A Fertilizer for Alleviation of Nickel Deficiencies

NASA Marshall Space Flight Center

Inventors:
Jonathan Lee - NASA MSFC
Po Shou Chen - Morgan Research Corporation
Commercialization Assistance:
Sammy Nabors - NASA MSFC

The High-Strength, Wear-Resistant Aluminum Alloy is a novel new aluminum-silicon alloy that enables engine manufacturers to make engines that produce more horsepower while emitting less pollutant. The alloy enables optimized designs that require less material, reduce weight and cost, and improve fuel efficiency. Offering significant improvements in tensile strength at elevated temperatures of 450 to 650 °F, the alloy is an ideal low-cost material for cast components such as pistons, cylinder heads, cylinder liners, connecting rods, turbo chargers, impellers, actuators, brake calipers, and rotors. The alloy can be poured as a molten metal into conventional steel molds or die-casting molds to create specially shaped parts, offering a dramatic cost-saving advantage over the machining of parts. The alloy can be produced at a projected cost of less than $1 per pound.

The initially targeted recipient of the transferred technology was the automotive industry. NASA was approached by a major automobile manufacturer with the request to develop a new, stronger, low-cost alternative to current materials used in automotive applications that would help the industry satisfy U.S. legislation calling for increasingly stringent low-exhaust emission regulations. Additionally, however, the alloy is suitable for aircraft pistons, connecting rods, gear and generator housings; lightweight aluminum castings for the aerospace industry; outboard motors, snowmobiles, and recreational vehicle combustion engine parts; and other applications requiring high strength and wear resistance at elevated temperatures.

Contact
technology transfer department at NASA MSFC (256) 544-9151
send an email to: Sammy.Nabors@NASA.gov.

Online information
NASA Marshall Space Flight Center
Morgan Research Corporation

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USDA, REE, Agricultural Research Service, Mid-South Area

Co-developers ARS, Aquatic Animal Health Research:
Dr. Phillip H. Klesius, P.I - Auburn, AL Unit
Dr. Craig A. Shoemaker - Auburn, AL Unit
Dr. Joyce J. Evans - Chestertown, MD Unit

The inventors developed two modified live vaccines to prevent the major diseases in channel catfish aquaculture--enteric septicemia and columnaris. Both diseases account for as much as 50 % of the total losses to catfish producers (about $50 million annually), and there were no effective methods to prevent the diseases. Both modified live vaccines are trend setting advancements for fish health since no modified live vaccines, prior to these, had been licensed for use in fish. Modified live vaccines are made by changing the bacteria so it is unable to cause disease but is still able to infect and immunize the fish. The advantage of the two vaccines is the ability to deliver the vaccines by immersion in water to mass quantities of young catfish to provide life long protection. The direct recipient of the technology, by exclusive license, is Intervet, Inc. and the ultimate recipient is the U.S. catfish farmers.

These two modified live vaccines are a trend setting advancement for the rest of the world in fish vaccinology. The enteric septicemia vaccine (AQUAVAC-ESCTM) was first introduced in 2001. According to Intervet, total benefit to producers from use of this vaccine alone is almost $2,000 per acre, due to faster growing catfish that yield greater lengths over non-vaccinated catfish. Since AQUAVAC-ESC’s release almost 1 billion fry have been vaccinated. The columnaris vaccine (AQUAVAC-COLTM), the first efficacious vaccine against columnaris disease in the world, was launched in 2005, and the 2005 production is sold-out. The columnaris vaccine is safe and provided 72% improved survivability of catfish fry in laboratory studies when challenged with the virulent bacteria. These vaccines, in combination, provide fish farmers a cost effective means for preventing the two most economically serious diseases in commercial pond-raised catfish. AQUAVAC-ESC and AQUAVAC-COL are both administered via bath immersion at 7 days post hatch to prevent disease losses of $50 million or more annually. Other benefits of use of these vaccines include increased catfish yields, due to improved growth and survival. Use of these vaccines significantly reduces the need for antibiotics thus, decreasing environmental contamination and providing a safer more economical fish product to consumers. Currently, fry production is about 1 billion/year and some 25% are vaccinated with one or both of the vaccines. With some 180,000 acres of ponds in catfish production, the potential economic benefit of these vaccines approaches $50 million annually. This benefit increases the profit to catfish producers by almost $2,000 per acre.

