May 7, 2008 — Radiation Shield Technologies (RST) says it has been granted a new Australian patent for its nanotechnology-enabled Demron fabric, which it calls “the world’s first nuclear radiation-blocking, anti-chemical and biological-protection material.”
RST describes Demron — which is covered by other patents in Australia, the United States, Singapore and Russia — as a radiopaque nano-polymeric compound fused between layers of fabric and manufactured into several lightweight, nuclear-radiation blocking garments. This latest patent secures all its applications, including full-body nuclear, biological, and nuclear-biological chemical (NBC) suits, tactical anti-nuclear vests, high-energy suppression blankets, medical X-ray vests and aprons. Its first Australian patent concerns the Demron compound and its manufacturing processes.
“The global demand and deployment of Demron exceeds our expectations and reaffirms its leadership as the only nuclear radiation-blocking material that also provides anti-chemical and biological protection,” said RST’s president and CEO Ronald DeMeo, the surgeon who developed Demron. “Demron’s patents will help us expand its market potential, and we will continue to secure patents worldwide.”
Recent deployments include a NATO-funded purchase of a record number of Demron suits for use by the Ministry for Emergency Situations of the Republic of Belarus. Demron also is deployed worldwide by NATO, NASA, the National Guard, US Navy, UAE and the governments of South Korea, China, Saudi Arabia and Australia, among others. Scientists have selected it for space suits for future Mars and other space travel.
“Demron is a liquid metal that feels like fabric, and the suits are cool, lightweight and flexible,” DeMeo said. “Demron helps individuals more comfortably perform a broader range of duties and with the confidence of knowing they’re well-protected.”
Demron suits are made from a nanotechnology that surpasses the current NBC suits, which provide limited protection against radioactive sources. It is a lead-free, toxin-free, and PVC-free material that allows heat dissipation and resists chemical penetration and cracks. RST says Demron is proven to block gamma rays and X-rays, as well as other nuclear emissions, by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, part of the National Nuclear Security Administration within the U.S. Department of Energy, as well as the Georgia Institute of Technology and the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.