Strategic Growth Areas (SGAs)

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https://hdl.handle.net/10919/79468

Similar to Destination Areas in structure, Strategic Growth Areas are smaller and aim for regional or national leadership. Strategic Growth Areas represent additional areas of strength, identified by a faculty survey conducted in January 2016. SGAs may mature into Destination Areas.

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100163 - Materials Strategic Growth Area Research Workshop
(VT Continuing and Professional Education, 2016)
The Economical and Sustainable Materials Strategic Growth Area (Materials SGA) is committed to the development of cross-disciplinary teams that will tackle critical scientific materials challenges related to our pillars of interest: health, energy, environment, and resilient infrastructure. We view these challenges through an atoms/molecules-to-systems lens, so our research and education efforts will span the full scope and sequence of materials use from discovery and computational modeling to processing, manufacturing, and implementation. Our research pillars connect our mission with those of all the existing Destination Areas and Strategic Growth areas. In particular, Adaptive Brain and Behavior, Intelligent Infrastructure for Human Centered Communities, and Global Systems Science have been identified as natural partners.
2012 CPES Annual Report
Center for Power Electronics Systems (Virginia Tech. Center for Power Electronics Systems, 2012)
The Center for Power Electronics Systems at Virginia Tech is a research center dedicated to improving electrical power processing and distribution that impact systems of all sizes – from battery – operated electronics to vehicles to regional and national electrical distribution systems. Our mission is to provide leadership through global collaborative research and education for creating advanced electric power processing systems of the highest value to society. CPES, with annual research expenditures about $4-5 million US dollars, has a worldwide reputation for its research advances, its work with industry, and its many talented graduates. From its background as an Engineering Research Center for the National Science Foundation during 1998 - 2008, CPES has continued to work towards making electric power processing more efficient and more exact in order to reduce energy consumption. Power electronics is the “enabling infrastructure technology” that promotes the conversion of electrical power from its raw form to the form needed by machines, motors and electronic equipment. Advances in power electronics can reduce power conversion loss and in turn increase energy efficiency of equipment and processes using electrical power. This results in increased industrial productivity and product quality. With widespread use of power electronics technology, the United States would be able to cut electrical energy consumption by 33 percent. This energy savings in the United States alone is estimated to be the equivalent of output from 840 fossil fuel based generating plants. This savings would result in enormous economic, environmental and social benefits.
2013 CPES Annual Report
Center for Power Electronics Systems; Uncork-it, Inc. (Virginia Tech. Center for Power Electronics Systems, 2013)
The CPES industrial consortium is designed to cultivate connectivity among researchers in academia and industry, as well as create synergy within the network of industry members. The CPES industrial consortium offers: The best mechanism to stay abreast of technological developments in power electronics; The ideal forum for networking with leadingedge companies and top-notch researchers; The CPES connection provides the competitive edge to industry members via: Access to state-of-the-art facilities, faculty expertise, top-notch students; Leveraged research funding of over $4-10 million per year; Industry influence via Industry Advisory Board and research champions; Intellectual properties with early access for Principal Plus and Principal members via CPES IPPF (Intellectual Property Protection Fund); Technology transfer made possible via special access to the Center’s multi-disciplinary team of researchers, and resulting publications, presentations and intellectual properties; Continuing education opportunities via professional short courses offered at a significant discount. The CPES industrial consortium offers the ideal forum for networking with leading-edge companies and top-notch researchers and provides the best mechanism to stay abreast of technological developments in power electronics.
