Five East TN companies win DOE SBIR/STTR awards
Five Tennessee companies won seven of the 104 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) awards announced last week by Energy Secretary Steven Chu.
The Phase I or II grants totaled more than $102 million and went to small businesses in 26 states with California, Colorado, Massachusetts and Ohio topping the list. The grants are intended to help companies continue to develop promising technologies with a strong potential for commercialization and job creation.
Knoxville-based Analysis and Measurement Services Corporation won three of the seven awards made to Tennessee companies. The other companies that won a single award each were located in Johnson City, Knoxville or Oak Ridge.
The information on the Tennessee winners is listed below. For information on all of the awards, go to http://www.doe.gov/articles/us-department-energy-announces-102-million-small-business-research-and-development.
SBIR/STTR Fiscal Year 2012 Release 1 Phase I Awards
Technical Topic: Instrumentation and Tools for Materials Research Using Neutron Scattering
Company: ORDELA, Inc., 1009 Alvin Weinberg Drive, Oak Ridge, TN 37830-8012
Project Title: Characterization and Application of a Novel Neutron Detection Method to Replace Helium-3 in Advanced Neutron Detectors.
Project Summary: Available detector technology limits full utilization of intense neutron beams for advanced materials research at facilities such as the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) at ORNL. Boron-10 lined pixel-cell detectors would remove limitations on neutron-scattering experiments and could be useful for applications in locating fissile materials for national security applications.
SBIR/STTR Fiscal Year 2012 Release 2 Phase I Awards
Topic: Advanced Technologies for Nuclear Energy
Company: Analysis and Measurement Services Corporation, 9119 Cross Park Drive, Knoxville, TN 37923-4505
Project Title: Online Monitoring in Small Modular Reactors.
Project Summary: Small modular reactors (SMRs) are slated for deployment in the United States and other countries for economical safe and secure power generation. This project will provide the SMR designers vendors and utilities with optimum instrumentation that is amenable to online condition monitoring for safer and more efficient operation.
Topic: Advanced Technologies for Nuclear Energy
Company: Analysis and Measurement Services Corporation, 9119 Cross Park Drive, Knoxville, TN 37923-4505
Project Title: Advanced Diagnostics for the Control Element Drive Mechanism System in Pressurized Water Reactors.
Project Summary: This project will enhance the reactor control system of existing and new nuclear reactors by developing diagnostic capabilities and improved condition monitoring for the control element drive mechanism system. This technology promotes superior safety reliability and economic performance for existing and next generation reactors.
Topic: Crosscutting Fossil Energy Research
Company: Emerging Measurements (EMCO), 9910 Kay Meg Way, Knoxville, TN 37922-6387
Project Title: Thermographic Phosphors in Improved Thermal Management of Fossil Fuel Power Plants.
Project Summary: This project will develop high temperature optical based thermographic phosphor sensors for fossil fuel fired power plants.
SBIR/STTR Fiscal Year 2012 Phase II Awards
Topic: Advanced Technologies for Nuclear Energy
Company: Analysis and Measurement Services Corporation, 9119 Cross Park Drive, Knoxville, TN 37923-4505
Project Title: Rod Control System On-Line Condition Monitoring and Advanced Diagnostics for Existing and Next Generation Nuclear Power Plants.
Project Summary: This project offers to enhance the rod control systems of nuclear reactors with diagnostic capabilities to provide continuous monitoring and automated system health assessment. This technology can prevent unplanned reactor trips and shorten refueling outage times which will help provide safe and reliable power to the general public.
Topic: Smart Facilities and Green Networks
Company: Enhanced Systems Consulting, Inc., 3201 Hanover Road, Johnson City, TN 37604-1463
Project Title: Dynamically Controlled Electric Demand Management System
Project Summary: Variable electric demands force costly inefficiencies and risks to the nation’s electric grid. DCEDMS is a systematic software solution that monitors and manages electricity distribution by synchronizing and balancing generation and consumption with scalable, secure and sustainable smart grid technologies.
Topic: Nuclear Physics Instrumentation. Detection Systems and Techniques
Company: Phds Co., 3011 Amherst Road, Knoxville, TN 37921-3713
Project Title: Thin-Window P-Type Point-Contact Germanium Detectors for Rare Particle Detection 45c
Project Summary: The DOE Office of Nuclear Physics requires larger, more sensitive and lower cost detectors for rare-particle detection experiments. The new variety of germanium detectors being developed will provide a new generation of improved detectors for this critical DOE mission and for the detection of radioactive materials in general.
