Polestar Technologies, Inc. and its senior management have been involved in homeland security preparedness for over fifteen years and have consistently done research which supported the warfighter, the civilian population and the environment.
One of Polestar’s key focus areas has been the identification and analysis of chemical and biological warfare agents. The Company has supported the Naval Surface Warfare Center-Dahlgren in its program to provide protection from chemical and biological contaminants hidden in a variety of packages. We have also developed for the US Department of Energy a portable soil analyzer to identify contaminants in the soil. Other projects include research on a non-invasive deep tissue pH monitor and hematocrit monitor for the 21st century warfighter.
As the size of a material is reduced to the nanoscale, its physical and electronic properties are often altered as a result of quantum confinement. Current research in nanotechnology seeks to exploit these quantum confinement effects in order to produce devices and materials with novel properties. Such molecular scale architectures would also allow a tremendous number of devices to be placed in a small area, and potentially offer improved performance and significant size reduction for applications such as sensors or electronic memory elements.
Current efforts in this area include collaboration with the University of Arizona in support of a program for DARPA which will result in the development of sensors for explosive detection.
Sensor research and development leading to product development has always been one of Polestar’s core competencies. The Company is currently involved in the commercialization of sensors for oxygen, pH, carbon dioxide, explosives, and ethylene for a variety of customers including NASA, NIH, USDA, NOAA, DOE, and DOD among others. In particular, Polestar has supported the US Air Force in developing sensors for oxygen which can be included in fuel tanks and fuel lines for aircraft. We are in the middle of a contract to develop an ethylene monitor for the USDA. pH sensors have been developed for applications in the bioprocessing industry. Carbon dioxide sensor development has been part of a program supported by NSF and NASA.
Polestar has deployed field-portable magnetometers in support of the Navy’s program to identify and remediate areas contaminated with buried ordnance.
