March 16, 2023
An increasing number of U.S. interstates are set to try out a Purdue University invention that could save millions of taxpayer dollars and significantly reduce traffic delays. The invention, a sensor that allows concrete to “talk,” decreases construction time and how often concrete pavement needs repairs while also improving the road’s sustainability and cutting its carbon footprint.
‘Talking’ concrete could help prevent traffic jams and cut carbon emissions
March 15, 2023
Purdue professor Luna Lu developed concrete sensors that "talk" to engineers, communicating with engineers about their strength, cracks, damage and preventing potholes, according to the school.
Sensors put into North Texas highway that allow the road to "talk" with engineers
March 13, 2023
An increasing number of U.S. interstates are set to try out a Purdue University invention that could save millions of taxpayer dollars and significantly reduce traffic delays. The invention, a sensor that allows concrete to “talk,” decreases construction time and how often concrete pavement needs repairs while also improving the road’s sustainability and cutting its carbon footprint. Embedded directly into a concrete pour, the sensor sends engineers more precise and consistent data about the concrete’s strength and need for repair than is possible with currently used tools and methods. “Traffic jams caused by infrastructure repairs have wasted 4 billion hours and 3 billion gallons of gas on a yearly basis. This is primarily due to insufficient knowledge and understanding of concrete’s strength levels,” said Luna Lu, the Reilly Professor and acting head of Purdue’s Lyles School of Civil Engineering, who has been leading development of the sensors since 2017.
‘Talking’ concrete could help prevent traffic jams and cut carbon emissions
March 10, 2023
On the surface, the career path chosen by Luna Lu, an associate professor of civil engineering in Purdue University’s Lyles School of Civil Engineering, doesn’t sound all that exciting. Lu devotes herself to studying concrete—a product that’s been used for large-scale construction since Roman times and is still mixed, poured and cast using techniques the Colosseum’s builders would recognize. What, exactly, is left to know at this point? Turns out, quite a bit. Lu has made an international name for herself by creating potentially game-changing iterations of one of the world’s oldest construction staples. She and her team are working on (among other things) self-healing concrete that can seal small surface fissures before they grow larger, and road concrete that uses its own internal heat, plus the vibrations of passing vehicles, to generate enough electricity to power nearby streetlights and traffic signals.
Purdue professor puts high-tech spin on old-time construction staple
March 7, 2023
Utkuhan Genc stood in front of a white screen, with logos of several Big 10 schools sprawled across a graph. Below the schools’ logos, various years were listed, ranging from 2025 to 2050, showing when each university planned to reach net-zero carbon emissions. Genc pointed out a notable omission from the graph: the logo of Purdue University. “We have research capacity, we have graduates, we have faculty, we have undergraduates, all who are passionate about (fighting climate change) and are trying to solve these problems,” he said, “yet Purdue is the only Big 10 university to have no (net-zero carbon emissions goal) at all.”
March 6, 2023
Have you heard about PI4D’s programs on YouTube? PI4D has been posting recordings of three programs that you will want to check out, hit the “like” button and subscribe to the channel. Please, send this to your students, friends and colleagues.
March 3, 2023
HemaChrome, a digital health startup that uses smartphone technology to noninvasively and instantly measure blood hemoglobin levels, has won phase 1 of the National Institutes of Health’s RADx Tech for Maternal Health Challenge. The technology was developed by Young Kim, HemaChrome’s founder and chief science officer. Kim is a professor and associate head for research at Purdue University’s Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering. He also is a Showalter Faculty Scholar and University Faculty Scholar at Purdue. Huiri Kim is HemaChrome’s CEO.
Purdue-connected digital health startup wins phase 1 of NIH competition for maternal health
March 1, 2023
A team led by Purdue University’s Bruce Applegate has developed a new time-saving assay to detect an especially severe strain of E. coli in ground beef.
March 1, 2023
A team of Purdue University scientists has received a $2.5 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to examine the role of lipid droplets in muscle stem cell function for both people and livestock. Their results could provide insight to recovery in muscle-related disease and injury in humans, and animal growth to enhance meat production.
March 1, 2023
The 18th annual Garnet E. Peck Symposium will be held March 30-31 by the Department of Industrial and Physical Pharmacy, with corporate support from Aprecia, the 3DP Pharmaceutical Company. The symposium will be held on the second floor of Stewart Center, and the 3DP Workshop will be held in the Purdue Memorial Union’s Anniversary Drawing Room.
