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University of Wyoming

UW Technologies Available for Licensing

 

Technology Disclosure: 05-018 Polymers and Copolymers of Ionic Liquids as Microwave Materials

 

Background

Microwave adsorption materials have many applications such as noise suppression materials in data transmission and radar adsorbing materials in military. Generally, magnetic or metal particles are used as the microwave absorption material, however, these materials have a high specific gravity and are difficult to formulate. Polymeric materials are of special interest because of their easy application and fabrication into various shapes such as coatings. However, no polymer has yet to exhibit strong microwave absorption properties because of their intrinsic low polarity. An alternative patent-pending method invented at the University of Wyoming is actively being developed and shows promise as a major improvement over the current methods of microwave absorption.


Summary

Researchers in the University of Wyoming’s Chemical and Petroleum Engineering Department are working on a novel method for absorbing microwave and certain radio radiation using polymers and copolymers of ionic liquids as sorbent materials; this novel approach effectively addresses many of the inherent problems associated with current microwave absorption processes.  This alternative method of microwave absorption involves the use of poly(ionic liquid)s, which contain separated cations and anions, having very strong microwave absorption properties. Researchers have shown an ability to synthesize ionic liquid polymers by polymerizing monomers containing ionic liquid moieties using free radical polymerization or atom transfer radical polymerization, or other polymerization techniques. These polymers are extremely stable. These poly(ionic liquid)s or their copolymers have high microwave absorption properties due to the presence of high concentration of anions and cations. They can be fabricated into various shapes such as films, formulated into coating, painting or other applications. They have many potential applications, especially in military. We have a PCT patent filed on this technology.
 

If your company would like to learn more about this technology and how your company may apply it in commercial or industrial situations, please contact the director of the University of Wyoming Research Products Center, Davona Douglass. We would be pleased to share further details.