University of Georgia
Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors

Category: News

Yajun Yan elected a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors

Kat Gilmore on January 27, 2026

Yajun Yan, of the UGA New Materials Institute, was recently elected a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors. It is the seventh consecutive year the University of Georgia has had faculty elected. Election to NAI Fellowship is the highest professional distinction accorded to academic inventors. Fellows are recognized for prolific innovation that has had tangible impacts on quality of life, economic development and the welfare of society.

Faculty, students from UGA New Materials Institute attend CB2 fall meeting

Kat Gilmore on December 2, 2025

Faculty and students from the UGA New Materials Institute enjoyed attending the fall meeting of the Center for Bioplastics and Biocomposites, or CB2, recently held at North Dakota State University. UGA NMI faculty and students will conduct five research projects selected by CB2’s Industry Advisory Board for 2026.

Student Profile: Ana Clara Caobianco

Kat Gilmore on November 2, 2025

Ana Clara Caobianco recently graduated from the University of Georgia with a bachelor’s degree in public health. During her time at UGA, she worked two years at the UGA New Materials Institute. She talked to us recently about her experiences working at the UGA NMI and how they may impact her future.

UGA NMI Researchers test lignin-derived semiaromatic poly(ether ester)s

Kat Gilmore on October 5, 2025

Nine polyesters made from AB monomers that can be derived from lignin were tested for this study including phloretic, coumaric and ferulic acids, and similar derivatives. Testing included monomer and polymer synthesis, thermal analysis, mechanical characterization, gel content, rheological characterization and chemical recycling. 

Student Profile: Tiffanie Torrey

Kat Gilmore on September 28, 2025

Tiffanie Torrey is an undergraduate student who works in Industrial Microbiology Laboratory at the University of Georgia New Materials Institute, under the direction of Dr. H. Travis Ichikawa. Torrey is pursuing a double major in ecology, through the Odum School of Ecology, and plant biology, through the Department of Plant Biology in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences. She plans to go into environmental consulting work following her graduation. Torrey recently spoke with us about her experiences working at the UGA New Materials Institute and how her experiences might impact her future.

UGA New Materials Institute researchers test quicker, cheaper, more efficient tablet formulation development

Kat Gilmore on September 15, 2025

Researchers from the UGA New Materials Institute expanded upon the material-sparing tablet development (MSTD) method and found it can be applied to a wide variety of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). When combined with a lab-scale tablet press, the team found that formulations can be designed and tested using less than 20 grams of API in less than 14 days.

Blending elastomer impact modifiers with poly(3-hydroxybutyrate), poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyhexanoate) for improved toughness

Kat Gilmore on September 8, 2025

The Locklin Group at the University of Georgia New Materials Institute utilized industrially compostable elastomer resins Terratek FX1515 and Terratek GDH-B1FA, from Green Dot Bioplastics, in blends with PHB and PHB-co-HHx. The blends demonstrated improved toughness and microbially degraded more than 90 percent under industrial composting conditions within 120 days.