SBIR Phase I: Sensor for Hazardous Static Voltage

这个小企业创新研究第一阶段项目将研究电致变色材料的合成，以制造危险静态电压传感器。该装置将明显警告表面上危险静电荷的积聚。 在先前的工作中，我们已经开发了电致变色材料，以产生柔性电致变色膜，其在施加低电压（1.5伏）时从中性灰色可逆地变为透明。 然而，该应用需要具有明亮颜色的电致变色颜料和可以耐受高达100 kV的电位的离子导电电介质。 在该项目中，将合成明亮的原色电致变色金属亚铁氰化物纳米颜料，并将对现有的离子导电电介质进行实质性改造，以耐受极高的电位。这些材料将被纳入静电传感器，这将是有用的，在广泛的行业。该项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力来自与静电相关的重大危害。 该传感器的第一个应用是航空工业，在航空工业中，不受控制的静电放电可能导致设施、车辆和人员的灾难性损失。 然而，传感器的市场机会要广泛得多，几乎涵盖了合成、操作、存储或运输非导电材料的任何设施。 特别值得注意的是处理易燃蒸汽或粉尘的设施，如炼油厂或谷物米尔斯厂。 易燃气体占所有爆炸性大气爆炸的70%左右，最严重的爆炸会造成数十人死亡，并造成数亿美元的损失。 此外，每年平均有12起易燃粉尘引起的爆炸，造成两人死亡和数百万美元的损失。 及时警告危险静电荷有助于防止这些事故。虽然不那么引人注目，但仍然具有经济重要性，这种传感器将提高受静电放电不利影响的其他行业的产量，例如集成电路制造商。 根据美国商业普查的数据，大约有386，000家公司经营着538，000家企业，共有1300万名员工可以从即将开发的设备中受益。

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project will investigate the synthesis of electrochromic materials to fabricate a sensor for hazardous static voltage. This device will visibly warn of the build-up of dangerous static charge on a surface. In prior work, we have developed electrochromic materials to produce flexible electrochromic films that change reversibly from neutral gray to clear upon the application of a low voltage (1.5 volts). However, this application requires electrochromic pigments with bright colors and an ion-conductive dielectric that can tolerate a potential of up to 100 kV. In this project, brilliant primary-color electrochromic metal ferrocyanide nano-pigments will be synthesized, and the existing ion conductive dielectric will be substantially reformulated to tolerate extremely high electric potentials. These materials will be incorporated into a static charge sensor which will be useful in a wide range of industries. The broader impact/commercial potential of this project arises from the significant hazards associated with static electricity. The first application for this sensor is the aircraft industry, where an uncontrolled static discharge can result in catastrophic loss of facilities, vehicles and personnel. However, the market opportunities for the sensor are much broader, encompassing virtually any facility that synthesizes, manipulates, stores, or transports non-conductive materials. Of particular note are facilities which handle flammable vapors or dusts, such as oil refiners or grain mills. Flammable vapors account for about 70% of all explosive atmosphere detonations, with the most severe costing dozens of lives and causing hundreds of millions of dollars in damage. Furthermore, there are on average 12 explosions resulting annually from flammable dusts, resulting in two fatalities and millions of dollars of damage per year. Timely warning of dangerous static charge could help prevent these accidents. Less dramatically but still of economic importance, this sensor would improve yield in other industries adversely affected by static discharge, such as integrated circuit fabricators. Based on data from the U.S. Business Census, there are about 386,000 firms operating 538,000 establishments with a total of 13 million employees that could benefit from the device to be developed.