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Results for “PURIFICATION”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 307 records · Page 17
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1994

Expression and purification of recombinant polyomavirus VP2 protein and its interactions with polyomavirus proteins

Recombinant polyomavirus VP2 protein was expressed in Escherichia coli (RK1448), using the recombinant expression system pFPYV2. Recombinant VP2 was purified to near homogeneity by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, electroelution, and Extracti-Gel chromatography. Polyclonal serum to this protein which reacted specifically with recombinant VP2 as well as polyomavirus virion VP2 and VP3 on Western blots (immunoblots) was produced. Purified VP2 was used to establish an in vitro protein-protein interaction assay with polyomavirus structural proteins and purified recombinant VP1. Recombinant VP2 interacted with recombinant VP1, virion VP1, and the four virion histones. Recombinant VP1 coimmunoprecipitated with recombinant VP2 or truncated VP2 (delta C12VP2), which lacked the carboxy-terminal 12 amino acids. These experiments confirmed the interaction between VP1 and VP2 and revealed that the carboxyterminal 12 amino acids of VP2 and VP3 were not necessary for formation of this interaction. In vivo VP1-VP2 interaction study accomplished by cotransfection of COS-7 cells with VP2 and truncated VP1 (delta N11VP1) lacking the nuclear localization signal demonstrated that VP2 was capable of translocating delta N11VP1 into the nucleus. These studies suggest that complexes of VP1 and VP2 may be formed in the cytoplasm and cotransported to the nucleus for virion assembly to occur.

Non-NASA Center↗
NASA NTRS2014

Visible-Light-Responsive Catalysts Using Quantum Dot-Modified TiO2 for Air and Water Purification

Photocatalysis, the oxidation or reduction of contaminants by light-activated catalysts, utilizing titanium dioxide (TiO2) as the catalytic substrate has been widely studied for trace contaminant control in both air and water applications. The interest in this process is due primarily to its low energy consumption and capacity for catalyst regeneration. Titanium dioxide requires ultraviolet light for activation due to its relatively large band gap energy of 3.2 eV. Traditionally, Hg-vapor fluorescent light sources are used in PCO reactors; however, the use of mercury precludes the use of this PCO technology in a spaceflight environment due to concerns over crew Hg exposure. The development of a visible-light responsive (VLR) TiO2-based catalyst would eliminate the concerns over mercury contamination. Further, VLR development would allow for the use of ambient visible solar radiation or highly efficient LEDs, both of which would make PCO approaches more efficient, flexible, economical, and safe. Though VLR catalyst development has been an active area of research for the past two decades, there are few commercially available VLR catalysts. Those VLR catalysts that are commercially available do not have adequate catalytic activity, in the visible region, to make them competitive with those operating under UV irradiation. This study was initiated to develop more effective VLR catalysts through a novel method in which quantum dots (QD) consisting of narrow band gap semiconductors (e.g., CdS, CdSe, PbS, ZnSe, etc.) are coupled to TiO2 via two preparation methods: 1) photodeposition and 2) mechanical alloying using a high-speed ball mill. A library of catalysts was developed and screened for gas and aqueous phase applications using ethanol and 4-chlorophenol as the target contaminants, respectively. Both target compounds are well studied in photocatalytic systems and served as model contaminants for this research. Synthesized catalysts were compared in terms of preparation method, nature of the quantum dots, and dosage of quantum dots.

visible light↗
NASA NTRS2014

Visible-Light Responsive Catalysts Using Quantum Dot-Modified TiO2 for Air and Water Purification

Photocatalysis, the oxidation or reduction of contaminants by light-activated catalysts, utilizing titanium dioxide (TiO2) as the catalytic substrate has been widely studied for trace contaminant control in both air and water applications. The interest in this process is due primarily to its low energy consumption and capacity for catalyst regeneration. Titanium dioxide requires ultraviolet light for activation due to its relatively large band gap energy of 3.2 eV. Traditionally, Hg-vapor fluorescent light sources are used in PCO reactors; however, the use of mercury precludes the use of this PCO technology in a spaceflight environment due to concerns over crew Hg exposure.

