Award Data

Opportunity: Guayule, a US native plant, is the only alternate rubber crop with an established, mechanized, agronomic system. Problem: Low rubber yields and lack of effective resin and bagasse coproduct valorization, have prevented widespread adoption by American farmers and processors. Rubber is only made when the cytoplasmic monomer pool (isopentenyl-pyrophosphate; IPP) is larger than that requi ...

Rubber is pervasive in our economy, with over 50,000 products requiring natural rubber (NR), including military grade tires. Yet significant global shortfalls are projected. Rubber dandelion (Taraxacum kok-saghyz) produces natural rubber (cis-1,4, -polyisoprene) in root latex vessels (laticifers) almost identical to rubber from the tropical rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis). Problem: Cost-effective ...

It is here proposed to demonstrate AlGaN based solar-blind avalanche photodiodes and arrays operating in both linear and Geiger mode that would be suitable for replacing photomultiplier tube technology bio-agent detection, missile warning systems, and hostile fire identification. These objectives will be reached through a comprehensive R&D thrust in the areas of semiconductor material epitaxial gr ...

Nanoscale, material sensitive, imaging techniques are critical for progress in many disciplines as we learn to master science and technology at the smallest dimensions — on the nanometer to atomic-scale. However, progress in both science and technology is becoming increasingly limited by the constraints of current imaging techniques and metrologies. Fortunately, by combining coherent extreme UV ...

Most standard-of-care tools and techniques for evaluating neck disorders are subjective, unreliable, and do not provide actionable information for providers, payers, and organizations to deliver efficient and effective care. This lack of objective neck he

Traumatic injuries account for 30% of all life years lost in the US and is the leading cause of death for people under 46 years of age. Uncontrolled bleeding or hemorrhage constitute 30-40% of trauma related deaths and are considered to be a major cause o

Pressure gain combustion has the potential to significantly improve the specific fuel consumption for gas turbine engines by realizing a pressure rise through the combustor as opposed to a pressure drop. One drawback to this form of combustion is the cycl

We propose a combined modeling and experimental program to analyze and optimize a turbine behind a pulse detonation combustor/engine (PDC/PDE). In Phase I, a discontinuous-Galerkin, harmonic balance code from the University of Cincinnati (UC) will be impl

Federal Aviation Administration Advisory Circular 20-107B provides guidance on the achievement of compliance with Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations regarding airworthiness type certification requirements for composite aircraft structures necessi

Genome-scale predictable cellular design and engineering of biomanufacturing systems is the overarching a goal of DARPA's Living Foundry thrust and, if realized, will enable rapid engineering of living biosystems for a broad range of applications in biotechnology and pharmacology. However, constructing living cells with designed genome is not fully automated and is severely limited by inhere ...