Current News Releases
Oct. 1, 2007
Polymer nanocomposite research advances with partners, NSF grant
Carolina's research on polymer nanocomposites has attracted four industrial partners and a three-year, $600,000 grant from the National Science Foundation.
The NSF project will team graduate students from chemistry and chemical engineering with International MBA students from the University's Moore School of Business. Together they will work with professors from engineering, chemistry, and business to study problems posed by the industry partners.
The project builds on the University's growing expertise in polymer nanocomposites, the microscopic additives that enhance polymers used to make plastics, fibers, and other materials.
"We're going to be doing technical research in the lab and at the same time doing market analysis and tackling other business issues that our industrial partners have asked for assistance on," said Harry Ploehn, a chemical engineering professor in the College of Engineering and Computing.
"NSF doesn't normally fund projects that are so applied, but they're interested in accelerating technology transfer and increasing the efficiency of the innovation process. That's what our polymer nanocomposite research is all about--adding value from innovative research to the polymer industry."
The University's industrial partners in polymer nanocomposites are Eastman Chemical; PBI Performance Products, which makes heat- and flame-resistant fibers used in firefighting gear; Mead Westvaco; and Michelin Tire Co. Other Carolina faculty involved in the project are chemistry professor Hanno zur Loye and David Pond, adjunct research professor in chemistry and biochemistry, and Bill Sandberg, a management professor who teaches entrepreneurial studies in the Moore School of Business.
Sandberg believes the NSF project will benefit both IMBA students and science/engineering students.
"We want business students to have a better understanding of the process by which science moves from basic to applied as it goes into the marketplace," he said. "And we're introducing the chemistry and chemical engineering students to business considerations. They're going to be working for industry, and they'll be more valuable if they understand and appreciate those concepts.
"The tension that exists in research and development in many businesses is between the scientists and the business managers who don't understand each other's time frames or needs. That's why we want our business and science students to work more together."
