NASA Announces Research Grants in Microgravity Materials Research

Renee Juhans

Headquarters, Washington, DC

(Phone: 202/358-1712)

RELEASE: 00-1

NASA ANNOUNCES RESEARCH GRANTS
IN MICROGRAVITY MATERIALS SCIENCE

NASA has selected 65 researchers to receive grants totaling
approximately $22 million over four years to conduct microgravity
materials science research on Earth and in space.

Sponsored by NASA’s Office of Life and Microgravity Science
and Applications, this research offers investigators the
opportunity to use a low-gravity environment to enhance the
understanding of fundamental physical and chemical processes
associated with materials science.

Researchers will use NASA’s microgravity research facilities
such as drop tubes, drop towers, and aircraft flying parabolic
trajectories, with the flight-definition investigators working
toward experiments on space-flight test beds such as the
International Space Station and Space Shuttle.

Sixty of the grants are to conduct ground-based research,
while the remaining five are flight-definition efforts. Twenty-
two of these grants are for continuation of work currently being
funded by NASA, but the remaining 43 represent new research
efforts.

NASA received 232 proposals in response to this research
announcement. These proposals were all peer-reviewed by
scientific and technical experts from academia, government, and
industry. In addition, those proposals selected for flight
definition were reviewed in terms of engineering feasibility by a
team from NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, AL.

A list of awardees (by state), their institutions, and
research titles can be found on the Internet at:
ftp://ftp.hq.nasa.gov/pub/pao/pressrel/2000/00-001a.txt

-end-

Materials Science PI Funding Information

Flight-Based Research
Iowa
Professor Christoph Beckermann

University of Iowa

Iowa City, IA

“Dendritic Alloy Solidification Experiment (DASE)”
Professor Rohit Trivedi

Iowa State University

Ames, IA

“Dynamical Selection of Three-Dimensional Interfacial Patterns in

Directional Solidification”
Massachusetts
Professor Merton C. Flemings

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Cambridge, MA

“The Role of  Convection and Growth Competition on Phase Selection

in Microgravity”
Missouri
Dr. Kenneth F. Kelton

Washington University, St. Louis

St. Louis, MO

“Studies of Nucleation and Growth, Specific Heat and Viscosity of

Undercooled Melts of Quasicrystals and Polytetrahedral-Phase-

Forming Alloys”
Ohio
Professor Prabir Dutta

The Ohio State University

Columbus, OH

“Fundamental Studies of Crystal Growth of Microporous Materials”
Ground-Based Research
Alabama
Dr. Ching-Hua Su

NASA Marshall Space Flight Center

Huntsville, AL

“Structural Fluctuations and Thermophysical Properties of Molten

II-VI Compounds”
Dr. Konstantin Mazuruk

NASA Marshall Space Flight Center

Huntsville, AL

“Effects of Traveling Magnetic Field on Dynamics of

Solidification”
Dr. Donald C. Gillies

NASA Marshall Space Flight Center

MSFC, AL

“Use of Computed Tomography for Characterizing Materials Grown

Terrestrially and in Microgravity”
Dr. Edwin C. Ethridge

Marshall Space Flight Center

Huntsville, AL

“Mechanism for the Crystallization Studies of ZBLAN”
Professor Jimmy  W. Mays

University of Alabama at Birmingham

Birmingham, AL

“Controlled Synthesis of Nanoparticles using Block Copolymers:

Nanoreaction in Microgravity Conditions”
Arizona
Professor Kenneth A. Jackson

University of Arizona

Tucson, AZ

“Growth of Rod Eutectics”
California
Dr. Satwindar S. Sadhal

University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA

“Non-Intrusive Measurement of Thermophysical Properties of Liquids

by Electrostatic-Acoustic Hybrid Levitation”
Professor John F. Brady

California Institute of Technology

Pasadena, CA

“Dispersion Microstructure and Rheology in Ceramics Processing”
Professor George M. Homsy

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

“Solid State Electrochemical Oxygen Conversion for Martian and

Lunar Environments: Materials Development, Reactor Concepts, and

Chemical Conversion Cycles”
Dr. Allen K. MacKnight

AlliedSignal Inc.

