they reduce the time needed to raise the product temperature to that required for the thermal lethality of target bacte- ria—that is, they kill botulism and other toxins faster. A shorter process time can improve food quality and nutrient reten- tion at a lower cost, which is one reason these methods are so attractive for both the U.S. military and NASA.
AMET is exploring polymeric packaging for these novel methods in collaboration with CFD’s Food Processing Engineering and Technology Team. Te two teams are also studying the effect of the various processing methods on vitamin stabil- ity in an effort to preserve freshness and food safety and prevent nutrient loss.
“Te nanocomposite research and devel- opment work has been challenging and rewarding for the Advanced Materials Engineering Team. After
further dem-
onstration and validation work, we will know if these materials have acceptable performance to be considered for incor- poration into ration packaging for the warfighter,” said Ratto.
‘SO’ CLEAN Soldiers are frequently in muddy, dusty and
oil-contaminated
known liquids, including those with extremely low surface tensions, such as the solvents heptane and hexane, which would make most surfaces, without SO protection, wet.
NSRDEC’s research and development of omniphobic and SO technologies, which will be used in protective clothing appli- cations, will improve warfighters’ quality of life and lessen their logistical burden. Omniphobic fabrics require much less frequent washing, reducing water and detergent usage. NSRDEC is also inves- tigating the development of SO coatings, inherently SO fibers and micro- and nanosurface transparent films.
Besides being super-repellent to liquids when applied onto protective clothing, SO coatings will also contain an anti- microbial additive to retard the growth of microbes that cause body odors. Te SO fibers with the antimicrobial additive will be woven into yarn, made into fab- ric and finally fabricated into protective clothing that will require no laundering and remain clean, dry and odor free. Te hierarchical micro- and nanoscale SO transparent films will be applied onto protective lenses, goggles and visors to provide the soldiers with “always clear vision” by shedding water, oils and chemicals on the outer lens surface while preventing fog from forming on the inner lens surface. Tese features will help
environments.
NSRDEC and its industry partner, Luna Innovations Inc., have worked together to develop omniphobic coatings for fab- rics. Omniphobic surfaces do not become wet when exposed to water, liquid chemi- cals, organic solvents and some oils, such as cooking and motor oils.
Unlike omniphobic surfaces, which can be found in nature, super-omniphobic (SO)
surfaces are
purely man-made,
engineered surfaces based on a 2007 dis- covery by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). SO surfaces are both super-hydrophobic and super-oleophobic and theoretically repel most, if not all,
MRE REDUX
NSRDC scientists are investigating the development of nanocomposite packaging for MREs that will be lighter in weight and less expensive than foil pouches, while enhancing food quality and reducing waste. (Photo by David Kamm, NSRDEC)
ASC.ARMY.MIL
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SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
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