Description: Hydrazine, a volatile and flammable colorless liquid, is classified as a carcinogen by the US Environmental Protection Agency. It can cause chromosome aberrations and negatively affect the lungs, liver, spleen, thyroid gland, and central nervous system. NASA's existing hydrazine measurement technology is sensitive, selective and reliable, but it takes 15 minutes to collect and analyze a sample. For future missions beyond Low Earth Orbit, NASA will need a measurement system that responds within 30 seconds without any performance limitations such as lack of specificity and maintenance challenges. To address NASA needs, InnoSense LLC (ISL) proposes to develop micro-electro-analytical sensor for rapid monitoring of hydrazine (Micro-Zin) in the presence of ammonia in spacecraft cabin atmosphere (SCA) for long-term performance without maintenance. Micro-Zin builds on ISL's nanomaterial-based sensor technology and electronic data processing systems. In Phase I, ISL will design and fabricate a Micro-Zin working model. To establish feasibility, we will characterize Micro-Zin's sensitivity, selectivity, response time, and reliability. In Phase II, we will optimize sensor performance with an appropriate prototype.

Benefits: Micro-Zin is designed for rapid monitoring of hydrazine for measurements of spacecraft cabin atmosphere to identify and minimize the risks to crew health during Exploration-class missions beyond low-Earth orbit (LEO). Micro-Zin will offer sensitive, selective and reliable detection of hydrazine with quick response time (T90 ≤30 seconds) in the presence of confounding background gas ammonia (50 ppm) in spacecraft cabin atmosphere. Micro-Zin will be compact (device volume ~480 cubic centimeters) and lightweight to accommodate NASA's mass and volume constraints. One or more of these miniature Micro-Zins can be placed within the crew cabin, thereby supporting crew health and wellbeing for future space missions.

Micro-Zin will find applications in the commercial space industry (including SpaceX, Blue Origin and Orbital ATK), missile defense, the toxic chemical process control industries, environmental/EPA regulatory compliance and biomedical sensor areas. Micro-Zin is an adaptable platform and it can be modified to address point-of care diagnostics. A modification of the sensing element will allow development of highly sensitive and selective biosensors for monitoring disease biomarkers, making the medical market the largest transition opportunity. This market demands high performance, low life-cycle cost and low-power consumption. The global nanomedicine market was $212B in 2015 and could reach $1.3T by 2025.