Torrance, CA

“Advanced Materials Growth in Microgravity: Carbon Nanotubes,

Semiconductors and Advanced Nanocomposites”
Dr. Won-Kyu Rhim

California Institute of Technology

Pasadena, CA

“Measurements of Thermophysical Properties of Molten Silicon and

Germanium”
Professor Paul D. Ronney

University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA

“Extinction and Instability Mechanisms of Polymerization Fronts”
Dr. Tony W. Armstrong

Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC)

San Diego, CA

“Development of a Monte Carlo Radiation Transport Code System for

HEDS”
Dr. Cary J. Zeitlin

Ernest O. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Berkeley, CA

“Measurement of Charged Particle Interactions in Spacecraft and

Planetary Habitat Shielding Materials”
Dr. Jack Miller

Ernest O. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Berkeley, CA

“Radiation Transport Properties of Potential In-Situ-Developed

Regolith-Epoxy Materials for Martian Habitats”
Colorado
Dr. Larry W. Mason

Lockheed Martin Astronautics

Denver, CO

“C0(2) Acquisition Membrane (CAM)”
Florida
Professor Reza Abbaschian

University of Florida

Gainesville, FL

“Morphological Stability of Faceted Interfaces”
Professor Timothy J. Anderson

University of Florida

Gainesville, FL

“An Electrochemical Method to Visualize Flow in Liquid Metals”
Professor Daniel R. Talham

University of Florida

Gainesville, FL

“The Features of Self-Assembling Organic Bilayers Important to the

Formation of Anisotropic Inorganic Materials in Low -gravity

Conditions”
Illinois
Dr. Jonathan A. Dantzig

University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

Urbana, IL

“Phase Field Modeling of Microstructure Development in

Microgravity”
Dr. Jens Alkemper

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

“The Evolution of Dendrite Morphology during Isothermal

Coarsening”
Dr. Shankar Krishnan

Containerless Research, Inc.

Evanston, IL

“Structure-Property Correlations of Phase Transitions in Group IV

and III-V Liquids”
Dr. John S. Walker

University of Illinois, Urbana

Urbana, IL

“Models to Optimize the Benefits of Rotating Magnetic Fields for

Semiconductor Crystal Growth in Space”
Dr. Richard Weber

Containerless Research, Inc.

Evanston, IL

“Process-Property-Structure Relationships in Complex Oxide Melts”
Indiana
Dr. David R. Johnson

Purdue University

West Lafayette, IN

“Experimental and Numerical Investigations of Growth Morphologies

of Peritectic Reactions”
Kansas
Professor Mark D. Hollingsworth

Kansas State University

Manhattan, KS

“Crystal Growth of New Families of Ferroelastic Materials”
Professor Kenneth J. Klabunde

Kansas State University

Manhattan, KS

“Nanocrystal Superlattices: Synthesis and Properties”
Massachusetts
Professor Alain S. Karma

Northeastern University

Boston, MA

“Phase-field Simulations of Dendritic Growth at Low Undercooling:

Confronting Theory and Experiment”
Professor Michael Cima

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Cambridge, MA

“Forces During Manufacture and Assembly of Microscale Discrete

Electronic Components”
Professor Michael Tsapatsis

University of Massachusetts Amherst

Amherst, MA

“Thin Film Molecular Sieve Synthesis: Processing-Microstructure

Relationships and the Effect of Gravity on Microstructure”
Professor Donald R. Sadoway

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Cambridge, MA

“From Oxygen Generation to Metal Production: In Situ Resource

Utilization by Molten Oxide Electrolysis”
Professor Frans A. Spaepen

Harvard University

Cambridge, MA

“Glass Formation, Nucleation and Diffusion in Metallic Melts”
Professor George Benedek

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Cambridge, MA

“Kinetic Evolution of Stable and Metastable States in Protein

Solutions”
Dr. Thomas P. Russell

University of Massachusetts

Amherst, MA

“Capillary Wavelengths at Interfaces: The Role of Gravity and

Electric Field Enhancement”
Dr. David L. Kaplan

Tufts University

Medford, MA

“Hierarchical Assembly of Collagen”
Maryland
Dr. Geoffrey B. McFadden

National Institute of Standards and Technology

Gaithersburg, MD

“Convective and Morphological Instabilities During Crystal Growth”
Dr. Richard H. Maurer

