SBIR/STTR Research Award
A Novel Device and Methodology for Detection and Quantitative Measurement of Fugitive Methane Releases
Award amount
$649,989Program and phase
STTR · Phase IIAward year
2024Award details
- Awarding agency
- Department of Agriculture
- Branch
- National Institute of Food and Agriculture
- Recipient company
- AETHER LLC
- Proposal award date
- 2024-09-10
- Contract end date
- 2026-09-14
- UEI
- DGFYZ6NRL8Y4
- Solicitation number
- USDA-NIFA-SBIR-010287
- Topic code
- 8.4
Research abstract
Aether'sPhaseIIproposalpresentsanambitiousresponsetotheUSDAStrategicPlan'sfocuson
combatingclimatechangeandreducinggreenhousegasemissionswithinAmericanagricultureand
associatedindustries.TheprojectaimstodesigndeployandcommercializeaninnovativeIndustrial
InternetofThings(IIoT)opticalsensornetworktomonitormethaneemissionsinrealtimeacross
varioussourcessuchaslivestockfarmsandmanuremanagementfacilities.Ourprojectobjectives
encompassthedevelopmentandfieldvalidationofarobustwirelesssensornetwork(WSN)that
leverageslow-costnodesequippedwithAether'sproprietarypassivemethanequantification
technology.ThistechnologywillempowerU.S.agenciesandcompaniestocompileaccurate
emissionsinventoriesimplementingclimate-smartstrategies.Uponsuccessfuldevelopmentwe
anticipateourWSNwillprovideextensiveareacoverageandoperateasasophisticateddecision
supporttool.Theintendedeffortincludestheruggedizationoflab-gradeprototypesandtheir
subsequentdeploymentinoperationalenvironments.Thisstepiscriticalforvalidatingtheir
performanceanddurabilityunderreal-worldconditions.Additionallythesystem'sdesignwill
prioritizeuser-friendlinessandscalabilitytoencouragewidespreadadoption.Anticipatedresults
includetheaccuratetrackingandreportingofmethaneemissionsfacilitatingtargetedmitigation
efforts.Incommercialapplicationsoursensortechnologywillberelevanttoagriculturaloperators
environmentalagenciesandpotentiallycompanieswithintheoilandgassectorseekingtominimize
theirenvironmentalfootprint.Thisresearchsupportsclimateactionbyprovidingtangibletoolstomonitorandmanageapotentgreenhousegasaligningwiththeincreasingglobalcommitmentto
sustainabledevelopmentandresponsibility.
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Technology keywords
Not reported
Other awards by this recipient
Verified by the same UEI. These are other public SBIR/STTR award pages, not a merged company record.
Awards with the same topic code
Verified by an exact topic code match. This is not a text-similarity match.
- Flow-cell Assisted Ion Removal and Recovery (FAIR2) Technology for Efficient Nutrient Management of Hydroponic Wastewater
- In situ, radio frequency detection and analysis of microplastics in environmental water
- Reimagining Water Resources for Agriculture with a Targeted Salinity Reduction Device
- Utilizing Recyclable Magnetic Iron Oxide Nanoparticles (RMNPs) for PFAS Removal from Agricultural Systems
- An innovative biobased, biodegradable fertilizer encapsulation for improved water quality, better soil health, and nutrient use efficiency
Research funding history
2 SBIR/STTR records share this UEI (2023–2024). Reported award amounts total $831,243. Reported amounts are not federal obligations.
Phases: Phase II, Phase I
Agencies: Department of Agriculture