Contact
Don Nordlund
(706) 546-3496
Don.Nordlund@ars.usda.gov.

Online information
USDA, REE, Agricultural Research Service
Auburn, AL Unit - ARS Mid-South Area
Chestertown, MD Unit

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A Fertilizer for Alleviation of Nickel Deficiencies

USDA, REE, Agricultural Research Service, South-Atlantic Area
Southeastern Fruit and Tree Nut Research Laboratory

Inventor:
Dr. Bruce Wood

Dr. Wood discovered real-world Nickel (Ni) deficiency in certain agricultural crops as a consequence of solving an 85-yr-old growth disorder of pecan, termed "Mouse-ear" (a severe growth disorder becoming increasingly common in old and 2nd generation orchards), which had eluded decades of research by others. He was initially assisted by an ARS pathologist and nematologist in efforts to exclude other likely causal factors, but it was his expertise in plant nutritional physiology that led to the discovery of Ni deficiency.

Upon recognizing the need for a commercial Ni product, he used laboratory resources to develop a symptomology to aide diagnosis, took key preliminary steps to develop an efficacious and safe product, and developed and refined protocols for identification and correction of Ni deficiency. To provide a safe commercial product, Dr. Wood initiated contacts with the private sector, including Mr. Mark Crawford (Valdosta, GA), a product development specialist with Griffin LLC, to inquire about formulation issues. Because of Mr. Crawford’s expertise in formulation development and locating high purity sources of Ni, he assisted in formulation and development of a suitable Ni product, thus becoming a co-inventor on a patent application.

It was recognized, early on, that to fully transfer the Ni technology, it would be necessary to obtain regulatory approval. Dr. Wood interacted with the American Association of Plant Food Control Officials and got Ni on the agendas of relevant AAPFCO committees, attended several AAPFCO committees meetings, and provided data that led to authorization for the sale and use of Ni fertilizers in the U.S. This effort led to Ni being the first nutrient element recognized by U.S. regulators in 50 years and triggered "official" regulatory acceptance of Ni as an "essential plant nutrient." Dr. Wood also provided data that were submitted by NIPAN to state departments of agriculture to obtain approval for the use of Ni and of Nickel Plus in 7 states, with approval by others expected after August 2005.

Dr. Wood's recognition of the existence of Ni deficiencies in pecan and other crops led to his aggressive dissemination of this new technology via a press release, trade magazines, scientific journals, and presentations at farmer, extension, and national and international meetings. He also interacted with NIPAN to facilitate licensing from ARS’ rights in the technology.

Contact
Don Nordlund
(706) 546-3496
Don.Nordlund@ars.usda.gov.

Online information:
USDA, REE, Agricultural Research Service,
ARS South-Atlantic Area
Southeastern Fruit and Tree Nut Research Laboratory

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NASA John F. Kennedy Space Center (KSC)

Co-developers:
Dr. Jacqueline W. Quinn, P.I. (NASA-KSC)
Dr. Debra R. Reinhart (Civil & Environmental Engineering, UCF)
Dr. Christian Clausen, III (Dept. of Chemistry, University of Central Florida)
Dr. Cherie L. Geiger, (Dept. of Chemistry, University of Central Florida)
Kathleen Brooks (ASRC Aerospace, NASA-Kennedy Space Center)

