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Research
$600,000 grant to help
grow advanced materials cluster
NSF gives “teeth” to biomaterials research
  Clemson
University has received a $600,000 grant from the National Science
Foundation Partnerships for Innovation program. The program creates
prospects for economic growth and new jobs by supporting the research-business-government
relationships that transfer advances in labs to advances in lives.
Dentistry
is one business that has evolved through such relationships.
Dr.
Sarit Bhaduri, the George Bishop III Chair holder and professor
of material science at Clemson, is principal investigator of the
grant. Bhaduri says that while tooth fillings have come a long way,
researchers continue to design stronger, more biocompatible materials,
which will further advance dentistry. But, it takes more than innovation
to generate new products and jobs.
“The
purpose of this grant is to put in place the relationships and infrastructure
that lead to economic development,” said Caron St. John, director
of the university’s Arthur M. Spiro Center for Entrepreneurial
Leadership and co-principal investigator of the grant. With a mission
to support educational, research and outreach programs that promote
entrepreneurial activity, the Spiro Center is integrally involved
in the grant.
“A
tooth filling is just the beginning of the story,” Bhaduri
said. “As we age, we require more maintenance — a new
knee or hip, perhaps. Who knows what we’ll be able to make
in the future?”
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