PFI: Renewable Resource Materials: Developing a New Platform with a Purpose

Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland OH

Investigators

Abstract

This Partnerships for Innovation (PFI) project from Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) focuses on the translation from research to realization in the field of specialty materials from renewable resources such as those found in clay, algae, waste plastics, paints and oils, and animal waste. CWRU and four small businesses in the specialty materials from renewables technology space will join together to explore a new model of cooperation with potential to change the way researchers and small businesses work together in this platform. This will result in more productive innovation capacity building to serve as preparation for enabling movement into the marketplace. The small business partners are located in N.E. Ohio and are a part of a synergistic cluster that will later serve to enhance opportunities for the development and commercialization of novel applications. Research teams include partner companies, CWRU faculty, PhD students, and Master of Engineering and Management students, who will bridge technology and business issues. An additional partner, SRI International, known internationally for its disciplined innovation process, will lead the research teams through collaborative activities key to their innovation training. Through this PFI, the small businesses will have the opportunity to collaborate on innovative technologies with each other and CWRU; two out of the four companies have not had significant prior interaction with universities. Moreover, the identified faculty members who will be working with them will be actively growing their research activities in this field. Consequently, this PFI is enabling the emergence of a cluster in specialty materials from renewable resources that will foster innovative and high impact research and development in the region. The broader impacts of this research are as follows: (1) to train a new generation of PhD researchers to deeply consider market and societal needs in the context of their research and thus contribute more productively in a global innovation economy, (2) develop and sustain new and productive paths of interaction between a major research university and small companies, leading to the building of innovation capacity in the region and a model that can be widely utilized, and (3) enhance the development and deployment of technologies based on renewable resources which will contribute positively to both economic growth and national security. Partners at the inception of the project are all part of the Knowledge Enhancement Partnership (KEP) unit, consisting of Case Western Reserve University (Departments of Macromolecular Science and Engineering, Civil Engineering, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, and the Institute for Management and Engineering); four small businesses: Aeroclay Inc. (Beachwood, Ohio); Green Wave Innovation LLC (Valley View, Ohio); NuVention Solutions Inc. (Valley View, Ohio); and Vadxx Energy LLC (Akron, Ohio); and a private sector organization (not-for-profit): SRI International (Menlo Park, CA).