Uchicago Argonne, LLC

Other

U.S. Department of Energy

Animal Oralectrics LLC

The University of Chicago

Thermotion Corporation

Flavorseal LLC

Michael Donald Kaminski

Carol J Mertz

Michael Adam Pintz

Michael James Keller

Ilya A Shkrob

Luis H Nunez

Paul L Ruflin

Scott Mizer

Ed Nolan

Melanie Dorenkott

A Gus Eskamani

Tiffani A Sutton-Gilbert

Robert Armstrong

Mark L Dietz

Stephen L Douglass

Ankur Purohit

Cory A Hawkins

Michael Leonard Davis, Jr

Gene J Cicigoi, Jr

Martha R Finck

In a method of forming a coated bag for pre-treating an item stored in the bag, a bag is provided, having a sidewall extending from a closed bottom end to an open top end and defining an interior surface of a cavity. The bag is expanded from a flattened condition to an expanded condition. At least one adhesive dispenser is inserted through the open top end of the bag into the cavity. An adhesive is applied from the at least one inserted adhesive dispenser to form an adhesive coating on the interior surface of the cavity. A particulate dispenser is inserted through the open top end of the bag into the cavity. A particulate is discharged from the inserted particulate dispenser to embed the particulate in the adhesive coating. The adhesive coating is dried to retain the embedded particulate on the interior surface of the sidewall.

Coated packaging products, systems and methods

Systems and methods for the concurrent treatment of multiple oral diseases and defects while promoting general oral hygiene utilizing electricity are provided for non-human animals. Electrodes are used to deliver an electrical current to the gingival tissues of a mouth in order to achieve a number of therapeutic, prophylactic, and regenerative benefits. These benefits include killing oral microbes, increasing oral vasodilation, reducing oral biofilm, improving oral blood circulation, reversing oral bone resorption, promoting oral osteogenesis, treating gum recession, and fostering gingival regeneration. Other benefits include the treatment of gingivitis, periodontitis, and oral malodor, and other systemic diseases correlated with oral pathogens.

Systems and methods for the treatment of oral and systemic maladies in animals using electrical current

The method and system disclosed provides radionuclide contamination mitigation by applying an aqueous carrier solution comprising a cation to a surface bearing a radionuclide contaminant to cause the radionuclide contaminant to enter solution forming a laden solution, then contacting the laden solution with a sequestering agent to bind to the radionuclide contaminant to form a laden sequestering agent. The removal and sequestration of the radionuclide contaminant from the contaminated surface leads directly to a reduction in the amount of radiologically-impacted critical infrastructure and the environment. The method and system are able to be performed or utilized economically with materials quickly available in the event of a radiological dispersion event.

Method for radionuclide contaminatecontaminant mitigation

The present invention provides an aqueous gel composition for removing actinide ions, lanthanide ions, fission product ions, or a combination thereof from a porous surface contaminated therewith. The composition comprises a polymer mixture comprising a gel forming cross-linked polymer and a linear polymer. The linear polymer is present at a concentration that is less than the concentration of the cross-linked polymer. The polymer mixture is at least about 95% hydrated with an aqueous solution comprising about 0.1 to about 3 percent by weight (wt %) of a multi-dentate organic acid chelating agent, and about 0.02 to about 0.6 molar (M) carbonate salt, to form a gel. When applied to a porous surface contaminated with actinide ions, lanthanide ions, and/or other fission product ions, the aqueous gel absorbs contaminating ions from the surface.

Superabsorbing gel for actinide, lanthanide, and fission product decontamination

This invention provides methods of using modified magnetic microspheres to extract target ions from a sample in order to detect their presence in a microfluidic environment. In one or more embodiments, the microspheres are modified with molecules on the surface that allow the target ions in the sample to form complexes with specific ligand molecules on the microsphere surface. In one or more embodiments, the microspheres are modified with molecules that sequester the target ions from the sample, but specific ligand molecules in solution subsequently re-extract the target ions from the microspheres into the solution, where the complexes form independent of the microsphere surface. Once the complexes form, they are exposed to an excitation wavelength light source suitable for exciting the target ion to emit a luminescent signal pattern. Detection of the luminescent signal pattern allows for determination of the presence of the target ions in the sample.

Method of detecting luminescent target ions with modified magnetic microspheres

The present invention provides an aqueous gel composition for removing actinide ions, lanthanide ions, fission product ions, or a combination thereof from a porous surface contaminated therewith. The composition comprises a polymer mixture comprising a gel forming cross-linked polymer and a linear polymer. The linear polymer is present at a concentration that is less than the concentration of the cross-linked polymer. The polymer mixture is at least about 95% hydrated with an aqueous solution comprising about 0.1 to about 3 percent by weight (wt %) of a multi-dentate organic acid chelating agent, and about 0.02 to about 0.4 molar (M) carbonate salt, to form a gel. When applied to a porous surface contaminated with actinide ions, lanthanide ions, and/or other fission product ions, the aqueous gel absorbs contaminating ions from the surface.

