Award Data

Typical procedures for respirator masks sizing and protective fit test are time-consuming and user intensive, requiring taking anthropometricmeasurements of the wearer, sampling the wearers breathing zone and the use of specialized tools and equipment. The proposed softwareapp aims to quickly, accurately and automatically perform respirator mask sizing and predict protective fit using only 2D imag ...

This project is a unique metagenomic evaluation of under-studied extremophilic microbiome natural products (NPs), with the goal of discovering novel antibiotic biowarfare agent (BWA) countermeasures. A metagenomic biosynthetic gene cluster library from extremophilic sources was created, sequenced, analyzed, and exploited to produce several broad-spectrum antibiotic extracts during the Phase I effo ...

We propose to develop low cost extended range Short Wave Infrared (SWIR) Focal Plane Arrays (FPAs) using Colloidal Quantum Dots (CQDs) technology. We have successfully produced a SWIR FPA camera with a resolution of 640 x 512 pixels and a sensitivity from 0.4 mm to 1.7 mm at room temperature. Our first initiative will be to extend the operational wavelength range to 2.5 mm, and then 3.0 mm. We hav ...

Physical Sciences Inc. (PSI) proposes to develop an open-path spatial ringdown spectrometer (OP-SRS) for the detection and quantification of chemical warfare agents (CWAs) and toxic industrial chemicals (TICs). This approach enables sensitive and selective detection of the chemicals of interest over a broad dynamic range down to the 10 minute negligible military exposure guideline (MEG) level. Thi ...

Luna Innovations is addressing the need to develop novel fluid repellent textile treatments for military uniforms that will activelydecontaminate chemical and biological warfare agents (CBWA). There have been recent significant advances in textile treatments that havedemonstrated water, oil and chemical agent resistance that are superior to Quarpel repellent treatments currently used on protective ...

Aflatoxins B1 (AFB1) are fungal produced mycotoxins that are present in food supplies and are strongly associated with increased risk for thedevelopment of hepatocellular carcinoma. Currently, there are no known countermeasures to selectively mitigate AFB1 toxicity. To meet thischallenge, we successfully validated a Phase I proof-of-concept study to harness the microbiome extracts of scavenging ma ...

The potential danger of chemical-warfare attacks has led to an increased need for developing novel decontamination methods. The sensitivity of human skin to different chemical warfare agents (CWAs) varies considerably. As a result, the decontamination for human requires an entirely different approach from other material decontamination, especially for the wound area on the skin where could absorb ...

We propose an Acousto-Optic Tunable Filter (AOTF) Spectropolarimetric Imaging System for Enhanced Standoff Chemical Detection at Long Wave Infrared (LWIR) wavelengths. This work entails development of suitable LWIR material, design of the LWIR AOTF, and design of the hyperspectral imaging sensor using a focal plane array. Currently, there is no technologically mature, commercially available mater ...

We propose to develop low cost Long Wavelength Infrared Focal Plane Arrays (LWIR FPAs) using colloidal quantum dots (CQDs) of mercury telluride (HgTe). In Phase I, QDs in the size range of 20-25nm (corresponding to cutoff wavelength of 8 to 12 microns) w...

Protein manufacturing is of paramount importance to chemical and biological defense applications. Existing protein purification methods primarily rely on synthetic-resin based chromatography, which is time-consuming, labor-intensive, expensive, and consequently, ill-suited for developing rapid countermeasures to chemical and biological threats. To overcome these limitations, the overall goal of th ...