During the early history of the space program, the ground around Launch Complex 34 at Kennedy Space Center was polluted with chlorinated solvents used to clean Apollo rocket parts. Dense non-aqueous phase liquids (DNAPLs) were left untreated in the ground and contaminated the fresh water sources in the area. A DNAPL is a liquid that is denser than water and does not dissolve or mix easily in water. DNAPLs are a common cause of environmental contamination at thousands of DOE, DOD, NASA, and private industry facilities. The EPA has reported that DNAPLs are present at 60% to 70% of all sites on the Superfund National Priorities List. Current approaches for remediation of DNAPL source areas are either inefficient or slow (e.g., pump and treat) or costly (e.g., thermal treatment). Only recently within the last 10 years has it been determined that removal of product-level contaminants requires a completely different clean-up strategy than for dissolved-phase contaminants. DNAPLS are significantly more difficult to remove from the subsurface; and therefore, the science surrounding their fate has been slower to evolve.

Potential uses of EZVI are far reaching, from US government installations like the Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, to local dry cleaner programs such as the one currently funded by the State of Florida. Private industry is deemed a potentially significant user of the technology as the government is not the sole owner of chlorinated-solvent groundwater pollution. NASA KSC initiated licensing discussions with over seven environmental and manufacturing companies interested in EZVI technology and has licensed the technology to five of them: Toxicological & Environmental Associates (TEA); Weston Solutions; GeoSyntec Consultants, Inc.; RNAS, Inc.; and Huff & Huff, Inc. Within the first year of licensing, EZVI has been deployed at three industrial locations with great success and at three location with the Department of Defense. The first large-scale field deployment is scheduled for application at a Dept. of Defense base in FL. Over 62,000 gallons of EZVI will be used to cleanup contaminated groundwater in the fall of 2005 at Patrick Air Force Base on the east coast of Florida.

The transfer of EZVI technology has generated potentially new applications in saltwater environments and in the destruction of Triacetone Triperoxide (TATP) and other explosives of the peroxide family used extensively by terrorist organizations around the world because they are easy to prepare and very difficult to detect. Almost as powerful as TNT, TATP is extremely sensitive to friction and is one of the most sensitive explosives known. The instability of TATP makes the remediation of a contaminated TATP area a challenging problem.

Contact
Jim Aliberti
Technology Transfer office at KSC
(321) 867-6224
jim.aliberti@nasa.gov

Online information:
NASA John F. Kennedy Space Center (KSC)
Dept. of Chemistry, University of Central Florida
Civil & Environmental Engineering, UCF

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Department of Energy, Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Co-developers:
Dr. Charles E. A. Finney (ORNL)
Dr. C. Stuart Daw (ORNL)
Commercialization Assistance:
Mr. Larry Dickens (ORNL)
Commercial Partners:
Mr. Timothy A. Fuller (The Babcock & Wilcox Company, Barberton, OH)
Mr. Thomas A. Flynn (The Babcock & Wilcox Company, Alliance, OH)
Mr. Ralph T. Bailey (The Babacock & Wilcox Company)
Mr. Jeff Stallings (EPRI, Palo Alto, CA)

The Flame Doctor® is a diagnostic system that connects to existing optical flame scanners in pulverized-coal utility boilers and provides a real-time quality assessment for each burner. The limitations of existing coal burner technology make it impossible to monitor and adjust the performance of individual burners, and thus typical plant operation is far from optimal. Specifically, ORNL transferred a collection of algorithms and methodologies for analyzing and quantifying the information in the flame scanner signals. These algorithms and methodologies were specifically tailored to deal with complicated nonlinear signals for which traditional statistical or time-series analysis fails. The ORNL-generated technology is incorporated in the Flame Doctor® system as a collection of software routines that are integrated with user interfaces and data acquisition hardware developed by The Babcock and Wilcox Company.

