<<off topic but interesting>>
Scientific Discovery Leads to Breakthrough
Technology
December 3, 1997
RICHMOND, Va., Dec. 1 /PRNewswire/ via Individual Inc. -- A fundamental new
discovery in the field of acoustics, comparable in scope to the discovery of the LASER,
was introduced to the world on December 1, 1997, at the National Meeting of the
Acoustical Society of America in San Diego, California.
This new discovery by Tim Lucas, founder, president and CEO of MacroSonix
Corporation, has led to a series of technological breakthroughs called Resonant
Macrosonic Synthesis (RMS). RMS allows scientists to create sound waves inside a
closed resonator (cavity) with energy densities over 1,600 times greater than ever
previously achieved in the field of acoustics. Now that RMS can transfer this much
energy into a sound wave, a wide range of new physical effects become possible which
were not previously attainable. For example, dynamic (i.e., oscillating) pressures in gases
exceeding 500 pounds per square inch (psi) can be generated. Pressures can be
generated that are well in excess of those needed for commercial applications, and much
higher pressures can be provided if required.
Historically, it was widely believed that an intrinsic limit existed for sound waves in
gases which would never allow such high energy levels and acoustic pressures to exist.
This limit was associated with the formation of " shock waves." Lucas' pioneering work
at Los Alamos National Laboratory in 1990 resulted in breaking through the acoustic
"shock barrier" and laid the foundation for the development of RMS.
"RMS quite literally unlocks the power of sound," says Lucas. " Now that large
amounts of energy can be transferred into resonant sound waves, these sound waves
can be used to perform industry's high-powered tasks in completely new and simpler
ways."
According to Lucas, RMS spin-off technologies can provide competitive advantages in
fields as diverse as process control; process reactors for chemical and pharmaceutical
industries; acoustic chambers for separation, agglomeration, levitation, mixing and
pulverization; non-contaminating acoustic compressors and pumps for commercial
gases and ultra-pure and hazardous fluids; oil-less acoustic compressors for air
compression, refrigeration, comfort air-conditioning and natural gas; and the conversion
of combustible fuels into electric power.
Distinct advantages emerge in each of these diverse applications. RMS technologies
use sound to perform tasks, rather than the many mechanical moving parts common in
current technologies. This inherent simplicity can result in lower manufacturing cost,
higher energy efficiency, lower operating costs, increased reliability and durability, and
oil-less operation which is critical in certain industries such as semiconductors and
pharmaceuticals.
The key realization leading to RMS is that the shape of the resonator can be used to
control the shape of the wave, thereby avoiding shock waves. This wave shaping is the
synthesis referred to in RMS. Thus, RMS allows (i) the synthesis of non-shocked
waveforms, which in turn allows (ii) large amounts of energy to be added to the wave,
which in turn allows (iii) extremely high dynamic pressures to be achieved.
Soon after he conceived RMS, Lucas founded MacroSonix to pursue protective patents
for the technology and to develop and license RMS "spin-off" technologies which
utilize RMS as the underlying technology.
"Illustrating the significance of RMS is a difficult task," notes Lucas, "but it is sobering
to realize that nature has provided a limited number of waves that can form the basis of
fundamental technologies. By fundamental technologies, I mean those technologies
which are fundamental to our technological society and economy. The two waves which
most apparently affect our everyday lives are electromagnetic waves and sound waves."
According to Lucas, electromagnetic (E&M) waves provide a meaningful model of what
can happen with RMS. Once methods were discovered to create high- power E&M
waves, then new technologies emerged which are part of everyday life. Examples include
television, radio, satellite and cellular communications, microwave ovens, medical x-rays,
and LASERs just to name a few. LASERs alone, which harness high-frequency E&M
waves (i.e., light waves), accounted for $3.3 billion in commerce in 1996, which does not
include military applications. Historically, these new industries were born when
scientists found ways to create these different high-energy electromagnetic waves.
"Electromagnetic waves have been commercialized for over 100 years," says Lucas, "but
the commercial application of sound waves has only scratched the surface." RMS marks
the first time that extremely high-energy sound waves can be created in gases, the
medium which surrounds everyday life. Similar to the LASER, RMS can be applied to a
very broad spectrum of applications in diverse industries. For example, the LASER gave
birth to bar code readers, compact disks for computers and entertainment, LASER
printers, LASER surgery, medical diagnostics, and scientific instrumentation. But unlike
the LASER, the fundamental technology of RMS and its spin-off technologies are
owned by a single company -- MacroSonix.
"When you understand that nature will not be providing any other waves for us to
harness, then you begin to appreciate the importance of each type of wave," notes
Lucas.
One of the first applications of RMS being developed by MacroSonix is an RMS-based
acoustic compressor. In 1994, MacroSonix signed a licensing and development
agreement with a global, Fortune 500 appliance manufacturer. The agreement provides
the licensee with the rights to manufacture acoustic compressors for household
refrigerators, air conditioners, and certain commercial refrigeration and cooling
applications.
"We are developing a lubricant-free acoustic compressor that eliminates the need for
ozone-depleting chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and promises to be more energy efficient
than standard compressors," states Lucas. "This compressor uses only sound to
provide the required gas compression and eliminates the need for oil and moving parts,
such as pistons, connecting rods, crank shafts and bearings."
The development of RMS technology has now reached a stage where MacroSonix has
identified a number of different commercial applications. Therefore, the Company is
publicly presenting the underlying theoretical and experimental data for dissemination
throughout the scientific and business communities.
"We have kept RMS under wraps for eight years while we protected the technology and
in general learned more about the scientific breakthrough we had discovered," says
Lucas. "Now, we are ready to unveil RMS as a fundamental new technology for a wide
variety of applications we have identified and, as was the case with the discovery of the
LASER, a number of applications that can only be identified through ongoing work with
private industry and government or university research laboratories."
Interestingly, the public introduction of RMS in San Diego will come less than two
months after the 50th anniversary of the most famous event associated with sound --
Chuck Yeager's breaking of the sound barrier.
"Now RMS has broken through another sound barrier," states Lucas. "We believe the
products created with RMS will deeply influence the day-to-day lives of a great number
of people well into the next millennium. Our strategic focus is to maximize that influence
in the years ahead."
MacroSonix is a privately held research and development firm headquartered in
Richmond, Virginia. The Company holds all rights to the use of its patented RMS
technology other than those licensed to strategic alliance partners.
SOURCE MacroSonix Corporation
/CONTACT: Mike Mulvihill, 804-343-2316, for MacroSonix/
[Copyright 1997, PR Newswire] |
