Faculty

Researchers testing next-generation ankle braces for stroke survivors

Alexander James Servantez — Tue, 15 Jul 2025 21:10:47 +0000

Researchers testing next-generation ankle braces for stroke survivors Alexander Jame… Tue, 07/15/2025 - 15:10

Nearly 80% of all stroke survivors experience walking issues and turn to ankle braces for increased support, but ankle braces are still very limited and many stroke survivors report no improvements when using them. Assistant Professor Cara Welker is leading a new, collaborative research project that aims to transform the way these assistive devices are designed.

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New discovery could make a risky heart failure treatment safer

Alexander James Servantez — Thu, 12 Jun 2025 18:58:38 +0000

New discovery could make a risky heart failure treatment safer Alexander Jame… Thu, 06/12/2025 - 12:58

Left ventricular assist devices (LVAD) designed to improve blood flow throughout the body can aid nearly 26 million people globally struggling with heart failure. But these implantable devices come with risks. New research by Assistant Professor Debanjan Mukherjee suggests that studying patient blood flow patterns could help determine who’s at risk of dangerous side effects from LVADs and lead to improvements that could make them safer.

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Robots and chemistry isn’t just a fun combo. Bruns says it’s the future

Alexander James Servantez — Fri, 06 Jun 2025 22:30:26 +0000

Robots and chemistry isn’t just a fun combo. Bruns says it’s the future Alexander Jame… Fri, 06/06/2025 - 16:30

Assistant Professor Carson Bruns is leading the charge on an NSF-funded project that he and his team like to call "robochemistry." Their goal is to create robotic sidekicks that can assist chemists with burdensome or unsafe tasks that they may routinely encounter in a wet lab. But that's not all: this unique blend of bots and beakers can also inspire youth interest in science.

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Tiny robot team could be a gamechanger for safety inspections

Alexander James Servantez — Wed, 21 May 2025 20:01:24 +0000

Tiny robot team could be a gamechanger for safety inspections Alexander Jame… Wed, 05/21/2025 - 14:01

Assistant Professor Kaushik Jayaram, in collaboration with Laura Blumenschein, has received a $1.4 million grant from the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory to develop a tiny robot super team capable of navigating a complex maze of machinery and squeeze through the tightest of spaces—like the guts of a jet engine—to potentially perform non-destructive evaluation faster, cheaper and better than ever before.

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Research & Innovation Office set to host virtual info session on Seed Grant Program in November

Anonymous — Mon, 14 Aug 2023 21:37:46 +0000

Research & Innovation Office set to host virtual info session on Seed Grant Program in November Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 08/14/2023 - 15:37

Designed to catalyze new areas of research, scholarship and creative work, the Seed Grant Program awards nearly $1 million annually to 91�� faculty across all disciplines. This event will be held at noon on Nov. 8 via Zoom.

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3D display could soon bring touch to the digital world

Anonymous — Mon, 31 Jul 2023 15:28:20 +0000

3D display could soon bring touch to the digital world Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 07/31/2023 - 09:28

The device at 91�� is made from a 10-by-10 grid of soft robotic “muscles” that can sense outside pressure and pop up to create patterns. It’s precise enough to generate scrolling text and fast enough to shake a chemistry beaker filled with fluid.

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Wil Srubar named as nominee for 2023 Pritzker Emerging Environmental Genius Award

Anonymous — Mon, 24 Jul 2023 14:23:15 +0000

Wil Srubar named as nominee for 2023 Pritzker Emerging Environmental Genius Award Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 07/24/2023 - 08:23

Josh Rhoten

Wil Srubar

Associate Professor Wil Srubar has been nominated for the 2023 Pritzker Environmental Genius Award for his research re-imagining sustainable building materials.

Srubar is part of the Department of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering and the Material Science and Engineering Program at 91��. His lab conducts major research into biomimetic and living materials that have the potential to drastically reduce environmental pollution caused by construction activities around the globe.

Srubar joins a list of candidates – all under the age of 40 – working to advance environmental causes around the world. The roster includes leaders in fields such as sustainable design, wildlife law, shark conservation and carbon markets. In the coming months a committee will choose three finalists for the award. Then judges will select a winner to be announced at an Oct. 26 ceremony. Winners receive $100,000 and finalists take home $5,000 – made possible by a gift from the Anthony and Jeanne Pritzker Family Foundation.

Srubar said being included in such an impressive cohort of nominees is a true honor.

“For my living materials research and related entrepreneurial endeavors to be recognized in this way is both humbling and exhilarating,” he said. “Winning the award would bring world-renowned recognition and legitimacy to the idea that nature-based material solutions are critical to decarbonizing the construction industry and combatting the consequences of climate change.”

Srubar has been recognized for his research in a variety of venues recently. He was named to the Top 25 Newsmakers list by Engineering News Record and was the American Ceramic Society’s Cements Division Early Career Award winner in 2023. Previously, he was selected as the BioEnvironmental Polymer Society Outstanding Young Scientist in 2021 and won a prestigious National Science Foundation CAREER award in 2020. To date, his laboratory has received over $12 million in sponsored research funding through the U.S. National Science Foundation, Air Force Research Laboratories, ARPA-E and DARPA’s Biological Technologies Office.

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