visible light↗
NASA NTRS2018

Solid State Air Purification System

Life support systems in spacecraft are designed to provide a safe, habitable environment for the astronauts, and one of the most significant challenges is managing acceptable air quality. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is respired normally by humans at concentrations that are toxic if inhaled directly, and as a result cabin air must be tightly managed. The Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) currently on board the ISS is the best functioning technology for manned space cabins, but has two significant drawbacks:1. The CDRA requires that air be dried prior to CO2 capture, and this costs energy _ in fact, the system spends 4X more energy drying the air than in actually capturing and releasing carbon dioxide. 2. The CDRA works in batch mode, while downstream CO2 processing systems require a continuous stream of CO2. This adds unnecessary complexity, as well as a second parasitic energy loss.An ideal system would process CO2 continuously without any need for drying of the air, and without any moving parts. Such a system would require a fraction of the size and weight of the CDRA while dropping the cost of CO2 capture by 5X or more. Such a technology would be enabling for future long term manned flight missions, such as a mission to Mars. eSionic is developing a new electrochemical membrane technology using its patented innovations in electrolyte materials. In Phase I of this program eSionic has demonstrated continuous gas separation using only electricity to drive the separation, with no moving parts or pressure drops. In Phase II, eSionic will demonstrate long-term operation of the membranes consistent with the needs of NASA for this development program.

Life Support↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Wastewater Brine Purification and Recovery through Electrodialysis Ion Exchange

Reutilizing resources onboard the International Space Station (ISS) and for future deep space missions are critical for mission longevity and sustainability. Wastewater brine produced from water recovery systems contain chemical species that could be processed into a potential fertilizer for future plant systems. This can be achieved through a process called electrodialysis ion exchange. Wastewater containing inorganic salt components are fed through a series of ion exchange membranes to produce fertilizer (a phosphate rich stream), electrolysis-grade water, and other useful commodities. Electrodialysis cells consisting of anion and cation exchange membranes, monovalent anion exchange membranes, and bipolar membranes were utilized to achieve selective ion exchange. The use of the electrodialysis cells were effective for both water extraction and ion separation. Ions successfully diffused across their respective membranes into the concentrate, acid, and base streams. This resulted in pure water, a phosphate rich stream, and a separate anion/hydrogen and cation/hydroxide stream. However, sulfate and some phosphate ions were able to diffuse through the monovalent anion exchange membrane into the acid stream. This resulted in predominantly phosphate ions remaining in the concentrate. Optimization of the process was accomplished by altering flowrates of each stream and initial volumes, adjusting the power input and resulting current through each cell, and varying the starting parameters by splitting the inorganic waste input into the diluate and the concentrate. As expected, increasing the flowrate and the power input to each cell reduced the overall time of the process. However, mission constraints may require a longer duration process in order to reduce the power consumption. Further analysis will be required to determine the power input necessary to achieve ion diffusion effectively and in a timely manner.

Ion Exchange Membranes↗
DOE OSTI2019

Purification of Gas and Liquid Streams Using Composite Sorbents Embedded in a Polyacrylonitrile Matrix

As new sorbents are developed for purifying gases or liquids via physisorption and/or chemisorption processes, the objective is typically to increase the specific surface area (SSA) to maximize the available binding sites for capturing various species of interest. One downfall to making a sorbent more porous is that it often leads to a product that is fragile or friable and can be damaged (resulting in unwanted powders), thus imposing process limitations. Techniques can be used to enhance the mechanical integrity of a sorbent, including heat treatments or pelletization with extrusion or granulation processes, but these can result in collapsed, unavailable pore structures within the sorbent, which decreases the diffusivity and eventually reduces the capacities of target species. An alternative approach for improving the mechanical integrity of the sorbent is to bind it (or encapsulate it) within a porous matrix that passively holds the sorbent in place. Typically, this approach leads to a decrease in sorption efficiency on the basis of starting sorbent mass, because the active sorbent is diluted by the binding matrix material and the active surfaces of the sorbent are somewhat obscured by the binding matrix; however, it comes with the advantage that the active sorbent is held in place and better protected from disintegrating during operation. One approach to securing the active sorbent is to embed it in a macroporous, passive polyacrylonitrile (PAN) matrix to create a composite sorbent. When optimized, the PAN matrix is highly porous and allows for gaseous or aqueous media transport through the product, providing adequate binding site access between the active sorbent and the species of interest. Including a polymer in the composite sorbent limits the maximum operating temperature, above which the composite sorbent incurs loss of structural integrity (e.g., decomposes) and/or reduction in SSA. Composite sorbents have been demonstrated with sulfide aerogels (SnS-PAN) for capturing I2(g), hydrogen mordenite (HZ-PAN) and silver-exchanged mordenite (AgZ-PAN) for capturing Kr and Xe, nanoparticle metal oxides (Nano-Composite Arsenic Sorbent, or N-CAS) for removing arsenic from water, ammonium molybdophosphate (AMP-PAN) for removing cesium-137 (137Cs) from aqueous nuclear waste streams, and The Phosphate Sponge (TPS) composite, which is being used to remove inorganic/ortho-phosphates in water treatment processes to mitigate introduction to the environment, which impedes toxic algae bloom formations. This chapter provides details on production of these materials along with options to optimize the synthesis process. It also includes experimental techniques to characterize products and assess their performance.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Americium and Neptunium Purification Processes and Future Directions

