University of California

Other

Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC

Glenn A Fox

Thomas M Tillotson

Lawrence W Hrubesh

Randall L Simpson

Ronald S Lee

Rosalind W Swansiger

Theodore F Baumann

John G Reynolds

Warren H Fox

Ellen A Fox

An ion measuring device to measure ionic activity in its vicinity is disclosed. The ion measuring device includes a housing to protect its internal components, such as an ion sensing assembly from damage due to exposure to environment. The housing allows the ion sensing assembly to conduct readings of the atmosphere while keeping debris and other elements that may skew the readings away from the ion sensing assembly. The ion measuring device include means to covert readings at the ion sensing assembly into digital data. The ion measuring device further includes electronic means that collects and records data gathered by the ion sensing assembly, and further be able to transmit the data to a remote base station for further processing and analysis.

Ion measuring device

Sol-gel chemistry is used for the preparation of energetic materials (explosives, propellants and pyrotechnics) with improved homogeneity, and/or which can be cast to near-net shape, and/or made into precision molding powders. The sol-gel method is a synthetic chemical process where reactive monomers are mixed into a solution, polymerization occurs leading to a highly cross-linked three dimensional solid network resulting in a gel. The energetic materials can be incorporated during the formation of the solution or during the gel stage of the process. The composition, pore, and primary particle sizes, gel time, surface areas, and density may be tailored and controlled by the solution chemistry. The gel is then dried using supercritical extraction to produce a highly porous low density aerogel or by controlled slow evaporation to produce a xerogel. Applying stress during the extraction phase can result in high density materials. Thus, the sol-gel method can be used for precision detonator explosive manufacturing as well as producing precision explosives, propellants, and pyrotechnics, along with high power composite energetic materials.

Process for preparing energetic materials

An organic aerogel or xerogel formed by a sol-gel reaction using starting materials that exhibit similar reactivity to the most commonly used resorcinol starting material. The new starting materials, including thio-, amine- and nitro-containing molecules and functionalized macrocyclic molecules will produce organic xerogels and aerogels that have improved performance in the areas of detection and sensor technology, as well as water stream remediation. Also, further functionalization of these new organic aerogels or xerogels will yield material that can be extracted with greater facility than current organic aerogels.

Thio-,amine-,nitro-,and macrocyclic containing organic aerogels & xerogels

Sol-gel manufactured energetic materials

Thiacrown polymers immobilized to a polystyrene-divinylbenzene matrix react with Hg under a variety of conditions to efficiently and selectively remove Hg ions from acidic aqueous solutions, even in the presence of a variety of other metal ions. The mercury can be recovered and the polymer regenerated. This mercury removal method has utility in the treatment of industrial wastewater, where a selective and cost-effective removal process is required.

Thiacrown polymers for removal of mercury from waste streams

Growing community of inventors

Livermore, CA, United States of America

Glenn A Fox