FLC Awards Archive — 2004
Awards for Excellence in Technology Transfer
Department of Energy

Argonne National Laboratory

Improved Electrodialysis Operation with Buffer Solution

A novel electrodialysis process for the production of a specialty agricultural chemical has been successfully commercialized by a team at Argonne National Laboratory (ANL). This technology controls the pH in a bipolar electrodialysis stack by using a buffer agent that is regenerated continuously. The technology significantly improves the efficiency of electrodialysis cells and stacks, in particular those used in chemical synthesis. Working with BASF Corp., ANL integrated its technology for process control with BASF’s new electrodialysis process.

ANL researchers used their unique pilot-plant facilities to carry the bench-scale work through to commercial production in less than 18 months. Once the viability of the process was confirmed with pilot production runs at ANL’s electrodialysis facility, a license was negotiated that transferred ANL technology to BASF.

Agreements were reached that provided training of BASF plant operators at ANL. To provide short-term commercial production to meet market demand for the new chemical, an agreement was also reached that allowed the ANL facility to be operated by BASF personnel as a commercial production plant. The facility operated successfully 24 hours per day, five days per week, for six months, with no unscheduled downtime. During the six months of operation, production exceeded the initial targeted production by almost 25%.

The outcome of this technology transfer effort is expected to advance the use of electrodialysis for applications in the specialty chemical and pharmaceutical industries.

Contact: Edward Daniels, (630) 252-5279,
edaniels@anl.gov

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Minimizing Casualties from a Chem/Bio Attack:
Preparation, Training and Response Resources

In late 2001, terrorists used anthrax to kill several people, disrupt mail deliveries, and render congressional office buildings uninhabitable. The buildings were eventually reoccupied at a cost of well over $150 million and after enormous disruption to their occupants. These relatively limited attacks had huge consequences; a major chemical or biological attack could be much more severe.

Even before the anthrax releases, scientists in the Indoor Environment Department of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) had been conducting research aimed at reducing the effects of a chemical or biological attack. This research builds on a long tradition of work within the department on building airflows, filtration effectiveness, and air quality issues. The anthrax attacks prompted department scientists to ask, “Is there anything we can contribute right now?”

The answer was “yes.” The researchers identified several target groups that could benefit from increased knowledge. These included building operators who are in charge of the design, maintenance, and operation of building ventilation systems; managers of unique, high-value buildings such as airports; emergency planners and incident commanders who have to decide what areas of a city to evacuate and where to send response teams; and “First Responders” — the firefighters and police officers who are the first trained people on the scene of an attack.

The LBNL team was successful in identifying and meeting the needs of each of these target groups. The team provides advice for building operators through the Secure Buildings web site, which has had thousands of visitors viewing over 40,000 pages since early 2002. The team worked with colleagues at Sandia National Laboratories to provide recommendations to airport managers on preparation, training, and event response. Since people spend the majority of their time indoors, the team worked with the National Atmospheric Release Advisory Center at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory to predict indoor toxic concentrations from a Bhopal-type emergency — an important addition to the suite of outdoor prediction tools already available. Finally, the team created First Responder training materials for the California Peace Officers Standards and Training Agency, which has used the materials to train police officers in much of the U.S.

These efforts have improved the readiness and safety of the nation’s police officers, the security of the nation’s buildings and their inhabitants, the effectiveness of local emergency response, and the safety of the U.S. air transportation network. A major attack may still have consequences, but they will be lessened because of the scientific work and outreach of the LBNL team.

Contact: Dr. Phillip Price, (510) 486-4651,
PNPrice@lbl.gov

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

RadScout Handheld Nuclear Material Identifier

RadScout is a handheld radiation detector that identifies the type of radioisotopes present in a location with the precision that until now was found only in laboratory instruments. A team at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) developed the detector and transferred it to ORTEC, a business unit of AMETEK, Inc. RadScout is the first commercialized radiation detector manufactured with its capability, and it responds to a critical need of first responders in every field.

Before RadScout was available, first responders encountering a possible radiation source had to experience a potentially deadly
time delay as samples containing possibly dangerous radioisotopes were either sent to a laboratory for analysis or isolated while laboratory equipment was shipped to the sample.

