A process to facilitate mercury extraction from high temperature flue/fuel gas via the use of metal sorbents which capture mercury at ambient and high temperatures. The spent sorbents can be regenerated after exposure to mercury. The metal sorbents can be used as pure metals (or combinations of metals) or dispersed on an inert support to increase surface area per gram of metal sorbent. Iridium and ruthenium are effective for mercury removal from flue and smelter gases. Palladium and platinum are effective for mercury removal from fuel gas (syngas). An iridium-platinum alloy is suitable for metal capture in many industrial effluent gas streams including highly corrosive gas streams.

The invention provides for a method for removing elemental mercury from a fluid, the method comprising irradiating the mercury with light having a wavelength of approximately 254 nm. The method is implemented in situ at various fuel combustion locations such as power plants and municipal incinerators.

In a dip forming process the core material to be coated is introduced directly into a source block of coating material eliminating the need for a bushing entrance component. The process containment vessel or crucible is heated so that only a portion of the coating material becomes molten, leaving a solid portion of material as the entrance port of, and seal around, the core material. The crucible can contain molten and solid metals and is especially useful when coating core material with reactive metals. The source block of coating material has been machined to include a close tolerance hole of a size and shape to closely fit the core material. The core material moves first through the solid portion of the source block of coating material where the close tolerance hole has been machined, then through a solid/molten interface, and finally through the molten phase where the diameter of the core material is increased. The crucible may or may not require water-cooling depending upon the type of material used in crucible construction. The system may operate under vacuum, partial vacuum, atmospheric pressure, or positive pressure depending upon the type of source material being used.

A slurry system draws slurry from a slurry tank via one of several intake pipes, where each pipe has an intake opening at a different depth in the slurry. The slurry is returned to the slurry tank via a bypass pipe in order to continue the agitation of the slurry. The slurry is then diverted to a delivery pipe, which supplies slurry to a polisher. The flow of shiny in the bypass pipe is stopped in order for the slurry in the slurry tank to begin to settle. As the polishing continues, slurry is removed from shallower depths in order to pull finer grit from the slurry. When the polishing is complete, the flow in the delivery pipe is ceased. The flow of slurry in the bypass pipe is resumed to start agitating the slurry. In another embodiment, the multiple intake pipes are replaced by a single adjustable pipe. As the slurry is settling, the pipe is moved upward to remove the finer grit near the top of the slurry tank as the polishing process continues.

A Porro prism and a light polarizer are combined in a single optical element termed a Hendrix Prism. The design provides retro-reflection of incoming light of a predetermined polarization in a direction anti-parallel to the direction of light incidence, while reflecting undesired light, i.e., that having a polarization orthogonal to the predetermined polarization, from the surface of the light polarizer. The undesired light is reflected in a direction that does not interfere with the intended operation of the device in which the Hendrix Prism is installed yet provides feedback to the system in which it is used.

Patent relating a method and apparatus for hydrogen production from greenhouse gas saturated carbon nanotubes and synthesis of carbon nanostructures therefrom.

Patent relating to a toxic agent sensor and detector method, apparatus, and system.

Patent relating to an aqueous dispersion of hydrogel nanoparticles with inverse thermoreversible gelation.

Patent regarding the synthesis, uses and compositions of crystal hydrogels.

Patent relating to the synthesis, uses and compositions of crystal hydrogels.

Patent relating to a process for synthesizing oil and surfactant-free hyaluronic acid nanoparticles and microparticles.

Patent relating to an apparatus and method for implantation of elements, species and compositions in nanostructured materials.

Patent relating to an improved process and apparatus for energy storage and release.

Patent regarding a process and apparatus for energy storage and release.

Patent relating to film for use in microelectronic devices and methods of producing same.

Patent relating to the use of films in microelectronic devices and methods of producing same.

Patent relating to conductors used in electronic components and related fabrication methods, and more particularly to metal conductors for use in electronic components created by deposition of metals and related fabrication methods.

