Swamp Optics

Nanorods is a company that received a SBIR Phase I grant for a project entitled: Multi-wavelength Infrared thermal Detectors and Imagers. Their project will develop a new infrared (IR) radiation sensor technology, which will allow the development of a new class of low-cost multi-wavelength thermal detectors which are also sensitive to light polarization. This technology will allow radiation detection from the near-IR to long-wave IR, a capability that is absent in competing detectors. Amorphous silicon and vanadium dioxide has been the dominant materials used for infrared light detection since the 1980s. The disadvantages of such detectors are: 1) insensitivity to the spectral content and polarization of the incident radiation, 2) difficulty in further miniaturization of the sensing pixels. This project will use a combination of nanomaterial and amorphous silicon layers as a new type of infrared sensing layer which can be integrated into silicon thermal detectors and is expected to overcome these limitations. This project will demonstrate: 1) Fabrication and integration of the new radiation sensing layers to create a series of thermal detectors; 2) Enhanced light absorption and spectral sensitivity at multiple IR wavelengths; 3) Size reduction of the sensing pixel to 10 microns; and 4) polarization sensitivity for incident light at 3 micron wavelengths. The broader impact/commercial potential of this project is the development of uncooled multi-color thermal detectors which are inexpensive and feature spectral and polarization sensitivity. These devices have the potential to displace expensive photon-based semiconductor IR detectors in many applications. The proposed technology will allow production of multi-color detectors on a single silicon wafer as well as sensing pixel miniaturization that will tremendously impact the fabrication cost, imaging resolution and device size. Successful commercialization of this thermal detection technology will substantially impact the field of low cost IR detection and imaging in applications such as fire detection, public health, environmental monitoring, space missions, industrial process monitoring, and security and military areas.

Permafuels, Inc. is a Chapel Hill, NC based company that has received a grant(s) from the Department of Energy's SBIR/STTR program. The abstract(s) for these grant award(s) are provided as well since they provide insights into Permafuels, Inc.'s business and areas of expertise. Although biodiesel production using supercritical alcohols is an extremely fast and clean method, it has not been economically competitive with conventional catalytic approaches. This project will optimize the supercritical process to enable cost-effective commercial production of biodiesel fuel.

American Biodiesel, dba Community Fuels, is an advanced biofuel producer. The company produces among the highest quality biomass-based diesel fuels available - which qualifies as an Advanced Biofuel through the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and its own fuel standard closely mirrors the requirements of multiple major oil companies and exceeds the Federal fuel standard (ASTM Standard).

Brookhaven Technology Group, Inc. is a Setauket, NY based company that has received a grant(s) from the Department of Energy's SBIR/STTR program. The abstract(s) for these grant award(s) are provided as well since they provide insights into Brookhaven Technology Group, Inc.'s business and areas of expertise. Nanotubes made of carbon structures will be cross-linked and woven into self-supporting structures for use as charge-exchange foils. These foils are essential for operation of many accelerator applications. The research will lead to increased performance and reduced cost of operation of accelerators used in medicine, Homeland Security, and high energy physics research.

Fusion Research Technologies, LLC is a Cambridge, MA based company that has received a grant(s) from the Department of Energy's SBIR/STTR program. The abstract(s) for these grant award(s) are provided as well since they provide insights into Fusion Research Technologies, LLC's business and areas of expertise. The interaction of a thermonuclear plasma and its surrounding "container" significantly affects the performance of magnetic fusion devices, ultimately influencing fusion's viability as an energy source. This project will allow researchers to "see" the effects of these complex processes and provide essential data for understanding and designing fusion devices.

Renewable Oil International is a Florence, AL based company that has received a grant(s) from the Department of Energy's SBIR/STTR program. The abstract(s) for these grant award(s) are provided as well since they provide insights into Renewable Oil International's business and areas of expertise. The project will produce liquid biofuels from wood biomass resources by fast pyrolysis followed by upgrading of the pyrolysis oils. This research will be a key step towards ending global warming, improving national security, and improving rural economies by reducing our dependence on petroleum feedstocks. Declining petroleum resources, combined with increased demand for petroleum by emerging economies, as well as political and environmental concerns about fossil fuels, are causing our society to search for new sources of liquid fuels. This project will develop a method for conversion of biomass into liquid fuels at a small scale called fast pyrolysis—a process whereby biomass is rapidly converted into a liquid biocrude which can be used for fuel oil or upgraded into gasoline and diesel fuels.