The Nonwovens Institute led by Professor Benham Pourdeyhimi is establishing a coating and surface modification pilot line facility at North Carolina State University. The coating pilot facility will provide a pathway to many modification approaches including physical treatment (i.e., corona, plasma, or UV exposure), physical adsorption of proteins, UV-assisted polymer grafting, chemical coating or saturation, as well as polymer surface grafting to control interaction with biological materials (an area of particular interest to many faculty at NC State). Dr. Pourdeyhimi reports that the potential impact of this new coating line in terms of future contracts and grants, economic development and opportunities for new members in the Nonwovens Cooperative Research Center (NCRC) over the next few years is also significant. Dr. Pourdeyhimi anticipates that the facility will generate revenues in the amount of $200,000 plus per year through service agreements and will lead to new R&D contracts in the areas of surface modification. Currently, the Nonwovens Institute currently supports 35 graduate students, 27 faculty members, and works with approximately 100 companies. 10 students are involved in surface engineering projects and Dr. Pourdeyhimi anticipates that these students as well as others in Chemical Engineering and Fiber and Polymer Science will directly benefit from this pilot line.