Coal combustion is the single largest source of electric power in the US, but coal-fired electric utility boilers are also responsible for more than 20% of the nitrogen oxide emissions and more than 40% o the greenhouse gas emissions. More than 50% of these boilers burn pulverized coal and typically operate far from their optimum condition because, until now, there was no effective technology for accurately monitoring the flame state of individual coal burners. Even one or two malfunctioning burners out of 100 can severely impact boiler pollutant emissions and fuel utilization efficiency. Because of boiler geometry and time constraints, boiler operators are unable to readily determine which burners might need adjustments in operating parameters.

On a plant-to-plant basis, benefits include higher profit margins and cost savings through improved efficiency and reduced pollutant emissions. Field testing has shown that pollutant emissions of NOX (related to acid rain and smog) were reduced by 10 to 20% and emissions of CO were reduced by up to 50%.

The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) as the sole funding sponsor and owns the intellectual property under its contractual agreement with ORNL. The electric power utilities that are members of EPRI have been the first to benefit from access to the technology. The Babcock and Wilcox Company, as a boiler and burner manufacturer and service provider, licenses the technology from EPRI and commercially offers permanent installations and field-service tuning calls to improve performance at utility power plants. The Flame Doctor ® is now fully commercial and is offered to any interested utility.

Contact
Mark Reeves
ORNL Commercialization Office
(865) 576-2577
reevesme@ornl.gov

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Department of Energy, Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Co-developers:
Peter Chiaro (ORNL)
L. Curt Maxey (ORNL)
Timothy J. McIntyre (ORNL)
and Fred R. Gibson (ORNL)
Commercialization Assistance:
Larry M. Dickens (ORNL)
John Murphy (US DOE),
Canberra Aquila, Inc:
Steve Kadner (President)
Wendy Doyl
Marius Stein

The Laser-Based Item Monitoring System (LBIMS) is an optical surveillance system designed to protect high-value items in high security environments. It represents an important new technology with immediate applications for nuclear nonproliferation and homeland security. It is suitable for situations where conventional surveillance systems cannot be used, such as areas where video surveillance has been specifically prohibited and areas where a radio-frequency identification system could trigger an explosion. The LBIMS can also be used in conjunction with conventional surveillance systems as a trigger for those systems.

The LBIMS scans an area with a low-power laser beam and detects the laser light that is reflected by retroreflective targets mounted on the items being monitored. Each time it scans the area, the LBIMS determines whether any target has moved. Sub-millimeter displacements can be detected at tens of meters. It can also read binary information, such as unique identifier incorporated into the target. Further, because of small variations inherent in target fabrication, the LBIMS can detect a signature from each target with each scan, further ensuring that the item has remained in place undisturbed, and uniquely identified. Although it is based on line-of-sight optical signals, the reliability of the LBIMS is unaffected by activity in the scanned area, even if the path between the laser and some of the targets is temporarily blocked.

The technology was conceived as a solution that could be rapidly deployed to reliably address a wide variety of international monitoring situations. It specifically addresses the needs of the international monitoring community for monitoring stored nuclear materials. It provides a silent sentry that continuously monitors the stored items by monitoring their positions, or the positions of the vessel, door, or other device used to ensure they remain in place.

Canberra Aquila, Inc. of Albuquerque, NM, an 80-employee company, was the first to exclusively license the technology. The company has also entered into a new commercial patent licensing agreement with ORNL and is developing commercial systems to offer to private entities plus US and foreign governments. All 187 members of the Nuclear Nonproliferation treaty as well as a number of regional monitoring organizations will benefit from the availability of the LBIMS technology since organizations specifically tasked to perform monitoring will be able to utilize personnel more effectively.

