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Available Technologies

Title Sort descending Date Posted Patent Information Opportunity
Fiber Optic-Based pH Sensing In Aqueous Subsurface Environments USPN 9,975,080; Patent Pending

Research is active on the patent pending technology titled, “Plasmonic-Based pH Sensors in Aqueous Environments.” This invention is available for licensing and/or further collaborative research from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory.

Gas Sensing System Employing Raman Scattering USPN 8,674,306

The Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) is seeking collaborative research partners and/or licensees interested in implementing a patented gas sensing system technology. The patent is jointly owned by NETL and the University of Pittsburgh, with the University handling the licensing.  NETL would work with a potential licensee and the University to license the technology.

Described in this patent is a gas analyzing sensor that characterizes gaseous fuel, exhaust gases, or other process gas streams. The sensor reports concentrations of all majority gases to 0.1% in 1 second or less, and can be used for real-time gas analysis and system control. The sensor relies on novel techniques to enhance usually weak spontaneous Raman emissions from the gases being sampled, enabling the application of Raman spectroscopy to rapid gas analysis. The invention provides a gas composition measurement system that is fast, accurate, cost effective, and capable of continuously measuring the concentrations of gases in a mixture such as natural gas, at elevated system pressures.

High Capacity Immobilized Amine Sorbents USPN 7,288,136

The Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory is seeking licensing partners interested in implementing United States Patent Number 7,288,136 titled "High Capacity Immobilized Amine Sorbents."

Disclosed in this patent is the invention of a method that facilitates the production of low-cost carbon dioxide (CO2) sorbents for use in large-scale gas-solid processes. This method treats an amine to increase the number of secondary amine groups and impregnates the amine in a porous solid support. As a result of this improvement, the method increases CO2 capture capacity and decreases the cost of using an amine-enriched solid sorbent in CO2 capture systems.

High Efficiency Electrocatalytic Conversion of CO2 to CO USPN 9,139,920

Research is in progress on the development of ligand-protected gold (Au25) cluster nanocatalysts for the electrocatalytic conversion of carbon dioxide (CO2) to carbon monoxide (CO). A few technologies are available for licensing and/or further collaborative research from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory.

High-Performance Corrosion-Resistant High-Entropy Alloys USPN 11,466,344

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.

High-Temperature Sensors for Monitoring and Control of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells USPN 11,380,918

Research is active on the application of embedded optical fiber based sensors to an operational solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) in conjunction with high-temperature stable distributed interrogation approaches to allow for local monitoring of the absolute value and spatial gradient of the chemical composition and temperature of an anode or cathode stream.

Hydrophobic Alkyl-Ester Physical Solvents for CO2 Removal from H2 Produced from Synthesis Gas U.S. Patent Pending

Hydrophobic Alkyl-Ester Physical Solvents for CO2 Removal from H2 Produced from Synthesis GasThe invention is a family of hydrophobic, low viscosity, low vapor pressure physical solvents with molecular structures consisting of two or more alkyl-ester functional groups on a central hydrocarbon chain. These solvents have been shown to possess high carbon dioxide (CO2) solubility and absorption selectivity, which make them well suited for the removal of CO2 from hydrogen (H2) produced from synthesis gas. This technology is available for licensing and/or further collaborative research from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory.

Challenge
Future integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) power plants and steam methane reforming (SMR) chemical plants have the potential to reduce the cost of CO2 capture. These power and chemical plants generate high-pressure CO2 gas streams from the in-situ water gas shift reaction when producing H2 used to power the electrical turbines. A variety of methods have been proposed to capture CO2, including solvent, sorbent, and membrane technologies, with continuous solvent looping systems currently considered to be the most advanced. Precombustion capture of CO2 is typically accomplished using physical solvents.

State-of-the-art precombustion CO2 capture processes predominantly employ hydrophilic physical solvents. Current commercial physical solvents touted for IGCC CO2 capture were developed for removing acid gases from raw natural gas streams. Therefore, they were designed to remove significant amounts of water from the process gas. As such, the focus was on the purification of the process gas with less concern for generation of high-purity CO2 streams suitable for pipeline transmission and sequestration. While water removal is important for natural gas pipeline applications, it is not favorable for applications in which the fuel stream is directly combusted on-site, as would be encountered in IGCC systems.

Hydrophobic Carbon Capture Solvent USPN 10,589,228

Research is active on the design and synthesis of a new carbon dioxide (CO2) capture solvent based on PEG-Siloxane. Unlike conventional gas-removal solvents, the NETL’s new solvent technology is hydrophobic and has a low vapor pressure. A hydrophobic solvent with low vapor pressure is highly advantageous because it can reduce the cost and energy-consumption associated with CO2 capture by simplifying solvent regeneration and negating the need to remove water from fuel gas. For example, this solvent operates above room temperature and can be regenerated using low-grade and waste heat, whereas commercially available solvents operate below room temperature and can’t be regenerated using low-grade or waste heat This technology is available for licensing and/or further collaborative research from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory.

Hydrophobic Solvent for CO2 Capture Simplifies Gasification Process USPN 9,643,123

Research is active on the technology titled, "High Performance Hydrophobic Solvent for CO2 Capture." This technology is available for licensing and/or further collaborative research from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory.

Improved Pelletized Immobilized Amine Sorbents for CO2 Capture USPN 10,065,174; USPN 10,603,654;

This invention describes basic immobilized amine sorbents (BIAS) with improved pelletization process and formulation for use in CO2 capture processes. This technology is available for licensing and/or further collaborative research from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory.

Challenge
BIAS sorbents demonstrate high CO2 capture capacity and thermal stability over multiple steam regeneration cycles and represent a promising approach for CO2 removal from a variety of source points, including coal and natural gas combustion power plants. Bench- and pilot-scale testing have demonstrated the feasibility of commercial-scale BIAS sorbents. However, full commercialization of BIAS sorbents requires pelletization. Commercially available silica typically serves as the support for amine-based particle sorbents, yet these materials are not commercially feasible due to their relatively low mechanical strength and difficult management in dynamic reactor systems. Thus, the development of an economical method of fabricating a strong silica-supported BIAS pellet is a primary concern.