Category Archives: News

Center for Neutron Science at the University of Delaware: Neutron Metrology for Solving Grand Challenge Problems by Engineering the Tools of Scientific Discovery

This cooperative agreement between the Center for Neutron Science (CNS) at the University of Delaware (UD) and the NCNR for the purpose of advancing neutron scattering metrology for research and by using this neutron science to address the following NAE Grand Challenge Problems: Engineering Better Medicines, Restore and Improve Urban Infrastructure, and Engineering the Tools of Scientific Discovery.

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Norman Wagner

Engineer, inventor, mentor named 2020 Francis Alison winner

Wagner’s lifelong curiosity and delight in science, research and collaborative problem-solving have fueled an inventive career that has inspired many a colleague and student, drawn international recognition and now is distinguished with the University of Delaware’s highest faculty honor — the 2020 Francis Alison Award. The award, established in 1978, is named for the University’s founder, the Rev. Francis Alison, and recognizes contributions and distinction as both a scholar and an educator.

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A team of engineers has shown that surface diffusion in protein transport into ion-exchange beads depends on adsorption affinity — a measure of attraction between the two materials.

UD engineers uncover role of surface diffusion in protein transport, which could aid biopharmaceutical processing

A team of engineers from the University of Delaware, with a collaborator from pharmaceutical company Amgen, has shown that surface diffusion in protein transport into ion-exchange beads depends on adsorption affinity — a measure of attraction between the two materials. By exploiting this relationship, the team developed a procedure to purify a monoclonal antibody — a type of molecule that mediates immunity — with productivity 43% higher than usual.

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At Neutron Day, international experts discuss the future of neutron scattering science

October 30 was Neutron Day this year at the University of Delaware. Why celebrate neutrons? Because these subatomic particles with neutral electrical charge can bring positive benefits to the world. Researchers at the University of Delaware are using neutrons to investigate ways to make new, better products, from super strong building materials to lifesaving medicines.

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The University of Delaware will lead the development of a world-class neutron spin echo spectrometer, which will be installed at the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Center for Neutron Research, shown here.

UD tapped to lead development of world-class neutron research instrument

The University of Delaware has been tapped to lead the development of a world-class neutron spin echo spectrometer for the United States. This scientific instrument will advance U.S. research on countless materials important to humanity, from new medicines to more powerful batteries. UD’s Norman Wagner, the Unidel Robert L. Pigford Chair in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and director of the Center for Neutron Science, will lead the project, which is funded by an $11.8 million grant from the National Science Foundation. “This groundbreaking research project brings distinction to the entire University of Delaware, and we are excited to see what the future will bring,” said UD President Dennis Assanis. “On behalf of our entire University, I want to offer heartfelt congratulations to Dr. Wagner and his research group on this remarkable accomplishment.” It is among the first awards in NSF’s Mid-Scale Research Infrastructure program, announced Sept. 17.

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Center for Neutron Science team wins $11M grant from NSF

Senator Chris Coons congratulates University of Delaware’s Norm Wagner and Center for Neutron Science Team

Senator Chris Coons: “Congrats to @UDelaware’s Norm Wagner & his Center for Neutron Science team for winning an $11M grant from @NSF. This funding will help American scientists, NIST, UD, UMD & partners close an important gap by supporting both research & the best neutron measurement instrumentation.”

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Olga Matsarskaia, Institut Laue-Langevin, Grenoble, France “How Multivalent Cations Tune the Phase Behaviour of Proteins: Insights from Scattering Experiments”

Dr. Matsarskaia completed her Ph.D. studies in December 2018 in Frank Schreiber’s group at the University of Tübingen, Germany. Her research focused on the influence that multivalent cations have on the thermodynamics of proteins in solution. Her main methods involved various X-ray and neutron scattering techniques. Currently, she is a post-doctoral fellow in Bela Farago’s neutron spectroscopy group at the Institut Laue-Langevin in Grenoble, France, and focuses on the dynamics of proteins in crowded environments using neutron backscattering and complementary methods. View Abstract

