This invention describes the synthesis and application of nanostructured copper (Cu) catalysts that selectively convert carbon dioxide (CO₂) into carbon monoxide (CO). This technology is available for licensing and/or further collaborative research from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory.

Challenge
The electrochemical CO₂ reduction reaction (CO₂RR) is an appealing strategy for addressing man-made CO₂ emissions because it can leverage excess renewable energy to produce carbon-neutral chemicals and fuels. However, the economic viability of large-scale CO₂RR systems will depend on the ability to selectively and efficiently form desirable products. Because it is earth-abundant and can produce a variety of products, Cu is a popular CO₂RR catalyst. Unfortunately, the wide product distribution of Cu introduces inefficiencies in the form of chemical separation steps.

The invention is a system and method for monitoring the interior of metallic tubular structures like pipelines, well-bores, and boiler-tubes using an integrated wireless system. The technology uses a combination of the pipe or tubular structure as a wave guide, integrated radio frequency (RF) patch antennas, integrated passive surface acoustic wave (SAW) sensors, and data analytic methodologies. The technology is available for licensing from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory.

Challenge

Safety and longevity are major concerns in fossil fuel industries and other technologies that use long metallic tubular structures like gas pipelines, well-bores, and boilers. Real time monitoring of the tubular structures for multiple variables within them, including but not limited to corrosion, leaks, and mass flow, is crucial to ensure safety and cost-effective maintenance in timely manner. Conventional techniques for investigating the state-of-health and operational conditions of tubular structures use non-destructive acoustic-based techniques, which are limited by the ability to interpret the data because, as an indirect measurement, requires models to be made of the infrastructure under investigation.

This invention describes a technology for separating liquid and solid phase substances from a gas stream. This technology is available for licensing and/or further collaborative research from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory.

Challenge
The removal and sequestration of carbon dioxide (CO₂) from gas streams has been extensively researched, and many methods of separating CO₂ have been proposed. These include adsorption monoliths, membrane absorption and cryogenic distillation, but such methods require special materials and/or high maintenance. Other state-of-the-art removal techniques, such as centrifugal stratification, compress CO₂ into a liquid or solid phase, then remove it from the gas stream. But during removal, the liquid/solid phases travel through flow fields and their viscous heating effects. This causes the liquid/solid phases to re-vaporize, stymieing separation efforts.

This invention describes a system and method for rapid, ambient-temperature growth of metal-organic framework (MOF) films for gas sensor applications. More specifically, the invention relates to growth of MOF films on advanced sensor devices such as distributed optical fiber and passive wireless like surface acoustic wave-based sensors. This technology is available for licensing and/or further collaborative research from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory.

Challenge
MOF thin films have emerged as particularly attractive candidates for gas sensing applications due to their tunable porosity and pore size, enabling them to be rationally designed to selectively absorb specific gasses of interest. MOFs are especially appealing due to their high selectivity and capacity for energy-relevant gasses such as carbon dioxide and methane. A critical step towards the development of MOF thin film devices is the ability to efficiently and reliably incorporate high-quality MOF layers onto a wide range of substrates like optical fibers. However, current techniques are often inconvenient due to long reaction times, heating requirements, equipment costs and/or poor control over crystal coverage and morphology.

This invention describes a technology that can capture radioactive contaminants from wastewater. This technology is available for licensing and/or further collaborative research from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory.

Challenge

Radioactive isotopes in liquid nuclear wastes are difficult to remove through conventional methods. Solvent extraction and ion exchange have proved successful for removal, but most of these materials display low selectivity and require the use of environmentally unsafe solvents.  

The invention is a new cost-effective way to make high-quality graphene from domestic coal feedstocks.  This graphene can be used to make a wide range of consumer products such as structural composites, water purification sorbents, stain- and water- resistant textiles, battery materials, and specialty pigments for paints and coatings.  Graphene is an outstanding material made from honeycomb sheets of carbon just one atom thick. Graphene is one of the lightest, strongest, and thinnest materials ever discovered. It has a high surface area, high thermal conductivity, strong chemical durability and high electron mobility making it ideal for use in products requiring mechanical strength, corrosion resistance and thermal/electrical conductivity. This inventive new process also co-produces rare earth elements (REEs) and distilled crude oil liquid, which have their own markets. The co-production of three high value products makes this invention an opportunity to maximize the profitability of a coal-based manufacturing process.

