The research objective of this Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER) project is to acquire a fundamental understanding of a genetic engineering approach to self-healing cementitious materials. Concrete and other cementitious materials are intrinsically brittle and prone to cracking under mechanical and environmental stresses. Therefore, innovative materials with the capability to self-heal after cracks formed are highly desirable in infrastructure. The fundamental insights obtained from the results of this award will advance the development of high performance and smart cementitious materials, contribute to public safety, and benefit national economy by improving the durability and reducing maintenance costs of infrastructure. The educational objectives of this project are to promote participation, especially from under-represented groups, in STEM disciplines and to increase the number of undergraduates who pursue a graduate degree. A STEM Challenge Award, as well as annual summer camps, will be designed with the goal of promoting participation from high school students from minority communities in higher education STEM disciplines.
Mother Nature has created biological composite materials, such as nacre of abalone shell, bone, and sea urchin, with unparalleled mechanical and functional properties compared to engineering materials. This is achieved in nature through biomolecules with specific structures and functionalities directing growth, microstructure, internal interfaces, and macroscopic performance of biological materials. Inspired by nature, this project aims to use a recombinant method to identify specific biomolecules that control and tune the formation, microstructure, and properties of the healing material and adapt them to the chemical and physical characteristics of cracked cementitious materials with the goal of transforming the self-healing performance. Hydrogels are polymeric gels and their behavior can be tuned in response to external stimuli. In this project, hydrogels will be rationally designed as a delivery vehicle of biomolecules to impart self-healing in cementitious materials. The results from this research will enable us (i) to discover biomolecules with specific binding to the healing material (calcium carbonate) and cementitious surfaces, (ii) to understand the effect of biomolecules on the microstructure and nanoscale binding of calcium carbonate, (iii) to reveal how hydrogels can modulate the microstructure and phase composition of cementitious materials, and (iv) to establish the relationships between biomolecules, hydrogels, and self-healing performance in cementitious materials.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
