Johns Hopkins University Awarded $237,000 Printable and Flexible Sensor Contract by FlexTech Alliance

The FlexTech Alliance recently awarded Johns Hopkins University a contract to deliver printable and flexible dosimetric sensors for correlating cumulative environmental vapor exposure to incidence of respiratory disorders. FlexTech Alliance partnered with the US Army Research Laboratory to identify the right contract team for the $237,000 project, which is scheduled for completion in mid-2015. Columbia University is a collaborator on this project.

The purpose is to produce gas/vapor exposure sensors using an all-printed deposition process on plastic substrates. The immediate targets are real-time and integrated dosimetric ammonia sensors based on organic field-effect transistors (OFETs) that have been sensitized for ammonia detection. The project aims to produce the first standardized package of printable sensors for widespread deployment by health, industrial, and military professionals.

“Monitoring exposure to hazardous gases and vapors is valuable in every environment, but in many cases the lack of assessment technologies has limited the ability to evaluate the environmental and occupational causes of disease,” said Michael Ciesinski, CEO of FlexTech Alliance. “FlexTech’s project with Johns Hopkins University will allow airborne concentrations to be measured using organic transistor sensor technology, which has the potential to provide small, sensitive, and inexpensive sensors that can be easily mass produced to measure integrated or time-resolved exposures. We’re excited about the impacts this award will produce for future generations.”