SBIR Phase I: Enabling On-site Nitrate Fertilizer Production: An Absorption Unit to Efficiently and Selectively Capture Nitrates

这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力将改变氮肥的生产，分配和应用，新的工艺更具可持续性，并将为农民节省资金。该项目通过提高对尖端肥料生产系统的科学认识，进而提高运营效率，实现氮肥的现场生产。提高系统效率将降低这些系统的成本，为农场提供即时获得pH控制肥料的机会。由于所提供的氮的类型和可用性，有机会大大减少排放，减少氮径流，并将农业转向更可持续的未来。如果成功的话，该项目还可以对其他用途的硝酸生产系统产生积极的影响，并通过提高发展中国家的作物产量来增加美国在对抗全球饥饿方面的领导地位，这些国家的肥料稀缺但对其人口至关重要。该提案包括研究和开发吸收装置，以提高血浆衍生硝酸盐生产的系统效率。第一阶段项目将克服为农场使用而设计的创新氮肥生产系统的关键技术障碍。特别地，产物吸收结构需要专门的研发来提高气体产物吸收效率和产物选择性。具体而言，将建立一个研究测试平台，用于快速测试氧化过渡产品并捕获最终产品硝酸盐肥料化合物的方法。这些策略的目标是将系统的整体效率提高40%，并实现具有成本竞争力的分布式氮肥。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will transform the production, distribution, and application of nitrogen fertilizer, with a new process that is far more sustainable and will save farmers money. This project enables on-farm production of nitrogen fertilizers by progressing the scientific understanding, and subsequent increase in the operational efficiency, of a cutting-edge fertilizer production system. Increased system efficiency will decrease the cost of these systems, which provide instant access to pH-controlled fertilizer for farms. Due to the type and availability of nitrogen provided, there is an opportunity to greatly reduce emissions, reduce nitrogen runoff, and generally transform farming toward a more sustainable future. If successful, this project can also positively impact nitric acid production systems for other uses and add to US leadership in the fight against global hunger by increasing crop yields in developing countries where fertilizer is scarce but vital to their populations.This proposal encompasses the research and development of an absorption unit to improve the systemic efficiency of plasma-derived nitrate production. This Phase I project will overcome key technical hurdles with respect to an innovative nitrogen fertilizer production system, designed for on-farm use. Particularly, the product absorption structure requires dedicated R&D to improve both gas product absorption efficiency and product selectivity. Specifically, a research test platform will be built for rapidly testing methods to oxidize a transitional product and capture the final product, nitrate fertilizer compounds. The goal of these strategies is to improve the overall efficiency of the system by 40% and enable cost competitive, distributed nitrogen fertilization.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.