| NSF Org: |
TI Translational Impacts |
| Recipient: |
|
| Initial Amendment Date: | June 24, 2016 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | June 24, 2016 |
| Award Number: | 1622149 |
| Award Instrument: | Standard Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Linda Molnar
TI Translational Impacts TIP Directorate for Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships |
| Start Date: | July 1, 2016 |
| End Date: | January 31, 2018 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $224,886.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $224,886.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
|
| History of Investigator: |
|
| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
3900 PASEO DEL SOL SANTA FE NM US 87507-4072 (505)670-0232 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
|
| Primary Place of Performance: |
3900 Paseo del Sol Santa Fe NM US 87507-4072 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
|
| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
|
| Parent UEI: |
|
| NSF Program(s): | SBIR Phase I |
| Primary Program Source: |
|
| Program Reference Code(s): |
|
| Program Element Code(s): |
|
| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.084 |
ABSTRACT
The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project is the creation of technology that uses sound waves to separate small particles by size with a level of effectiveness that far surpasses what is currently available commercially. Such particle size control is important for enhancing the efficiency of separation techniques such as chromatography. Chromatography is broadly used in science and manufacturing to separate components in a mixture. The technology could have applicability in a broad array of uses both industrial, pharmaceutical and biomedical.
The technical objectives in this Phase I research project are the development of a novel high-flow, two-stage acoustic fractionation technology. Acoustic concentration in a flow stream using pressure to force cells and particles across a flow has been well established. Current systems generate sufficient acoustic force to concentrate biological cells and small particles by establishing an ultrasonic standing wave between transmitters and reflectors that are tens to hundreds of microns apart. These dimensions of a small channel in the systems limit the sample flow rate to hundreds of microliters per minute. The proposed R&D will employ novel proprietary technology developed by Acoustic Biosystems for producing a single planar acoustic node in a wide rectangular channel. The rectangular flow cross section supports high sample flow rates through the resonant acoustic waves. The envisioned acoustic fractionation technology will use two precisely aligned acoustic pressure nodes within a fluid laminar flow profile. The first acoustic zone will align all the particles in the solution and the second zone will spread the particles across the flow by size. Collection of slices of the laminar flow will yield narrow size fractions of the particles
PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) separates components in a mixture. In this technique, pumps pass a mobile phase through a column filled with a solid phase adsorbent material. Silica particles are the dominant solid phase used in HPLC and they are continuously being innovated to improve chromatography performance. Reducing the silica particle size distribution (PSD) is a route to higher performance for particle-based columns. Reducing the silica particle size distribution (PSD) is a route to higher performance for particle-based columns.
The goal of this work is to develop a low cost, high throughput approach to silica particle size fractionation in order to allow cost effective commercial production silica particle products with 10x narrower PSD than available from current manufacturing techniques. Phase I was designed to establish the feasibility of the envisioned acoustophoretic fractionation technology.
Acoustic concentration in a flow stream using pressure orthogonal to the flow has been well established. Current acoustophoretic technology generates sufficient acoustic force to concentrate biological cells and small particles by establishing an ultrasonic standing wave between transmitters and reflectors that are tens to hundreds of microns apart. These dimensions limit the sample flow (up to hundreds of microliters per minute) that can be achieved through such small channels. The proposed R&D employed novel proprietary technology developed by Acoustic Biosystems for producing a single planar acoustic node in a wide rectangular channel. The rectangular flow cross section supports high sample flow rates through the resonant acoustic waves.
The proposed R&D required the development of precisely aligned acoustic pressure nodes within well-behaved laminar flow profiles in devices with sufficient acoustic force for particle concentration while large enough to allow high fluid flow rates.
The Phase I work failed to establish the feasibility of the envisioned acoustophoretic fractionation technology. The fundamentals of acoustic concentration with a planar node in a rectangular-cross-section flow chamber remains sound. However the Phase I work encountered unexpected engineering difficulties in scaling this system up from a working 1.5cm wide flow channel to the proposed 4.5cm wide system that would have allowed higher flow rates.
Unexpectedly, the fluid pressure in the wide format cell caused the plastic wall opposite the piezoelectric to bow outward. This resulted in an uneven height in the acoustic flow channel. Establishing the acoustic resonance between the transducer and reflector requires micron-level alignment. The bowing wall resulted in uneven distance between the piezoelectric transducer and the reflector and prevented the planar resonant wave from being established across the width of the cell.
Last Modified: 05/16/2018
Modified by: Joe Gatewood
Please report errors in award information by writing to: awardsearch@nsf.gov.
