METHODS AND SYSTEMS FOR ENHANCING CARBONATE-OXIDE THERMAL CYCLING EFFICIENCY FOR CO2 DIRECT AIR CAPTURE (iEdison No. 0685901-23-0230)
The invention disclosure provides processes and materials engineering protocols for the modification of the structure and morphology of carbonate minerals (eg. calcium/magnesium-based), that would enable lowering of their thermal decomposition threshold to generate oxides, and thus enhance the efficiency of direct air capture of CO2 using such materials.
MANUFACTURING AND RECYCLING OF PLASTICS VIA SHEAR ASSISTED PROCESSING (iEdison No. 0685901-21-0038.)
This invention discloses a shear assisted processing (SAP) method for producing plastics rods and discs from pellets or waste. During a single-step manufacturing process, shear deformation is introduced to heat and soften the precursor so it can be deformed, mixed, consolidated, and then extruded as solid wire. Toolings, processing procedures and parameters were developed for processing different types of plastics. 2.5mm diameter wires were recycled from polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE), a mixture of PP and PE, carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) and post-consumer plastic bags, respectively. DSC shows that the wires made from mixed plastics have good homogeneity. Tensile test results proved the recycled plastics had retained up to 90% strength of raw materials.
FLUID-FILLED ACOUSTIC FLOW SHIELD (iEdison No. 0685901-23-0208)
We have developed a simple flow shield that reduces the effects of flow noise on measurements of low-frequency underwater sound. The flow shield consists of a urethane dome that is cast in a vacuum to avoid formation of bubbles. The dome is filled with oil and secured over the transducer of a hydrophone using a hose clamp. The oil-filled flow shield was compared with two flow shield designs that have been used for marine acoustic monitoring, a thick, ballistic nylon covering and a thin, stocking nylon covering, and outperformed both.
ACOUSTIC TRANSMISSION DEVICE AND PROCESS FOR TRACKING SELECTED HOSTS
A new acoustic tag and process are disclosed for identifying and tracking underwater hosts in up to three dimensions. The acoustic tag has an operation lifetime up to a year or longer at a pulse rate interval of about 15 seconds. The acoustic tag has a signal detection range up to at least about 500 meters that enhances detection probability.
ULTRAMICRO TO MESOPORE FRAMEWORKS FOR SELECTIVE SEPARATION AND STORAGE OF NOBLE GASES (iEdison No. 0685901-17-0011)
The global demand for xenon, a noble gas with applications in electronics, lighting, and the medical industry is expected to rise significantly over the next decades. However, the low abundance of xenon in earth's atmosphere and costly cryogenic distillation process that is used to obtain xenon commercially via air separation limited the scale of applications of xenon. A physisorption-based separation using porous materials may be a viable and cost-effective alternative to cryogenic distillation. In particular, open framework structures consists of organic, inorganic and metal organic materials have shown to be very promising for selective Xe removal at room temperature. We at PNNL have demonstrated, materials with small pore geometry are selective for Xe over other complex gas mixtures relevant to nuclear re-processing and from air. Similarly, materials with large pore consist of small and large pores relevant to Xenon recycle and re-use from medical anaesthetic gas mixture and semiconductor applications. Finally materials with high surface area are important for Xenon storage applications.
EXTRUSION WITH SPECIFIABLE OR VARIABLE WALL THICKNESS (iEdison No. 0685901-22-0132)
We have designed and integrated an apparatus with the ShAPE machine that enables extrusion of round hollow tubing having actively controlled wall thickness. This has been demonstrated for aluminum alloys 6061 and 6111 where the wall thickness was tailored from 1 mm to 2 mm and back to 1 mm along the length of the extrusion by changing the tube inner diameter from 10 mm to 8 mm and back to 10 mm . The attachments discuss the design, integration, and proof-of-concept results.
ALUMINUM-ETHER-BASED COMPOSITION FOR BATTERIES AND AMBIENT TEMPERATURE ALUMINUM DEPOSITION (iEdison No. 0685901-22-0051)
We invented and demonstrated a novel electrolyte formulation comprised of dialkyl ethers (R1-O-R2, R: hydrocarbon functional groups) and aluminum chloride (AlCl3) that enables efficient, room-temperature electrochemical reduction of Al3+ to metallic aluminum (i.e., electrodeposition) and highly reversible oxidative stripping of metal to Al3+ ions (i.e., galvanic dissolution). The chemical formula of our electrolyte solution can be represented by nAlCl3 : mR1-O-R2 (0.1 ≤ m/n ≤ 5). The dialkyl ether (R1-O-R2) systems include widely available industrial solvents such as dipropyl ether (DPE) and dibutyl ether (DBE). At room temperature (~20 ºC) mixing of DPE or DBE (Lewis base) with AlCl3 (Lewis acid) forms yellowish solutions with high concentrations of Al3+ (up to 7.3 M). This unique electrolyte formulation enables highly efficient and reversible electrochemical processes (both electrodeposition and dissolution) and hence can be considered as a potential candidate for (i) high temperature Al coating in industrial processes, (ii) rechargeable aluminum-based batteries. Our novel electrolyte formulation is based on improving the rates of desolvation and resolvation steps during electrochemical processes by suppressing electrostatic interactions of multivalent Al3+ ions via weakly coordinating ethereal based solvents. The DPE/AlCl3 and DBE/AlCl3 electrolyte solutions demonstrate highly reversible Al plating/stripping at room temperature with low overpotential of - 0.2 V vs. Al/Al3+(Figure 1). The electrochemical performance of dialkyl ether-based electrolytes is more efficient and reversible compared to widely used electrolyte systems, such as ionic liquid based solvents reported in literature. Figure 1. Cyclic voltammograms of Pt electrode with the electrolyte solution of (A) AlCl3:DPE and (B) AlCl3:DBE at 1:1.2 (molar ratio) at 0.25 mV s-1 between - 0.8 - 1.5 V vs Al/Al3+. Highly efficient Al plating and stripping behavior is observed.
ACOUSTIC AQUATIC TRACKING TRANSMITTER (iEdison No. 0685901-22-0106)
We developed an acoustic transmitter that can be used to study the behavior and survival of sensitive species such as juvenile American shad. It has a dry mass of 0.05 gram and is 2 mm in diameter and 7.6 mm in length.
CAPTURE AND RELEASE OF ACID GASSES USING TUNABLE ORGANIC SOLVENTS WITH AMINOPYRIDINE
A class of water lean, organic solvents that can bind with various acid gasses to form acid gas bound molecules having a high degree of intramolecular hydrogen bonding which enables their use as regenerable solvents for acid gas capture. Unlike the other devices described in the prior art, the present invention takes advantage of shortened distances between the portions of the molecule that form hydrogen bonds within the structures when loaded with an acid gas so as to create a molecule with a higher internal bonding affinity and a reduced proclivity for agglomeration with other molecules.
SYNTHETIC POLYMERS AND METHODS OF MAKING AND USING THE SAME
Disclosed herein are monomer embodiments that can be used to make polymers, such as homopolymers, heteropolymers, and that can be used in particular embodiments to make sequence-defined polymers. Also disclosed herein are methods of making polymers using such monomer embodiments. Methods of using the polymers disclosed herein also are described.