The Johns Hopkins University

Laurel, MD

“Development of a Neutron Spectrometer to Assess Biological

Radiation Damage Behind Spacecraft Materials”
Michigan
Professor Andre Benard

Michigan State University

East Lansing, MI

“Investigation of Solidification Processes with Convection Using

Meshless Methods and Quantitative Experimental Verification”
Minnesota
Professor Jeffrey J. Derby

University of Minnesota

Minneapolis, MN

“First Principles Calculations of Molten II-VI Compounds and Their

Solidification Behavior”
Missouri
Professor Nancy Ma

University of Missouri, Rolla

Rolla, MO

“Models of Mass Transport during Microgravity Crystal Growth of

Alloyed Semiconductors in a Magnetic Field”
Mississippi
Dr. Joe B. Whitehead

University of Southern Mississippi

Hattiesburg, MS

“Phase Separation and Self-Assembly  of Liquid Crystals and

Polymer Dispersions:  A Ground-Based Feasibility Study for

Microgravity”
New Jersey
Dr. Edward L. Dreizin

New Jersey Institute of Technology

Newark, NJ

“High Temperature Phases and Phase Equilibria in Reactive Molten

Metal-Based Systems”
New York
Professor Martin E. Glicksman

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Troy, NY

“Follow-on Research Activities for the Rensselaer Isothermal

Dendritic Growth Experiment”
Professor Nicholas J. Zabaras

Cornell University

Ithaca, NY

“On the Control of the Effects of Gravity on the Solidification

Microstructures using Optimally Designed Thermal Boundary Fluxes

and Electromagnetic Fields”
Dr. David J. Larson

State University of New York, Stony Brook

Stony Brook, NY

“Defects Numerically Decreased (DENUDE)”
Dr. William R. Wilcox

Clarkson University

Potsdam, NY

“Residual Gas Effects on Detached Solidification in Microgravity”
Professor Miriam H. Rafailovich

State University of New York, Stony Brook

Stony Brook, NY

“Microgravity Processing of Polymer Thin Films”
Professor Albert J. Sievers

Cornell University

Ithaca, NY

“Influence of Homogeneity and Fragility on the Dynamical

Properties of Glassy Networks”
North Carolina
Professor Nikolaus Dietz

North Carolina State University

Raleigh, NC

“Optical Characterization of Gas Phase, Gas Phase Chemistry, and

Surface Chemistry during High Pressure Vapor Phase Deposition

Processes under Laminar and Turbulent Flow Conditions”
Ohio
Dr. Iwan Alexander

Case Western Reserve University

Cleveland, OH

“Vibrations and g-Jitter: Transport Disturbances due to Residual

Acceleration During Low Gravity Directional Solidification

Experiments”
Dr. Padetha Tin

NASA Glenn Research Center

Cleveland, OH

“Interfacial Energy Determination of Succinonitrile and

Succinonitrile-Acetone Alloy Using Surface Light Scattering

Spectrometer”
Pennsylvania
Professor Robert F. Sekerka

Carnegie Mellon University

Pittsburgh, PA

“Lattice Boltzmann Computations of Binary Diffusion in Liquids

Under Stochastic Microgravity”
Professor Gregory S. Rohrer

Carnegie Mellon University

Pittsburgh, PA

“Shape Evolution of Small Ceramic Materials”
Dr. Daniel A. Hammer

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA

“Polymosomes: Tough Giant Vesicles from Block Copolymers”
Tennessee
Professor Robert J. Bayuzick

Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN

“Investigation of the Relationship Between Undercooling and

Solidification Velocity”
Professor Kenneth Debelak

Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN

“Recovery of Minerals in Martian Soils via Supercritical Fluid

Extraction”
Texas
Professor Lawrence S. Pinsky

University of Houston

Houston, TX

“Development of a Space Radiation Monte-Carlo Simulation Based

Upon The FLUKA and ROOT Codes”
Utah
Dr. Jules Magda

University of Utah

Salt Lake City, UT

“Novel Microstructures for Polymer-Liquid Crystal Composite

Materials”
Washington
Dr. Ben Q. Li

Washington State University

Pullman, WA

“Study of Magnetic Field Effects on Convection and Solidification

in Normal and Microgravity”
Wisconsin
Professor John H. Perepezko

University of Wisconsin, Madison

Madison, WI

“Analysis of Containerless Solidification Microstructures in

Undercooled Melts and Composite Systems”