NASA Kennedy Space Center

This invention describes an electrochemical carbon dioxide sensor that integrates a solid polymer electrolyte with a solid-state substrate to yield an

economical solid-state sensor, based on a novel and reversible electrochemical reaction scheme, that can continuously, accurately and selectively detect

carbon dioxide levels in agricultural, environmental, medical and food industry applications. The sensor is highly sensitive and selective to carbon

dioxide and has very rapid response time.

Please see this link for a detailed descrition:  https://technology.nasa.gov/patent/KSC-TOPS-44

New polymer blends have been fabricated using a flame retardant additive. The polymer blends are fire retardant at low loadings (low as 5%) and
possess improved physical properties and enhanced fire resistance properties. Plastic additives comprise more than 16 billion dollars for the global
market, with flame retardant additives making up 2.2 billion of the global market. Since polymers typically burn readily, the ability to render a polymer
flame retardant without sacrificing physical properties is critical to its intended application. The incorporation of fire retardant additives to polymers and
polymer blends typically degrades physical properties, and can also result in environmental concerns in the polymer combustion by-products in case of a
fire (e.g. antimony oxide and brominated diphenyls). This polymer additive can be added to a diverse matrix of theromplastic polymers with appropriate
dipole moment (e.g. nylons, polyesters, and acrylics) using common polymer processing techniques. The resulting polymer is flame retardant with
improved mechanical properties even at low loadings =5%. Applications include the aerospace industry including specifically fabrics and panels used in
airplanes; the textile and fabric industries including protective garment industry; and the electronic industry.
Please see this link for a detailed description: https://technology-ksc.ndc.nasa.gov/patent/KSC-TOPS-32

Please see this link for a description: https://technology-ksc.ndc.nasa.gov/patent/KSC-TOPS-33

Please see this link for a description: https://technology-ksc.ndc.nasa.gov/patent/KSC-TOPS-39

New organic/inorganic polymeric materials are made by mixing appropriate amounts of inorganic filler with various polymer matrices and processing
the mixture under suitable conditions. The inorganic component has been found to change electrostatic, thermal, and physical properties of the materials
with respect to unmodified polymer in one tested system. The modified polymer has been found to be charge dissipative, have desirable physical
properties, and more desirable thermal properties when compared to the unmodified material. Further testing is on going and various uses are planned
for the organic/inorganic system. Please see this link for a description: https://technology-ksc.ndc.nasa.gov/patent/KSC-TOPS-34

The Ammonia Recovery System for Wastewater was developed for potential use as part of the Environmental Control and Life Support Systems (ECLSSs) on the International Space Station. ECLSS conditions require low power usage and the avoidance of high temperature and pressure operations. State-of-the-art for ammonia removal techniques involve biological processes or ion exchange, and neither of these meets NASAs ammonia recovery needs. Biological processes have high complexity, high volume requirements, and introduce contaminants in the effluent. Ion exchange is not very selective for ammonia, and requires regeneration, which produces impure ammonia and other cation/regenerate effluent. Please see this link for a description: https://technology-ksc.ndc.nasa.gov/patent/KSC-TOPS-36

This apparatus is fully developed and in use on site at the Cryogenics Test Laboratory. In operation, a cooled cryogen is pumped through the upstream cold box into the pipe being tested. Both ends of the pipe are held at a constant temperature, so the heat transfer is eliminated in the axial direction and is limited to the radial direction. A precise measurement of the rate of heat leak into the process fluid is needed in this process. The technology operates on the theory that the heat leak is equal to the boiloff rate multiplied by the latent heat of vaporization. A heat leak rate is computed while maintaining the temperature of the cold boxes at the end of the pipe and measuring the boiloff rate. Thermally isolated valves, plumbing, and safety devices within the cold boxes allow for convenient and efficient controls and a repeatable procedure. All test measurements are recorded on a field-polaptop computer.
Please see this link for a description: https://technology-ksc.ndc.nasa.gov/patent/KSC-QL-0008

This technology provides highly accurate calibration of the wavelength assignment for spectrometers and is particularly useful when more accuracy is required than can be provided by factory calibration. Compared to current factory calibration techniques, which are accurate to approximately 1.0 nm, this new technology is accurate to approximately 0.01 nm. Spectrometers use the dispersion of light waves to assess properties of materials, including chemical composition, density, distance, or movement. The light waves can be visible or invisible (infrared, ultraviolet, radio, or microwave). This innovation uses broadband (white) light and a Michelson interferometer to produce an optical signal, which is sent into the spectrometer. The spectrometer output is then compared with a predicted pattern, allowing accurate calibration of the spectrometer. This technology applies primarily to miniature CCD spectrometers but may also be useful for larger spectrometers.
Please see this link for a full description: https://technology-ksc.ndc.nasa.gov/patent/KSC-TOPS-29

Inkjet printing is a common commercial process. In addition to the familiar use of printing documents from computers, it is also used in some industrial applications. The use of inkjet printing technology to print conductive inks has been in testing for several years. Though researchers have been able to get the printing system to work mechanically, the application of conductive inks on substrates has not consistently produced resistances in the kilohm range. Conductive materials can be applied, using a printer in single or multiple passes, to various substrates, including textiles, polymer films, and paper. The conductive materials are composed of electrical conductors such as carbon nanotubes (including functionalized carbon nanotubes and metal-coated carbon nanotubes), graphene, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (such as pentacene and bisperipentacene), metal nanoparticles, inherently conductive polymers (ICPs), and combinations thereof. Once the conductive materials are applied, they are dried and sintered to adhere to the substrate. For certain formulations, conductivity can be increased by printing on substrates supported by low levels of magnetic field alignment. The adherent conductive materials can be used in damage detection, dust particle removal, smart coating systems, and flexible electronic circuitry. By applying alternating layers of different electrical conductors to form a layered composite material, a single homogeneous layer can be produced with improved electrical properties. One important feature of this innovation is that flexible conductive traces can be formed with a conductive ink having a surface resistivity of less than 10 ohms squared. Furthermore, a composite material consisting of a mixture of carbon nanotubes and metallic nanoparticles can be applied by inkjet printing to flexible substrates. The resulting applied material is two to three times as conductive as material made by printing inks containing carbon nanotubes alone.
Please see this link for a full description: https://technology-ksc.ndc.nasa.gov/patent/KSC-TOPS-41

Please see this link for a full description: https://technology-ksc.ndc.nasa.gov/patent/KSC-14075