United States of America as Represented by the Secretary of the Air Force

David N Erwin

Johnathan Lloyd Kiel

David M Simmons

Eric A Holwitt

Charles R Batishko

Kurt A Stahl

Christopher McQueen

An article which is sensitive to non-ionizing electromagnetic radiation in the radiofrequency radiation range, consisting essentially of a substrate, a layer of a binder material and a layer of activated diazoluminomelanin. This article is prepared by coating at least one surface of a substrate with a binder, immersing the binder-coated substrate into a solution comprising luminol, 3AT and a soluble nitrite for a period of about 2 to 12 days to provide a layer of diazoluminomelanin (DALM) on the binder layer, removing the DALM-coated film from the solution and rinsing the same, activating the DALM with sodium bicarbonate and hydrogen peroxide for a period of about 2 to 12 days.

Microwave-sensitive article

An improved method and apparatus for safely and rapidly rewarming large quantities of frozen or refrigerated blood combines microwave, or radio frequency radiation, heating with a forced air system. Forced air is flowed over units of blood or tissue from those units that will absorb the most microwave energy, generally those units closest to the source of microwave energy, to those units that will absorb the least microwave energy, generally those units furthest from the source of microwave energy. The forced air initially thaws the closest units so that they begin to absorb significant microwave energy. The forced air, preferably chilled, then prevents overheating of those closest units by transferring heat to more distant units, beginning their thawing and contributing to their rewarming. The microwave energy source is turned off when the output temperature of the forced air reaches a preselected temperature and the flow of forced air continues until the output temperature stabilizes. The apparatus includes a separated stack of perforated plates, each plate holding two units, mounted inside a microwave oven. Forced air drives a turbine rotor which rotates the plates while the air leaving the turbine flows down among the stacked plates and out the microwave oven.

Blood and tissue rewarming device

A flow-through cell cultivation apparatus and method is described. The flow-through cell cultivation system comprises a flowcell, a chamber inside the flowcell for holding cells, and a flowcell holder. The flowcell has a lower intake port for flowing liquid nutrient through a cellbed inside the flowcell and an upper outlet port for flowing the liquid nutrient out of the flowcell. The flowcell also includes a chuck for receipt of a thermal probe. The probe is made of electromagnetically non-interactive material. The flowcell is enclosed inside the flowcell holder. The flowcell holder includes a pair of intake ports into a cavity having an open end at the flowcell for turbulently flowing a temperature controlled gas against the flowcell. The cavity has rough walls to promote the turbulent flow. The flowcell holder includes an exhaust port for flowing the gas out of the flowcell holder which also serves as a port for another thermal probe. A one-way valve prevents flow of the liquid nutrient out of the chamber through the intake port. Temperature controlled air is supplied to the flowcell holder by dividing air from an air supply into two conduits. One conduit travels through a coil inside a refrigerated liquid bath and the other through a coil inside a heated liquid bath. The heated and cooled air are recombined to make an even temperature air supply which is then divided once more to provide the two air supplies for creating a turbulent supply of temperature controlled air through the two flowcell holder intake ports. The flowcell may include on one side a semi-permeable membrane for introducing a gas/liquid interface to the cellbed.

Method of culturing cells in a flow-through cell cultivation system

Flow-through cell cultivation system

The QLIS images and quantifies low-level chemiluminescent reactions in an electromagnetic field. It is capable of real time nonperturbing measurement and simultaneous recording of many biochemical and chemical reactions such as luminescent immunoassays or enzyme assays. The system comprises image transfer optics, a low-light level digitizing camera with image intensifying microchannel plates, an image process or, and a control computer. The image transfer optics may be a fiber image guide with a bend, or a microscope, to take the light outside of the RF field. Output of the camera is transformed into a localized rate of cumulative digitalized data or enhanced video display or hard-copy images. The system may be used as a luminescent microdosimetry device for radiofrequency or microwave radiation, as a thermal dosimeter, or in the dosimetry of ultra-sound (sonoluminescence) or ionizing radiation. It provides a near-real-time system capable of measuring the extremely low light levels from luminescent reactions in electromagnetic fields in the areas of chemiluminescence assays and thermal microdosimetry, and is capable of near-real-time imaging of the sample to allow spatial distribution analysis of the reaction. It can be used to instrument three distinctly different irradiation configurations, comprising (1) RF waveguide irradiation of a small Petri-dish-shaped sample cell, (2) RF irradiation of samples in a microscope for the microscopie imaging and measurement, and (3) RF irradiation of small to human body-sized samples in an anechoic chamber.

Growing community of inventors

San Antonio, TX, United States of America

David N Erwin