Katy man on team receiving patent for new material to use in gas wells

A Katy man is part of a team receiving a U.S. patent for a new material that can be used in the digging of gas wells, as well as a method for using it.

In the patent, the inventors describe how they drew on nanotechnology to generate a new kind of "proppant." Proppants are used to prop open fractions in the earth when digging gas wells. They also sometimes are used in oil extraction.

The official patent number for the new invention is 7,867,613. The patent lists inventors Russell J. Smith of Houston; John R. Loscutova of Houston; Christopher E. Coker of Houston; Andrew R. Barron of the Houston Heights area; Robert D. Skala of Katy; Elizabeth A. Whitsitt of Houston; Mark Wiesner of Raleigh, North Carolina; Stephen A. Constantino of Reading, Pennsylvania; and Rajendra Bordia of Seattle. The patent originally was filed on June 27, 2007. It is owned by Houston-based Oxane Materials Inc.

Oxane is a nanoproducts company that focuses on the energy industry. Its offices are located at 467 W. 38th St.