WASHINGTON, Oct. 15, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Nuclear Solutions, Inc. (OTCBB:NSOL) filed a patent application this week for a new nuclear material detection technology intended to screen cargo for shielded nuclear weapons.
"When fully developed, this new patent pending technology could integrate into a system that would screen inbound cargo in real time for uranium-235 and plutonium-239, the essential components of a nuclear bomb," said Patrick Herda, chief executive officer of Nuclear Solutions.
Because the levels of radiation emitted by weapons-grade plutonium and uranium are relatively low, they are easy to shield, which makes identification by radiation sensing devices unreliable and, in some cases, not possible at all.
For example, in a report issued yesterday, the Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security revealed that U.S. Customs and border protection services are not always able to detect nuclear materials in ocean-going shipping containers. The investigation commenced after ABC News was able to ship 15 pounds of depleted uranium into the United States two years in a row.
While improvements in cargo inspection were made since Sept. 11, 2001, less than 5% percent of all containers are currently inspected.
The development of Nuclear Solution's new sensing concept could result in a highly sensitive, portable, and low-cost detection system that responds to minute gravitational gradient anomalies produced by high-density nuclear materials like plutonium and uranium and would be unaffected by radiation shielding techniques.
"There are over 400 tons of unsecured fissile nuclear materials loose in the world," said CEO Patrick Herda. "Recognizing this, both presidential candidates recently agreed that keeping nuclear weapons out of terrorist hands is America's top national security priority.
"I applaud their acknowledgement of this grave threat. Unfortunately, the system we currently have in place is inadequate, and reliance on highly sensitive radiation portals is not the best answer.
"It is far too easy for terrorists to shield the radiation emitted by Uranium-235 and Plutonium-239. Furthermore, when employing such highly sensitive radiation detection equipment, you are very likely to wind up with an unacceptably high rate of false positive warnings. What this country needs is a reliable and economical method to prevent a terrorist nuclear weapon from getting in. Once fully funded and developed, our approach using gravitational anomaly sensing techniques, could become a useful tool in the fight against nuclear terrorism worldwide."
Herda will also be a participant in the upcoming conference "Maritime Domain Awareness: Integrated Sensor Strategies for Port/Ship Security", being held in Washington, DC October 18th and 19th, hosted by Defense Today and King Publishing.
About Nuclear Solutions, Inc.:
Nuclear Solutions, based in Washington, D.C., is an emerging innovative technology development company. We are committed to exploring, developing, and commercializing viable product technologies that will enable partner companies to offer new and improved products in the following areas:
Nuclear Weapon Detection for Homeland Security & Defense
-- The development of advanced technology to detect shielded nuclear
materials and terrorist nuclear weapons
Nanotechnology/MEMS applications
-- The development of long-lived nuclear micro-power sources, based on
three U.S. Patents (5,087,533; 6,118,204; 6,238,812), to power
applications in the emerging field of Nanotechnology,
Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems, and the new generation of low power
microelectronics.
Environmental Technology
-- Development of a patent pending process to remediate tritiated water
via an advanced separation technique.
More information about Nuclear Solutions, Inc. may be found on its website, www.nuclearsolutions.com.
Disclaimer: The matters discussed in this press release are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties such as our plans, objective, expectations and intentions. You can identify these statements by our use of words such as "may," "when," "expect," "believe," "anticipate," "intend," "could," "estimate," "continue," "plans," "planning," "would," or other similar words or phrases. Some of these statements include discussions regarding our future business strategy and our ability to generate revenue, income and cash flow. Additional funding is required to develop the technology described herein. The actual future results for the Company could differ significantly from those statements. Factors that could adversely affect actual results and performance include, among others, the Company's limited operating history, dependence on key management, financing requirements, technical difficulties commercializing any projects, government regulation, technological change and competition. In any event, undue reliance should not be placed on any forward-looking statements, which apply only as of the date of this press release. Additionally, patent pending status does not guarantee that a patent will issue or that the technology will be commercially successful. Accordingly, reference should be made to the Company's periodic filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.