NEW! - Ready for Prime Time

December 2011 / January 2012 Volume 9 Number 6

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Memo to entrepreneurs and investors: The national energy laboratories have developed—and are developing—interesting and potentially important new technologies ripe for commercialization.  Are you ready to take one to the next level?

Metallic Structures for Transparent Electrodes
From: Ames Laboratory
What It Is: High-aspect ratio metallic structures for use as transparent electrodes in organic solar cells.  The electrodes have high light transmission and superior conductivity to current indium-tin oxide electrodes, so they have potential to improve solar cell performance. They are versatile and flexible.
Potential for Commercialization: Flexible organic LED displays, flexible solar panels, and other lighting and solar cell products.  Samples of the electrodes are available for testing.
For more information: Eddie Boylston, licensing@iastate.edu, 515-294-3621

Microwave Antenna forSecure Communication
From: Ames Laboratory
What It Is:  An antenna that picks up exactly what you want and nothing else. It’s an optical photonic crystal antenna that operates from 10-40 gigahertz, is highly tunable and has high directivity.
Potential for Commercialization: Can be used in a variety of satellite and wire communication devices. Plus, the antenna is small and uses little power, perfect for cellular and other wireless  phones.
For More Information: Eddie Royston, licensing@iastate.edu, 515-294-3621.

Diesel DeNOx Catalyst
From: Argonne National Laboratory
What It Is: The U.S. consumed about 50 billion gallons of diesel fuel in 2006. Because the fuel is more  efficient than gasoline, its use is expected to increase. The diesel DeNOx catalyst removes 80–85 percent of nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from diesel fuel combustion by converting NOx to nitrogen, a harmless compound. With its lower expected manufacturing and installation costs, ease of use, and significant market potential, the catalyst is positioned to deliver the environmental benefits needed to reduce our global industrial “footprint.”
Potential for Commercialization: Vehicles (diesel), stationary and portable power,
fossil fuel power plants, petrochemical plants, maritime.
For more information: Cynthia Wlodarski
(630)252-7694 weso@anl.gov

“Upcycling”—A Green Solution to the Plastic Problem
From: Argonne National Laboratory
What It Is: Plastics products—such as grocery bags, packaging foam, plates, and cups—are lightweight, strong and inexpensive to produce. However, because they are not biodegradable, they collect in landfills, litter the environment, and present a long-term environmental problem. Through a new process, a wide range of waste plastics can be converted into a fine black carbon nanopowder or carbon nanotubes.
Potential for Commercialization: This substance has numerous industrial applications, ranging from its use as an anode material in manufacturing lithium-ion batteries to serving as a component in water purification, tires, electronics, paints, and printer inks and toners.
For more information: Cynthia Wlodarski,  weso@anl.gov,  630-252-7694.

Effluc Pumps for Increased Production Yield
From: 
Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI)
What It Is:  Addresses a fundamental challenge in successfully engineering organisms to produce biofuels, pharmaceuticals and industrial chemicals by providing industrial host microbes with resistance to the valuable, but potentially toxic, compounds of interest. The technology is applicable in various host organisms for a wide range of compounds.
Potential for Commercialization: Improves economic viability of biological / renewable production of biofuels, pharmaceuticals and industrial chemicals.
For More Information: Pam Seidenman, psseidenman@lbl.gov, 510-486-6461.

GuardDog: Ultra-Wideband Intrusion Detection
From: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
What It Is:  GuardDog is a unique perimeter detection network that is capable of operating in a cluttered urban environment and constantly monitors a 360 degree field whose diameter is set by the user and alerts the user by satellite or remote receiver. 
Potential for Commercialization: Can be used to provide intrusion detection around tents, swimming pools, homes, neighborhoods, factories, borders or virtually any other valuable article or property that needs protection from intrusion. GuardDog prototypes have been built and tested and the technology is ready to go to market.
For More Information: Annemarie Meike, meike1@llnl.gov, 925-422-3735; or Randall Elder, elder3@llnl.gov, 925-422-9914.

