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Customer
Applications |
Description |
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Agricultural and Food |
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Plant Reflectance |
Spectral
reflectance from plants can
indicates
plant
stress and predict growth rate |
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Lumber Colorimetery |
Initial
high-temperature schedule to reduce drying time
and control kiln brown stain in ponderosa pine
shop lumber. The
surface color and lightness of rough green and
dry fleshly planed boards were determined using
a StellarNet Spectrometers |
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Surface Characterization of Weathered
Wood-Plastic Composites Produced from
Modified Wood Flour |
The
effects of weathering on the surface properties
of wood-plastic composites
(WPC) were examined.
High-density polyethylene
WPCs made from
modified wood flour
were subjected to
accelerated (xenon-arc)
weathering.
Colorimetery and
Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy were
employed to monitor the color change and
surface chemistries of
the weathered WPC surface.
The study
showed that longer exposure time caused higher
oxidation,
lower wood lignin and higher plastic content of
the weathered WPC surface. |
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Onions |
A fiber
optic sensor measures
percent soluble
solids in onions for a big pay off at
market time. |
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Contaminants on
Poultry Processing Equipment |
Detection of Fecal/Ingesta
Contaminants on Poultry Processing Equipment
Surfaces By Visible and Near-Infrared
Reflectance Spectroscopy |
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Environmental and Ecology |
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Remote Sensing
Monitoring- Tallapoosa Watershed |
Hyperspectral Reflectance Measurements of
Chlorophyll Concentration and
Related Water Quality Predictors |
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Influence of plumage colour on prey response:
does habitat alter heron crypsis to prey? |
The foraging strategies of wading birds may be
influenced by their degree of crypsis to aquatic
prey. White
plumage has been hypothesized to be adaptive for
herons hunting in open water habitats.
We tested this
hypothesis with laboratory and field experiments
with multiple prey species.
The foraging strategies of wading birds
may be influenced by their degree of crypsis to
aquatic prey. White
plumage has been hypothesized to
be adaptive for herons hunting in open
water habitats. We
tested this hypothesis
with laboratory and field experiments with
multiple prey species. |
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Spectral
Signatures of surface materials in pig buildings |
Spectral Signatures of the
reflectance of visual and near infrared
radiation are used to make statistically
significant discrimination between clean and
dirty pig building areas |
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Birds- Black
Phoebes |
Exploring how
the Black Phoebe’s (a small bird that is a
sit-and-wait predator) vision, the reflectance
of prey items and the background, and irradiance
interacted to change how the bird looked for
food items. |
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Female
Preferences for Aposematic Signal Components in
a Polymorphic Poison Frog |
Aposematic signals may be
subject to conflicting selective pressures from
predators and conspecifics. We studied
female preferences for
different components of aposematic coloration in
the polymorphic poison frog Oophaga pumilio
across several phenotypically
distinct populations. |
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Physics |
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OH Emission
Spectra of Hybrid Rocket Motors
Using PMMA and HTPB
Ultraviolet-Visible Spectrometry
Characterization of
Combustion in Hybrid Rocket Motors |
The development of
sensors for hybrid
rocket motors has lead to the
use of near-infrared
diode lasers
for characterizing hybrid rocket plumes.
Emission Spectra
obtained can be used to calculate species
concentrations and temperatures, both
spatially and temporally, in rocket
exhaust plumes. In this paper we
report our findings from a study of the
emission spectra of
hybrid rocket exhaust plumes in the ultraviolet,
UV, visible, VIS, and near-infrared, NIR,
regions of the
electromagnetic spectrum. |
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Spectroscopic
Diagnostics of an Atmospheric Microwave
Plasma for
Monitoring Metals Pollution |
A 1.5 kW, 2.45 GHz microwave
sustained plasma in a flowing sample of stack
exhaust gas has been
shown in recent DOE/EPA testing to be an
accurate monitor of trace
hazardous metals (in the part per billion
range) such as lead, chromium, and beryllium.
Optical-UV spectroscopic studies are
being carried out to better understand this
particular atmospheric
pressure plasma torch. |
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Organic semiconductor devices for micro-optical
applications |
The use of organic optoelectronic devices such
as organic light-emitting diodes and organic
photodiodes in micro-optical
systems is discussed. Potential
applications like optical interconnects and
optical sensor systems are examined.
