels from biomass, the use of agricultural wastes as feedstocks, and the development of crops and farming techniques optimized for fuel production. In view of the tremendous diversity of biomass feedstocks, a great need exists for a robust, comprehensive model that could be utilized to predict yields, ...

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Detection of bioaerosols is a cornerstone in the protection of our nation from bioterrorist and pandemic events. Rapid bioaerosol detection systems have advanced dramatically in recent years, but the lack of integratable automated sample preparation for these systems remains a major deficiency. Three significant issues are (a) a lack of an interface between large environmental samples and sample p ...

Current methods for heating seedling trays in the greenhouse envelope during colder climates include natural gas, geothermal as well as electric. The most common method of heating the greenhouse is with natural gas. Natural gas systems use a forced air commercial furnace to blow heated air onto the environment. There are two ways that the warm air can be directed from the furnace to the seedling. ...

The implications of the proposed investigations are that radar systems already implemented for the automotive industry can be exploited, adapted and optimized for this application. These radar systems are inexpensive, of small size, employ advanced processing techniques which allow the tracking of threat targets, transmit low average power (10 milliwatts) and are proven to be people safe. We will ...

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project envisages new biodegradable, water-soluble films produced from blends of pectin and starch for commercial applications. The proposed research focuses on developing films by melt extrusion of plasticized blends of pectin and starch. The extruded films will be characterized in terms of blend morphology, mechanical properties, and barrier prop ...

Cement-bonded particleboard is an environmentally safe high-performance reconstituted wood product with desirable longevity, fire resistance and life-cycle cost position, presenting a great potential to maintain the competitive position of reconstituted wood boards in demanding construction markets. The low productivity of cement-bonded particleboard plants and the inhibitory effects of some wood ...

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ENERGY CONVERSION DEVICES, INC. (ECD) HAS DEVELOPED A HIGH PERFORMANCE, THIN FILM GLASS-LIKE COATING (CLEAR COAT (TM)) AND DEPOSITION PROCESS THAT CAN IMPROVE THE BARRIER PROPERTIES OF COMMODITY POLYMER FILMS BY A FACTOR OF 100. THE COATING IS TRANSPARENT, COLORLESS, NONTOXIC, LOW COST AND DOES NOT EFFECT THE RECYCLABILITY OF THE POLYMER FILM. PILOT-SCALE PRODUCTION OF HIGH PERFORMANCE FILMS WITH ...

The modernization of the US swine industry has been critical to the sustainability and global competitiveness of US swine production. At the same time, modernization has also required dramatic changes in animal management. By housing pigs indoors, producers have caused the unintended problem of iron deficiency anemia in neonatal pigs. This problem has been further exacerbated by advances in geneti ...