Professor Lilian Hsiao, in the NC State Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering is leading a research program centered around intelligent soft materials. A major focus is to address one of the grand challenges in the National Academy of Engineering: to enhance virtual reality through haptic materials that can alter the sense of touch to the user. Her work addresses NC State’s strategic research area in “Enriching the Human Experience” as well as in “Secure and Intelligent Systems”. Dr. Hsiao intends to understand and translate systems made from sustainable materials that have tactile sensing, personalized medicine, and power generation capabilities. KIETS funds support Dr. Hsiao’s graduate students working towards wearable energy harvesters using triboelectric effects generated by polymeric substrates.
In FY 2023-24, Dr. Hsiao’s group developed new fundamental understanding of how the surface structure of molecular additives are affected by the pressures and shearing action experienced by wearable devices and how their structure subsequently explains the generated energy and tactile sensation. These results indicate that humans are willing to wear comfortable devices over long periods of time, made possible by accurate engineering of additive chemistry and contact physics developed in this project.
These devices will pave the way for a sustainable future, where energy can be generated from large-scale ambient motion as opposed to harmful environmental extraction of chemical fuels. Intelligent soft materials will expand the ability of robotic systems to address challenges in real-world environments. Dr. Hsiao’s research will complement the efforts of a startup company called X-MED Hydrogels, which will commercialize hydrogel fibers that are tailored for stable and long-duration release of drug cocktails to burn wounds.
The company was co-founded by Dr. Hsiao in collaboration with the Technology Entrepreneurship and Commercialization (TEC) program. KIETS support leverages a $1.7 million retention package from the Provost, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, and the College of Engineering. Dr. Hsiao also plans to pursue funding from the National Science Foundation and Department of Defense and will also pursue SBIR / STTR funding for her startup company.