Device characteristics including emission
spectra, I-V-curves and the dynamic behaviour
are analyzed. In the
combination with a polymeric optical
fibre (POF) a transmission line comprising a
organic light emitting diode and
organic photodiodes is demonstrated. An
important step towards integration is realized
by coupling the amplified
spontaneous emission of an organic
semiconductor material into a single
mode polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA)
waveguide. |
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Colour-tunable spiral photonic actuators |
Combining the multi-faceted environmental
responsiveness of polymers with photonically
active structures, we developed spiral
photonic actuators which can reversibly
change both shape and colour in response to
the chemical environment.
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Wavelength-scalable hollow optical
fibres with large photonic bandgaps
for CO2 laser transmission |
Here we report on the design and
drawing of a hollow
optical fibre lined with an interior
omnidirectional dielectric
mirror.
Confinement of light in the hollow core is
provided by the large
photonic bandgaps
established by the multiple alter-nating
submicrometre-thick layers of a
high-refractive-index
glass and a low-refractive-index polymer. The
fundamental and
high-order transmission windows are determined
by the layer
dimensions and can be scaled from 0.75 to 10.6mm
in wavelength.The transmission losses are found
to be less than 1.0 dB
m 21,
orders of magnitude lower than those of
the intrinsic fibre
material, thus demonstrating that low
attenuation can be achieved
through structural design rather than
high-transparency
material selection. |
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Physical properties of CdS/ITO thin films growth
by CBD technique with substrate oscillating
agitation |
Cadmium sulphide (CdS) thin films
deposited on indium tin oxide (ITO)
substrates were prepared by chemical
bath deposition technique by using
different conditions to agitate the
bath and the substrate. The
deposited films were characterized
on their morphology, on the band gap
energy, and on thickness. The
implemented novel technique for
substrate oscillation has shown to
improve the films quality, by the
chemical bath without colloidal
precipitates and by the clean film
surfaces obtained. CdS films with
variable deposition time can be
achieved depending on the agitating
technique.
In addition, by oscillating only the
substrate during deposition is
possible to obtain clean films and
avoid the formation of colloidal
precipitates on the chemical bath,
normally presented when it is
magnetically or ultrasonically
agitated.
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High Power UV and
VUV Pulsed Excilamps |
Emission characteristics of a
nanosecond discharge in inert gases and its
halo-genides without preionization of the gap
from an auxiliary source have been investigated.
A volume discharge, initiated by an
avalanche electron beam (VDIAEB) was realized at
pressures up to 12 atm. In xenon at
pressure of 1.2 atm, the energy of spontaneous
radiation in the full
solid angle was 45 mJ/cm
3 , and the FWHM of a radiation pulse was
110ns. The spontaneous radiation power
rise in xenon was observed at pressures up to 12
atm.
Pulsed radiant exitance of inert gases
halogenides excited by VDIAEB was
4.5 kW/cm 2 at
e±ciency up to 5.5 %. |
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Chemistry |
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Living
anionic polymerization of methyl methacrylate
controlled by metal-free phosphazene
catalyst as observed
by small-angle neutron scattering, gel
permeation chromatography and UV-visible
spectroscopy |
Phosphazene (PZN) catalyst, PZN catalyst
coexisting with a co-catalyst
1-hydroxycyclohexyl phenyl ketone and
polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA)
have been observed for the first time by
small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) and
UV-visible spectroscopy to elucidate the
aggregation behavior of the PZN molecules
themselves and the state of living chain ends in
a living polymer solution. |
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Electrochemical Synthesis of Conducting Polymers
on Carbon Nanotube
Films and Its Effect on
Electrochemical Capacitance |
Polyaniline and polypyrrole were considered as
pseudocapacitive
coatings for carbon nanotube film electrodes.
The conducting polymers
were deposited electrochemically using
cyclic voltammetry. The
electrochemical effects of the number of
voltage cycles and monomer and
electrolyte concentrations on film
thickness were studied. The effects of the
polymer coating on the capacitance of the
CNT electrodes were analyzed as well.
