The Engineering Genesis (EG) Award for Multidisciplinary Research was presented to 27 Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station (TEES) researchers and their teams on March 29 during the 2021-22 faculty awards ceremony. Also honored were recipients of faculty awards and 2022 faculty investitures.
The EG award, which is presented to TEES researchers who have secured significant research grants of $1 million or more, was given to the following:
PI: Victor Ugaz, chemical engineering.
- $1 million grant from the W.M. Keck Foundation for “Spontaneous Protocell Assembly and Origin of Life in Hydrothermal Pores.”
PI: Stefan Hurlebaus, civil and environmental engineering. Co-PIs: Homero Castaneda-Lopez, materials science and engineering; Joseph Bracci, civil and environmental engineering.
- $1 million grant from the Department of Energy for “Building Health, Bays and Cells Aging Study.”
PI: Vladislav V. Yakovlev, biomedical engineering. Co-PIs: Girish Agarwal, biological and agricultural engineering; Marlan Scully, aerospace engineering.
- $1 million grant from the Department of Defense-Air Force-Office of Scientific Research for “Quantum Coherence and Quantum Interactions in Microtubules and Surrounding Environment.”
PI: Feng Zhao, biomedical engineering.
- $1.1 million grant from the Department of Health and Human Services-National Institutes of Health-National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute for “Engineered Anisotropic and Vascularized Human Cardiac Patch.”
PI: Shuiwang Ji, computer science and engineering.
- $1.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health for “Genetics of Deep-Learning-Derived Neuroimaging Endophenotypes for Alzheimer’s Disease.”
PI: Craig Marianno, nuclear engineering, multidisciplinary engineering and deputy director, Center for Nuclear Security Science and Policy Initiatives. Co-PI: Sunil Chirayath, nuclear engineering and director, Center for Nuclear Security Science and Policy Initiatives.
- $1.3 million grant from the Department of Energy for “DTRA Technical Assistance Program for Amity University.”
PI: Gerard Coté, biomedical engineering and director, Center for Remote Health Technologies and Systems. Co-PIs: Keith Biggers, interim director, Texas A&M Center for Applied Technology; James Wall, former executive director, Texas A&M Center for Applied Technology; John Hanks, biomedical engineering; Jeffrey Cirillo, microbial pathogenesis and immunology.
- $1.3 million grant from the Department of Defense-Defense Threat Reduction Agency for “Notification of Toxic Exposure (NOTE).”
PI: Hamid Toliyat, electrical and computer engineering. Co-PIs: Dion Antao, Jonathan Felts, Jaime Grunlan and Bryan Rasmussen, mechanical engineering; Prasad Enjeti, electrical and computer engineering; Moble Benedict, aerospace engineering; Patrick Shamberger, materials science and engineering.
- $1.4 million grant from the Department of Energy-Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) for “Multi-Physical Co-Design of Next-Generation Axial Motors for Aerospace Applications.”
PI: Danny Davis, The Bush School of Government and Public Service.
- $1.4 million grant from the Department of Defense-National Security Agency for “Senior Military Colleges Cyber Grant Program.”
PI: Felipe Guzman, aerospace engineering.
- $1.4 million grant from the Department of Defense for “Optomechanical Gravimeters and Gradiometers.”
PI: Mladen Kezunovic, electrical and computer engineering. Co-PI: Alexander Brown, economics.
- $1.4 million grant from the National Science Foundation for “SCC-IRG Track 1: Advanced Learning for Energy Risk Tracking (ALERT).”
PI: Srikanth (Sri) Saripalli, mechanical engineering. Co-PIs: James Hubbard Jr., Zohaib Hasnain, Swaroop Darbha, Swaminathan Gopalswamy, Michael Walsh, J.N. Reddy, Vinayak Krishnamurthy and Justin Wilkerson, mechanical engineering; Dylan Shell, computer science and engineering; Srinivas Shakkottai, electrical and computer engineering; and Panganamala Kumar, electrical and computer engineering, industrial and systems engineering.
- $1.6 million grant from the Department of Defense-Army Research Office for “Distributed Autonomous Robotic Experiments and Simulations (DARES) (II.A.9 Army Artificial Intelligence Task Force (AITF) Research Interests).”
PI: Raymundo Arróyave, materials science and engineering. Co-PIs: Xiaoning Qian, electrical and computer engineering; Ibrahim Karaman, materials science and engineering.
- $1.8 million grant from the National Science Foundation for “DMREF: AI-Guided Accelerated Discovery of Multi-Principal Element Multi-Functional Alloys.”
PI: Diane Hurtado, senior associate vice chancellor for National Laboratories and National Security Strategic Initiatives.
- $1.8 million grant from the Department of Energy-National Nuclear Security Administration for “TRIAD: HR-ITS Technical and Programmatic Support.”
PI: Arum Han, electrical and computer engineering. Co-PIs: Won-Bo Shim, plant pathology and microbiology; Xuejun Zhu and Qing Sun, chemical engineering.
