A project proposed by a team of Drexel University and Villanova University students to develop a beneficial reuse of slag or refining industry waste product has been awarded federal funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. EPA awarded a $10,000 P3 grant—People, Prosperity and the Planet—to the Drexel team to further design their project for possible implementation in the field.“These innovative students not only develop technologies for a greener future, but demonstrate the passion and innovative thinking that will lead us there,” said Shawn M. Garvin, regional administrator for EPA’s mid-Atlantic region.The team is looking into the potential of using alkali-activated slag cement as a substitute for ordinary cement-based building materials. This cement product will be carbon neutral, but competitive with Portland cement in cost and performance, have a longer life and be more accessible to developing communities. The production of alkali-activated slag cements would require little fossil fuel, reducing pollutants and increasing domestic energy independence, while increasing demand for an industrial waste product, helping build prosperity and reducing the need for landfills.Team members include: Alexander Moseson and Abraham Cook of Drexel University; Joseph Shook, Alexandra Terpeluk and Jamie Mucha of Villanova University and Dr. Aaron Rich Sakulich, a Drexel alumnus and University of Michigan researcher. Faculty advisors on the team are Dr. Michel Barsoum, Drexel professor of materials engineering, and Dr. Aleksandra Radlinska, Villanova assistant professor. The national competition sponsored by the EPA’s Office of Research and Development, encourages college students to create sustainable solutions to environmental problems through technological innovation. These sustainable solutions must be environmentally friendly, efficiently use natural resources and be economically competitive. Each P3 award receives funding to develop a project for future use.Drexel was one of 14 universities winning EPA’s 2009-2010 P3 award. More information on Drexel’s project and the complete list of recipients is available at: http://www.epa.gov/ncer/p3/project_websites/2010/2010awardwinners.htmlNews Media Contact: Niki Gianakaris, director, Drexel News Bureau 215-895-6741, 215-778-7752 (cell) or ngianakaris@drexel.edu
