TECHNOLOGY LICENSING OPPORTUNITY: Compact Modular Furnace
Overview
Buyer
Place of Performance
NAICS
PSC
Set Aside
Original Source
Timeline
Qualification Details
Fit reasons
- NAICS alignment with historical contract wins in similar service areas.
- Scope strongly matches core technical capabilities and delivery model.
Risks
- Past performance thresholds may require one additional teaming partner.
- Potential clarification needed on staffing minimums before bid/no-bid.
Next steps
Validate eligibility requirements, assign capture owner, and schedule partner outreach to confirm teaming strategy before submission planning.
Quick Summary
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is offering a Technology Licensing Opportunity for its Compact Modular Furnace. This special notice invites companies to license a novel furnace designed for extreme-temperature testing of molten salts and metals in a controlled, glovebox-compatible environment. This is not a call for external services for technology development. Responses are due May 18, 2026.
Technology Overview
The Compact Modular Furnace provides a practical solution for researchers to perform high-temperature experiments on highly reactive materials while maintaining isolation from air and moisture. Its small footprint, interchangeable components, and optical access enable safer and more flexible experiments than traditional large, expensive equipment. The furnace can reach up to 750°C using resistive heating or melt refractory metals with inductive heating. It addresses the challenge of studying sensitive materials under extreme heat in a controlled, contamination-free environment, allowing observation during testing.
Key Advantages
- Small enough to fit in constrained lab setups, including gloveboxes
- Helps protect sensitive materials from air and moisture
- Allows researchers to observe samples while they are being heated
- Flexible enough to support different kinds of experiments
- Can reduce the need for multiple separate instruments
- May lower setup cost compared with larger, specialized systems
Market Applications
- Nuclear Energy (materials testing, reactor component development)
- Fusion Energy (high-temperature materials screening, containment studies)
- Solar Energy (thermal materials evaluation, coatings testing)
- Advanced Materials Research (compatibility testing, wetting behavior)
- Laboratory Instrumentation (specialized testing setups, environmental control)
- Industrial R&D (rapid prototyping, thermal cycling, materials qualification)
Development Status & Intellectual Property
The technology has a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of 5 and is U.S. Patent pending.
Licensing Details
LANL's licensing program aims to move inventions to commercial innovations. Patented and patent-pending inventions are available through exclusive and non-exclusive licensing agreements. Interested parties should contact licensing@lanl.gov for specific discussions.
Timeline
- Published: April 30, 2026
- Response Due: May 18, 2026