Lightweight, Energy-Efficient Portable Nitrogen Generator for Expeditionary Operations

SBIR topic DON27BZ02-NV007 (U.S. Department of Defense – Navy), Phase I and II. Open to U.S. small businesses. Opens: December 2, 2026. Closes: January 6, 2027. The United States Marine Corps (USMC) requires high-pressure nitrogen gas at forward operating locations to perform essential maintenance tasks, including aircraft and ground vehicle tire servicing, recoil mechanism servicing, recharging of gas suspension and accumulator components, and filling gas cylinders. Historically, the military relies on pre-filled, heavy steel gas cylinders resupplied through a vulnerable logistics chain. This process creates a severe logistical burden and hazardous material handling risk. Generating nitrogen at the point of need is essential to sustaining mission readiness in distributed, austere, and expeditionary environments consistent with USMC Force Design 2030 and Expeditionary Advanced Base Operations (EABO) concepts. The final product will be employed by USMC maintainers operating from forward tactical enclosures, specifically integrating with the JLTV Electronic Maintenance Shelter (JEMS). The system will provide point-of-need, high-purity nitrogen to service tactical vehicle and aircraft tires, hydraulic accumulators, recoil mechanisms, and suspension struts in support of distributed expeditionary operations. While the USMC currently utilizes a legacy portable nitrogen generation system, it presents severe technical limitations that hinder expeditionary operations. First, the legacy system weighs 450 pounds, severely limiting mobility and requiring a four-person lift. Second, it requires 240-volt single-phase electrical power drawing 25 Amps. This exceeds the standard 120-volt, 25-Amp electrical limits of forward tactical enclosures, such as the Joint Expeditionary Maintenance Shelter (JEMS). Third, the current system only achieves 99.0% nitrogen purity (falling short of the required 99.5% for sensitive aviation and vehicle struts) and suffers from extremely slow flow…