SEACOAST SCIENCE, INC. — Department of Defense SBIR Phase II: A15-060

Description

Seacoast proposes to develop a wearable microdetector system that specifically tuned for fuel-related pollutants. The system incorporates modified conductive graphene into lightweight, ultra-sensitive detectors. In recent years, there has been increasing interest in using new technologies for community-wide monitoring applications, for example, for pollutants that can harm a large number of people in a specific area. Despite strong interest, thus far no detectors have been developed that meet the price-point to allow the average person to carry a chemical sensor to detect low levels of these harmful vapors. Current sensor systems are large and expensive, requiring trained instrument operators for sample preparation and data interpretation. In Phase I, Seacoast successfully demonstrated that graphene-based materials were sensitive to a number of fuel-related compounds at levels near or below NIOSH standards. Also, Seacoast demonstrated two types of chemiresistors having high sensitivity to benzene and naphthalene in air. Our Type 1 sensor uses graphene mixed with polymers, while Type 2 uses functionalized graphene nanoplatelets without any additives. In Phase II, Seacoast will continue materials development, further improve sensor performance, and develop algorithms to deal with interferences. Seacoast will focus on developing the overall exposure monitoring system and tracking methodology.