A new recycling plant will soon recover uranium from the ashes of radioactive garbage to be recycled back into nuclear fuel using an efficient, environmentally friendly technology inspired by decaffeinated coffee. The technique may eventually lead to recycling the most dangerous forms of radioactive waste. Developed at the University of Idaho by chemistry professor Chien Wai, the process uses supercritical fluids to dissolve toxic metals. When coupled with a purifying process developed in partnership with Sydney Koegler, a university alum and engineer with nuclear power company AREVA, enriched uranium can be recovered from the ashes of contaminated materials. The school signed an agreement with AREVA last week under which the company will use several of Wai’s discoveries to extract the metals from contaminated ash. AREVA provided research funding and will now gain rights to the university’s share of a joint patent that further separates the enriched uranium from the extracted metals.

A supercritical fluid — in this case carbon dioxide — is any substance raised to a temperature and pressure at which it exhibits properties of both a gas and a liquid. When supercritical, the substance can move directly into a solid like a gas and yet dissolve compounds like a liquid. Supercritical carbon dioxide has directly dissolved and removed caffeine from whole coffee beans for decades, Wai noted. When the carbon dioxide’s pressure is returned to normal, it becomes a gas and evaporates, leaving behind only the extracted metals. No solvents are required, no acids are applied, and no organic waste is left behind. “That’s why decaffeinated coffee tastes so good,” said Wai. Because the technology is so simple, cost-effective and environmentally friendly, AREVA is eager to test its first full-scale use on 32 tons of incinerator ash at a nuclear fuel fabrication plant in Richland, WA. During normal operation at the plant, common items including filters, rags, paper wipes, and gloves become contaminated with uranium. The waste is burned to reduce its volume and increase its uranium content, making it easier to recover the uranium. Nearly 10% of the ash’s weight is usable enriched uranium, worth about $900 dollars per pound on today’s market. That means about $5 million dollars is currently sitting in the garbage waiting to be recovered, Wai said. “This process has been extremely collaborative — it’s one of those [deals] that you just love,” said Gene Merrell, the university’s chief technology transfer officer and assistant vice president for research. “It’s going to be a great deal that will benefit the University of Idaho, AREVA and the entire world.” Go to: 123 Idaho

Posted August 27th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Innovation of the Week, Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

Sci-fi notions of invisibility may not be merely B-movie imaginings for much longer. University of California, Berkeley scientists have developed material that has the potential to bend light around objects — including people — to make them invisible. Initial applications envisioned are military — making tanks, buildings, and even individual infantrymen disappear from view, for example. In tests, researchers from UC-Berkeley and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory were able to construct a prism that bent light “the wrong way” and thus allowing an object appear to vanish. The results were published last week in the online versions of the journals Nature and Science. Similar techniques using microwaves, which are much easier to control, were demonstrated two years ago, but this is the first time that they have been successfully carried out in three dimensions with visible light. “This straightforward and elegant demonstration enhances our ability to mould and harness light at will,” the researchers said in a statement. “Invisibility cloaks [have gotten] a step closer to realization.” The prism used to bend the light was made from metamaterials, substances artificially created using nano-engineering. The material bent the light waves in the opposite direction they are normally refracted through a glass prism. This “negative refraction,” thought to be impossible with naturally occurring materials, was enabled by the fishnet-like silver nanowires used to create metamaterials. Researchers believe the technique can now be developed to create an invisibility cloak that would direct light waves around an object, essentially hiding it because no reflected light would give away its position. Go to: Times Online

Posted August 20th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Innovation of the Week, Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

