UNC receives funds from NASA

A recent grant from NASA created the Institute for Biologically Inspired Materials, said Edward Samulski, Boshamer and distinguished professor of chemistry, who is heading the research at UNC.

UNC, Princeton University, Northwestern University, the University of California-Santa Barbara and ICASE, a research institute based at NASA's Langley Research Center in Virginia, were awarded a five-year, $17 million grant from NASA, Samulski said.

UNC will receive one-quarter of the total grant, he said.

"(The funds) will be used to support graduate students, postdoctoral researchers and, in some cases, undergraduate research," said Samulski. "Outdated equipment will also be replaced with the NASA money."

The researchers are trying to develop materials that can imitate biological processes, said Tom Sutter, the project manager from NASA.

"We are trying to use biology as an inspiration for new materials," he said. "In biology, if you cut your arm ... it heals. We are looking at developing new materials that are multifunctional, self-healing, self-reproducing and self-assembling."

This new material could improve both commercial and aerospace vehicles in the future, Samulski said.

"NASA is interested in ways to fabricate the next generation of structural materials for both aircraft and spacecraft," he said. "The next generation materials need to be lighter and adaptive -- capable of responding to the environment."

Researchers are confident that the material eventually will be developed, but the process might take a long time, Sutter said.

"This is very basic research for structural applications," he said. "It might not be available for 10 to 20 years."

The kickoff meeting between the participating universities was Sept. 25 at Princeton University and dealt with basic organizational issues, Samulski said.

"The workshop was mostly about logistics -- how will we assemble such a large group of scientists with such diverse backgrounds and have them talk to one another so that a few research targets can be defined and started," he said.

The institutions must work together for the project to be successful, Samulski said.

"The nature of the science that NASA wants investigated is too broad for a single investigator or a single department," he said. "This multidisciplinary science must be addressed from a variety of perspectives and with complementary expertise."

UNC was chosen to participate in the research consortium because of its strong physical science programs, Samulski said.

"(Inclusion in the program) is an important indicator that UNC ranks near the top of contemporary materials science research and training in the country," he said.

IBIM is primarily concerned with researching the biologically inspired material that NASA wants to develop, but the group also will affect students, Samulski said.

Samulski said, "Another (goal) is less obvious: showing a new generation of students that a major in the physical sciences at UNC could be a ticket to a rewarding and productive life."

The University Editor can be reached at udesk@unc.edu.