SouthWest NanoTechnologies
Inc. (SWeNT), a leading manufacturer of single-wall and specialty multi-wall
carbon nanotubes (CNT), has been awarded two prestigious grants from the Oklahoma
Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology (OCAST).
The first is an OARS (Oklahoma Applied Research Support) grant. The topic
is "Next Generation LED Lighting with CNT Printed Electrodes." SWeNT
will use the OCAST grants to develop a new generation of single-walled carbon
nanotubes with higher electrical conductivity and transparency than is currently
available commercially.
"Improved nanotubes developed under the OARS grant will enable printed
LED lighting products that consume one third the energy of fluorescent bulbs,"
explains David Arthur, SWeNT CEO. "Furthermore, the carbon nanotubes we
develop for LED lighting will also be used in a wide range of other pioneering
applications including photovoltaics, super-capacitors, batteries and displays."
SWeNT also received funds to engage three interns under the Faculty and Student
Intern Partnership program, in response to SWeNT's proposal for "Undergraduate
Internships in Advanced Nanotechnology. "This grant will allow these interns
to gain real-world research experience helping to develop innovative advanced
materials."
"OCAST's support for our employment of interns to assist us in new technology
development will help us on the OARS activity as well as other research activities
we have planned," says Arthur. "Both SWeNT and the student interns
will have much to gain from this program."
OCAST is a state agency established to foster innovation in existing and developing
businesses in Oklahoma.
"We're very pleased with and grateful for this continued support from
our state represented by these two grants. SWeNT would not be a leading carbon
nanotubes producer today without OCAST support," Arthur explains.
SouthWest NanoTechnologies (SWeNT) is a privately-held specialty chemical
company that manufactures high quality single-wall and specialty multi-wall
carbon nanotubes for a range of products and applications. SWeNT was created
in 2001 to spin off nanotube research developed at the University of Oklahoma.