A method for concurrent selection of materials and a joining process based on product requirements using a knowledge-based, constraint satisfaction approach facilitates the product design and manufacturing process. Using a Windows-based computer video display and a data base of materials and their properties, the designer can ascertain the preferred composition of two parts based on various operating/environmental constraints such as load, temperature, lifetime, etc. Optimum joinder of the two parts may simultaneously be determined using a joining process data base based upon the selected composition of the components as well as the operating/environmental constraints.

The invention relates to a process for preparing lithium intercalation compounds by plasma reaction comprising the steps of: forming a feed solution by mixing lithium nitrate or lithium hydroxide or lithium oxide and the required metal nitrate or metal hydroxide or metal oxide and between 10-50% alcohol by weight; mixing the feed solution with O2 gas wherein the O2 gas atomizes the feed solution into fine reactant droplets, inserting the atomized feed solution into a plasma reactor to form an intercalation powder; and if desired, heating the resulting powder to form a very pure single phase product.

A radiation dosimeter providing an indication of the dose of radiation to which the radiation sensor has been exposed. The dosimeter contains features enabling the monitoring and evaluating of radiological risks so that a user can concentrate on the task at hand. The dosimeter provides an audible alarm indication that a predetermined time period has elapsed, an audible alarm indication reminding the user to check the dosimeter indication periodically, an audible alarm indicating that a predetermined accumulated dose has been prematurely reached, and an audible alarm indication prior or to reaching the 3/4 scale point.

A high-chromium refractory material that provides improved resistance to coal slag penetration is presented. The refractory mixture comprises a blend of chromium oxide, aluminum oxide and phosphates. The refractory mixture may be blended with an aggregate and cured. In addition a phosphorus oxide may be blended with chromium oxide and aluminum oxide and additionally an aggregate. The refractory mixture reduces the rate of coal slag penetration into the surface of the cured refractory.

An object of the present invention is to provide a method for separating and recovering hydrogen isotopes that avoids the disadvantages of the prior art, is more simple, and allows for continuous hydrogen isotope separation and recovery. The disclosed invention does not require the use of isotope exchange reaction catalysts and/or hydrogen sulfide gas. The present invention achieves the advantages of the thermal diffusion and the chemical exchange processes. The disclosed invention provides a method for separating and recovering hydrogen isotopes from a fluid containing the hydrogen isotopes by providing counter-current cold and hot streams of the fluid containing the hydrogen isotopes separated by a proton exchange membrane made of thermally insulating and chemically transparent material that allows exchange of heavy and light hydrogen isotopes there through. The heavier isotopes migrate to the cold stream producing a deuterium and tritium-enriched fluid, while lighter isotopes migrate to the hot stream producing a lighter isotope-enriched fluid. The heavy and light isotopes are withdrawn from the cold and hot streams respectively. According to the present invention, the fluid is water or hydrogen gas, and the desired hydrogen isotope species are deuterium and/or tritium. Further, according to the present invention, the streams of said …

An apparatus and method for conducting ultra-sensitive trace element and isotope analysis. The apparatus injects a sample through a fine nozzle to form an atomic beam. A DC discharge is used to elevate select atoms to a metastable energy level. These atoms are then acted on by a laser oriented orthogonally to the beam path to reduce the traverse velocity and to decrease the divergence angle of the beam. The beam then enters a Zeeman slower where a counter-propagating laser beam acts to slow the atoms down. Then select atoms are captured in a magneto-optical trap where they undergo fluorescence. A portion of the scattered photons are imaged onto a photo-detector, and the results analyzed to detect the presence of single atoms of the specific trace elements.

The synthesis of actinide tetraborides including uranium tetraboride (UB,), plutonium tetraboride (PUB,) and thorium tetraboride (ThB{sub 4}) by a solid-state metathesis reaction are demonstrated. The present method significantly lowers the temperature required to {approx_equal}850 C. As an example, when UCl{sub 4}, is reacted with an excess of MgB{sub 2}, at 850 C, crystalline UB, is formed. Powder X-ray diffraction and ICP-AES data support the reduction of UCl{sub 3}, as the initial step in the reaction. The UB, product is purified by washing water and drying.