Large-scale manufacturing of petroleum-based plastics began in the 1950s. Fast-forward almost 70 years, and scientists are in the early stages of understanding how plastic particles on the micro- and nano-sized scales are impacting humans, animals, and our planet. Click here to watch a video on "plasticosis." Read more →
Jenna Jambeck has been named a Regents’ Professor in recognition of the national and international reach of her work in environmental engineering. Regents’ professorships are bestowed by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia and are the highest professorial recognition in the... Read more →
Researchers and students from the University of Georgia New Materials Institute will participate in five sustainably-related projects funded by the Center for Bioplastics and Biocomposites, or CB2, for 2023. The projects were selected by CB2’s Industry Advisory Board at its fall meeting held in November... Read more →
Jenna Jambeck, Georgia Athletic Association Distinguished Professor of Environmental Engineering at the University of Georgia, was named a 2022 MacArthur Fellow on Wednesday (Oct. 12) for her work investigating the scale of plastic pollution and galvanizing efforts to address plastic waste. Commonly known as “Genius Grants,”... Read more →
The Industry Advisory Board for the Center for Bioplastics and Biocomposites, or CB2, recently met to evaluate progress on 2022 research projects and to begin considering projects for 2023. Six current research projects, all led or co-led by faculty from the UGA New Materials Institute,... Read more →
Jenna Jambeck was enjoying family time on Memorial Day when she received a surprising message. It was a call from a fisherman who had found something that he thought belonged to her: a plastic bottle. She had rigged it with a tracking device and dropped... Read more →
Walmart Foundation grant to UGA New Materials Institute will yield scalable strategies Improving the circular systems related to collection, recovery and management of organic waste will help local communities lower greenhouse gas emissions and reduce the accumulation of food-contaminated packaging in their landfills. There is... Read more →
The University of Georgia New Materials Institute will pursue six sustainably-related research projects in 2022 that were recently funded by the Center for Bioplastics and Biocomposites’ Industry Advisory Board. The project selections were finalized at the annual Fall Meeting of the IAB. The meeting was... Read more →
Researchers from the University of Georgia developed a new indigo dyeing technology that’s kinder on the planet. The new technique reduces water usage and eliminates the toxic chemicals that make the dyeing process so environmentally damaging. And to top it off, the technology streamlines the... Read more →
rogram (I/UCRC) grant. This new funding, along with contributions from industry partners, will total $1,950,000 and will be shared among the four collaborating universities that comprise CB2. Read more →
Technology developed by the UGA New Materials Institute Manufacturers of single-use personal care items—like body washes, toothpastes, cosmetics and wipes—that have historically contained environmentally-persistent abrasives can utilize a new drop-in technology with confidence that the new materials will biologically degrade in wastewater conditions, resulting in... Read more →
University of Georgia researchers have developed a new material with properties ideal for medical products such as masks and bandages. It’s also better for the environment than the materials in current use. Using nonwoven fabrics—fabrics produced by bonding fiber without weaving or knitting—the team led by... Read more →
Current project updates, seed concept pitches for 2022, and the future direction of the Center for Bioplastics and Biocomposites were all in focus as the Center, an Industry & University Cooperative Research Center funded by the National Science Foundation, held its virtual spring Industry Advisory... Read more →
Watch this video to learn more about Jenna Jambeck's work to reduce plastic waste in the environment. Read more →
Manufacturers that utilize polylactic acid (PLA) in products and packaging are well aware of the polymer’s drawbacks, including brittleness and slow degradation at end-of-life. Researchers the University of Georgia’s New Materials Institute have found a way to overcome these negatives of working with PLA, by... Read more →
Do you compost food or gardening waste? Do you know what compostable certification labels look like and what they mean when you see them on packaging? Regardless of your answers, if you live in the U.S., the University of Georgia’s New Materials Institute wants to... Read more →
An interview with Jason Locklin, on the environmental problems associated with plastics and potential solutions for the near future, is featured in an episode of a three-part NOVA docuseries that premieres Wednesday, February 3. Locklin is director of the UGA New Materials Institute, which researches... Read more →
Evan White, of the UGA New Materials Institute, is leading an initiative to establish a nonprofit organization to raise money for research and development of compostable technologies for the flexible films industry to help facilitate the industry’s transition toward greater sustainability in packaging for consumer... Read more →
The University of Georgia New Materials Institute will collaborate on a U.S. Department of Energy-funded research project to explore and optimize strains of bacteria for use in the creation of biologically degrading thermoplastic for polyurethanes and their byproducts. The UGA team, led by Jason Locklin,... Read more →
Creating plastics, particularly packaging, is a complex endeavor. For example, multiple materials may be required to create packaging for a product, based on how far that product has to travel, how long its shelf life might be, and whether it’s packaging for a food item.... Read more →
