The Administrators of the Tulane Educational Fund

General Electric Company

Honda Motor Co., Ltd.

US Government As Represented by the Secretary of the Army

Cabot Corporation

Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Tufts College

Tulane Educational Fund

Rhode Island Board of Governors for Higher Education

Vijay Thomas John

David L Kaplan

Joseph A Akkara

Arijit Bose

Gregory Jon Chiaramonte

Diane Blake

Ramesh Ayyala

Duy T Nguyen

Christopher J Brooks

Xiaoqin Wang

Charles Larry Abernathy

Noshir Pesika

Victor Manuel Perez Zarate

Donghui Zhang

Steven Richard Levin

Yueheng Zhang

Sunting Xuan

Ganapathiraman Ramanath

Donald Horn

Rubo Zheng

Thiruselvam Ponnusamy

Krzysztof Reiss

Ani Tzankova Nikova

Gary McPherson

Jayashri Sarkar

Igor K M Tsengam

Mark Banks

Mikhail Krivenko

Gary L McPherson

The disclosure relates to a metal phenolic network (MPN) composition for treating algae in an aqueous environment, in particular to entrap/capture, flocculate, and settle or otherwise remove the algae from a location where it damages the aqueous environment and/or harms organisms in the aqueous environment. The MPN composition includes a metal phenolic network (MPN) film and a secondary flocculant such as a clay material or ionic flocculant. Application of the MPN composition to an aqueous environment, for example a marine environment containing a harmful algal bloom (HAB) induces flocculation of the algae with the MPN composition and sedimentation of the resulting floc. Algae removed from a surface region of the aqueous environment in this way eventually kills the algae at least due to a lack of sunlight, and reduces or eliminates the ability of the algae to further damage the aqueous environment until its eventual death.

Methods and compositions for treating algae using metal phenolic networks

Methods, apparatus, systems, and articles of manufacture to generate an asset workscope are disclosed. An example system includes an asset health calculator to identify an asset on which to perform maintenance based on generating a first asset health quantifier corresponding to a first asset health status, a task generator to determine a first workscope including first asset maintenance tasks, and a task optimizer to determine a second workscope including second asset maintenance tasks based on the first asset health quantifier and/or first workscope. The example system includes a workscope effect calculator to generate a second asset health quantifier corresponding to a second asset health status when the second workscope is completed on the asset, and to update the asset health calculator, task generator, and/or task optimizer to improve determination of first and/or second workscopes to improve the second asset health quantifier relative to the first asset health quantifier.

Systems and methods to generate an asset workscope

Surfactants are imbibed into Halloysite nanotubes (HNT) and the imbibed nanotubes are coated with wax on the nanotube outer surface. The wax layer prevents the surfactant from being disgorged from the HNT lumen until a triggering condition exists. Triggering conditions include contact with oil, which dissolves the wax; or exposure to temperatures above a melt transition of the wax, which causes the wax to melt. Upon exposure to a triggering condition, at least some of the imbibed surfactants are disgorged from the HNT and into the surrounding environment. The disgorged surfactants provide a conventional effect of reducing interfacial tension and changing reservoir rock wettability to enhance oil recovery. A range of surfactants and waxes are usefully employed in the compositions and methods described herein.

Loaded, sealed nanotubes for oil recovery

There is provided a system for workscoping an asset. The system includes a processor and a memory that includes instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform operations including fetching information indicative of a service bulletin and associating the information with a module of the asset.

Workscope system and method of use thereof

A variety of hydrophobically modified polypeptoids are provided. The hydrophobically modified polypeptoids can include a polyamide backbone having a random copolymer of two or more different types of repeat units, where one or more of the repeat units have nitrogen atom having a hydrophobic substituent attached thereto. Methods of making the hydrophobically modified polypeptoids are also provided, as well as uses of the hydrophobically modified polypeptoids, for example in liposomal drug delivery. 

Hydrophobically modified polypeptoids and uses thereof

The present invention discloses the morphology of hollow, double-shelled submicrometer particles generated through a rapid aerosol-based process. The inner shell is an essentially hydrophobic carbon layer of nanoscale dimension (5-20 nm), and the outer shell is a hydrophilic silica layer of approximately 5-40 nm, with the shell thickness being a function of the particle size. The particles are synthesized by exploiting concepts of salt bridging to lock in a surfactant (CTAB) and carbon precursors together with iron species in the interior of a droplet. This deliberate negation of surfactant templating allows a silica shell to form extremely rapidly, sealing in the organic species in the particle interior. Subsequent pyrolysis results in a buildup of internal pressure, forcing carbonaceous species against the silica wall to form an inner shell of carbon. The incorporation of magnetic iron oxide into the shells opens up applications in external stimuli-responsive nanomaterials.