Understanding Gas Storage in Cuboctahedral Porous Coordination Cages

Bloch Group recently published a paper in JACS where neutron diffraction was used to study methane binding sites in porous materials

Gregory R. Lorzing, Eric J. Gosselin, Benjamin A. Trump, Arthur H. P. York, Arni Sturluson, Casey A. Rowland, Glenn P. A. Yap, Craig M. Brown, Cory M. Simon, Eric D. Bloch*

Porous molecular solids are promising materials for gas storage and gas separation applications. However, given the relative dearth of structural information concerning these materials, additional studies are vital for further understanding their properties and developing design parameters for their optimization. Here, we examine a series of isostructural cuboctahedral, paddlewheel-based coordination cages, M24(tBu-bdc)24 (M = Cr, Mo, Ru; tBu-bdc2– = 5-tert-butylisophthalate), for high-pressure methane storage. As the decrease in crystallinity upon activation of these porous molecular materials precludes diffraction studies, we turn to a related class of pillared coordination cage-based metal–organic frameworks, M24(Me-bdc)24(dabco)6 (M = Fe, Co; Me-bdc2– = 5-methylisophthalate; dabco = 1,4-diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane) for neutron diffraction studies. The five porous materials display BET surface areas from 1057–1937 m2/g and total methane uptake capacities of up to 143 cm3(STP)/cm3. Both the porous cages and cage-based frameworks display methane adsorption enthalpies of −15 to −22 kJ/mol. Also supported by molecular modeling, neutron diffraction studies indicate that the triangular windows of the cage are favorable methane adsorption sites with CD4–arene interactions between 3.7 and 4.1 Å. At both low and high loadings, two additional methane adsorption sites on the exterior surface of the cage are apparent for a total of 56 adsorption sites per cage. These results show that M24L24 cages are competent gas storage materials and further adsorption sites may be optimized by judicious ligand functionalization to control extracage pore space.

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2019 Cement Day at the University of Delaware Perkins Ewing Room

Leading Engineering for America’s Prosperity, Health, and Infrastructure

Tuesday, May 21, 2019
9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Perkins Ewing Room

Protection Using STF-Armor™ and Self-Healing Polymers

University of Delaware/NASA Johnson Space Center, Human Exploration & Operations, Space Technology Mission Directorates, International Space Station

The low-Earth orbit (LEO) environment exposes astronauts performing extravehicular activity (EVA) to potential threats from micrometeoroid and orbital debris (MMOD). Moreover, impacts of MMOD with the International Space Station (ISS) can cause craters along hand railings which can pose a cutting threat to astronauts during EVA missions. In this research, we are developing advanced nanocomposite textiles based on STF-Armor™ to improve astronaut survivability. The aim of these investigations is the incorporation of the STF technology to improve the protection of astronaut EPGs capable of withstanding extended exposure to the space environment during multiple EVAs. A hypodermic needle puncture test is used to simulate the threat posed by damaged surfaces. LEO-compatible-STF-treated spacesuit layups are two times more resistant to puncture than the current TMG, without sacrificing weight and thickness of the spacesuit. The longevity and robustness of LEO-STF-treated spacesuit materials, successfully launched with the Materials International Space Station Experiments, MISSE-9, aboard SpaceX-14 resupply mission on April 2, 2018, will be tested over the next year. The samples will be exposed to extreme levels of solar and charged-particle radiation, atomic oxygen, hard vacuum, and temperature extremes. The gathered data including monthly high-resolution images of the samples, temperature, particulate contamination and UV intensity data can be used to evaluate the proposed LEO-STF spacesuit materials for possible use in planetary exploration beyond Earth such as NASA’s mission to Mars. Industry Collaboration: STF Technologies, LLC and Alpha Space Test and Research Alliance, LLC

View NASA EPSCoR ISS Stimuli 2018-19