BUFFALO, NY — A research team at the RENEW Institute at the University of Buffalo has received three federal grants totaling more than $2.6 million for research focused on environmental issues.
The project is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Topic areas for these funded projects include the development of “net zero water” buildings with self-sustaining water supplies. In-ground sensors that monitor soil health. How to understand the potential toxicity of mixtures of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). PFAS are a class of ubiquitous contaminants known as “eternal chemicals” because they are so difficult to degrade.
These awards demonstrate that the UB RENEW Institute has assembled an interdisciplinary team to develop and enhance its project proposals. Researchers receiving new grants are affiliated with his RENEW Institute and include his UB faculty in the School of Architecture and Planning, the College of Arts and Sciences, and the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.
“Dealing with pressing environmental challenges requires expert expertise across many disciplines. A new federally funded project shows that the UB RENEW Institute has successfully done just that.” The teams working on these projects include architects, chemists, engineers, computational scientists, and others, who will assist the UB RENEW Institute with our faculty in developing truly interdisciplinary proposals. It shows how it functions as a supporting intellectual hub.” President of Research and Economic Development.
“RENEW’s ‘secret sauce’ is the interdisciplinary breadth and disciplinary excellence of its core and affiliated faculty, many of whom are concerned about water access, environmental quality, and justice aspects of green energy production.” are sharing. My aim is to bring together a strong, interdisciplinary group of scholars who will leverage the expertise of RENEW Core Faculty and Faculty Affiliates, understand the complementarity of subject areas, and develop competitive and impactful proposals. said Dr. Diana Aga, Director of UB RENEW. Chemistry Professor at the Institute and Henry M. Woodburn UB College of Arts and Sciences. “RENEW will further enhance UB’s reputation as a leader in climate and environmental science. We are pleased to bring RENEW researchers together to identify collaborators from UB and other institutions, as well as community partners to coordinate energy, water and environmental concerns.”
Newly funded research:
Promotion of “net zero water” buildings with independent water supply
Prize money: $1.5 million
Funding Agency: NSF
Bringing together collaborators from Costa Rica, Egypt, the Philippines, Taiwan and the United Arab Emirates with chemists, engineers and architects from UB, the goal of the project is to advance water quality and sustainability technology, design and policy. The team will develop materials and systems for harvesting water from the atmosphere and disinfecting stormwater, floodwater, and “recycled” domestic water. The researchers also create guidance for implementing such techniques in highly water-resistant buildings in a variety of climates. Extreme weather events like hurricanes are becoming more frequent due to climate change, so the importance of buildings with clean water supplies independent of external water supply infrastructure is evident. To help build a climate-conscious workforce, the project will also provide training opportunities for graduate and undergraduate students. Provide science outreach to middle school and high school students. We will increase the scientific literacy of the people.
The award is one of 13 national awards recently announced by NSF’s International Research and Education Partnerships Program. “We are thrilled with the quality of the proposals submitted and it was a difficult task to select only 13 projects for the award. We look forward to becoming an international hub for research,” said Fahmida Chowdhury and Maija Kukla, program directors of NSF’s International Office of Science and Engineering.
UB Team: Aga, Senior Researcher. Martha Bohm, Associate Professor of Architecture, Co-Principal Investigator. Ning Dai, PhD, Associate Professor of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering, Co-Principal Investigator. Haiqing Lin, PhD, Professor of Chemistry and Biotechnology, Co-Principal Investigator. Bohm is a member of the steering committee of the UB RENEW Institute. Dai is co-leader of RENEW’s Focus Areas on Sustainable Water and Engineering SystemsHayashi is the co-leader of RENEW. Areas of Focus on Environmental Pollution and Human Health Impacts.
Development of underground sensors to monitor soil health
Prize money: $398,998 in UB
Funding Agency: NSF
Led by the Tennessee Institute of Technology, this collaborative project includes teams from UB and the University of Tennessee. The goal is to develop a sensor system that can be embedded in soil to monitor the flow of gases such as carbon dioxide, ammonia, oxygen and nitrous oxide in the soil and provide insight into soil health. Such knowledge will enhance the ability of farmers to make better decisions in the growing cycle of their crops. One of the main purposes is to power the sensor using the through-the-soil (TTS) power transfer technique. With this technology, electrical energy is channeled through the soil, eliminating the need for wires, surface antennas or embedded batteries that can interfere with farming. Successful research could have wide-ranging implications for the piloting of technologies related to improving yields, increasing farmers’ incomes, agriculture, renewable energy, electricity distribution, and ultimately national security.
Thundat, who leads the UB portion of the soil sensor research, notes that the RENEW Institute has made an important contribution in strengthening the multi-agency proposal to NSF. It’s fashion that makes the proposal successful,” says Thundat. “Professor Aga’s expertise in analytical chemistry and her RENEW expertise in advanced machine learning by Dr. Zia Ahmed and the education and outreach by Dr. Lisa Vahapoğlu made the proposal very competitive. .”
UB Team: Dr. Thomas Thundat, SUNY Empire Innovation Professor of Chemistry and Biotechnology, and UB RENEW Institute Core Faculty Member, Principal Investigator. Co-Chief Investigator Aga. Dr. Charles Van Neste of the Tennessee Institute of Technology and Dr. Forbes Walker of the University of Tennessee are also principal investigators.
Predict how mixtures of PFAS and other organic pollutants affect brain development
Prize money: $750,000
Funding Agency: EPA
Bringing together a team of researchers with expertise in analytical chemistry, neuroscience, chemical biology and machine learning, this UB-led project will enable scientists to study the effects of contaminant mixtures on brain development. develop technology. His PFAS, a class of contaminants used in a wide range of household and industrial products, will be a particular focus of this investigation.
Previous research has shown that exposure to high levels of some PFASs can lead to a variety of health problems. However, there are over 5,000 different PFASs, and exposure to mixtures of different PFASs can amplify toxicity in ways that scientists do not yet understand, so analyzing the health effects of PFAS exposure is critical. is difficult. A new study uses high-throughput techniques, machine learning, and studies on cell and zebrafish models to learn how different mixtures containing PFAS affect neurons, and to study mixtures of PFAS and other contaminants. The aim is to develop a predictive system for the potential neurotoxicity of , based on the chemical structure. This research will lay the groundwork for improving public protection for human health and generate new knowledge that can be used to inform future evidence-based policies.
UB Team: Aga, Senior Researcher. Ekin Atilla-Gokcumen, PhD, Professor of Chemistry, Collaborator. Krishna Rajan, ScD, SUNY Empire Innovation Professor, SUNY Distinguished Professor and Erich Bloch Materials Design and Innovation Chair, Co-Investigator. Rajan is a member of the steering committee of the UB RENEW Institute. Atilla-Gokcumen is an affiliated faculty of the UB RENEW Institute. Dr. Beate Escher of the Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research (UFZ) and Dr. Howard Sirotkin of Stony Brook University are also collaborators.