RadScout provides fire departments, government authorities, and hazard and medical teams with a handheld radiation identifier that distinguishes harmless from dangerous radioisotopes so they can make intelligent, life-saving decisions quickly. RadScout is self-contained, weighs only 25 pounds, and contains its own battery-operated cooling unit, which allows the detector to operate for several hours before the batteries need to be recharged. RadScout can also operate from various sources, including AC power and car batteries using a cigarette lighter adapter.

An American-owned company, ORTEC is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of radiation detectors. Its product line includes over 1600 products. For 40 years, ORTEC has worked with U.S. government agencies and private industries, and with the research and development group of Defense and Nuclear Technologies at LLNL. ORTEC manufactures RadScout under the product names Detective and Detective EX.

The development of RadScout will have a major impact on the security of America’s citizens and infrastructure. The greatest tangible benefit of RadScout is that its portability and real-time data analysis allow first responders to know immediately upon inspection if there is a health
or safety threat and the magnitude of the threat. Real-time data analysis will allow intelligent decisions to be made much more quickly,
which translates into the potential of saving thousands of lives in just one event of a terrorist threat.

Contact: Raymond Pierce, (925) 423-8465,
pierce13@llnl.gov

Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Lab-on-a-Chip

Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has licensed seminal patents for Lab-on-a-Chip technology to Caliper Technologies, Inc., of Mountain View, California. The transfer of the technology contained in these patents was key to Caliper’s first products and its rapid transition from a startup to a publicly traded company and world leader in microfluidics technology in less than five years. Microfluidic Lab-on-a-Chip systems enable experiments ordinarily performed in a full-sized laboratory to be conducted on chip devices smaller than a credit card. The chip contains microscopic channels through which fluids and chemicals are moved to accurately perform assays, significantly reducing time and expense. The initial commercial uses have been in the areas of drug discovery and biotechnology. Over 35 lead drug candidates have been discovered with Caliper’s technology.

The Lab-on-a-Chip concept was proposed, developed, and patented at ORNL. The laboratory initially funded the effort through its Laboratory-Directed Research and Development Program, first by providing support for a small seed money project and subsequently by funding genetic and protein research. Both the inventors and ORNL technology transfer staff were involved in marketing the technology.

Caliper, with Agilent Technologies, Inc., of Palo Alto, California, introduced the first commercial product in 1999. Caliper has since launched its own product line, and offers complete systems to end users and components to equipment manufacturers. It has installed more than 2000 bioanalyzers and has sales of over 500,000 chips per year. As of March 2003, Caliper had cash and marketable securities of over $140 million and a cumulative R&D investment of $120 million. MIT Technology Review (May 2003) ranked it No. 2 for the technological strength of its patent portfolio in the biotechnology/pharmaceutical sector, ahead of major companies such as Pfizer, Eli Lilly, and Roche, and No. 3 across all industries for its “Current Impact Index.” Technology transfer from ORNL was crucial in making this phenomenal commercial success possible.

Lab-on-a-Chip won an R&D 100 Award in 1996, was named one of the top 40 technologies over the 36-year history of the R&D 100 Award, and recently received an Honorable Mention in the September 2003 FLC Southeast Region’s Excellence in Technology Transfer competition.

Contact: Dr. J. Michael Ramsey, (865) 574-5662,
ramseyjm@ornl.gov

Microcantilever-Based Biosensors

Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has licensed the biosensor component of its microcantilever technology to Protiveris, Inc., of Rockville, Maryland. The mission of Protiveris is to commercialize biosensors that will accelerate the drug discovery and development process and thus aid in the launch of new pharmaceuticals. The VeriScanTM 3000, a product developed by Protiveris, uses a 64-cantilever microchip capable of detecting 64 different proteins in a single assay in real time, with unprecedented selectivity and sensitivity. Researchers at ORNL conceived, developed, and patented the microcantilever-based biosensors. The microcantilever concept, developed under an ORNL seed money effort, has resulted in 21 patents, with another 10 pending; and, 75 scientific papers have been published so far. The U.S. Department of Energy Office of Biological and Environmental Research directly funded the biosensor project. A CRADA is being negotiated with Proteveris for continued R&D. The microcantilever sensor is a platform technology. It can be applied anywhere that a miniature sensor can be used. The biosensors, in particular, will have a broad impact. For example, in the United States alone, the market for microcantileverbased biomedical diagnostics is well in
excess of $500 million annually. Overall, the microcantilever biosensor will have tremendous industrial, commercial, civilian, and military significance. The microcantilever-based biosensors recentlywon an FLC Southeast Region Award for Excellence in Technology Transfer in September 2003.