Researchers at the University of Surrey (UK) have developed a new coating technology using “nanotags” designed to identify individuals who use firearms in the commission of a crime. The forensics tool involves labeling batches of cartridges with unique nanotags made of hard-to-remove pollen and a mixture of tiny grains of Zirconia, silica, and titanium oxide. Invisible to the naked eye, the nanotags attach themselves to the hands, gloves, and clothing of anyone who handles a cartridge. Traces of the tags remain on the spent cartridge casing. That direct link would provide more authoritative evidence than specks of gunpowder residue sometimes used to link suspects to fired weapons. By using many variations in the mixture of crystal and pollen grains, the researchers say they can produce large numbers of unique tags. “We decided to work with pollens because they have a unique structure, are resistant to temperature and are easily recognizable,” said lead researcher Paul Sermon. The nanotag materials are “also easily dispersed and carried around in clothes, skin, etc.,” he added. Pollen grains vary between plant species and are easily identified under a microscope. Chemical techniques could reveal which oxides were mixed with the pollen, and in which proportions, to determine which batch of cartridges they originate from. Sermon says the tags are designed to be compatible with current cartridge manufacturing processes and could be implemented within 12 months of receiving funding from companies or governments interested in using the technology. In addition to the tags, the researchers are working on a way to have gun cartridges retain skin cells from anyone who handles them, for later DNA-based forensic analysis. Micro-scale grit, they note, can effectively trap cells and protect DNA from the heat of firing. Today, cartridges are smooth and rarely retain DNA or fingerprints. The team is also looking to apply the same technique to knives. Go to: New Scientist Tech

Posted August 13th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Innovation of the Week, Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

Scientists working to help astronauts regain balance after extended flights in zero gravity say they’ve found a way to use the research to help elderly people avoid catastrophic falls. An “iShoe” insole contains sensors that read how well a person is balancing. The point is to gather information for doctors and to get people who have balance problems to a specialist — before they fall. Erez Lieberman, a graduate student who developed the technology while working as an intern at NASA, said a damaging fall is preceded by numerous warnings, similar to how high-cholesterol and elevated blood pressure foreshadow a heart attack. “If you know the problem is there, you can start addressing [it],” he noted. The National Osteoporosis Foundation estimates 300,000 people annually suffer hip fractures, which are often caused by falls. Nearly a quarter of hip fracture patients age 50 and over die within a year of the fracture, and many others end up being disabled the rest of their lives. “It’s a huge issue,” said Elinor Ginzler of the AARP. “It significantly impairs your ability to stay independent.” The idea for the iShoe came to Lieberman while he was working at NASA last summer on a project to help astronauts regain balance after months in zero gravity. It got him thinking about what seemed obvious earthly applications for the elderly. He and Katharine Forth, a visiting scientist at NASA who also works on the iShoe, had been touched personally by the issue of elderly falls, with each seeing a grandmother’s health rapidly deteriorate after such an accident. “It was something that has kind of been on my mind in general, and once I started looking at balance it became very clear it would have applications in that direction,” Lieberman said. The researchers began by determining how pressure is distributed on the foot by people with balance problems, compared with those having good balance. They then identified certain pressure patterns that show up when people struggle with balance, which the iShoe’s half-dozen sensors detect. Users can then bring its recorded data to a doctor or balance specialist for help. The iShoe insole can be slipped inside any shoe and would cost about $100, Lieberman reports. His company has applied for a patent and is seeking federal funding. Go to: The Washington Times

Posted August 6th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Innovation of the Week, Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

