UKRAINIAN MISSILE AND NUCLEAR SCIENTISTS COLLABORATE WITH AETC TO BUILD NOVEL PROTOTYPE PLANT

At the kick-off of GIPP project BNL-T2-0372-UA, SDO Yuzhnoe, Dniepropetrovsk, Ukraine. Left to right: Dr. Sergey S. Fedorov (Sr. Scientist at NMetAU), Kateryna Brattseva (Marketing service at SDO Yuzhnoe), Dr. Igor V. Barsukov (U.S. Industrial Partner, AETC, Arlington Heights, IL, USA), Vitaliy I. Lutsenko (Sr. Designer at SDO Yuzhnoe), Professor, Dr. Mykhailo V. Gubynskiy, NMetAU, project manager BNL-T2-0372-UA, Oleksiy G. Gogotsi (project team leader at MRC, Kyiv), and Mykola V. Livitan, (Sr. Scientist at NMetAU). Photo courtesey of SDO Yuzhnoe.

American Energy Technologies Company (AETC) headquartered in Glenview, Illinois is completing a successful collaborative research and development effort with two United States Department of Energy (DOE) National Laboratories and several Ukrainian research institutes, which started under DOE’s former Global Initiatives for Proliferation Prevention (GIPP) program. AETC, under Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADAs) with the National Laboratories, provided financial or in-kind contributions equal in value to the funds DOE committed to the projects.

Inside one of the gas fired high temperature reactors. Photo courtesy of the Gas Institute at the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine.

In 2013, tremendous and tangible progress occurred on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. With technical monitoring by Argonne National Laboratory and Brookhaven National Laboratory, scientists in Ukraine partnered with AETC to design and build novel prototype-scale equipment for processing advanced carbon materials. These prototypes were transferred in 2013 to AETC’s facility in Illinois for testing. Following the successful conclusion of testing, this technology will have the potential to enhance the performance and safety of automotive and consumer-type batteries. The technology will be commercialized within the US, Ukraine, and worldwide.  Under the terms of the CRADA, AETC will have the first option for commercialization through a nonexclusive license.

In Ukraine, we are excited to acknowledge the following organizations, project leaders and all of their team members:

• State Enterprise M.K.Yangel Design Office “SDO Yuzhnoye“ (http://www.yuzhnoye.com/?lang=en) and its team leader, Leonid M. Usatiuk

• National Science Center Kharkov Institute of Physics and Technology (http://www.kipt.kharkov.ua/en) and its project manager, Dr. Sergiy Yu. Sayenko

• The Gas Institute at the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine and its team leader, Academician and Professor Boris I. Bondarenko

• Materials Research Centre, Limited and its team leader, Oleksiy G. Gogotsi

• National Metallurgical Academy of Ukraine and its project manager, Professor and Dr. Mykhailo V. Gubynskiy

Startup of the high temperature reactor. Left to right: Eugene Strativnov (GI NAS-UA) and GI NAS-UA project team leader, Academician, Professor Boris I. Bondarenko (project BNL-T2-0372-UA). Photo courtesy of the Gas Institute at the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine

In addition, the following company joined AETC in providing technical expertise in commercialization of the technology and in-kind financial support, which matched DOE funds invested in the GIPP projects:

• Dontech Global, Inc. and its President, Dr. Joseph E. Doninger

Unloading the first batches of equipment from Ukraine at the Arlington Heights, IL plant

In early stages of the project, support was also provided by the United States Industry Coalition, Inc.:

• Dr. Gerson S. Sher, President

• Dr. Gulbarshyn Bozheyeva, M.A., Director, Technology Commercialization

Kimmo Kartano, Technology Commercialization Advisor