Other

Sandia Corporation

Montana Technological University

Sandia National Laboratories

Jack L Skinner

Marisa L Pedulla

Jessica M Gregory

M Katie Hailer

Alfredo M Morales

Thomas Zifer

Richard J Anderson

Jessica M Andriolo

Nancy Y C Yang

Michael J Rye

Gregory O'Bryan

Andrew Vance

Elaine Lai Yang

Harvey Ho

Paul Michael Dentinger

Bryce Hill

Jerome P Downey

David L Hutchins

Katie Hailer

Eric Y Chu

Edwin B Bochenski

Scott C Lindblom

Teagan Leitzke

Emily A Kooistra-Manning

Joshua D Beisel

Lane G Huston

Marvin J Franson

Fresh water contamination by heavy metals results from a variety of sources and can be damaging to wildlife, alter landscapes, and impact human health. metals removal form water sources is desirable for improving water quality and preventing adverse effects, but also for metals collection and recycling. Adsorption is a desirable metals extraction technique due to economic feasibility. Nanoscale materials exhibit high surface-area-to-volume ratio that lends to high adsorption and reactivity, making them ideal candidates for adsorptive metals extraction processes. Despite these properties, nanomaterials have elicited safety concerns. The extraordinarily small dimensions of these materials allow them to maneuver biological systems, tissues, and even cells, and combined with high reactivity, this translocation can result in toxic effects. It is therefore imperative that safety of nanomaterials for metals extraction be evaluated in addition to adsorptive properties. The current invention describes nanoparticles composed of magnetite, coated in hydroxyapatite, and functionalized for adsorption with titanium dioxide (TiHAMNPs). This material is safe, provides significant adsorption of metals, and allows efficient collection in magnetic systems.

Non-toxic nanomaterial for metals extraction

Electrospinning (ES) produces fibers with small cross-sections and high surface area, making them ideal for a multitude of applications. Structures produced using ES methods exhibit a high surface-to-volume ratio, tunable porosity, and controllable composition. ES involves the delivery of a liquid or solid polymer to a spinneret, whereby, an initiated electric field pulls the polymer into micro to nano-scale fibers. Due to the multitude of applications for which polymer fibers can be used, it is desirable to provide an efficient and portable ES device that allows on-demand deposition of polymer materials. The invention that is subject of this patent application is a portable ES device that allows ideal deposition on a substrate regardless of whether that substrate is attached to high voltage or grounded, and regardless of whether or not there is a charged or grounded substrate behind the desired deposition surface.

Device for polymer materials fabrication using gas flow and electrostatic fields

A chemical injection unit consisting of one or more injection loops that uses a Venturi injector and motorized valve with a control system to isolate chemicals from water until operating conditions are suitable to carry the chemical and water mixture down the main flow pipe. The invention adjusts chemical injection rate to maintain desirable operational properties, including chemical injection rate, chemical concentration, or fluid viscosity. Accurate and real-time injection of chemicals is beneficial for safety as well as economics of the drilling operation in terms of reduced drilling time, efficient use of chemicals, and minimal variation in processing conditions.

Chemical injection unit for drilling operations

Disclosed herein is a particle delivery system comprising electrospun nanofiber comprised of coaxial fiber with a microfluidic core. Iron-doped apatite nanoparticles (IDANPs) have demonstrated a unique influence over phage killing of bacteria, whereby, IDANP-exposed bacterial cultures experience 2&#xd7; the bacterial death as controls. IDANPs consist of hydroxyapatite (HA) doped with iron. HA is a mineral known to be biocompatible and analogous to the inorganic constituent of mammalian bone and teeth and has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for many applications in medicine and dentistry. Previous work has shown that for IDANPs to enhance antibacterial activity of phage to the greatest extent, bacterial cultures should be exposed to IDANPs for 1 hr prior to phage introduction. Biocompatible polymer materials which encase IDANPs and/or phage can be used to disseminate IDANPs and/or phage in a controlled manner into a physiological system for treatment of bacterial infection. When components of said materials contain micro- or nano-scale components, high surface-to-volume ratio for treatment delivery is garnered.

