Purdue University researchers receive $130,000 from Trask Innovation Fund
February 5, 2014
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Three researchers in Purdue University's colleges of Engineering and Science received more than $130,000 from the Trask Innovation Fund to develop their work.
The Purdue Research Foundation-managed Trask Innovation Fund is a development program to assist faculty and staff whose discoveries are being commercialized through the Office of Technology Commercialization.
Cagri A. Savran, associate professor, School of Mechanical Engineering, received $50,000 to support "High-throughput Cell Detection for Cancer Diagnostics." The technology could detect circulating tumor cells in bodily fluids in an accurate, scalable manner.
"The Trask award will help me obtain crucial data to commercialize this innovation," he said. "Specifically, I will team up with researchers from the IU Simon Cancer Center to apply the technology to samples obtained from cancer patients."
The other researchers, projects and award amounts for the fall 2013 round of funding are:
* "Selective Catalysis for the Production of High Value Flavor and Fragrance Chemicals from Wood Biomass," Mahdi Abu-Omar, professor, Department of Chemistry, $50,000. The technology allows the development of high value chemicals from lignin, which normally is discarded from wood biomass, without expensive processing.
* "Achieving Predictable Performance on the Public Cloud," Saurabh Bagchi, professor, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, $30,815. The technology allows cloud computing virtual machines to reconfigure to maintain performance of the physical machine in the face of interference.
The next Trask Innovation Fund proposal submissions from Purdue faculty and staff are due March 14. Information about submissions is available at http://otc-prf.org/node/337. The Trask Advisory Council will meet May 2.
About the Office of Technology Commercialization
The Office of Technology Commercialization operates one of the most comprehensive technology transfer programs among leading research universities in the United States. Services provided by this office support the economic development initiatives of Purdue University and benefit the university's academic activities.
Purdue Research Foundation Contact:
Steve Martin, 765-588-3342, sgmartin@prf.org
Source:
Elizabeth Hart-Wells, Assistant Vice President Office of Technology Commercialization, 765-588-3473, eahart-wells@prf.org