Award Data

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project involves the development of systems to treat produced water using a novel type of swellable glass that absorbs organic compounds from water. Produced water is the term given to aqueous wastes cogenerated with oil/gas extraction. These waters contain high levels of organic compounds, BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes), organic ...

This Small Business Technology Transfer Phase I project will develop a new type of nanostructured substrate for applications in arsenide detection using surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). Arsenic is a well known toxic chemical which exists in both nature and industrial processes, and its detection and monitoring at very low concentration is highly desired. SERS, which relies on Raman sig ...

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is focused on completing the research necessary to begin commercializing the production of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) from algae. Algisys, LLC has partnered with Virginia Tech to further develop patent-pending technology for the production of EPA via algal fermentation, using inexpensive biodiesel-derived crude glycerol as a feedstock ...

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I Project is focused on research to develop reinforced silicon carbide hollow spheres. This effort will apply a modified version of its proprietary hollow sphere production process in combination with novel materials. Novel characteristics resulting from the hollow sphere structure to be realized include: low cost bulk production of individual ...

This STTR Phase II project will develop novel engineered Clostridia strains for fermentation and economically produce butanol as a biofuel from sugars derived from starchy and lignocellulosic biomass. The conventional acetone-butanol-ethanol (ABE) fermentation has low butanol yield (

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5). This Small Business Technology Transfer Research Phase I project seeks to develop advanced heat transfer fluids using nano-structured carbons. Carbon nanofibers (CNFs) with a thermal conductivity of ~2000 W/m-K, are proposed at loadings which do not sacrifice fluid flow and viscosity. Nanofluids will ...

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project is aimed at developing improved noise filters for wearable medical instrumentation. Recently, medical sensing instrumentation for the monitoring of physiological signals has become increasingly wearable and noninvasive. However, because these sensors are now portable they will be exposed to higher levels of noise and artifacts (especially mot ...

CONVENTIONAL REMOTE MANIPULATOR END-EFFECTOR TECHNIQUES ARE NOT SATIFYING THE CURRENT NEED FOR SMALLER, SIMPLER, MORE EFFICIENT MICRMANIPULATOR SYSTEMS. THERE IS CLEARLY A NEED FOR AN ENTIRELY DIIFERENT APPROACH TO GENERATING AND CONTROLLING MECHANICAL MOTION AT MILLIMETER AND SUB-MILLIMETER LEVELS. ONE SUCH APPROACH, SUGGESTED IN THIS PROPOSAL, TAKES ADVANTAGE OF THE PIEZOELECTRIC PROPERTIES OF C ...

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project addresses the need for faster, lighter, more powerful electronic devices with increased capability. The manufacture of advanced printed circuit boards, a key component of electronic devices, utilizing high density interconnect technology are generally limited by the electroplating process in printed circuit board shops. Specifically, t ...

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5). This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project will address the problem of solvent-based primers and coatings on metals that require a conversion coatings on the substrate for adhesion and corrosion performance. Such primers also contain toxic chromate-containing anti-corrosion pigments. The ...