Challenge

Despite their amazing properties, carbon nanomaterials have not been widely commercialized primarily because of their high costs and limited supplies.  Currently, graphene costs approximately $20,000,000 per metric ton and global production capacity is less than 2000 tons/year. The high cost and low supply of graphene are major factors limiting its use in new and innovative consumer products.  These issues are driven, in part, by the expensive carbon feedstocks and complicated manufacturing processes currently used to make graphene.  The invention overcomes these challenges by utilizing inexpensive & plentiful domestic coal in a simple one-reactor process.  This approach brings the total manufacturing costs in line with other specialty materials, such as carbon fiber and carbon black, making the use of graphene in consumer products commercially viable.

This new Iron-based catalyst will enable a one-step process to produce hydrogen - a promising energy source that is also environmentally benign - by directly converting methane. The catalyst will eliminate the need to first create syngas and then remove carbon dioxide. In addition to creating hydrogen, carbon, which is also a useful commodity is created as a by-product. This technology is available for licensing and/or further collaborative research from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory.

Challenge
The traditional commercial methods of forming hydrogen from methane are based on steam methane reforming, coal or bio-mass gasification, electrolysis, and thermos-chemical processes. Some of these methods are cost-effective, but each requires that syngas first be created and the water gas shift reaction be used to convert syngas to hydrogen and carbon dioxide. From there, the hydrogen must be purified using pressure swing adsorption to separate the hydrogen for the carbon dioxide. Developing a method that avoids these intermediate steps would reduce the cost of producing valuable hydrogen.

This novel patent-pending methane conversion technology employees microwave-assisted catalysis for chemical conversion. This technology is available for licensing and/or further collaborative research from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory.

Challenge

Natural gas, primarily composed of methane, is a cheap and abundant domestic resource that can be converted to a wide range of products including liquid transportation fuels and a wide range of chemical intermediates. However, traditional methods of converting methane to valuable chemicals first require it to be converted to synthesis gas.

A direct, one-step, method to convert the methane would have significant advantages over current indirect methods, including reduced costs and increased yields, but several technology barriers must first be overcome. Microwave-assisted catalyst reactions can provide a viable direct method for overcoming these barriers.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) developed designs, manufacturing processes, and corrosion property validations of new high-performance corrosion-resistant high-entropy alloys that are superior to and less expensive than existing alloys and demonstrate improved resistance to corrosion, including pitting corrosion in harsh environments and sea water.

Challenge
Metals and alloys used in sea water or acidic aqueous environments are prone to various forms of corrosion, including pitting and/or crevice corrosion because of the presence of aggressive salt, such sodium chloride (NaCl). Pitting and crevice corrosion can serve as initiation sites for developing cracks that will lead to catastrophic failures of the metallic components. The current solution to this problem is to coat the metals with nickel (Ni)-based superalloys such as Hastelloy® C276. Hastelloy®, which is very expensive.

This invention describes a system and method for detecting corrosion in natural gas pipelines using an optical platform or a wireless platform. This technology is available for licensing and/or further collaborative research from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory.

Challenge

The U.S. Energy Information Administration states that natural gas accounts for nearly 30 percent of energy consumption in the United States. More than 300,000 miles of natural gas transmission and gathering lines deliver this valuable energy source to consumers. Like any energy infrastructure, this network of pipelines requires significant maintenance costs. In the case of natural gas pipelines, corrosion accounts for around 25 percent of incidents over the last 30 years, 61 percent of which was caused by internal corrosion.

The corrosion-related annual cost for such incidents amounts to $6 to $10 billion in the United States each year. Therefore, a need exists to monitor corrosion inside of the gas pipelines to implement corrosion mitigation and control before any failure.