Particle delivery via small-scale morphology materials for antibacterial applications

Iron-doped apatite nanoparticles (IDANPs) are useful for the prevention, treatment, or alleviation of signs or symptoms associated with viral activation or infection. IDANPs have demonstrated a significant influence over herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) infection of two mammalian cell lines. Specifically, IDANPs decreased HSV-1 infection of African Green Monkey kidney epithelial (Vero) cells by 84% and HSV-1 infection of human lung bronchus (BEAS-2B) cells by 71%. IDANPs consist of hydroxyapatite (HA) doped with iron. HA is a mineral known to be biocompatible and analogous to the inorganic constituent of mammalian bone and teeth and has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for many applications in medicine and dentistry. Lactate Dehydrogenase (LDH) and XTT (2,3-Bis 2-methoxy-4-nitro-5-sulfophenyl-2H-tetrazolium-5-carboxanilide inner salt) cytotoxicity assays revealed that IDANPs are largely non-toxic to Vero, BEAS-2B, and human cervical cancer (HeLa) cells lines. HSV-1 afflicted individuals in the United States have been estimated as high as &#x2154; the population. Because IDANPs dramatically decrease HSV-1 infection and are largely non-toxic, their application as an antiviral agent is evident. Further, although iron(III) alone has been shown to diminish replication of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)- and ribonucleic acid (RNA)-containing viruses, IDANP cytotoxicity studies indicate that encasement and delivery of iron within an apatite unit cell structure diminishes significantly, and in some cases eliminates, cytotoxicity posed by the introduction of iron(III) alone.

Antiviral composition and applications of iron-doped apatite nanoparticles

Small scale morphology materials transport particles and viruses from within the material to a living or non-living surface or artificial representation thereof. These materials are polymer composite and have features or are measured in their entirety to be less than 100 microns.

Method of particulate transport via small-scale morphology materials

A linear stage moves a laser along the collection plate of an electrospinning device. The stage supports the laser that is moved through the electrospinning/electrospraying deposition field by a continuous rotation servo motor. Stage movement is controlled by a control unit. Signal voltages collected are sectioned into concentric layers so that the extinction coefficient for each layer can be calculated without including the extinction coefficient from the previous layer. The extinction coefficients were used in the Beer-Lambert law to determine the diameter of fibers being deposited on the collection plate as well as the concentration of fibers deposited indicating deposition speed.

Method and apparatus for conducting real-time process control of particle and fiber generation

A method including forming a diamond material on the surface of a substrate; forming a first contact and a separate second contact; and patterning the diamond material to form a nanowire between the first contact and the second contact. An apparatus including a first contact and a separate second contact on a substrate; and a nanowire including a single crystalline or polycrystalline diamond material on the substrate and connected to each of the first contact and the second contact.

Method to fabricate micro and nano diamond devices

A material consisting essentially of a vinyl thermoplastic polymer, un-functionalized carbon nanotubes and hydroxylated carbon nanotubes dissolved in a solvent. Un-functionalized carbon nanotube concentrations up to 30 wt % and hydroxylated carbon nanotube concentrations up to 40 wt % can be used with even small concentrations of each (less than 2 wt %) useful in producing enhanced conductivity properties of formed thin films.

Carbon nanotube composite materials

The present invention is a method of making a composite polymeric material by dissolving a vinyl thermoplastic polymer, un-functionalized carbon nanotubes and hydroxylated carbon nanotubes and optionally additives in a solvent to make a solution and removing at least a portion of the solvent after casting onto a substrate to make thin films. The material has enhanced conductivity properties due to the blending of the un-functionalized and hydroxylated carbon nanotubes.

Method of making carbon nanotube composite materials

The integration of surface acoustic wave (SAW) filters, microfabricated transmission lines, and sensors onto polymer substrates in order to enable a passive wireless sensor platform is described herein. Incident microwave pulses on an integrated antenna are converted to an acoustic wave via a SAW filter and transmitted to an impedance based sensor, which for this work is a photodiode. Changes in the sensor state induce a corresponding change in the impedance of the sensor resulting in a reflectance profile. Data collected at a calibrated receiver is used to infer the state of the sensor. Based on this principal, light levels were passively and wirelessly demonstrated to be sensed at distances of up to about 12 feet.

Passive hybrid sensing tag with flexible substrate saw device

An electrical circuit for a photomultiplier tube (PMT) is disclosed that reduces power consumption to a point where the PMT may be powered for extended periods with a battery. More specifically, the invention concerns a PMT circuit comprising a low leakage switch and a high voltage capacitor positioned between a resistive divider and each of the PMT dynodes, and a low power control scheme for recharging the capacitors.

Growing community of inventors

Butte, MT, United States of America

Jack L Skinner