The final results were evaluated using CV
and scanning electron
microscopy techniques. |
Soluble Narrow Band Gap Polymers
(Dry-Box) |
Soluble
Narrow Band Gap and Blue
Propylenedioxythiophene-Cyanovinylene Polymers
as Multifunctional Materials for
Photovoltaic and Electrochromic Applications |
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Bio-Science |
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Human Pigmentation
Variation: Evolution, Genetic
Basis, and
Implications for Public Health
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Pigmentation, which is primarily
deter-mined by the
amount, the type, and the distribution of
melanin, shows a remarkable diversity in
human populations, and
in this sense, it is an atypical trait.Numerous
genetic studies have indicated that the average
proportion of genetic
variation due to differences among
major continental groups is just 10–15%
of the total genetic
variation. In contrast, skin pigmentation shows
large differences among continental
populations. The
reasons for this discrepancy can be traced back
primarily to the
strong influence of
natural selection, which has
shaped the distribution of pigmentation
according to a
latitudinal gradient. Research during the last 5
years has
substantially increased our understanding of the
genes involved in normal pigmentation
variation in human
populations. At least six genes have been
identified using
genotype/phenotype association studies and/or
direct functional assays, and there is
evidence indicating
that several additional genes may be playing a
role in skin, hair,
and iris pigmentation. The information that is
emerging from recent studies points to a
complex picture where
positive selection has been acting at different
genomic locations, and for some genes
only in certain
population groups. |
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Extinction
Cross-Section Measurements of
Bacillus globigii Aerosols |
In a
continuing series of experiments designed to
determine the spectral extinction
cross section of bacterial aerosols,
spectral transmittance was
measured as a function of particle
concentration, and
extinction cross sections were calculated.
Visible band measurements of Bacillus
globigii aerosols indicated a slight increase in
the extinction cross section with increasing
wavelength. The
extinction cross section was
estimated to be 2.58 (±0.25)10 8 cm 2 at
the 543-nm wavelength. |
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Mitochondrial succinic-semialdehyde
dehydrogenase of the γ-aminobutyrate shunt is
required to restrict levels of reactive oxygen
intermediates in plants |
The γ-aminobutyrate (GABA) shunt
is a metabolic pathway that bypasses two steps
of the tricarboxylic acid cycle, and it is
present in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes. In
plants the pathway is composed of the calcium/calmodulin-regulated
cytosolic enzyme glutamate decarboxylase and the
mitochondrial enzymes GABA transaminase and
succinic-semialdehyde dehydrogenase (SSADH). The
activity of the GABA shunt in plants is rapidly
enhanced in response to various biotic and
abiotic stresses. However the physiological role
of this pathway remains obscure. To elucidate
its role in plants, we analyzed Arabidopsis
T-DNA knockout mutants of SSADH, the ultimate
enzyme of the pathway. Four alleles of the
ssadh mutation were isolated, and these
exhibited a similar phenotype. When exposed to
white light (100 μmol of photons per m2
per s), they appear dwarfed with necrotic
lesions. Detailed spectrum analysis revealed
that UV-B has the most adverse effect on the
mutant phenotype, whereas photosynthetic active
range light has a very little effect. The
ssadh mutants are also sensitive to heat,
as they develop necrosis when submitted to such
stress. Moreover, both UV and heat cause a rapid
increase in the levels of hydrogen peroxide in
the ssadh mutants, which is associated
with enhanced cell death. Surprisingly, our
study also shows that trichomes are
hypersensitive to stresses in ssadh
mutants. Our work establishes a role for the
GABA shunt in preventing the accumulation of
reactive oxygen intermediates and cell death,
which appears to be essential for plant defense
against environmental stress. |
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Ablation of Liver Cancer Cells
in Vitro by a Plasma Needle |
A plasma needle using a
dielectric barrier discharge reactor at
atmospheric pressure with a
funnel-shaped nozzle was developed. The
preliminary characteristics of the plume and
applications to the
ablation of cultured human hepatocellular
carcinoma HCC BEL-7402 cell line
are presented. |
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Process Monitoring and Quality
Control |
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Semi-Conductor |
The
MPSS (Multi Probe Spectrophotometer System) is a
multi-channel process control monitor used in
semi-conductor fabrication and other
real-time process applications. |
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Alcohol |
A dual
beam process monitor using "Neural Networks" to
measure the concentration of alcohol in a
process stream. |
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Film Deposition |
A
multi-channel system used to
monitor silver film deposition on a
moving roll of plastic using transmission and
reflectance. |
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Dilatometer |
The "Dilatometer"
analytical instrument designed for specifically
for polymer chemists. |
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Colorimeter |
A
triple-channel SpectroColorimeter
used as a process Quality Control monitor for
plastic injection molding operations. |
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StellarNet Patents |
A list of patents filed using
StellarNet spectrometers |
