CPS Technologies awarded $1.1M Phase II SBIR contract from DOE

CPS Technologies announced that it has been awarded its second Phase II SBIR contract this year. This award, from the U.S. Department of Energy, will provide funding of $1.1M over 24 months for CPS to continue its development effort for “Modular Radiation Shielding for Transportation and Use of Microreactors.” The company’s Phase II effort will again be led by materials scientist Matthew Karnick, who served as the principal investigator during the successful Phase I project. During Phase I, CPS successfully developed and tested lightweight, modular radiation shielding which can block both gamma and neutron radiation. Phase II will continue this work for two years, with a focus on further optimizing the materials developed in Phase I and scaling manufacturing processes for commercialization. For the Phase II effort, NETCO, a division of Curtiss-Wright Nuclear, will serve as a subcontractor to CPS. Curtiss-Wright has significant experience with radiation shielding, and their scope of work will include planning and executing radiation testing. CPS filed a provisional patent application in July which captures the novel designs developed by the company during Phase I. Commercial opportunities are being explored, with applications that satisfy both mobile and stationary requirements. Along with the Phase II SBIR contract received from the US Navy in June, the Company’s SBIR funding in recent years now exceeds $3M.