Miniature helium photoionization detector for field GC
This technology is a miniaturized chemical detector that uses helium gas and a tiny electrical discharge to identify trace amounts of specific substances in air or other gas streams. When a sample gas passes through the detector's small chamber, the helium discharge ionizes any analyte molecules present, and a collector electrode measures the resulting electrical current to identify and quantify the substance. The device is engineered to be extremely energy-efficient, consuming only 3.3 milliwatts of power, and can detect substances down to 60 picograms — making it far smaller and lower-power than traditional photoionization detectors while maintaining high sensitivity.
What you could build
A miniaturized chemical sensor module integrated into handheld or drone-mounted gas chromatography instruments for field detection of volatile organic compounds, industrial pollutants, or chemical hazards; buyers would be environmental monitoring equipment makers, industrial hygiene instrument companies, and defense/security sensor integrators.
Who in Virginia should care
Defense and intelligence contractors in Northern Virginia (e.g., those supplying chemical detection systems to DHS or DoD) and environmental monitoring equipment firms would have direct interest in this miniaturized sensor component.
Readiness: Lab validated
Concept — described but not yet demonstrated. Lab validated — supported by experimental results in the patent. Prototype likely — the text describes a built, working embodiment.
Readiness is inferred from the patent text, not from a lab visit.
The record
- Inventors
- Masoud Agah, Shree Narayanan Sreedharan Nair
- Granted
- August 14, 2018
- Status
- Granted patent
- Patent number
- 10048222
Ready to talk?
Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties handles licensing for this technology.
Prosim summaries are generated from public patent text and are not legal advice.