Engineering Partnership Thrives Between ODU and 意大利’s University of Padova
2019年6月7日
Sandeep库马尔, 左, and his graduate students at bet8体育娱乐入口 with visiting faculty and graduate students from the University of Padova.
A prestigious National Science Foundation (NSF) grant for bet8体育娱乐入口 biofuels researcher Sandeep库马尔 has helped power a five-year partnership with one of 意大利's top research universities.
库马尔 earned an NSF 教师 Early Career Development Award in recognition of his groundbreaking work in algae-based biofuels. That grant allowed 库马尔 to pursue research collaborations through the European RESEARCH Council grants with researchers doing comparable work across the Atlantic.
The result has been a robust partnership between bet8体育娱乐入口's 巴顿工程学院 and 技术 and 意大利's University of Padova, 哪一个建立于1222年. Galileo Galilei held the chair of mathematics at the university between 1592 and 1610
"The NSF supplement award under this program in 2014 helped me establish the strong transatlantic cooperation in the field of algae and biomass to biofuels and bioproducts research,库马尔说。, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering.
结果是, we have several peer-reviewed publications, conference presentations and mutual exchange visits of students and faculty members over the last five years."
库马尔 first visited the University of Padova in the fall of 2015, beginning collaboration on research projects. That led to the signing of a university-wide memorandum of understanding (MOU) between bet8体育娱乐入口 and the University of Padova.
库马尔 returned to 意大利 in 2017, accompanied by his chair Ben Stuart, now interim dean of the 巴顿工程学院 and 技术. They discussed adding to the MOU to provide mutual student and faculty exchanges between Norfolk and Padova - a city of 215,000 near Venice in northeast 意大利. That expanded MOU was signed in early 2018.
"The 巴顿工程学院 and 技术 is excited to produce globally aware and engaged engineers and technologists,斯图亚特说. "From programs such as our recent study-abroad trip to Germany, to research partnerships with institutions such as one with the University of Padova, 意大利, our students get to network in international settings as our partners are getting to know ODU."
阿尔贝托Bertucco, a faculty member at the University of Padova, visited ODU's campus in 2015 and 2018. Then-Ph.D. student Elena Barbera spent six months at bet8体育娱乐入口 in 2016. 访问仍在继续. Engineering graduate student Martino Bertosin is at ODU until September to work on his master's thesis. Another rising faculty member, Eleonora Sforza, has just concluded a 10-day visit.
At ODU's Biomass RESEARCH Laboratory, 库马尔, his colleagues and student researchers pursue breakthroughs in development, refinement and efficiency of fuel produced from biological material, 被称为生物量. He is also a founding member of ODU's Energy Cluster, a research group in the Batten College which brings together faculty expertise across engineering disciplines to conduct research, build undergraduate and graduate-level curriculum and promote its work and facilities to the broader community.