The present invention provides an apparatus and rapid methods for extracting strontium ions from urine to provide a concentrated and purified strontium-90 extract suitable for scintillation measurements. The methods remove organic compounds, pigments, and alkali metal ions that can interfere with quantitative determination of strontium-90 in urine. A method of the invention comprises acidifying urine and removing organic pigments therefrom, loading a known quantity of so-treated urine onto a diphosphonic acid-based ion-exchange resin; flowing aqueous methanesulfonic acid through the diphosphonic acid-based ion-exchange resin to elute alkali metal ions therefrom; eluting strontium ions off of the diphosphonic acid-based resin and on to a strontium extraction chromatographic resin with a concentrated aqueous nitric acid solution; subsequently flowing water or a dilute acid stripping solution through the strontium extraction resin to strip the strontium from the strontium extraction resin; and collecting the strontium-containing stripping solution eluting from the strontium extraction resin.

Method and apparatus for extraction of strontium from urine

A thermo-magnetic actuator includes operative components, preferably in a sealed container, from which a rotatable or translatable shaft extends. The shaft is driven by supplying electrical power to a heater in a closed chamber containing a working fluid that expands upon being heated. The expansion of the fluid drives a piston that, in turn, slides a rack coupled to the shaft. A ferromagnetic target is connected to the rack and attracted by a magnetic field produced by an electromagnet that receives electrical power from the same source as the heater. The attraction of the target causes an end of the target to latch magnetically and mechanically and to open an electrical switch, disconnecting current flow to the heater, without disturbing current flow to the electromagnet. The target is released and the rack and target return to their original positions upon termination of current flow to the electromagnet.

Thermo-magnetic actuator

A method of decontaminating porous surfaces contaminated with water soluble radionuclides by contacting the contaminated porous surfaces with an ionic solution capable of solubilizing radionuclides present in the porous surfaces followed by contacting the solubilized radionuclides with a gel containing a radionuclide chelator to bind the radionuclides to the gel, and physically removing the gel from the porous surfaces. A dry mix is also disclosed of a cross-linked ionic polymer salt, a linear ionic polymer salt, a radionuclide chelator, and a gel formation controller present in the range of from 0% to about 40% by weight of the dry mix, wherein the ionic polymer salts are granular and the non cross-linked ionic polymer salt is present as a minor constituent.

Composition suitable for decontaminating a porous surface contaminated with cesium

Decontamination of nuclear facilities is necessary to reduce the radiation field during normal operations and decommissioning of complex equipment. In this invention, we discuss gel and foam based diphosphonic acid (HEDPA) chemical solutions that are unique in that these solutions can be applied at room temperature; provide protection to the base metal for continued applications of the equipment; and reduce the final waste form production to one step. The HEDPA gels and foams are formulated with benign chemicals, including various solvents, such as ionic liquids and reducing and complexing agents such as hydroxamic acids, and formaldehyde sulfoxylate. Gel and foam based HEDPA processes allow for decontamination of difficult to reach surfaces that are unmanageable with traditional aqueous process methods. Also, the gel and foam components are optimized to maximize the dissolution rate and assist in the chemical transformation of the gel and foam to a stable waste form.

Foam and gel methods for the decontamination of metallic surfaces

A method of decontaminating a radioactively contaminated oxide on a surface. The radioactively contaminated oxide is contacted with a diphosphonic acid solution for a time sufficient to dissolve the oxide and subsequently produce a precipitate containing most of the radioactive values. Thereafter, the diphosphonic solution is separated from the precipitate. HEDPA is the preferred diphosphonic acid and oxidizing and reducing agents are used to initiate precipitation. SFS is the preferred reducing agent.

Method for the decontamination of metallic surfaces

A door lock that has a locking member which cooperates with a latching mechanism to secure a door in a closed position. The locking member also cooperates with a U-shaped plate to limit the movement of the door in a partially opened position. The locking member is attached to the door. The U-shaped plate and latching mechanism are coupled to a wall by a mounting bracket and a hinge. The hinge has an inner sleeve that is attached to a hinge pin and a rotatable outer sleeve which has a slot and a spring loaded button. The spring loaded button can cooperate with a notch in the inner sleeve to lock the position of the outer sleeve. When the door is closed, the locking member rotates the outer sleeve until the button is captured by the notch of the inner sleeve. The slot of the outer sleeve captures the locking member and prevents the door from being opened until the button is released from the inner sleeve notch.

Growing community of inventors

Lockport, IL, United States of America

Michael Donald Kaminski