Department of Defense awards grant to engineering prof to research renewable resources

The United States Department of Defense awarded Rowan University Chemical Engineering assistant professor Dr. Joseph Stanzione III a $800,000 grant to continue his research into polymers and resins made out of renewable resources for DoD applications, including composites, coatings and adhesives for ground and air vehicles and more.

During the three-year project, Stanzione and his team from The Henry M. Rowan College of Engineering will partner with researchers from Drexel University, PPG of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and the United States Army.

One post-doctoral fellow, two Ph.D. students and multiple Rowan undergraduate engineering students will work side by side on the project, designing, synthesizing and testing composites, coatings and adhesives and preparing journal articles, presentations and posters for national and international conferences.

“Students will have the opportunity to do internships at the Army Research Lab in Maryland and even the possibility to intern with PPG,” Stanzione said. PPG is an industry leader in innovation and sustainability. Internship opportunities may include working in their research facilities or at the Army Research Lab.

The main goal of the work is to gain a fundmental understanding of the processing-structure-property relationships of novel bio-based systems, enabling the team to design polymers with superior performance characteristics that can be used for military and civilian applications.

This project continues Stanzione’s 2015 work with the U.S. Army on research to generate plastics from renewable resources that can be used for soldiers’ helmets, firearms and parts for military vehicles.