[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 86 (Thursday, May 4, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28489-28491]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-09463]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration


Rice University, et al.; Application(s) for Duty-Free Entry of 
Scientific Instruments

    Pursuant to section 6(c) of the Educational, Scientific and 
Cultural Materials Importation Act of 1966 (Pub. L. 89-651, as amended 
by Pub. L. 106-36; 80 Stat. 897; 15 CFR part 301), we invite comments 
on the question of whether instruments of equivalent scientific value, 
for the purposes for which the instruments shown below are intended to 
be used, are being manufactured in the United States.
    Comments must comply with 15 CFR 301.5(a)(3) and (4) of the 
regulations and be postmarked on or before May 24, 2023. Address 
written comments to Statutory Import Programs Staff, Room 3720, U.S. 
Department of Commerce, Washington, DC 20230. Please also email a copy 
of those comments to [email protected].
    Docket Number: 23-005. Applicant: Rice University, 6100 Main 
Street, Houston, TX 77005. Instrument: Full-ring Shaped Ultrasonic 
Transducer Array. Manufacturer: HEBEI ULSO TECH CO., LTD., China. 
Intended Use: The instrument is intended to be used in the research of 
photoacoustic tomography, which will be used for photoacoustic signal 
full-view detection. The instrument will be integrated into a 
customized photoacoustic imaging system for visualization of wholebody 
dynamics inside small animals for biomedical applications. For example, 
the developed imaging system can be used to study tumor metastasis, 
monitor chemotherapy, and test new drugs. The overall goal of this 
research is to develop a pre-clinical molecular imaging platform for 
cancer study. The instrument will be used for multiple imaging related 
undergraduate/graduate level courses in electrical engineering at Rice 
University, including computation imaging, computer vision, optical 
imaging, medical imaging, etc. The instrument will be integrated into a 
customized medical imaging system consisting of optics, ultrasonic 
sensing, data acquisition and image reconstruction. Each component will 
be discussed in related courses. Students will also tour the research 
lab and

[[Page 28490]]

