Award Data

The principal objective of the proposed USDA SBIR Phase I project is to develop the use of Nanophase Silica (NS), a product derived from processing of agricultural waste, as a key ingredient in Ultra-High Performance Concrete (UHPC) formulations to achieve very high strength, durability and dimensional stability (i.e. no shrinkage or expansion without cracking). Also, the excess energy/steam from ...

A sustainable supply of renewable biofuel will contribute to the Nation's energy security. Algal biomass is seen as having potential to be a significant source of renewable bioenergy. Microalgae-derived biofuel provides a high oil productivity with a smaller land footprint than terrestrial biofuel crops. It captures carbon dioxide and can grow on marginal lands or with salty aquifer water or w ...

The proposed research will develop new tools for automated tree species identification that will advance the collaboration of government agencies, citizen groups, and nonprofit organizations that is critical to contemporary community forestry. Proper species identification is particularly important during a tree inventory, since many diseases and infestations are species-specific. Yet the large nu ...

for clearing out accumulations of small timber and ground vegetation. However, generations of controversial forest land management practices coupled with global warming trends have yielded wildfires that burn hotter and longer. This beyond ordinary level of devastation can have long lasting effects on the health of soil and watershed resources. The ability to ameliorate these impacts has direct ec ...

The purpose of this USDA SBIR Phase I project is to determine the feasibility of a novel wood fiber based composite material for structural elements of marine structures, particularly the structural frame of the aquaculture pens manufactured by InnovaSea Systems.InnovaSea has been manufacturing and marketing the Aquapod spherical geodesic fish pens since 2006 and has learned much in the years sinc ...

SummaryUnmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and small UAS (SUAS) technology hold great promise for facilitating the management of wildfires on forest lands. However technology is only a small part of the problem of integrating UAS into fireground operations. Significant concerns must be addressed about the coordination of air assets in the high-risk operational wildland fire airspace environment, which ...

The southern pine beetles, which can kill thousands of trees in epidemic attacks, had never been found beyond the pitch pine forests of the American South, because the winters were too cold. But they have migrated to New Jersey, where they have destroyed more than 30,000 acres of forest since 2002. And, according to a recent report of the New York Times, the warmer winters have now beckoned them t ...

Tissue culture is a well-established micropropagation method for many vegetable and floral crops. However, transferring plantlets from tissue culture vessels to the propagation trays is extremely time consuming and labor intensive. It is the major obstacle in crop production. The purpose of this projectis to design and produce a prototype which can efficiently transfer plantlets to propagation tra ...

Numerous challenges face the Florida and U.S. citrus industries, including global market pressure, urban and environmental pressures, labor issues, and emerging diseases and pests underscoring the need for new production approaches. Over the last decade, over 200,000 acres of Florida citrus production has been lost due to the citrus canker eradication program and citrus greening known as HLB. HLB ...

The cardiovascular benefits of fish oil enriched in omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFAs), namely eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), are well-documented. When combined with gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), n-3 PUFAs have been shown to reduce the risk of chronic inflammatory disorders, such as asthma and rheumatoid arthritis. However, the consumption of fish oil remain ...