Enhancing the Processing Characteristics of Edible Beans, Phase I

Advanced life-support systems, which use chemical, physical, and biological processes, are being developed to support future long-term human planetary exploration. As a result, there is a need to develop innovative food processes for baseline crops, such as dry beans (legumes) that have a shelf-life of more than one year and can support human life during extended space travel. Legumes are hydrated in large volumes of water to about 50% moisture to help reduce process times. Hydration is lengthy often requiring more than 8 hours using room temperature water, or boiling water for 2-3 minutes followed by soaking for at least one hour. Additionally, long cooking times ranging from about 30 minutes to over 2 hours are also required. We propose a reduction in the time, energy, and water requirements for processing legumes by using a novel combination of food grade carbohydrases to enhance the processing characteristics of legumes (Pinto, Navy and Kidney beans) prior to implementation of conventional (boiling, cooking, canning or microwaving) techniques.

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.