Anti-oxidants have become a staple in consumer products marketed for their health effects, and the University at Buffalo — part of the SUNY system — is hoping a new set of compounds with similar properties discovered in its labs will become a key ingredient in foods, nutraceuticals, beverages, and other products looking for a healthy edge. The compounds are called anthocyanins, which are naturally occurring pigments and antioxidants that can be used as natural colorants and may also aid in controlling blood glucose levels to assist with weight management and conditions such as diabetes. The Research Foundation of the State University of New York, which handles licensing for the entire SUNY system, inked a worldwide agreement with a subsidiary of Irvine, CA-based ChromaDex Corp. to produce and market the compounds. The company hopes the technology ultimately be the next resveratrol, a similar “super fruit” compound found in high concentrations in red wine and grape skins. It has been marketed as an effective means of improving heart health, lowering cholesterol, and prolonging life. Like resveratrol, anthocyanins are also highly concentrated in red wine, and may have an even stronger correlation with the “French paradox” (the relative low rate of high cholesterol and heart disease in that country, despite its rich diet. The widespread consumption of wine and its antioxidant properties are thought to offset the potential ill effects of fatty foods among France’s populace). “We have been able to develop these molecules for the first time through a proprietary application,” said Dr. Mattheos Koffas, assistant professor of chemical engineering at SUNY Buffalo. “While all plants produce anthocyanins, they are challenging to extract and study in well-defined mixtures. Now that we can harvest them from a lab, they can be further studied for their antioxidant and other properties in various indications, especially ones related to the treatment of the metabolic syndrome, i.e. chronic pathological conditions stemming from obesity.” Under the terms of the agreement, ChromaDex made an up-front cash payment to SUNY Buffalo and agreed to pay an annual minimum royalty, as well as a milestone payment upon sale of the first licensed product, licensed service, or sublicense fee received by ChromaDex. With the consent of SUNY Buffalo, ChromaDex may also grant sublicenses to third parties and has agreed to reimburse the school for certain patent costs. Go to: PR Newswire

Posted July 30th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Innovation of the Week, Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

An accidental discovery has brought seismologists one step closer to being able to predict earthquakes. As part of an unrelated effort to measure underground changes caused by shifts in barometric pressure, a team of Rice University researchers found that increases in subterranean pressure preceded earthquakes along California’s San Andreas Fault by as much as 10 hours. The discovery may eventually lead to a prediction system that provides a few hours’ notice for people to find safe haven prior to quakes. As the recent disaster in China demonstrate, the effort is well worth the alternative. “Predicting earthquakes is the final goal for seismologists,” says Fenglin Niu, the research team’s lead author. As reported in the journal Nature, researchers used a high-tech equivalent of a stereo speaker lowered into a bore hole near Parkfield, CA, a half-mile deep and five yards from a measuring device. For two months beginning in late 2005, they transmitted pulse signals three times per second, from the speaker to the measuring device, calculating travel time between the two stations. The surprised scientists learned the seismic waves slowed dramatically on only two occasions: two hours prior to a magnitude-1 temblor, and a startling 10 hours before a magnitude-3 quake. The research team theorizes that the immense amount of pressure building along the fault causes small cracks within the rock during the final hours before an earthquake, increasing rock density and slowing the transmission signals. “The more cracks you have, the slower the seismic velocity,” says study co-author Paul Silver, a geophysicist with the Carnegie Institution of Washington. If scientists can flesh out the new findings during future earthquakes — a two-year study at the same seismically active location begins this September — it could form the basis of a vastly improved early-warning system for quakes. Current systems give just a few seconds’ notice because they detect only P-waves, the fast-moving seismic waves that precede the more destructive waves released during a quake. Go to: Time

Posted July 23rd, 2008 by David Schwartz under Innovation of the Week, Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

Engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have successfully created a sophisticated, yet affordable, method to turn ordinary glass into a high-tech solar concentrator. The technology, called a luminescent solar concentrator (LSC), uses dye-coated glass to collect and channel photons otherwise lost from a solar panel’s surface. It could eventually enable an office building to draw energy from its tinted windows as well as its roof. Lead researcher Marc Baldo and colleagues announced their findings in the July 11 issue of Science. The researchers coated glass panels with layers of two or more light-capturing dyes. The dyes absorb incoming light and then re-emit the energy into the glass, which serves as a “waveguide” to channel the light to solar cells along the panels’ edges. Because the edges of the glass panels are so thin, far less semiconductor material is needed to collect the light energy and convert it into electricity. “Solar cells generate at least ten times more power when attached to the concentrator,” noted Baldo. As a result, rather than covering a roof with expensive solar cells, the cells only need to be around the edges of a flat glass panel. Because the starting materials are affordable, relatively easy to scale up beyond a laboratory setting, and easy to retrofit to existing solar panels, the researchers believe the technology could find its way to the marketplace within three years. Three of Baldo’s co-researchers are starting a company, Covalent Solar, to develop and commercialize the new technology. Go to: MIT and The Economist