Hollow nanoparticles with hybrid double layers

Methods, apparatus, systems, and articles of manufacture to generate workscope tasks. An example apparatus includes a workscope task generator and a workscope task processor. The example workscope task generator is to process an asset health quantifier and a next mission criterion for a target asset according to a workscope transfer function to generate a set of workscope tasks for maintenance of the asset at a desired health state to satisfy the next mission criterion, the workscope tasks involving a location, a resource, and a time for maintenance of the engine. When the generated set of workscope tasks does not satisfy a lifecycle expectation for the asset, the generated set of workscope tasks is modified by the workscope task processor to generate a set of targeted, forecast workscope tasks from the modified set of workscope tasks to trigger maintenance of the engine.

Methods and apparatus to generate an asset workscope operation

The disclosure provides drug delivery devices and methods of making and using the drug delivery devices. The devices include single and multi-layer polymer films made by a breath figure technique having therapeutic agents associated therewith. For example, the devices may be a dual layer polymer film wherein the first layer includes a therapeutic agent incorporated into it by spin coating the first agent with a polymer solution and the second agent is incorporated into the second layer by loading the agent into pores of the second layer after it is spin coated onto the first layer. In some cases one layer provides a burst release and the second layer provides a slow release drug delivery profile. The devices may take on the form of a surgical mesh with a slow release therapeutic drug.

Drug delivery devices and methods of making and using same

Provided herein relates to compositions and methods for lubrication of a surface. The surface amenable to the compositions and methods described herein can be a non-biological surface, a biological surface, or a combination thereof. In some embodiments, the composition comprising a phospholipid-coated silk microsphere can be used for lubrication of a surface. In some embodiments, the composition comprising a phospholipid-coated silk microsphere can be used for joint lubrication, e.g., for treatment of joint disorders such as arthritis.

Silk microspheres and methods for surface lubrication

A method for cleaning an oil spill in a marine environment includes forming a particle-stabilized emulsion containing seawater, carbon black and at least one oil spill component and allowing the at least one oil spill component to degrade, thereby removing said component from the marine environment. Carbon black can be added to an oil-seawater mixture to form a stabilized emulsion containing at least one oil spill component and the oil spill component allowed to degrade, thereby removing the at least one oil spill component from the oil spill. Also disclosed is an emulsion that includes one or more oil spill components, seawater and carbon black particles.

Oil emulsification and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon adsorption using fine particles as dispersants

The present teachings are directed toward hexagonally patterned porous titania synthesized from a titanium isopropoxide precursor using a viscous template of surface-active agents separating nanoscopic bicontinuous channels of water and isooctane. Subsequent catalyst metal salt reduction in the aqueous nanochannels deposits well-separated catalyst metal nanoparticles on the pore surfaces. These nanocomposites exhibit significantly higher carbon monoxide oxidation efficiency than that obtained with known supports with higher specific surface area; efficiency is believed to be due to decreased mass transfer resistance provided the presently disclosed support material.

Nanocomposite support materials

A process is described for the enzyme catalyzed synthesis of polymeric microspheres from monomers such as ethylphenol, naphthols and hydroxypyrenes in reverse micelles in the presence of a detergent. Polymeric microspheres synthesized are porous with nonuniform densities. Polymers prepared from naphthols and hydroxypyrenes are fluorescent with electroluminescent properties. A number of materials such as enzymes, drugs and inorganic materials such as iron oxide and cadmium sulfide are encapsulated in the hollow polymeric microspheres synthesized. These encapsulations are carried out during or after the syntheses of the polymeric microspheres. Functional properties of the encapsulated materials such as enzyme, magnetic and nonlinear optical properties are demonstrated in the polymeric composites.

Polymer encapsulation and polymer microsphere composites

A process is disclosed for regulating the size and composition of the internal reaction medium of a membrane mimetic system using clathrate hydrate formation under gas pressure conditions. When the disclosed membrane mimetic system is in contact with a clathrate forming gas, some of the water in the internal reaction medium is converted to crystalline hydrate form, which physically and chemically isolates the water from the remainder of the internal reaction medium. In one preferred process embodiment, the membrane mimetic system is used for enzymatic polymer synthesis in an organized medium to control the size and morphology of the polymer particles formed.

Use of hydrate formation to control membrane mimetic systems

Growing community of inventors

Destrehan, LA, United States of America

Vijay Thomas John