National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC

Methods for producing organic chemicals from biomass or through fermentation processes, often focusing on carbohydrates or fatty acid derivatives for food, health, or industrial applications.

Techniques and systems for precisely measuring electrical or electromagnetic properties of materials or components, often involving specialized resonators, waveguides, or multi-range measurement systems to ensure accuracy.

Techniques for building three-dimensional metal objects layer-by-layer using metal powders, including powder bed fusion, binder jetting, and directed energy deposition. This theme encompasses process mechanics, equipment design, and operational control for AM systems.

The design and manufacturing of integrated circuits that combine optical and electronic components, particularly for high-speed data communication between processors and memory.

Developing advanced bioreactor designs, fermentation strategies, and downstream processing techniques to optimize yield, purity, and efficiency of biotechnological production.

Methods and compositions for identifying, quantifying, or characterizing specific biological molecules (e.g., nucleic acids, proteins, metabolites, antibodies) or microbial species, often for diagnostic, prognostic, or quality control applications.

Development of materials with tailored porosity, surface chemistry, or structure, such as metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), zeolites, or superficially porous particles, for selective adsorption, ion exchange, or chromatographic separations.

Integration of power converters with energy storage devices (batteries, supercapacitors) or grid interfaces, often involving AC/DC conversion, power flow management, and fault handling for hybrid power systems or specific applications like EVs or PV.

Methods and apparatus for generating, storing, and distributing electrical power within a wellbore, or for powering downhole tools and systems from the surface.

Methods and apparatus for measuring magnetic fields or utilizing magnetic resonance principles for medical diagnostics, material analysis, or precise localization, including gradient field measurement in MRI.

Systems and methods for real-time sensing, modeling, and closed-loop control of additive manufacturing parameters to ensure part quality, consistency, and process efficiency. This includes thermal management, atmospheric regulation, and precise material deposition.

Systems and methods employing sensors, data processing, and control algorithms to automate and optimize drilling, fracturing, and fluid production processes in real-time.

Systems that employ imaging and image processing to automatically detect defects, verify states, or ensure quality control in manufactured goods, printed materials, or industrial processes.

Specialized hardware, architectural designs, and computational methods to improve the speed, efficiency, and security of artificial intelligence and machine learning model execution, particularly for inference and data processing.

Process and equipment for producing solid-state battery cells, including solid electrolyte synthesis (sulfide/oxide/polymer), thin-film deposition, lamination, sintering, dry-electrode fabrication, and stacking under controlled atmosphere.

Deployment and operation of specialized sensors within wellbores to monitor formation properties, fluid flow, and well integrity, often using acoustic, optical, or radiation-based methods, and integrating with well operations.

Computational methods and design principles for generating optimized geometries, internal structures (e.g., lattices, minimal surfaces), or functional features that are specifically enabled or enhanced by the capabilities of additive manufacturing.

Development and synthesis of catalysts with unique compositions or structures, such as medium entropy alloys, metal foam-supported catalysts, layered catalytic articles, or high-entropy oxides, to enhance activity, selectivity, or stability in chemical reactions.

Methods and apparatus for the efficient and selective production of organic compounds, including amines, acids, and esters, often involving catalytic or continuous processes and purification steps.

Design and engineering of specialized mechanical and electrical tools for drilling, coring, perforating, and manipulating equipment within the wellbore environment.

Developing and applying machine learning algorithms that leverage quantum computing principles, such as quantum circuits or autoencoders, for tasks like simulation or data processing.

Technologies and materials for capturing carbon dioxide from gas streams and subsequently converting it into valuable chemical products or materials, rather than simply storing it.

Engineering of artificial subwavelength structures (meta-atoms) to create metasurfaces that manipulate light properties (phase, polarization, wavelength) for multi-functional optical devices.

Software, algorithms, and associated hardware for monitoring, controlling, and optimizing battery performance, safety, and lifespan, including charge/discharge cycles, thermal regulation, and system integration.

Specific techniques and materials developed to remove persistent or difficult-to-treat pollutants from water, such as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), micropollutants, or specific industrial chemicals.

Integration of additive manufacturing with subtractive manufacturing (e.g., machining, cutting) or other traditional processes within a single system or workflow to create parts with improved features, surface finish, or material properties, or to enable new manufacturing paradigms.

Processes and apparatus for disassembling spent batteries and recovering valuable materials (e.g., metals, electrolytes, plastics) through mechanical, chemical, or electrochemical methods for reuse or sustainable disposal.

Slurry compositions and coating processes for battery electrodes, including binder/active-material slurries, surface coating layers, and electrode-to-foil adhesion for cathode and anode.

Technologies for efficiently delivering power to electric vehicles, encompassing fast charging, wireless charging, and smart grid integration, alongside vehicle-side control and management of the charging process.

Systems and methods for transferring electrical energy without physical contact, often utilizing inductive or resonant coupling, including antenna design, resonance tracking, and control mechanisms for efficient power delivery.

Methods and systems for identifying anomalies, failures, or impending issues within electric motors or their associated drive and power management circuits, often by monitoring electrical or operational parameters.

Devices and methods for accurately measuring or monitoring electrical current draw and power usage in various systems, often for control, optimization, or safety purposes.

Methods and systems for improving the quality of video streams, generating intermediate frames, or continuously locating and following objects within a sequence of images, even under occlusion.

Systems designed to manage the temperature of multiple components in electric or hybrid vehicles, such as batteries, electric motors, power electronics, and the passenger cabin, often using shared or interconnected cooling/heating circuits.

Engineering approaches to improve the efficiency, control, and performance of chemical reactors, encompassing continuous processes, heat exchange integration, and specialized reactor configurations for various chemical transformations.

Design and control of power supply architectures that combine multiple power sources (e.g., AC grid, DC battery, generators) or modular battery units, often featuring switching, conversion, and redundancy for enhanced reliability and flexibility.

Innovations in backlight units, optical films, and light management structures to enhance display performance, uniformity, viewing experience, or specific functionalities like touch.

Techniques for combining and analyzing information from multiple distinct data modalities (e.g., text, image, video, audio, sensor data) to derive richer insights or improve system performance and decision-making.

Techniques utilizing deep learning models like Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs) or diffusion models to create new images, modify existing ones, or generate synthetic data based on various inputs or conditions.

Specialized fluid compositions, including additives and inhibitors, used in oil and gas exploration and production for purposes like drilling, fracturing, cementing, corrosion inhibition, and formation stimulation.