Success Stories

New Maturation Projects Funded from Royalties on Licensed Technologies

The Office of Technology Transfer has announced that six new royalty-based maturation projects were funded from the proposals received under the fiscal year 2009 Maturation Funding Call for Proposals. Nineteen proposals were evaluated for funding merit.

Maturation funds are used to support projects that will significantly increase the likelihood of licensing of pre-existing ORNL intellectual property. Funding for the projects is generated from royalty collections from licensed technologies; 25 percent of net royalty income is set aside each year to support this program. The average award amount for maturation proposals was $51,500. Here are the awardees: 

• Repackaging of Vertically Aligned Carbon Nanofiber-Based Neuro-Physiological Microelectrode Arrays, Tim McKnight and Nance Ericson, Measurement Science & Systems Engineering; Dale Hensley, Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences
• Rapid Determination of Volatile, Semi-Volatile and Particulate-Phase Hydrocarbon Fractions in Diesel Exhaust, Scott Sluder, John Storey and Sam Lewis, Energy & Transportation Science
• Preventing Direct Electrolysis and Electrochemically Initiated Homogeneous Reactions of Analytes in Thin-Layer Cell Electrospray Devices, Vilmos Kertesz and Gary Van Berkel, Chemical Sciences
• Application of Separation Layers to Outside of Support Tubes Using ORNL Membrane Technology, Brian Bischoff, Materials Science & Technology
• Produced Water Treatment Using Microbial Fuel Cell Technology, Abhijeet P. Borole, Biosciences 
• Applicability of ORNL Couette Reactor/Separator to Specific Industrial Chemical Processes, Coustas Tsouris, Joanna McFarlane and Joe Birdwell, Nuclear Science & Technology