Contact: Dr. Thomas Thundat, (865) 574-6201,
thundatt@ornl.gov

Robust Wireless Technologies for Extreme-Environment Communications

Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) currently has an intellectual property portfolio for robust wireless communications technologies that includes 11 patents and patent applications. The laboratory has licensed all of these technologies to Tarallax Wireless, Inc., of Salt Lake City, Utah, which is incorporating them into commercial communications devices through a $6.6 million, 100% funds-in CRADA with ORNL. Tarallax has sublicensed specific technologies to Navigational Sciences, Inc., of Charleston, South Carolina, for use in commercial maritime tracking and tagging devices. Navigational Sciences is also funding additional developments through the Tarallax CRADA.

In separate efforts, ORNL licensed these technologies to two startup companies, Graviton and Care Chips. Both have provided CRADA funding to ORNL for further development of their applications. Wireless technologies enable robust communications in extreme environments, such as metal buildings, urban canyons, mountainous terrain, and underground facilities. Conventional wireless devices are limited in many applications because of their high power consumption, short operating lives, and interference from metal structures and electromagnetic sources. These technologies open a whole new world of wireless applications—industrial measurements and condition monitoring, medical sensors, asset tagging and tracking, and efficient video communication and data transfer.

This effort won “Project of the Year” in the September 2003 FLC Southeast Region Excellence in Technology Transfer awards competition.

Contact: Paul Ewing, (865) 576-5019,
ewingpd@ornl.gov

Thin-Film Rechargeable Lithium Batteries

Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has licensed its thin-film rechargeable lithium battery technology to six U.S. companies. The licensee companies are developing miniaturized batteries to power various devices, such as medical implants, consumer and military electronics, banking and identification cards, industrial and security sensors and transmitters, and micromachines. Each of the licensees (Teledyne Electronic Technologies; Excellatron Solid State, Inc.; Front Edge Technology, Inc.; Infinite Power Solutions, Inc.; Cymbet Corporation; and Oak Ridge Micro-Energy, Inc.) has expertise in fabricating thin-film devices and is developing partnerships with device manufacturers.

The basic research was initiated through ORNL seed money funds. Support continued under the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science programs. Company representatives initiated technical and business discussions with ORNL after reading published accounts of the basic research. Subsequent collaborative research was supported by a number of mechanisms, including DOE- and industryfunded CRADAs and Work for Others agreements. ORNL granted licenses as the technology matured, and the companies began their own R&D efforts, funded by in-house and venture capital funds, Small Business Innovation Research contracts, and National Institute of Standards and Technology Advanced Technology Program awards.

The thin-film rechargeable lithium battery technology won an R&D 100 Award in 1996 and an FLC Southeast Region Excellence in Technology Transfer Award in September 2003.

Contact: Dr. Nancy Dudney, (865) 576-4874,
dudneynj@ornl.gov

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Alpha Particle Immunotherapy for Treating Leukemia and Solid-Tumor Metastases

A promising new cancer treatment is the outcome of a successful technology transfer effort at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). Alpha particle immunotherapy (APIT) makes it possible to effectively treat patients with malignancies of the hematopoietic system—such as leukemia—and metastasis from many solid tumors with fewer side effects than other treatments. APIT combines the power of alpha particle-emitting radioactive isotopes (actinium-225 or bismuth- 213) with monoclonal antibodies that bind to and destroy specific cancer cells, but not nearby healthy tissue. Early trials at major research centers yielded very encouraging results.

The primary supplier of APIT is MedActinium, a small radiopharmaceutical firm in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The company turned to PNNL researchers to solve two obstacles to commercial use of APIT: purifying the isotope, and binding it to the antibody to create a stable product. The nominees transferred a new separations chemistry for generating bismuth-213 and a key enabling technology for placing actinium-225 on monoclonal antibodies. The result is that these powerful new radioisotopes are now available to treat patients with leukemia or fast-spreading solid-tumor cancers.

