Tech Briefs Magazine - April 2024 - 33

The GlakoLens contact lenses use an
electrically passive sensor embedded in a
disposable soft contact lens, and a wearable
electronic readout system to collect,
store and process the data - making the
lens more comfortable and allowing the
patient to go about their day as normal.
As well as diagnosing glaucoma, there
is also potential for the lenses to be used
to detect other health conditions by
measuring glucose, lactic acid and other
molecules present in eye.
For more information, contact Kelly
Elliott at kelly2.elliott@northumbria.ac.uk.
Plasma Processing of Water and
Inedible Biomass for pH Control
and Nutrient Recycling
Plasma treatment improves sanitation and benefits
plant growth.
Kennedy Space Center, Meritt Island, FL
R
esearchers at Kennedy Space Center
have developed a technology that generates
plasma activated water in pH ranges
that allow for the addition of nitrates
and other nutrients to the water while
maintaining a healthy pH for plants. A
plasma torch is used to treat inedible biomass,
generating ash containing nutrients
useful for plant growth. The same
plasma torch is also used to treat water,
which results in the formation of nitric
acid that lowers the pH of the water.
Adding the plasma generated ash to
the plasma treated water can balance the
pH of the water to make it suitable for
plant growth while simultaneously adding
nutrients recycled from the inedible
biomass to further enhance plant development.
Plasma treatment of water to
high and low pH extremes can also be
used for sanitation purposes, causing pH
shock to undesired organisms.
The uniqueness of this process is the
adjustability of the pH with one system.
The same plasma system can be used to
treat both the water and the biomass.
Additionally, the technology can be used
as an on-demand, point-of-use method
for producing nitric acid.
This method eliminates the need for
acid treatment of the plasma-treated
biomass. For cleaning applications, water
can be treated with plasma to either
high or low pH extremes for shock sanitation
treatment.
The system requires a high voltage
power supply and a plasma torch. The
torch requires a tube for gas transportation,
an electrode inside the tube, and
an electrode outside the tube. Air can be
used for both treatments. The plasma
system can be optimized to condense the
Tech Briefs, April 2024
Quick presence inspection
Electronics production
This method eliminates the need for acid treatment
of the plasma-treated biomass. (Image:
NASA)
www.techbriefs.com
Contact our application engineers:
Phone +1/919 787 9707
micro-epsilon.com
33
system into a lunchbox sized package to
generate the treated water and ash.
The technology has several potential applications
including vertical farming, hydroponics,
greenhouses, irrigation, in-situ
generation of cleaning agents, and spacebased
agriculture.
NASA is actively seeking licensees to
commercialize this technology. Please
contact NASA's Licensing Concierge at
Agency-Patent-Licensing@mail.nasa.gov
or call at 202-358-7432 to initiate licensing
discussions. For more information, visit
https://technology.nasa.gov/patent/KSCTOPS-94.
More
Precision
SMART LASER SENSORS
 Ideal for precise distance measurement
 High measuring rate of 8 kHz for fast
processes
 Ideal price-performance ratio for series
and OEM applications
 Compact & robust IP67 housing for
integration into confined spaces
 Measuring ranges up to 500 mm
Component testing
Industrial printing
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optoNCDT 1x20
http://info.hotims.com/86254-732 https://technology.nasa.gov/patent/KSC-TOPS-94 http://www.techbriefs.com
Tech Briefs Magazine - April 2024

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