Current News Releases
June 12, 2008
New centers to focus on nuclear energy nanoenvironmental risk
The University has been awarded new Centers of Economic Excellence in nuclear science and nanoenvironmental research and an endowed chair in a collaborative center with MUSC and Clemson University.
The nuclear energy and nanoenviromental centers, which also will have endowed chairs based at the University, were among seven new centers announced June 9 by the review board that oversees the Centers of Economic Excellence Program.
The Center of Economic Excellence in Nuclear Science and Energy received $3 million in funding and will have one endowed chair in nuclear power and advanced materials. The center will focus on the design, development, and analysis of advanced materials to extend the life of existing nuclear power reactors and to develop a new generation of more efficient reactors.
Mechanical engineering professor Travis Knight has a three-year grant from the Department of Energy to investigate mixed-carbide fuels for gas-cooled fast reactors. He was the first faculty member recruited in the College of Engineering and Computing for a nuclear engineering degree program; there are plans to recruit three more faculty members for program.
"There is the potential for 30 new [nuclear] plants to be built in the next decade so there will be a great need for more master's- and Ph.D.-prepared professionals," Knight said.
The Centers of Economic Excellence Onsite Review Panel reported seeing "rich opportunities for technology development and transfer from this program. As the nation expands its inevitable commitment to increased nuclear power generation, the industry will need the solutions developed by this center."
The Center for Nanoenvironmental Research and Risk Assessment was awarded $3 million and will have one endowed chair. The center will focus on the impact of nanotechnology on the environment, with specific attention to scientific, technological, economic, legal, and societal effects. The center will build on the University's strong existing program of research in nanoscience, which includes the NanoCenter, the recently established Keck Laboratory for nanobioparticle research, and partnerships with federal agencies and laboratories.
Nanoenvironmental risks are possible because some potentially toxic nanomaterials are small enough to cross cell membranes. For example, silver nanoparticles are sometimes added as an anti-bacterial agent to socks and released into wash water when the socks are laundered. The nanoparticles then make their way into wastewater treatment plant sludge, which is sometimes used as a fertilizer for food crops.
The Onsite Review Panel commented: "When combined with the recently appointed endowed chairs in nanoelectronics and in nanocomposites associated with the University's NanoCenter, South Carolina is well positioned to make major contributions in the development of nanotechnology-enabled products."
The University also will have an endowed chair in a new Center in Advanced Tissue Biofabrication, which is a collaborative effort with MUSC and Clemson. The long-term vision for this center involves industrial-scale production of complex tissues and organs. Researchers will focus their work on a technique called "bioprinting," which is used to assemble human tissues and organs by layering living cells and a hydrogel.
The center, which was awarded $5 million, will add to the state's growing program in bioengineering, which includes the Center in Regenerative Medicine and the South Carolina Bioengineering Alliance.
Each of the centers must be matched on a dollar-for-dollar basis with non-state funds raised from corporate or private individual donations/partnerships or grants from federal agencies.
Mechanical engineering professor Travis Knight
Photo: University Marketing & Communications
