Stories of Technology, Innovation, & Entrepreneurship in the Southeast

Knoxville Business News Tennessee Mountain Scenery Background
August 15, 2021 | Tom Ballard

Here are some news briefs from around the region

Here are some of the latest news items from around the region.

  • Ultrasonic Technology Solutions LLC of Knoxville, a company we spotlighted in this April 2020 article in teknovation.biz, has been awarded a $1 million, three-year grant by the U.S. Department of Energy to develop a vibrational defrosting system to remove ice from the evaporator in a refrigerator. “The technology could potentially change the way the defrosting process is being done in the refrigeration, HVAC, and heat pump systems and could save significant money and energy for customers, reducing the CO2 emission by 44 MMT/yr.,” Ayyoub Momen, the company’s Founder, said. By replacing current refrigerator defrosting technology that uses heat, this system will reduce energy use and allow the refrigerator to maintain a more consistent temperature. A total of 44 projects shared nearly $83 million in funding, according to this DOE news release.
  • Terrence (TJ) O’Neil, the Northeast Tennessee entrepreneur and Emeritus Nephrologist who founded HD Clean LLC, shared with us that he has received official notification of four design patents issued for his device that virtually eliminates disconnects and infections that many dialysis patients experience. We spotlighted O’Neil and the invention in this March teknovation.biz article. In an email last week, he wrote, “I’m pleased to announce that I was awarded U.S. device patent numbers US D923,156S, US D922,542S, US 922,543S and US D922,544S on two device variants which are compatible with the FRESENIUS, NxStage, BAXTER/GAMBRO, TABLO and B Braun dialysis bloodlines. A non-provisional U.S. utility patent is pending.”
  • Rootine, a Nashville-based precision health start-up, is leveraging artificial intelligence to look at individual DNA, blood, and lifestyle test results to create a “hyper-customized” daily micronutrient formula. The company has landed $3 million in seed funding as described in this recent news release.
  • Speaking of Nashville, applications are open through August 26 for entrepreneurs who want to compete in the next edition of the Nashville Entrepreneur Center‘s “Pitch for Good” series. The focus this time is on women Founders. More information can be found here.
  • Boston Government Services, an Oak Ridge-based company we spotlighted in this May 2020 teknovation.biz post, has been ranked #46 on the U.S. Department of Energy’s list of its Top 100 contractors.
  • Drive Electric TN and TNCleanFuels are looking for help for one of the largest multi-day electric vehicles showcases ever in Tennessee. The “Get Off the Grid Festival” is set for this Friday through Sunday at Camp Jordan in Chattanooga, and the organizers are looking for people who would be interested in signing-up for either the showcase or Ride & Drive slots during the event. Click here for more information.

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