2014 CPES Annual Report
Center for Power Electronics Systems; Uncork-it, Inc. (Virginia Tech. Center for Power Electronics Systems, 2014)
Over the past two decades, CPES has secured research funding from major industries, such as GE, Rolls-Royce, Boeing, Alstom, ABB, Toyota, Nissan, Raytheon, and MKS, as well as from government agencies including the NSF, DOE, DARPA, ONR, U.S. Army, and the U.S. Air Force, in research pursuing high-density system design. CPES has developed unique high-temperature packaging technology critical to the future powerelectronic industry. In the HDI mini-consortium, the goal of high power density will be pursued following two coupled paths, both leveraging the availability of wide-bandgap power semiconductor, as well as high-temperature passive components and ancillary functions. The switching frequency will be pushed as high as component technologies, thermal management, and reliability permit. At the same time, the maximum component temperatures will be pushed as high as component technologies, thermal management, and reliability permit. The emergence of wide‐bandgap semiconductors such as Silicon Carbide (SiC) and Gallium Nitride (GaN) makes it possible to realize power switches that operate at frequency beyond 5 MHz and temperature beyond 200° C. As the switching frequency increases, switching noise is shifted to higher frequency and can be filtered with small passive components, leading to improved power density. Higher operating temperatures enable increased power density and applications under harsh environments, such as military systems, transportation systems, and outdoor industrial and utility systems.
2015 CPES Annual Report
Center for Power Electronics Systems; Uncork-it, Inc. (Virginia Tech. Center for Power Electronics Systems, 2015)
In its efforts to develop power processing systems to take electricity to the next step, CPES has developed research expertise encompassing five technology areas: (1) power conversion technologies and architectures; (2) power electronics components; (3) modeling and control; (4) EMI and power quality; (5) high density integration. These technology areas target applications that include: (1) Power management for information and communications technology; (2) Point-of-load conversion for power supplies; (3) Vehicular power conversion systems; (4) Renewable energy systems. In 2015, CPES sponsored research totaled approximately $2.2 million. The following abstracts provide a quick insight to the current research efforts.
2016 CPES Annual Report
Center for Power Electronics Systems; Uncork-it, Inc. (Virginia Tech. Center for Power Electronics Systems, 2016)
In its effort to develop power processing systems to take electricity to the next step, CPES has cultivated research expertise encompassing five technology areas: (1) power conversion technologies and architectures; (2) power electronics components; (3) modeling and control; (4) EMI and power quality; and (5) high density integration. These technology areas target applications that include: (1) Power management for information and communications technology; (2) Point-of-load conversion for power supplies; (3) Vehicular power converter systems; and (4) High-power conversion systems. In 2016, CPES sponsored research totaled approximately $2.1 million. The following abstracts provide a quick insight to the current research efforts.
2017 CPES Annual Report
Center for Power Electronics Systems; Uncork-it, Inc. (Virginia Tech. Center for Power Electronics Systems, 2017)
In its effort to develop power processing systems to take electricity to the next step, CPES has cultivated research expertise encompassing five technology areas: (1) power conversion technologies and architectures; (2) power electronics components; (3) modeling and control; (4) EMI and power quality; and (5) high density integration. These technology areas target applications that include: (1) power management for information and communications technology; (2) point-of-load conversion for power supplies; (3) vehicular power converter systems; and (4) high-power conversion systems. In 2016, CPES sponsored research totaled approximately $2.4 million. The following abstracts provide a quick insight to the current research efforts.
2018 CPES Annual Report
(Virginia Tech, 2018)
In its effort to develop power processing systems to take electricity to the next step, CPES has cultivated research expertise encompassing five technology areas: (1) power conversion technologies and architectures; (2) power electronics components; (3) modeling and control; (4) EMI and power quality; and (5) high density integration. These technology areas target applications that include: (1) power management for information and communications technology; (2) point-of-load conversion for power supplies; (3) vehicular power converter systems; and (4) high-power conversion systems. In 2018, CPES sponsored research totaled approximately $2.9 million. The following abstracts provide a quick insight to the current research efforts.
2018 Integrated Pest Management Innovation Lab Semi-Annual Report (October 1 2017 - March 31 2018)
(Virginia Tech, 2018-03-31)
Published every year, our reports detail work, accomplishments, training, and publications from each of our programs.
2020 Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Integrated Pest Management Semi-Annual Report
(Virginia Tech, 2020)
Published every year, our reports detail work, accomplishments, training, and publications from each of our programs.
2nd Annual Advancing the Human Condition Symposium
(Virginia Tech, 2018-11-27)
The Office for Inclusion and Diversity presents the second annual Advancing the Human Condition Symposium, Nov. 27-28, 2018 at the Inn at Virginia Tech and Skelton Conference Center. The two-day event fosters intellectual discourse around emerging questions of the human condition from multi-disciplinary and interdisciplinary perspectives, and adopts a dialogue format that features key discussants and respondents in conversation with other researchers, practitioners, and scholar activists.
