1266339 Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI); Jamal Yagoobi 1266327 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC); Hao Feng
The proposed center will focus on improving the energy efficiency of various drying processes. Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) are collaborating to establish the proposed center, with WPI as the lead institution.
The proposed center (CADR) will conduct industry-relevant research in developing novel dehydration technologies to reduce energy consumption by focusing primarily on agricultural and food processing, chemical, forestry products, pharmaceutical, and textile industries. By focusing at the intersection of mechanical and systems engineering with the agricultural and food sciences, and pharmaceutical research, the center intends to assemble a diverse and complementary set of researchers and industrial partners who are uniquely suited to tackle several "grand challenge" types of problems in food production, agriculturally-derived materials, and in chemical, forestry products, and pharmaceutical industries. The flow of basic science and applications among each of the technical areas will provide a cross-disciplinary and translational research environment that will attract top researchers and active industrial participation to the Center.
The proposed center (CADR) will assist U.S. leadership in sustainable manufacturing via improving the corresponding processes efficiencies. Dissemination of results will be facilitated through the industry relationships that each collaborating institution has developed through extensive previous industry/university project work. Direct transfer of these results to industry will permit more rapid adoption of new sustainable processes. CADR envisions a national yearly symposium that will expand on the regional conferences. The new concepts discovered by the Center will also be incorporated into traditional transport phenomena coursework, equipping a new generation of engineers with the tools necessary to implement sustainable manufacturing practices. CADR personnel at WPI and UIUC are committed to cultural diversity to promote the participation of minority students in the Center's work.
Overview: Worcester Polytechnic Institute and the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign are working together to establish a NSF I/UCRC (Industry University Cooperative Research Center) center entitled, "Center for Advanced Drying Research (CARD)". CARD will be a unique center dedicated to assisting US manufacturing industries to become environmentally sustainable via improving the energy efficiency of various drying and heat/mass transfer processes. Major initiatives of CARD will include research and development, focused on efficient drying processes, and creation of new engineering methods to nurture innovation in the next generation of the energy-intensive manufacturing workforce. At a CARD planning meeting held in August 13-14, 2013 on the Worcester Polytechnic Institute campus (see dryingresearch.org), 12 potential projects were presented for evaluation and ranking by about 30 attendees representing 25 companies. Selected projects were then forwarded to attendees for further evaluations and rankings, with the six top-ranked projects to be initiated upon the official establishment of CARD. The projects include use of impinging jet nozzles to enhance heat and mass transfer; use of phase change material to enhance drying of moist porous media; use of nondestructive optical testing to assess expansion or compression impacting a membrane’s sorption capacity; use of nano-sensors, pressure cycling and temperature ramping to improve freeze drying; a study of how surface topography impacts drying rates of moist, adsorbent media; and, development of multiscale fluid transport equations to reduce energy use by drying systems such as heated air, infrared, and microwave heating. Intellectual Merit: CARD will be a platform for conducting industrially-relevant research in developing novel dehydration technologies to reduce energy consumption. The advanced drying focus provides an excellent opportunity to bring about scientific breakthroughs as well as new tools to the study of quality, safety, and energy conservation. CARD’s vision is to assemble a diverse and complementary set of researchers and industrial partners that are uniquely suited to tackle "grand challenge" types of problems with a focus on food production, agricultural materials, bulk chemicals, forestry products, and pharmaceutical products. Other industrial sectors, such as textiles, and other life science research will also benefit from the CARD research vision and development of advanced drying tools and techniques. Broader Impact: CARD is intended to enhance U.S. leadership in sustainable manufacturing by improving manufacturing process efficiencies while also improving product quality. Drying of moist porous materials is one of the most energy-intensive processes in manufacturing; CARD will improve the energy efficiency of drying, and thus the environmental sustainability and worldwide competitiveness of US industry. Further, by understanding the interrelation between drying and final product characteristics, CARD will help industry improve product quality. As an NSF I/UCRC pairing university researchers with manufacturing sponsors, CARD will increase partnerships between academia and industry. And, by carrying out research projects in a university setting, academic opportunities for graduate and other students will increase, as will the labor pool for manufacturing of highly trained industry-relevant researchers and professionals.