Posted July 16th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Innovation of the Week, Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

A laser-activated antimicrobial developed by researchers at University College London (UCL) offers a new alternative for an increasing problem: treatment of drug-resistant bacterial infections. Researcher Michael Wilson and his team are treating infected wounds using a dye, indocyanine green, which produces bacteria-killing chemicals when exposed to a specific wavelength of laser light. Their experiments show that the activated dye can kill a wide range of bacteria including Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pyogenes and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The strength of this new approach lies in the variety of ways the chemicals produced by the activated dye harm bacteria. As Wilson explains, “The mechanism of killing is non-specific, with reactive oxygen species causing damage to many bacterial components, so resistance is unlikely to develop — even from repeated use.”The laser used by the researchers emits ‘near-infrared’ light, which is known to be capable of producing heat. However, “substantial killing of all of the bacteria tested was achieved without causing any temperature rise. ” In addition, the laser treatment “produces light that is more able to penetrate deep wounds, increasing the area cleansed.” Go to: Science Daily

Posted July 9th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Innovation of the Week, Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

A researcher at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) has developed a diagnostic tool that uses hair to test for trace metals and other elements in the body, and says the technique could be used in place of blood tests. Kristin Gellein, a PhD student at NTNU, developed the new analytical method, which requires just one centimeter of a single hair to sift out and quantify up levels of up to 30 different trace metals. The substances found in hair mirror the substances found in the blood. And because hair grows at a rate of about a centimeter per month, the system enables a retrospective blood analysis by testing hair centimeter by centimeter. A single strand of hair becomes a kind of time machine that can be used to track trace an individual’s history of trace metal exposure. The measurement technique has potential application in occupational health and safety monitoring and forensic medicine, and also may help researchers link environmental factors and illness, according to Tore Syversen, a professor in the Department of Neuroscience at NTNU’s Faculty of Medicine. Neurologists have long suspected that there might be a connection between trace metals and neurological diseases such as multiple sclerosis, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases. Go to: Science Business

Posted July 2nd, 2008 by David Schwartz under Innovation of the Week, Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

Drug companies could save millions thanks to a new technology to monitor crystals as they form. The technique, developed by University of Leeds (UK) engineers, is a potentially invaluable tool in drug manufacture, where controlling crystal forms is crucial both to cost and product safety. Most drug compounds are crystalline, and their structure can affect both their physical attributes and their performance. Changes to these structures are often caused by undetected fluctuations in processing. “If you were to use a pencil to write on glass you wouldn’t get very far, but use a diamond and you could write your name. Yet both are pure forms of carbon. It’s the same with different solid forms of the same drug; they can have completely different properties,” says Dr. Robert Hammond, who leads the research team. “Drug molecules are becoming increasingly complex and the challenges involved in processing them means that it is not always possible to successfully produce the desired form reliably. That’s why there’s such enormous potential for our system. We’re now able to look at crystals as they are forming in a reactor, something that has never been done before.” The new technology identifies and monitors changes in crystal structures on-line, providing a method of ensuring production of the desired drug compounds. Called polymorphism, changes in crystal structure during processing can lead to huge delays in bringing drugs to market, costing drug companies dearly. It can also lead to challenges to intellectual property protection. In fact, a number of high-profile patent challenges have been brought against companies making an established formulation using a different polymorph. “It’s an enormous problem for drug companies,” Hammond observes. The technology developed at Leeds is based on the “gold standard” method for monitoring crystal structures — powder X-ray diffraction, the primary tool for studying polymorphs. “There’s enormous commercial potential for this technology. For example it could be developed to work at manufacturing plant scales and can be applied to specialty chemical industries as well,” Hammond says. “We’re interested in talking to pharmaceutical and specialty chemical companies that can help us drive this forward.” Go to: EurekAlert

Posted June 25th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Innovation of the Week, Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

