FEATURE STORY ENGINEERING THE FUTURE OF MANUFACTURING
Marianthi Ierapetritou, the Bob and Jane Gore Centennial Chair of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, has received $3 million in funding from the National Science Foundation’s Future Manufacturing program to explore renewable raw materials for chemical manufacturing.
Solving the climate crisis isn’t just about everyone driving electric vehicles and installing solar panels on our homes. It’s about redesigning the way we live, including sweeping changes to the way we produce everyday products.
As researchers race to find the latest and greatest technologies the world needs to be more resilient and sustainable, one team of educators at the University of Delaware is aiming to create a blueprint for a more renewable manufacturing future with a $3 million grant from the National Science Foundation.
“It’s important to educate the new generation of engineers to try to change the mentality of how we’re utilizing the limited resources we have,” said Marianthi Ierapetritou, UD’s Bob and Jane Gore Centennial Chair of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. She will lead the project as she works with Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Professors Dionisios Vlachos and Raul Lobo, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Associate Professor Hui Fang and Joseph R. Biden, Jr. School of Public Policy and Administration Assistant Professor Kalim Shah to launch the future manufacturing project in 2022.
The goal is to thoroughly examine existing literature around renewable products and processes in manufacturing, which will help researchers synthesize existing data and identify gaps in knowledge. From there, researchers can develop a framework for examining the potential economic, environmental and market impacts of alternative products and processes, while also evaluating the realistic probability of introducing new “green” solutions into existing supply chains and consumer markets.
Researchers demonstrate a method for making ammonia under milder conditions with less energy
About 90% of the ammonia produced globally is used to make fertilizer for agriculture. With a dynamic catalysis approach, ammonia could also potentially provide safe and effective on-site energy storage for renewable resources, such as wind or solar power.
NEWS
NEW CReW DIRECTOR
Cristina Archer Appointed Director of UD’s Center for Research in Wind (CReW)
The Center for Research in Wind (CReW) at the University of Delaware fosters interdisciplinary and collaborative scientific research with the goal of facilitating the transition to power generation using carbon-free geophysical flows, particularly wind power.
NEWS
CREATING VALUE FROM WASTE
Researchers report low-pressure method to convert industrially processed biomass into plastics, chemicals
Robert O'Dea is a chemical engineering doctoral student working in the lab of Professor Thomas Epps and co-author on a new paper which looks at methods of repurposing lignin, the hardest-to-recycle part of trees, grasses and other biomass.
NEWS
SHORT CIRCUIT FOR BIG IMPACT
Researchers report hyper-efficient method for removing carbon dioxide from air
Researchers have broken new ground that could bring more environmentally friendly fuel cells closer to commercialization.
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