A method of prospecting for methane has been devised. The impetus for this method lies in the abundance of CH4 and the growing shortages of other fuels. The method is intended especially to enable identification of subpermafrost locations where significant amounts of methane are trapped in the form of methane...

Small, untethered mobile robots denoted gas-pipe explorers (GPEXs) have been proposed for inspecting the interiors of pipes used in the local distribution natural gas. The United States has network of gas- distribution pipes with a total length of approximately 109 m. These pipes are often...

Direct methanol fuel cells integrated with fuel reservoirs have been proposed as power sources in applications that involve power demands up to about 50 W. A prior concept of direct methanol fuel cells as alternatives to re- chargeable batteries in such applications was reported previously in...

A simple, cost effective, environmentally friendly conversion-coating process has been developed for protecting a variety of metals against wear and corrosion and to increase adhesion of paints. This process results in the deposition of a thin, adherent coats of iron phosphate on treated metal...

A report presents a proposal to harness photosynthetic bacteria to generate essential materials needed during human and robotic exploration on the surface of Mars. Utilizing an extremely small amount of H2O and an ample amount of CO2 (and N2 and/or other elements and compounds) already...

A report proposes ultralight balloon systems to carry a 10-kg payload, including scientific instruments for exploring the atmospheres of Uranus and Neptune. The system masses to be transported to those planets would be kept low by not transporting balloon-inflating gases. Each system...

A spacecraft reaction-control-system (RCS) thruster now undergoing development generates a thrust of 870 lbf (3,870 N) by burning ethanol and liquid oxygen (LOX), which are nontoxic. The performance of the thruster has been tested in operation in multiple pulse modes with pulses as short as 160 ms; such...

Experiments have demonstrated the feasibility of detecting multiple species of toxic metal ions and other ions of interest dissolved in water, by means of voltammetry with electrically conductive artificial diamond electrodes. Diamond is attractive as an electrode material because it is...

The differential miscibility of castor oil in ethanol and water would be exploited to separate ethanol from water, according to a proposal. Burning the separated ethanol would produce more energy than would be consumed in the separation process. In contrast, the separation of a small amount...

The differential solubility of sulfur in ethanol and water could be exploited to separate ethanol from water. The energy that could be produced by burning the separated ethanol would be more than that required in the separation process. In contrast, the separation of a small amount of...

Improved membrane/electrode assemblies (MEAs) made partly from hydrogen form of sulfonated polyether sulfone (HSPES) have been developed for use in methanol fuel cells. In comparison with traditional fuel-cell MEAs made partly from a commercial perfluorosulfonic acid-based polymer, these MEAs...