On-Demand Urine Analyzer, Phase II

The overall goal of this program (through Phase III) is to develop an analyzer that can be integrated into International Space Station (ISS) toilets to measure key chemicals in urine. The analyzer will employ a novel metal-doped sol-gel material to both separate these key chemicals from urine and provide surface-enhanced Raman spectra to identify and quantify these chemicals. The Phase I program successfully demonstrated feasibility by chemically extracting 3-methyl histidine, a muscle-loss indicator, and raloxifene a bone-loss inhibitor from simulated urine. In flowing experiments, both chemicals were measured at 10 nanogram/mL, below the required detection limit of 1000 ng/mL for 3-methyl histidine, and near the required detection limit of 1 ng/mL for raloxifene. The Phase II program will develop the method of analysis using some 50 bio-indicators, drugs and metabolites, and potential interfering urine components. The program will also design and build an automated extraction, measurement and analysis system suitable for integration into Hamilton Sundstrand's proposed ISS toilets. Hamilton Sundstrand has agreed to an on-site demonstration that includes initial measurements using the proposed analyzer and their equipment to initiate a Phase III collaboration.

This is a mature technology (TRL 7+) — the realistic path in is usually NASA's Technology Transfer Program: licensing an existing NASA patent, or a Space Act Agreement to use NASA facilities/expertise directly. NASA also runs a startup licensing program with no upfront fee for companies formed to commercialize a specific NASA technology.

None of these are guaranteed paths for this specific project — TechPort itself doesn't have an "apply" button. Reaching out to the contact(s) above with a specific question is usually the fastest way to find out what's actually open.