3D Bioprinted Human Skeletal Muscle Constructs for Muscle Function Restoration
Kim, Ji Hyun; Seol, Young-Joon; Ko, In Kap; Kang, Hyun-Wook; Lee, Young Koo; Yoo, James J.; Atala, Anthony; Lee, Sang Jin (Springer Nature, 2018-08-17)
A bioengineered skeletal muscle tissue as an alternative for autologous tissue flaps, which mimics the structural and functional characteristics of the native tissue, is needed for reconstructive surgery. Rapid progress in the cell-based tissue engineering principle has enabled in vitro creation of cellularized muscle-like constructs; however, the current fabrication methods are still limited to build a three-dimensional (3D) muscle construct with a highly viable, organized cellular structure with the potential for a future human trial. Here, we applied 3D bioprinting strategy to fabricate an implantable, bioengineered skeletal muscle tissue composed of human primary muscle progenitor cells (hMPCs). The bioprinted skeletal muscle tissue showed a highly organized multi-layered muscle bundle made by viable, densely packed, and aligned myofiber-like structures. Our in vivo study presented that the bioprinted muscle constructs reached 82% of functional recovery in a rodent model of tibialis anterior (TA) muscle defect at 8 weeks of post-implantation. In addition, histological and immunohistological examinations indicated that the bioprinted muscle constructs were well integrated with host vascular and neural networks. We demonstrated the potential of the use of the 3D bioprinted skeletal muscle with a spatially organized structure that can reconstruct the extensive muscle defects.
3D printing of lignin: Challenges, opportunities and roads onward
Ebers, L. -S.; Arya, Aditi; Bowland, C. C.; Glasser, Wolfgang G.; Chmely, S. C.; Naskar, A. K.; Laborie, Marie-Pierre Genevieve (2021-06)
As the second most abundant biopolymer on earth, and as a resource recently becoming more available in separated and purified form on an industrial scale due to the development of new isolation technologies, lignin has a key role to play in transitioning our material industry towards sustainability. Additive manufacturing (AM), the most efficient-material processing technology to date, has likewise made great strides to promote sustainable industrial solutions to our needs in engineered products. Bringing lignin research to AM has prompted the emergence of the nascent "lignin 3D printing" field. This review presents the recent state of art of this promising field and highlights its challenges and opportunities. Following a review of the industrial availability, molecular attributes, and associated properties of technical lignins, we review R&D efforts at implementing lignin systems in extrusion-based and stereolithography (SLA) printing technologies. Doing so underlines the adage of lignin research that "all lignins are not created equal," and stresses the opportunity nested in this chemical diversity created mostly by differences in isolation conditions to molecularly select and tune the attributes of technical lignin systems towards desirable properties, be it by modification or polymer blending. Considering the AM design process in its entirety, we finally propose onward routes to bring the full potential to this emerging field. We hope that this review can help promote the unique value and overdue industrial role of lignin in sustainable engineered materials and products.
3D Sketching and Flexible Input for Surface Design: A Case Study
Leal, Anamary; Bowman, Douglas A. (Brazilian Computing Society (SBC), 2014)
Designing three-dimensional (3D) surfaces is difficult in both the physical world and in 3D modeling software, requiring background knowledge and skill. The goal of this work is to make 3D surface design easier and more accessible through natural and tangible 3D interaction, taking advantage of users' proprioceptive senses to help them understand 3D position, orientation, size, and shape. We hypothesize that flexible input based on fabric may be suitable for 3D surface design, because it can be molded and folded into a desired shape, and because it can be used as a dynamic flexible brush for 3D sketching. Fabric3D, an interactive surface design system based on 3D sketching with flexible input, explored this hypothesis. Through a longitudinal five-part study in which three domain experts used Fabric3D, we gained insight into the use of flexible input and 3D sketching for surface design in various domains.
