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The Photo-Pneumatic CO2 Analyzer

Award Information
Agency: National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Branch: N/A
Contract: NNX09CF35P
Agency Tracking Number: 084085
Amount: $100,000.00
Phase: Phase I
Program: SBIR
Solicitation Topic Code: S1.08
Solicitation Number: N/A
Timeline
Solicitation Year: 2008
Award Year: 2009
Award Start Date (Proposal Award Date): 2009-01-22
Award End Date (Contract End Date): 2009-07-22
Small Business Information
1930 Central Avenue, Suite A
Boulder, CO 80301-2895
United States
DUNS: 025288494
HUBZone Owned: No
Woman Owned: No
Socially and Economically Disadvantaged: No
Principal Investigator
 James Smith
 Principal Investigator
 (303) 443-3389
 jim@aosinc.net
Business Contact
 James Smith
Title: Business Official
Phone: (303) 443-3389
Email: jim@aosinc.net
Research Institution
N/A
Abstract

We are proposing to build a new technology, the photo-pneumatic analyzer. It is small, solid-state, inexpensive, and appropriate for observations of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) from six of the seven robotic platforms being targeted by NASA in its solicitation. An inexpensive MEMS transducer is integrated into a miniature pair of gas cells to serve as the radiation sensitive element of the analyzer. Absorption by individual vibration-rotation transitions serves as the measure of CO2 Dry Mole Fraction of the sample. The analyzer has significant sensitivity, bandwidth and specificity to 12CO2 or 13CO2. Target sensitivity is 0.1 ppmv at 1 Hz for both isotopes. The analyzer may be modified to detect additional molecular species. The immediate objective is to develop an expendable CO2 analyzer that can be manufactured by machine and can be used to validate observations of CO2 column from spacecraft and can further serve as the basis of a new global monitoring network of climate change. The products targeted for Phase II are: (i) a substantial series of vertical profiles of CO2 that serve to prove the utility of the new technology as payload of the expendable balloon platform and (ii) the manufacturing plan for a commercially viable photo-pneumatic analyzer.

* Information listed above is at the time of submission. *

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