Volume 8, Number 5     September/October 2000

Aerospace Technology Development

NASA Spinoff Helps Citrus Production

A Massachusetts company is marketing its patented Ethylene Monitoring and Control System, developed under a Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract with NASA Kennedy Space Center (KSC).

GEO-CENTERS, Inc. principal scientist Bruce Nelson explained that the innovation, originally planned for use in the KSC biomedical office's Bioregenerative Life Support System (BLSS), provides the only fully automated, simple and rapid means for monitoring and controlling ethylene concentrations in citrus degreening, ripening and produce storage applications. Currently, GEO-CENTERS has generated more than $50,000 in cumulative sales revenues. Units have been sold to degreening facilities in the United States and Spain. Systems are presently being manufactured and sold through the company's distributor, Beshaco, Inc., of Vero Beach, Florida. Nelson said his company has invested more than $150,000 following the SBIR contract completion for product technology improvement and marketing.

The system operates as a stand-alone product and only requires a compressed air supply and a power source. Ethylene is used to degreen fruits, however, finding the proper balance in ethylene concentration is necessary to reduce fruit loss. Proper degreening requires exposing fruit to ethylene at five parts per million (ppm) for 72 to 96 hours. Studies have shown, Nelson said, that exposure to ethylene at 15 to 20 ppm can induce decay, causing peel breakdown, which results in fruit loss of 50 to 100 percent. GEO-CENTERS' ethylene monitor provides an unprecedented measurement range of 0 to 20 ppm and an accuracy of 0.5 ppm.

 

 

Innovative Small Business Projects Selected

NASA has selected 19 research proposals for negotiation of Phase I contract awards for NASA’s 2000 Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Program.

STTR goals are to stimulate technological innovation; increase the use of small business, including women-owned and disadvantaged firms, in meeting federal research and development needs; and increase private sector commercialization of results of federally funded research. The STTR program requires small business concerns to conduct cooperative research and development by partnering with a research institution. At least 40 percent of the work must be performed by the small business concern, and the research institute must perform at least 30 percent of the work.

The 2000 STTR solicitation closed on May 10, 2000. NASA received 96 proposals submitted by small, high technology businesses from across the United States. The combined award total for the 19 Phase I contracts is expected to be $1,896,165. Three of the winning proposals are from disadvantaged firms.

Five NASA field centers reviewed proposals for technical merit and feasibility and relevance to NASA research and technology requirements. The selected firms will be awarded fixed-price contracts valued up to $100,000 each to perform a one year Phase I feasibility study.

Companies that successfully complete the Phase I activities are eligible to compete for Phase II selection the following year. The Phase II award allows for a two-year, fixed-price contract in the amount up to $500,000.

The NASA STTR Program Management Office is located at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, with executive oversight by NASA's Office of Aerospace, NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC. Individual STTR projects are managed by the NASA field centers.

A complete listing of companies selected for the program can be found at: http://sbir.nasa.gov

For more information, contact Paul Mexcur, SBIR/STTR program manager 301/286-8888 wmexcur@pop700.gsfc.nasa.gov Please mention you read about it in Innovation.

 

The monitoring system provides an easy-to-use, cost-effective tool that is capable of continuous monitoring at multiple points within a fruit storage area. Previous devices were either too expensive, difficult to use, too slow or did not provide continuous monitoring. GEO-CENTERS hopes to further enhance the sensitivity of the system to be used in the larger market of produce storage applications.

 
An ethylene monitor developed for Kennedy Space Center’s Biogenerative Live Support System is being marketed as a device to assist in the degreening of citrus fruit.

NASA funded the ethylene monitor research as part of the BLSS program. NASA’s Dr. John Sager, Advanced Life Support (ALS) project manager, said the purpose of the SBIR project involves the monitoring of environments in “closed” plant growth chambers. As plants grow, they produce byproducts of ethylene and ammonia, both of which are harmful to plant development and create stress on the plants at certain concentration levels. A monitoring system is required to control the concentrations in order to optimize the plant growth and maintain the overall health of the plants. The results of the SBIR research concluded that while an ammonia monitor was feasible for NASA’s applications, a vapor phase ethylene monitor would not meet the accuracy requirements necessary. However, the ethylene monitor developed was determined to have applications in the citrus processing market. Subsequent testing was then undertaken at the University of Florida’s Citrus Research and Education Center at Lake Alfred.

The ethylene monitor and control system eliminate the requirements for manual sampling and analysis and the associated labor and material costs. The patented monitor tracks the chemiluminescent reaction of the ethylene with ozone and is the only continuous ethylene measurement technique with a proven capability in the range important to citrus degreening. The product is also currently the only commercially available system that continuously monitors and controls ethylene concentrations in citrus degreening rooms 24 hours a day. The economic impact to the packinghouse from fruit loss due to excess ethylene exposure may run from $15,000 to $100,000 per year per degreening room. This is the only system that can reliably and automatically monitor and control ethylene concentrations in the required range of 0 to 20 ppm.

 


For more information, contact Tom Gould at Kennedy Space Center 407/867-6238. Please mention you read about it in Innovation.


NASA Official: Jonathan Root

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