2015 — 2020 |
Fakhraai, Zahra (co-PI) [⬀] Field, Kristin Lee, Daeyeon (co-PI) [⬀] Composto, Russell [⬀] |
N/AActivity Code Description: No activity code was retrieved: click on the grant title for more information |
Pire: Research and Education in Active Coatings Technologies (React) For the Human Habitat @ University of Pennsylvania
Part 1: This Partnership in Research and Education (PIRE) project addresses critical research challenges for the development of Active Coating Technologies (ACTs) through an international research and educational platform with an aim to transform the human habitat and our ability to respond to disasters. These ACTs will generate fundamental scientific understanding that enables the design of novel materials and properties for the robust collection and purification of water, elimination/reduction of disease transmission, and efficient generation and storage of energy, and hence, will address societal needs that have high relevance for the world and the U.S. To this aim, the University of Pennsylvania has formed an international partnership with fourteen collaborators from six institutions within the Grenoble Innovation for Advanced New Technologies (GIANT) in Grenoble, France. The collaboration with Giant provides the complementary expertise and resources critical for the research. The domestic partners, namely, Alabama State University, Villanova University and Bryn Mawr College further increase the research depth and diversity of participants, who will take part in every aspect of the project including research and education at GIANT. Through the planned research programs every summer, the US team consisting of a post doc, an early career faculty, and graduate and undergraduate students from these domestic institutions and UPenn, will gain invaluable international research experiences at Grenoble. Other important educational components include industrial internships at Salvoy, a world leader in the area, as well as workshops to develop broader career skills, training for the communication of technical information, and the opportunity to innovate on a prototype "Relief Tent" that will showcase ACT research. The research will address fundamental and up-to-now unsolved, materials-related scientific problems that will be applicable to engineering better human habitats and emergency response structures. The integrated research and educational components of the project will contribute to preparing a globally-engaged science and engineering workforce and a new cadre of US scientists poised to be international scientific leaders.
Part 2: To enable coatings that transform the human habitat, each ACT utilizes the versatility afforded by polymers, nanoparticles and their mixtures to create coatings with tailored chemistry, surface texture and function. ACT 1 (water management) seeks to understand how the size, geometry, and surface energy of hierarchically structured coatings influence wetting and water transport. GIANT adds expertise in photoreactive nanomaterials that, when combined with Penn's structured coatings, open new opportunities to manage water. US scientists can investigate wetting of structured coatings using micro beam x-ray scattering tools at GIANT. ACT 2 (suppression of disease transmission) will relate the mechanics and texture of nanobilayer and layer-by-layer coatings to bacteria adhesion and proliferation. GIANT's expertise in synthesis and visualization of biomacromolecules is critical for understanding how bacteria interact with novel surfaces. ACT 3 (energy conversion and storage) will design multilayered coatings to efficiently collect and convert light using textured surfaces from ACT 1 in combination with unique nanoparticles. These photovoltaic cells will be coupled with solid polymer electrolytes designed with fast ion pathways for next generation lithium ion batteries. GIANT's expertise in interrogating energy materials in-situ and in-operando is particularly unique. Five unifying principles and methods integrate the ACTs, including commonality of materials and approaches, the unifying role of theory and simulation, a need for mechanical characterization and robustness, novel methods for structure/property studies at GIANT, and the translation of basic research into applications in collaboration with industry.
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