- $2 million grant from National Science Foundation for “EFRI E3P: High-Throughput Synthetic Biology Approaches for Mixed Plastic Degradation and Reutilization.”
PI: Diane Hurtado, senior associate vice chancellor for National Laboratories and National Security Strategic Initiatives.
- $2 million grant from the Department of Energy-National Nuclear Security Administration for “TRIAD: HR-ITS Technical and Programmatic Support for Emergency Management and Continuity Operations.”
PI: Duncan Maitland, biomedical engineering. Co-PIs: Daniel Alge and Mary McDougall, biomedical engineering; Steven Wright, electrical and computer engineering.
- $2.4 million grant from the National Institutes for Health for “Biopsy Tract Sealing Device with Magnetic Resonance and X-Ray Image Contrast.”
PI: Ya Wang, mechanical engineering. Co-PIs: Rahul Srinivasan, neuroscience and experimental therapeutics; Shoshana Eitan, psychological and brain sciences; and Ying Li, mechanical engineering.
- $2.6 million grant from the National Science Foundation for “GCR: Programmable Nanorobots Integration with Magnetically Driven Neuron and Brain Tissue Regeneration.”
PI: Mark Kimber, nuclear engineering.
- $3 million grant from the Department of Energy for “2021 University Award Base - Integrated University Program - Fellowship and Scholarship Cooperative Agreement.”
PI: Tanmay Lele, biomedical engineering and chemical engineering.
- $3.1 million grant from the Department of Health and Human Services-National Institutes of Health-National Cancer Institute for “Nuclear Dysfunction in Cancer: The Role of Mechanical Stresses Transmitted by the LINC Complex.”
PI: Haithem Abu-Rub, electrical engineering and managing director, Smart Grid Center Qatar. Co-PIs: Riccardo Bettati, computer science and engineering; Sunil Khatri, Narasimha Annapareddy, Miroslav Begovic and Ali Ghrayeb, electrical and computer engineering; Shady Khalil, Hussein Alnuweiri, Ali Ghrayeb and Tingwen Huang, Texas A&M University at Qatar.
- $3.2 million grant from the Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF) for “Multi-Layer Cybersecurity and Situational Awareness to Enhance Resiliency in Qatar’s Power Grid.”
PI: Maria Koliou, civil and environmental engineering. Co-PIs: James Kaihatu, civil and environmental engineering and ocean engineering; Anand Puppala and Petros Sideris, civil and environmental engineering; Siyu Yu and Michelle Meyer, architecture.
- $4.1 million grant from the National Science Foundation for “Focused Coastlines and People: Fundamental Research to Inform Holistic Decision-Making for Historically Underrepresented Communities Impacted by Coastal Hazards.”
PI: Cindy Lawley, assistant vice chancellor for academic and outreach programs, assistant dean for Engineering Academies and associate agency director for workforce development and regional divisions. Co-PIs: Shelly Tornquist, director, Spark! PK-12 Engineering Education Outreach; Melissa Walden, former director, Engineering Professional Education; Kristi Shryock, multidisciplinary engineering; Rob Gorham, executive director, manufacturing initiatives for Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station and executive director, SecureAmerica Institute; Dean Schneider, industrial and systems engineering and operations director, SecureAmerica Institute.
- $4.8 million grant from the Department of Defense for “National Imperative for Industrial Skills.”
PI: Tanmay Lele, biomedical engineering and chemical engineering.
- $5 million grant from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas for “Nuclear Dysmorphia in Pediatric Cancers.”
PI: Reza Langari, mechanical engineering. Co-PIs: Dilma Da Silva and Dezhen Song, computer science and engineering.
- $7 million grant from the Texas Department of Transportation for “AVA: Automated Vehicles for All.”
Diamond EG Award
The Diamond EG Award, presented to researchers who secured research grants of $10 million or more, was given to the following:
PI: Rodney Bowersox, aerospace engineering and executive director, University Consortium for Applied Hypersonics.
- $10.7 million grant from the Department of Defense-Washington Headquarters Services for “The University Consortium for Applied Hypersonics Research Relevant to Enhancing the Mission Effectiveness of Military Personnel and Supporting Platforms, Systems, Components or Materials.”
PI: Faisal Khan, chemical engineering and director, Mary Kay O’Connor Process Safety Center. Co-PIs: John Pappas, director, center operations and director, Clean Energy Incubator; Dimitris Lagoudas, aerospace engineering, associate vice chancellor for engineering research, senior associate dean for research and deputy director of the Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station; Stewart Behie, chemical engineering, associate center director, Mary Kay O’Connor Process Safety Center; and M. Katherine Banks, president, Texas A&M University and vice chancellor of National Laboratories and National Security Strategic Initiatives, The Texas A&M University System.
- $38.8 million grant from the Department of Interior for “Operation and Maintenance of the Ocean Energy Safety Institute (OESI 2.0).”