3D Time-Based Aural Data Representation Using D⁴ Library’s Layer Based Amplitude Panning Algorithm
Bukvic, Ivica Ico (Georgia Institute of Technology, 2016-07)
The following paper introduces a new Layer Based Amplitude Panning algorithm and supporting D⁴ library of rapid prototyping tools for the 3D time-based data representation using sound. The algorithm is designed to scale and support a broad array of configurations, with particular focus on High Density Loudspeaker Arrays (HDLAs). The supporting rapid prototyping tools are designed to leverage oculocentric strategies to importing, editing, and rendering data, offering an array of innovative approaches to spatial data editing and representation through the use of sound in HDLA scenarios. The ensuing D⁴ ecosystem aims to address the shortcomings of existing approaches to spatial aural representation of data, offers unique opportunities for furthering research in the spatial data audification and sonification, as well as transportable and scalable spatial media creation and production.
Access to Autism Spectrum Disorder Services for Rural Appalachian Citizens
Scarpa, Angela; Jensen, Laura S.; Gracanin, Denis; Ramey, Sharon L.; Dahiya, Angela V.; Ingram, L. Maria; Albright, Jordan; Gatto, Alyssa J.; Scott, Jen Pollard; Ruble, Lisa (2020-01)
Background: Low-resource rural communities face significant challenges regarding availability and adequacy of evidence-based services. Purposes: With respect to accessing evidence-based services for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), this brief report summarizes needs of rural citizens in the South-Central Appalachian region, an area notable for persistent health disparities. Methods: A mixed-methods approach was used to collect quantitative and qualitative data during focus groups with 33 service providers and 15 caregivers of children with ASD in rural southwest Virginia. Results: Results supported the barriers of availability and affordability of ASD services in this region, especially relating to the need for more ASD-trained providers, better coordination and navigation of services, and addition of programs to assist with family financial and emotional stressors. Results also suggested cultural attitudes related to autonomy and trust towards outside professionals that may prevent families from engaging in treatment. Implications: Relevant policy recommendations are discussed related to provider incentives, insurance coverage, and telehealth. Integration of autism services into already existing systems and multicultural sensitivity of providers are also implicated.
An Adaptive Actuation Mechanism for Anthropomorphic Robot Hands
Kontoudis, George P.; Liarokapis, Minas; Vamvoudakis, Kyriakos G.; Furukawa, Tomonari (Frontiers, 2019-07-05)
This paper presents an adaptive actuation mechanism that can be employed for the development of anthropomorphic, dexterous robot hands. The tendon-driven actuation mechanism achieves both flexion/extension and adduction/abduction on the finger's metacarpophalangeal joint using two actuators. Moment arm pulleys are employed to drive the tendon laterally and achieve a simultaneous execution of abduction and flexion motion. Particular emphasis has been given to the modeling and analysis of the actuation mechanism. More specifically, the analysis determines specific values for the design parameters for desired abduction angles. Also, a model for spatial motion is provided that relates the actuation modes with the finger motions. A static balance analysis is performed for the computation of the tendon force at each joint. A model is employed for the computation of the stiffness of the rotational flexure joints. The proposed mechanism has been designed and fabricated with the hybrid deposition manufacturing technique. The efficiency of the mechanism has been validated with experiments that include the assessment of the role of friction, the computation of the reachable workspace, the assessment of the force exertion capabilities, the demonstration of the feasible motions, and the evaluation of the grasping and manipulation capabilities. An anthropomorphic robot hand equipped with the proposed actuation mechanism was also fabricated to evaluate its performance. The proposed mechanism facilitates the collaboration of actuators to increase the exerted forces, improving hand dexterity and allowing the execution of dexterous manipulation tasks.
Additive manufacturing of complex micro-architected graphene aerogels
Hensleigh, Ryan M.; Cui, Huachen; Oakdale, James S.; Ye, Jianchao C.; Campbell, Patrick G.; Duoss, Eric B.; Spadaccini, Christopher M.; Zheng, Xiaoyu; Worsley, Marcus A. (Royal Society of Chemistry, 2018-08-13)
3D graphene foams exhibit immense degradation of mechanical properties. Micro-architecture can alleviate this problem, but no current technique meets the manufacturing requirements. Herein we developed a light-based 3D printing process to create hierarchical graphene structures with arbitrary complexity and order-of-magnitude finer features, showing enhanced mechanical properties at decreasing density.