Urban Eyes: Ultra-Wideband Detecting and Tracking
From: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
What It Is: Urban Eyes provides the capability to detect, locate, track and identify personnel behind obstructions from a standoff distance using ultra-wideband (UWB) radar sensors in locations that do not have communications infrastructure. Using this technology, LLNL deployed a search team to the World Trade Center after 9/11, and helped search for living victims of Hurricane Katrina.
Potential for Commercialization:  Fire, police, military and emergency response teams have expressed an active interest in acquiring the device. Prototypes have been built and tested and the technology is ready to go to market.For More Information: Genaro Mempin, mempin1@llnl.gov, 925-423-1121; or Randall Elder, elder3@llnl.gov, 925-422-9914.

Disposable STD (Sexually Transmitted Diseases) Diagnostic Kits
From: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
What It Is: This technology is a rapid, disposable, non-invasive multi-plex device for diagnosing sexually-transmitted diseases.
Potential for Commercialization: This technology can give clinical personnel, as well as the general public, the capability to test if a person has a number of commonly diagnosed STDs.
For More Information:  Genaro Mempin, mempin1@llnl.gov, 925-423-1121.

Improved Free-Space Optical Laser Communication
From:  Los Alamos National Laboratory
What It Is:  Means to project a reliable, large-bandwidth/high-throughput, high-fidelity, laser-carried signal through the atmosphere over a distance of 10 to 15 kilometers.
Potential for Commercialization:  Proof-of-concept has been demonstrated in the laboratory.  We are looking for a partner to further develop, demonstrate and license the technology.  We believe an investment well below $500,000 will be required to achieve the demonstration.
For More Information: Michael Everhart-Erickson
michaele@lanl.gov. 505-667-8087.

Simultaneous Distribution of AC and DC Power
From: National Renewable Energy Laboratory
What It Is: This technology chops, combines, transports, separates and reconstructs AC and DC power over an existing wire. It eliminates inverters that convert DC source power into AC power, and equipment that reconverts AC to DC power for HVAC systems and common electrical devices.  It can be retrofit or implemented in new construction.
Potential for Commercialization: Applicable in commercial and residential photovoltaic markets.
For More Information:  Chris Harris, chris.harris@nrel.gov, 303-275-4380

Ultra-Fast Quantum Efficiency (QE) Solar Cell Test
From: National Renewable Energy Laboratory
QE is the standard test that indicates how well solar cells convert sunlight into electricity. Currently, measurements are expensive and timely. NREL’s technology performs QE measurements in a single second, enabling photovoltaic designers and manufacturers to quickly and economically modify cell design and monitor the manufacturing process.
Potential for Commercialization: Photovoltaic research, development and manufacturing.
For More Information:  Chris Harris, chris.harris@nrel.gov, 303-275-4380

High Performance Anodes for Batteries
From: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
What It Is: Scientists have developed a new nano-wire anode material for batteries that overcomes poor capacity retention and high production costs.  The material uses a low cost, low temperature, catalyst-free scalable process. 
Potential for Commercialization: The nano-enabled battery market was $169 million (2009), but is expect to grow to $1.13 billion (2013) and the large-capacity auto-battery market is expected to grow 15x in five years. 
For More Information: Jennifer Caldwell, caldwelljt@ornl.gov. 865-574-4180

Superhydrophobic Optical Coatings
From: Sandia National Laboratories
What It Is: Hybrid nanoparticle-polymer optical coatings for dip, spray or reel-to-reel deposition of tailored optical films. Eliminates expensive vacuum deposition equipment. Allows tailoring of both the optical properties and a hydrophilic (wetting) or superhydrophobic (beading) surface.
Potential for Commercialization:
For applications such as eye glasses/contacts, building glass, windshields, bath/kitchen surfaces, visible and infrared optics, non-icing aeronautical surfaces or solar panels. Demonstrated at lab-scale.
For More Information: Bianca Thayer, bkthaye@sandia.gov 505) 284-7766