UC Engineers Attract Record Research Funding

Cincinnati -- Researchers in the UC College of Engineering are attracting attention worldwide with projects that can make a difference in human health, safety and the economy. Total external funding to the college was up 15 percent in the last fiscal year to $20.7 million. The following represent a brief look at the impact of engineering research this year:

BioMEMS Research: Associate professor Chong Ahn is developing MEMS (Micro Electro Mechanical Systems) technology for use in biological and medical applications. On September 24, Ahn will be one of the featured presenters at BioMEMS and Biomedical Nanotechnology World 2000. He will explain how smart plastic biochips can be designed using innovative structurally programmable systems (sPROMs) concepts with no moving parts. This makes the chips more durable, smart, and inexpensive enough to build disposable smart biochips.

Applications include blood testing, environmental monitoring, and detection of biochemical warfare agents. Ahn already received a $2.9 million grant from MicroFlumes program and recently received an additional $3 million grant from BioFlips Program of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to support his BioMEMS research.

Functional Tissue Engineering: Professor David Butler's work in biomedical engineering was recently rewarded with a five-year, $1.5 million grant from the National Institutes of Health. The grant will help Butler expand his work on adult stem cell research for connective tissue repair. Professor Greg Boivin from the department of pathology in the College of Medicine and Dr. Richard Wenstrup from the department of human genetics at Children's Hospital Medical Center are collaborating on the grant.

The group is trying to understand how these cells can be mechanically and chemically stimulated in culture and then implanted to repair damaged tendons in the body. This research was also the basis for a Functional Tissue Engineering Workshop that Butler organized in Tampa, Florida in mid-September. The workshop, funded by the National Science Foundation, the Whitaker Foundation, and six biotech companies, brought together bioengineers, biologists, and clinicians from the US and Canada with interest in designing functional, engineeered repairs for orthopaedic and cardiovascular applications.

Safer and Speedier Highways: Transportation engineer Prahlad Pant put his TIPS system to work along Interstate 75 this summer, helping drivers avoid construction delays in Dayton, Ohio. Pant developed the computerized sensor and warning system for the Ohio Department of Transportation with partial support from the Federal Highway Administration. Unlike standard message boards, the TIPS system can actually predict how long drivers will be stuck in traffic near highway construction projects. The predictions allow drivers to take alternate routes and avoid long delays. Reducing congestion is important, because that improves highway safety.

Aerospace technology to help in search for oil: Ohio Eminent Scholar Ephraim Gutmark received funding and equipment from the Halliburton Company of Texas to establish a new laboratory which could make it easier and less expensive to drill for oil. The research will adapt hydraulic technology Gutmark developed for rocket engines to improve the performance of drill bits used in oil fields. Drill bits can get stuck, break, or wear down under the tremendous strain of drilling for oil. Better hydraulics would protect those expensive drill bits, and the drilling goes much faster. The laboratory will be completed later this year.

Membrane center gets national support: The National Science Foundation agreed this month to support an industry-university Collaborative Research Center for Membrane Applied Science and Technology at UC. The multi-university center will be directed by William Krantz, the Rieveschl Eminent Scholar and Professor Sun-Tak Hwang in chemical engineering. Krantz headed a similar center while at the University of Colorado at Boulder. The new center will combine the research expertise of both universities, while adding new industrial and government partners such as Nestle, Givaudan Flavor Corporation, Wright-Patterson Air Force Labs, and Procter & Gamble. Membrane technologies are used in many industries including food processing, fuel cells, pharmaceuticals, paper products, and refining.

Advanced protection against corrosion and rust: Materials science and engineering researcher Wim van Ooij will receive his second R&D 100 Award Sept. 27 for developing a better way to protect metals from corroding. Last year, van Ooij was honored for developing inexpensive metal coatings to replace toxic chromium. This year, van Ooij will be honored for developing "Galv-Gard." The technology makes it easier and safer to galvanize steel and other metals. It was licensed to Madison Chemical in Indiana, and there is also high interest among European industries searching for environmentally safer production methods.

Insuring a safe future for Fernald: The U.S. Department of Energy sponsored a national technology conference at UC's Kingsgate Conference Center Sept. 19-20 to explore the best ways to manage its former processing facilities at Fernald and Mound. Cleanup is scheduled for completion at both sites by 2008, but long-term stewardship remains a concern. Leaders from DOE and Fluor Fernald, which manages the site, were joined by researchers at UC and other universities who shared their expertise in environmental monitoring, hazardous waste management, and environmental communication.