This technology transfer involved collaborative efforts among private industry, academic research institutions, and U.S. government agencies. In making the transfer, PNNL built on relationships with the pharmaceutical industry dating from 1986. The laboratory’s research in APIT-enabling technologies was part of a larger effort to develop beneficial uses for radioactive materials remaining from weapons production during the Cold War. The transfer itself was fast-tracked during planning for initial clinical trials. The effort included exclusive license agreements for five immunology patents, negotiation and conclusion of a separate technology management agreement with an earlier research partner, and establishment of a CRADA for further research. The transfer was completed in January 2003.

The transfer of technologies from PNNL to MedActinium is a contributing factor in the ability of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and other research medical centers to continue the quest for effective cancer treatments. A second round of clinical trials is scheduled to begin at Sloan-Kettering in fall 2004. According to David A. Scheinberg, M.D., Ph.D, and chairman of the Sloan-Kettering Experimental Therapeutics Center, “You can inject small doses of these [APIT] molecules, which circulate, find their target cells, invade them, and eventually kill the cells. These are extremely potent drugs.”

Contact: Dr. Darrell Fisher, (509) 373-2000,
dr.fisher@pnl.gov

Electrodynamic Ion Funnel

The electrodynamic ion funnel, developed at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), is a revolutionary development that directs ions in gases, greatly improving the sensitivity of analytical devices, such as mass spectrometers, that depend on ion formation and transfer in the presence of gases. The funnel uses a series of ring electrodes of increasingly smaller internal diameters to which radio frequency (RF) and direct current (DC) electric potentials are co-applied. The combination of collisions with neutral gas and the combined RF and DC fields causes the ions to be more effectively focused and transmitted, significantly enhancing the sensitivity of the mass spectrometer. Realization of the ion funnel’s potential will benefit a host of important commercial activities, including drug discovery and biotechnology development, where sensitivity is key.

Through a nonexclusive licensing mechanism, the PNNL team successfully transferred the electrodynamic ion funnel to three companies: Micromass in 2001; Biospect, Inc., in 2002; and Bruker Daltonics, Inc., in 2003. Two of these companies are major manufacturers of mass\ spectrometers, while the third is a startup company developing a new class of instruments for human clinical applications.

An innovative aspect of this technology’s transfer has been the mass spectrometer instruments (initial market value of less than $750,000) provided at no cost to PNNL in exchange for access to the ion funnel technology and the expertise of its developers. The ion funnel may help scientists obtain effective, thorough answers to major scientific questions, including how a disease progresses, what causes it and, eventually, how to stop it. This technology also has the potential for uses to determine how the human body responds to certain drugs, cancer progression, and almost any other biomedical or health-related need.

The electrodynamic ion funnel received a 1999 R&D 100 Award, which recognizes the year’s most significant advancements in technology.

Contact: Dr. Richard Smith, (509) 376-0723,
dick.smith@pnl.gov

Inductively Coupled Plasma/Mass Spectrometry Collision/Reaction Cell Technology

The Inductively Coupled Plasma/Mass Spectrometry (ICP/MS) Collision/Reaction Cell (CRC) technology developed at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) has advanced the analysis capabilities of mass spectrometer instruments worldwide. ICP/MS can now detect and measure many important elements that were not detectable with conventional MS. This technology has had a significant and widespread impact in the analytical chemistry world, and has broad applications in environmental monitoring and testing, biotechnology, semiconductor manufacturing, and homeland security. In inventing this technology, the PNNL team brought to bear their extensive experience using and improving mass spectrometry.

The first step in the technology transfer was forming a CRADA with an interested commercial ICP/MS manufacturer. That enabled the team to continue to improve their science. They soon patented their technology and licensed it to ThermoFinnigan. In 2002, through the team’s persistence, an amended license was signed that requires and further gives ThermoElectron the incentive to sublicense the CRC technology to other manufacturers of mass spectrometers for wider benefit to the ICP/MS community.

Research at PNNL alerted the mass spectrometer community to the use of ionmolecule reactions for interference reduction and greatly amplified research interest. There were few publications on this subject before 1996, but more than 200 peer-reviewed publications have been issued since the disclosure of this successful technique. The CRC approach to removing mass spectral interferences has been adopted throughout the world. Today, more than 60% of ICP/MS instruments sold incorporate PNNL’s CRC technology. The efforts of the team have thus improved scientific analysis and contributed to international commerce for the benefit of the global economy.

Contact: Dr. David Koppenaal, (509) 376-0368,
David.Koppenaal@pnl.gov

Our Legacy