Pure americium and neptunium metals are crucial components in the fabrication of transmutation fuels. Unfortunately, neither neptunium nor americium is available in pure metal form. However, a number of oxides, mixed metals, and mixed oxides that include americium and neptunium are available. Methods were to separate and/or reduce the materials available, in order to obtain pure neptunium and americium metals. New techniques were investigated in FY18 to obtain neptunium and americium metals from their oxides. This report details the processes and results.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2019

Purification of Gas and Liquid Streams Using Composite Sorbents Embedded in a Polyacrylonitrile Matrix

As new sorbents are developed for purifying gases or fluids via physisorption and/or chemisorption processes, the push is typically to increase the available specific surface area (SSA) to maximize the available binding sites for capturing various species of interest. One downfall to making a sorbent more porous is that it often leads to a product that is fragile or friable and can be damaged (resulting in unwanted powders), thus imposing process limitations. Techniques can be used to enhance the mechanical integrity of a sorbent including heat treatments or pelletization with extrusion or granulation processes but these can result in collapsed, unavailable pore structures within the sorbent, which leads to decreased diffusivity and eventual reduction of desired capacities of target species. An alternative approach for improving the mechanical integrity of the sorbent is to bind it (or encapsulate it) within a porous matrix that passively holds the sorbent in place. Typically, this approach leads to a decrease in sorption efficiency on the basis of starting sorbent mass, because the active sorbent is diluted by the binding matrix material and the active surfaces of the sorbent are somewhat obscured by the binding matrix, but it comes with the advantage that the active sorbent is held in place and better protected from powderization during operation. One approach to accomplish this is to embed the active sorbent in a macroporous passive polyacrylonitrile (PAN) matrix to create a composite sorbent. When optimized, the PAN matrix is highly porous and allows for gaseous or aqueous media transport through the product providing adequate binding site access between the active sorbent and the species of interest. Including a polymer in the composite sorbent limits the maximum operating temperature above which the composite sorbent incurs loss of structural integrity (e.g., decomposes) and/or reduction in SSA. Composite sorbents have been demonstrated with sulfide aerogels (SnS-PAN) for capturing I2(g), hydrogen mordenite (HZ-PAN) and silver-exchanged mordenite (AgZ-PAN) for capturing Kr and Xe, nano-particle metal oxides (N-CAS) for removing arsenic from water, ammonium molybdophosphate (AMP-PAN) for removing 137Cs from aqueous nuclear waste streams, and the phosphate sponge (TPS) composite, which is being used to remove inorganic and orthophosphates from water treatment processes to mitigate introduction to the environment impeding toxic algae bloom formations. This chapter provides details on production of these materials along with options to optimize of the synthesis process. It also includes experimental techniques to characterize products and assess their performances.

polyacrylonitrile, aerogel, gaseous capture, aqueo↗
DOE OSTI2017

Purification of Zirconium Tetrachloride (ZrCl{sub 4}) from UNF Cladding - A Progress Report

Zirconium-based cladding materials that surround used nuclear fuel (UNF) rods represent a significant fraction of the total amount of high level waste that must be disposed of in long term geological repositories. The decontamination and/or recovery and reuse of these materials would significantly reduce the amount of high level waste associated with light water nuclear energy reactors and could provide a new source of hafnium free zirconium for the fabrication of new nuclear components. A step in a strategy to recycle zirconium from used cladding materials is the direct, high yield chlorination reaction that produces zirconium tetrachloride (ZrCl{sub 4}). The ZrCl{sub 4} so obtained is contaminated with other metal chloride species (FeCl{sub 3}, NbCl{sub 5}, NbOCl{sub 3}, SnCl{sub 4}, CsCl, SbCl{sub 5}, etc.) that originate from the alloying metals present initially as well as contaminants from oxide layers on the cladding, trace fission products, fuel residues, activation byproducts, and tritium. The suggested strategy to remove the metal chloride impurities is based on sublimation at atmospheric pressure combined with chemical treatments influencing volatility of the impurities.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