Contact
Mark Reeves
ORNL Commercialization Office
(865) 576-2577
reevesme@ornl.gov

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Department of Energy, Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Co-developers: Dr. Jizhong Zhou (ORNL) and Dr. Xichun Zhou (ORNL)
Commercialization Assistance: Mr. Russ Miller (ORNL Commercialization Manager)
Corporate Partner: Mr. Mark Fins, (CEO, Diversified Biotech, Boston, MA)

PETASTM is a practical, cost-effective solution to one of the grand challenges in biological research: proteins immobilized on a solid surface lose activity due to denaturation resulting from the hydrophobic nature of many glass and plastic surfaces or due to the steric hindrance of the binding sites caused by covalent binding. Biological samples retain their native chemical activity when mounted on a PETASTM slide. This is because a PETASTM slide has a unique porous coating that provides an environment in which the delicate, complex biological samples deposited in its porous surface to retain their native chemical activity. Consequently, this slide offers improved versatility, reliability, and detection capabilities in a cost-effective, environmentally friendly product. The current technique for deposition of oligonucleotides (building blocks of DNA and RAN) typically costs $20 per nucleotide because of the modifications required, making it prohibitively expensive to do so.

A recent market analysis predicted that the global microarray market to be more than $3 billion in 2004, with a compound annual growth rate of more than 35% each year to 2007. The protein array market is predicted to be more than $400 million in 2007, all of which will require solid substrates such as PETASTM for fabrication. At least $700 million is associated with oligonucleotide and DNA arrays. Among them, 24% is related to microarrays fabricated by the microspotting approach.

The inventors conceptualized the technology, prepared prototypes for a wide range of function testing, and demonstrated the feasibility of the PETASTM technology. The DOE Office of Science, Biological and Environmental Research provided 100% of the funding for invention of the technology. The ORNL Office of Technology Transfer and Economic Development introduced the technology to the industrial sector and licensed the technology to Diversified Biotech. Subsequently, Erie Scientific was added to the team as the manufacturer. ORNL is now helping Erie to test and validate their product as well as to conduct follow-up development, supported by Diversified Biotech.

Contact
Mark Reeves
ORNL Commercialization Office
(865) 576-2577
reevesme@ornl.gov

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Department of Energy Y-12 National Security Complex

Co-developers:
Scott McKenney (Y-12)
Robert Hunter (Oak Ridge National Laboratory)
John Hopkins (University of Tennessee Research Corporation)
Michael Hamilton (MCH Corporation, Sweetwater, TN),
Howard Gordon (Public Safety Systems, Tampa, FL)
Himadri Banerjee (RAMSAFE Technologies, LLC, Oak Ridge, TN)

The RAMSAFE technology was initiated from a request by the US Army to utilize Y-12’s unique capabilities to develop a disaster software package. Y-12 collaborated with ORNL, UT Research Corp. and MCH to develop the software necessary to meet the Army’s needs. This team, under Y-12 management, integrated a diverse set of databases and imagery to achieve an interactive solution for disaster management.

RAMSAFE software stores and organizes massive amounts of critical data about a location or special event before an incident happens. During crises, RAMSAFE users are armed with total on-scene situational awareness. The software provides detailed forecasts of casualties, necessary command-level responses, specific time-phased resource requirements and online access to personnel and resource shortfall information. RAMSAFE’s predictive models also change as a situation unfolds. RAMSAFE could reduce human and economic loss by as much as 50% in a biohazard event.

RAMSAFE software was developed at the DOE/NNSA Y-12 facility in a collaborative effort with Oak Ridge National Laboratory, University of Tennessee Research Corporation, and MCH, Inc. RAMSAFE was initially deployed at the 2002 International Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, Utah.

This technology was initially developed as a Work For Others project funded by the US Army. It was copyrighted by Y-12 who then issued an exclusive license to the two laboratory developers who formed Public Safety Systems, Inc. The technology was subsequently sublicensed and enhanced by RAMSAFE Technologies, LLC.

Through calendar year 2004, sales of RAMSAFE software have exceeded $1.4 million. Sales are forecast to increase dramatically within the next eighteen months.

Contact
Marilyn Giles
Y-12 Technology Commercialization Office
(865) 574-2214
gilesmh@y12.doe.gov

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