Soaring diesel fuel prices and the resulting economic impact on products transported by truck have prompted the Georgia Institute of Technology to dust off and enhance fuel-saving technologies developed during the past decade at the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI). Use of pressurized air “active flow control” techniques combined with conventional aerodynamic streamlining could improve fuel efficiency by 8% to 12% for the heavy trucks used to transport a broad range of products. If installed throughout the U.S. trucking fleet, these technologies for reducing aerodynamic drag could save between 1.6 billion and 2.4 billion gallons of fuel per year, according to GTRI. “The dramatic increase in diesel prices has led the trucking industry to reconsider aerodynamic fuel efficiency improvements that might not have been cost effective only a few years ago,” said Robert Englar, a GTRI principal research engineer. Since diesel prices began their rapid increase, Englar has seen growing interest in the GTRI low-drag active flow control aerodynamic technologies, which were developed with support from the U.S. Department of Energy starting in the late 1990s. He has received numerous inquiries from trucking companies and also railroads, whose higher-speed western track runs could also benefit from aerodynamic drag reduction.Truck designers have reduced aerodynamic drag on the tractor portion of the vehicles by applying streamlining approaches as roof fairings, but those advances have done little to address drag on the boxy aft portion of the trailers. Because only limited streamlining can be done for trailers due to their length, GTRI researchers are adding the active flow control techniques, which use patented pneumatic devices to blow air from slots over small curved aerodynamic surfaces at the rear of the trailers. These air jets smooth the flow of air over the trailers to eliminate air-flow separation, vorticity, and suction on the aft doors, which reduces aerodynamic drag at highway speeds. The renewed research activity is based on aerodynamic research done during the 1980s for applications on U.S. military aircraft. Beyond the fuel savings, the active flow control technology has also been shown to enhance braking and directional control for heavy trucks without using any moving external parts, potentially improving safety. “The next step is to get this into a fleet of trucks for more extensive testing,” Englar said. “At highway speeds, each one percent improvement in fuel economy would result in saving about 200 million gallons of fuel for the U.S. heavy truck fleet. We believe that is worth pursuing.” Go to: EurekAlert

Posted June 18th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Innovation of the Week, Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

University of Nebraska-Lincoln scientists have developed a way to predict steak tenderness before the consumer takes that first bite. The technology could be a boon to the beef industry, potentially allowing retailers to charge a premium for a “guaranteed tender” label. Current U.S. Department of Agriculture grading standards classify beef carcasses into quality and yield grades but do not assess tenderness. Since carcasses are not priced on the basis of tenderness, producers don’t have a financial incentive to supply a tender product. The beef industry long has sought technology that could scan fresh meat at two to three days postmortem and predict its tenderness when cooked by the consumer about two weeks later. “Beef tenderness is a primary factor in consumer satisfaction,” said Jeyamkondan Subbiah, the UNL food engineer who heads the research. “However, a sufficiently accurate, nondestructive method of on-line evaluation of tenderness continues to elude the beef industry…. There is a growing recognition that beef tenderness must be incorporated into the USDA quality grading process if true, value-based marketing is to be developed.”Subbiah and colleagues at UNL developed an approach to the problem using hyperspectral imaging, a novel technology that combines video image analysis and spectroscopy. The system consists of a digital video camera and spectrograph to capture the two key qualities that affect beef tenderness — muscle structure and biochemical properties. The video captures the muscle profile, distinguishing between tender beef’s fine muscle fibers and tougher beef’s visibly coarser fibers. The spectroscopy measures biochemical properties that indicate how tender the steak will become during aging. In a study of the technology, two-day aged, one-inch thick ribeyes were placed on a plate and scanned by the system, which captures multiple images at hundreds of wavelengths with regular intervals. After scanning, the steaks were cooked and tested. The system predicted three tenderness categories — tender, intermediate and tough — with about 77% accuracy and two tenderness categories — acceptable and tough — with 93.7% accuracy. “We think consumers are willing to pay a premium for a guaranteed-tender product,” Subbiah said, predicting a premium of $1 to $2 per pound. The researchers are continuing to improve the process, and UNL is patenting the technology while hoping to identify a commercialization partner. Go to: Cattle Network

Posted June 11th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Innovation of the Week, Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

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