Planning Grant: I/UCRC for Formation of new MAST Center Site at the University of Arkansas

University Of Arkansas, Fayetteville AR

Investigators

Abstract

1266060 University of Arkansas; Ranil Wickramasinghe The proposed site, the University of Arkansas Fayetteville, requests funding for a planning meeting to establish a partner site of the Membrane Science, Engineering & Technology (MAST) Center that is currently comprised of the New Jersey Institute of Technology (lead institution) and the University of Colorado at Boulder, as a research partner. The addition of the University of Arkansas site to the current MAST Center will bring new areas of expertise and complement existing expertise. A particular focus of the new site will be the application of membrane based separations for sustainability and in the manufacture of food and beverages. The presence of strong departments in food science and poultry science at the University of Arkansas will enable the MAST Center to grow its research program in these new areas. In addition to these new areas, the faculty at the University of Arkansas has expertise that complements existing strength in the core areas of membrane formation, modification, characterization and performance. Faculty members from across the University of Arkansas have been identified who would have strong potential interest in participating as MAST Center researchers. Establishing the proposed MAST site would lead to the education and training of graduate students and post-doctoral fellows for the membrane and related industries. The director of the Arkansas MAST Center site will work with the Arkansas Research Alliance to introduce the MAST Center to local industry. Numerous Arkansas based companies have been identified that could directly benefit from graduate students and postdoctoral researcher who have been trained in membrane science and technology. Further industry mentorship of research projects at the proposed site provides a unique opportunity for graduate students to hone their communications skills and learn to work effectively in teams in addition to the technical skills required by the research projects. The site director plans to work with existing programs on campus to attract students from underrepresented groups in science and engineering to the MAST Center; and, advances in the applications of membrane separation technologies will be incorporated in the undergraduate courses in separations, reactor design and chemical engineering laboratories.