Addressing Inequality: The First Step Beyond COVID-19 and Towards Sustainability
Ashford, Nicholas A.; Hall, Ralph P.; Arango-Quiroga, Johan; Metaxas, Kyriakos A.; Showalter, Amy L. (MDPI, 2020-07-03)
The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted billions of lives across the world and has revealed and worsened the social and economic inequalities that have emerged over the past several decades. As governments consider public health and economic strategies to respond to the crisis, it is critical they also address the weaknesses of their economic and social systems that inhibited their ability to respond comprehensively to the pandemic. These same weaknesses have also undermined efforts to advance equality and sustainability. This paper explores over 30 interventions across the following nine categories of change that hold the potential to address inequality, provide all citizens with access to essential goods and services, and advance progress towards sustainability: (1) Income and wealth transfers to facilitate an equitable increase in purchasing power/disposable income; (2) broadening worker and citizen ownership of the means of production and supply of services, allowing corporate profit-taking to be more equitably distributed; (3) changes in the supply of essential goods and services for more citizens; (4) changes in the demand for more sustainable goods and services desired by people; (5) stabilizing and securing employment and the workforce; (6) reducing the disproportionate power of corporations and the very wealthy on the market and political system through the expansion and enforcement of antitrust law such that the dominance of a few firms in critical sectors no longer prevails; (7) government provision of essential goods and services such as education, healthcare, housing, food, and mobility; (8) a reallocation of government spending between military operations and domestic social needs; and (9) suspending or restructuring debt from emerging and developing countries. Any interventions that focus on growing the economy must also be accompanied by those that offset the resulting compromises to health, safety, and the environment from increasing unsustainable consumption. This paper compares and identifies the interventions that should be considered as an important foundational first step in moving beyond the COVID-19 pandemic and towards sustainability. In this regard, it provides a comprehensive set of strategies that could advance progress towards a component of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 10 to reduce inequality within countries. However, the candidate interventions are also contrasted with all 17 SDGs to reveal potential problem areas/tradeoffs that may need careful attention.
Addressing the Impact of Housing for Virginia’s Economy
Virginia Coalition of Housing and Economic Development Researchers (Governor’s Housing Conference, 2017-11)
In October 2014, Governor McAuliffe issued Executive Order (EO) 32, “Advancing Virginia’s Housing Policy,” to “identify and implement actions to enable quality, affordable housing, which will strengthen families and communities and foster economic growth.” The Housing Policy Advisory Council (HPAC) was thus established under the leadership of the Secretary of Commerce and Trade to help guide the development and implementation of Virginia’s housing policy. A key directive of EO 32 was identifying the links between housing and economic and community development. To this end, the HPAC commissioned a study from a consortium of researchers at Virginia Tech, George Mason University, The College of William and Mary, and Virginia Commonwealth University, with the premise that successful housing policy must be based on independent analytic findings and best practices. The collaborative research of the four universities provides key information on the Commonwealth housing sector, focusing on the economic impact of housing, future scenarios impacting housing needs, and links between housing and other key policy sectors. This report summarizes the research conducted by the four universities and the implications for Virginia’s housing policy development. The report is designed to assist stakeholders and policymakers think more creatively and collaborate more intensely at the state, regional, and local levels as Virginia strives to build on the successes of the past and meet the pressing housing challenges facing the commonwealth. The entirety of the research is included in nine supplemental appendices listed below: Appendix Report 1: Economic Impacts Of Virginia’s Housing Industry Appendix Report 2: Housing The Commonwealth's Future Workforce 2014-2024 Appendix Report 3: Housing Affordability, Msa Gap Analyses Appendix Report 4: Housing And Transportation Appendix Report 5: Virginia Housing Production Affordability Findings Appendix Report 6: Housing And Economic Opportunity Appendix Report 7: Housing, Education, And Economic Development - Literature Appendix Report 8: Housing, Health, And Economic Development - Literature Appendix Report 9: The Future Of Housing In Virginia

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