operate the imaging system to gain hands-on experience. Justification 
for Duty-Free Entry: According to the applicant, there are no 
instruments of the same general category manufactured in the United 
States. Application accepted by Commissionerof Customs: February 1, 
2023.
    Docket Number: 23-006. Applicant: University of Wisconsin Stout, 
712 Broadway Street, S, Menomonie, WI 54751. Instrument: 156 Direction 
Photographic Lighting Cage. Manufacturer: ESPER Designs, Ltd., United 
Kingdom. Intended Use: To enable/improve the capture of objects with 
difficult appearance properties. To increase accessibility to data and 
software supporting photogrammetry and inverse rending research at 
other institutions. To empower the digital preservation and exhibition 
of three-dimensional cultural heritage artifacts for galleries, 
libraries, archives, and museums.
    The grant was awarded to the University of Wisconsin Stout, a 
primarily undergraduate, public university. The equipment will be 
housed in the university Fabrication Lab which is accessible to all 
students on campus. It will also be used to support curriculum in 
courses for the Game Design and Development (GDD) Program, the 
Professional Communication and Emerging Media (PCEM) Program, and other 
design programs. Justification for Duty-Free Entry: According to the 
applicant, there are no instruments of the same general category 
manufactured in the United States. Application accepted by Commissioner 
of Customs: December 13, 2022.
    Docket Number: 23-007. Applicant: The Board of Trustees of the 
Colorado School of Mines for and on Behalf of the Colorado School of 
Mines, 1500 Illinois Street, Golden, CO 80401. Instrument: Oxide 
Molecular Beam Epitaxy System. Manufacturer: Scienta Omicron, Germany. 
Intended Use: Oxide thin films will be grown for materials discovery 
and materials science research. The identity of the materials or 
phenomena to be studied: Oxide and metal thin film materials that are 
insulating, semiconducting, or metals (ie. YMnO3, IrO2). The properties 
of the materials or phenomena to be investigated: Primarily study of 
their functional properties (such as ferroelectric, piezoelectric, and/
or ferromagnetic) or for growth of surfaces relevant to energy 
conversion and storage applications (electrolysis, fuel cells, ion 
transport). The experiments to be conducted: Thin film growth using in 
situ reflection high energy electron diffraction (RHEED) surface 
monitoring and studies. The objectives pursued during the 
investigations are the development of novel materials for functional 
and energy applications, fundamental science surface and materials 
properties studies. The techniques used in employing the instrument to 
achieve the objectives: Oxide molecular beam epitaxy growth, RHEED. 
Justification for Duty-Free Entry: According to the applicant, there 
are no instruments of the same general category manufactured in the 
United States. Application accepted by Commissionerof Customs: 
September 8, 2021.
    Docket Number: 23-008. Applicant: Arizona State University, 1711 S. 
Rural Road, Tempe, AZ 85281. Instrument: Cheetah 1 X-by-wire Automated 
Vehicle Chassis. Manufacturer: Shanghai Liaison Tech Co., Ltd., China. 
Intended Use: The Cheetah Chassis (model cars) will be used to develop 
a small testbed, and add IMU sensors, GPS, mmWave radar, communication 
modules, and motor controllers on each of the Cheeta Chassis. 
Experiments will be run on model cars to test the sensing and 
connectivity between vehicles, with the objectives being to test 
functionalities including, V2V and V2I communications, sensing and 
vehicle automation control algorithms. First, simulation studies will 
run in the lab, and then implement the modules on the testbed and run 
experiments in parking lots to achieve the objectives. Justification 
for Duty-Free Entry: According to the applicant, there are no 
instruments of the same general category manufactured in the United 
States. Application accepted by Commissionerof Customs: March 22, 2022.
    Docket Number: 23-009. Applicant: University of Chicago, 5640 S 
Elis Avenue, ERC LL248, Chicago, IL 60637. Instrument: Fiber Laser and 
Fiber Amplifier. Manufacturer: Precilasers, China. Intended Use: 
Experimentally demonstrate entanglement generation between our atoms by 
creating Bell Pairs (a state of two maximally entangled atoms) and 
measuring parity oscillations when we drive them with a laser. Next, we 
will use our ability to generate entanglement to create and measure 
more exotic entangled states, such as ''cluster states'', which promise 
to be useful for measurement-based quantum computation. There will be 
other quantum phenomena we will investigate along the way, such as 
using our entangled states for electric field measurements, but 
eventually we will experimentally develop single-atom laser control, 
which will allow us to perform almost arbitrary programmable quantum 
computation. Justification for Duty-Free Entry: According to the 
applicant, there are no instruments of the same general category 
manufactured in the United States. Application accepted by Commissioner 
of Customs: June 28, 2022.
    Docket Number: 23-010. Applicant: Arizona State University, 1711 S. 
Rural Road, Tempe, AZ 85281. Instrument: Cheetah 1 X-by-wire Automated 
Vehicle Chassis. Manufacturer: Shanghai Liaison Tech Co., Ltd., China. 
Intended Use: The Cheetah Chassis (model cars) will be used to develop 
a small testbed, and add IMU sensors, GPS, mmWave radar, communication 
modules, and motor controllers on each of the Cheeta Chassis. 
Experiments will be run on model cars to test the sensing and 
connectivity between vehicles, with the objectives being to test 
functionalities including V2V and V2I communications, sensing and 
vehicle automation control algorithms. First, simulation studies will 
run in the lab, and then implement the modules on the testbed and run 
experiments in parking lots to achieve the objectives. Justification 
for Duty-Free Entry: According to the applicant, there are no 
instruments of the same general category manufactured in the United 
States. Application accepted by Commissioner of Customs: March 10, 
2023.
    Docket Number: 23-011. Applicant: Arizona State University, 1711 S. 
Rural Road, Tempe, AZ 85281. Instrument: Cheetah 1 X-by-wire Automated 
Vehicle Chassis. Manufacturer: Shanghai Liaison Tech Co., Ltd., China. 
Intended Use: The Cheetah Chassis (model cars) will be used to develop 
a small testbed, and add IMU sensors, GPS, mmWave radar, communication 
modules, and motor controllers on each of the Cheeta Chassis. 
Experiments will be run on model cars to test the sensing and 
connectivity between vehicles, with the objectives being to test 
functionalities including V2V and V2I communications, sensing, and 
vehicle automation control algorithms. First, simulation studies will 
run in the lab, and then implement the modules on the testbed and run 
experiments in parking lots to achieve the objectives. Justification 
for Duty-Free Entry: According to the applicant, there are no 
instruments of the same general category manufactured in the United 
States. Application accepted by Commissioner of Customs: March 10, 
2023.
    Docket Number: 23-012. Applicant: Drexel University, 3141 Chestnut 
Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104. Instrument:

[[Page 28491]]

 Roll-to-Roll Coater. Manufacturer: InfinityPV ApS, Denmark. Intended 
Use: The instrument will be used to study the processing of halide 
perovskite thin films for application in solar cells. Perovskites have 
ideal optical and electronic properties for solar energy conversion, 
but work remains to understand how to obtain these desirable properties 
while processing in a high-speed roll-to-roll manner. Vary coating, 
drying, and annealing conditions to understand how processing affects 
material properties. The objective is to uncover conditions that lead 
to photovoltaic-grade perovskite films at web speeds larger than 1 m/
min. The instrument must fit in a fume hood and within the project 
budget. This research is supported by the National Science Foundation 
under the award CMMI-1933819. Justification for Duty-Free Entry: 
According to the applicant, there are no instruments of the same 
general category manufactured in the United States. Application 
accepted by Commissioner of Customs: April 6, 2022.
    Docket Number: 23-013. Applicant: New Mexico Institute of Mining 
and Technology Magadalena Ridge Observatory Interferometer (MROI), 801 
Leroy Place, Socorro, NM 87801. Instrument: Unit Telescope. 
Manufacturer: Advanced Mechanical and Optical Systems (AMOS), Belgium. 
Intended Use: To better understand the universe and the processes that 
take place within it by observation of objects whose structure, origins 
and fate are not properly understood at present. These research areas 
are fundamental to expanding the knowledge of particle physics, as well 
as understanding the origins of the Universe and Earth. Justification 
for Duty-Free Entry: According to the applicant, there are no 
instruments of the same general category manufactured in the United 
States. Application accepted by Commissioner of Customs: March 2, 2023.

    Dated: April 28, 2023.
Gregory W. Campbell,
Director, Subsidies and Economic Analysis, Enforcement and Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2023-09463 Filed 5-3-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-DS-P