The University of Georgia New Materials Institute’s Jason Locklin and Jenna Jambeck are collaborating on a virtual workshop series aimed at shaping the future of circular economy research. Locklin, a professor of chemical engineering and founding director of the New Materials Institute, and Jambeck, a... Read more →
Examples of innovative collaborations took center stage at a recent VentureWell virtualOPEN conference session on supporting sustainable design and addressing environmental issues. Attendees heard from Crystal Leach, director of Industry Collaboration at the University of Georgia’s New Materials Institute (NMI); Faculty Grants recipient, Chad Kennedy, a lecturer in the... Read more →
For Evan White, growing up outside Atlanta meant witnessing significant changes in his landscape. His hometown of Lilburn, Georgia, tripled its population between 1980 and 2000, and White watched as nearby woods became neighborhoods and parking lots. He saw trash, much of it plastic, accumulate in... Read more →
Two UGA researchers and an alumnus work together to develop bio-based resins to displace those currently used to make single-use plastics, like straws and food packaging. Read more →
Two research projects that are being led by University of Georgia New Materials Institute received positive feedback at the spring meeting of the Industry Advisory Board for the Center for Bioplastics and Biocomposites (CB2), a National Science Foundation Industry—University Cooperative Research Center. The projects, “Unlocking the... Read more →
Representatives from Shaw recently interviewed Jason Locklin, director of the UGA New Materials Institute, about the Institute’s research partnerships with industry and why the Institute focuses on single-use packaging as a means to reduce the mismanaged plastic waste that is accumulating in our environment. The... Read more →
Jenna Jambeck, who directs the Center for Circular Materials Management within the UGA New Materials Institute, has been named the Georgia Athletic Association Distinguished Professor in Environmental Engineering. Jambeck is internationally recognized for her work to raise awareness about plastic pollution and to reduce mismanaged... Read more →
Evan M. White, an assistant research scientist at the UGA New Materials Institute and director of the Institute’s Bioseniatic℠ Laboratory, recently talked to WUGA-FM about researching and developing compostable materials designed for single-use packaging. White and his colleagues are developing plastic materials and products that... Read more →
The UGA New Materials Institute will lead two projects selected for funding and research in 2020, as part of the Institute’s participation in the Center for Bioplastics and Biocomposites (CB2), a National Science Foundation Industry—University Cooperative Research Center (IUCRC). The projects are among nine selected... Read more →
The 4th International Symposium on Materials from Renewables drew scientists from throughout the U.S. and Europe to UGA, to share successes and challenges from their explorations into creating materials from renewable sources. The two-day meeting, co-hosted by the UGA Department of Textiles, Merchandising and Interiors... Read more →
The University of Georgia’s New Materials Institute is one of 10 organizations to be highlighted over the coming year by Shaw Industries Group Inc., as part of the company’s new sustain[HUMAN]abilityTM recognition program. “We are grateful to Shaw Industries for recognizing and highlighting our efforts... Read more →
The New Materials Institute, a component of the UGA Office of Research with roots in the College of Engineering, along with the Carl Vinson Institute of Government and the J.W. Fanning Institute for Leadership Development, both units of UGA Public Service and Outreach, are among 24 finalists for the University Economic Development Association 2019 Awards... Read more →
The UGA New Materials Institute recently hosted the biannual Industry Advisory Board meeting for the National Science Foundation Industry & University Cooperative Research Center for Bioplastics and Biocomposites, known as CB2. UGA joined the I/UCRC in 2018 and is one of four universities that serve... Read more →
University of Georgia College of Engineering researcher Jenna Jambeck will help lead an international, all-female expedition team that will study plastic pollution in one of the world’s most iconic waterways — the Ganges River (known locally as Ganga and Padma). The “Sea to Source: Ganges”... Read more →
Jason Locklin, director of the UGA New Materials Institute, received the Excellence in Research Award from the UGA College of Engineering and was named a Distinguished Faculty Scholar by the college for his sustained excellence in scholarship. The awards were announced at the COE’s 2019... Read more →
Bromethalin, a common rat poison, is the agent responsible for a neurological disease that has sickened or killed birds from a popular flock of naturalized parrots that reside primarily in the Telegraph Hill area in north San Francisco, according to a new study led by the... Read more →
An $800,000 grant from the Walmart Foundation to the University of Georgia New Materials Institute will help researchers understand how multilayer plastic packaging biodegrades and also help manufacturers in their attempts to design and select more sustainable materials. The research funded by the grant will seek to yield... Read more →
Marc Hillmyer, director of the Center for Sustainable Polymers at the University of Minnesota and senior editor of Macromolecules, will present a lecture titled, “How sustainable polymers can shape the future of plastics,” on March 1, 2019. The lecture will be held at 12:30 p.m.... Read more →
A finding from University of Georgia research has been named the 2018 International Statistic of the Year by the Royal Statistical Society. CNN International interviewed the College of Engineering’s Jenna Jambeck, who worked with colleagues at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and the Sea... Read more →
Athens, Ga. – The University of Georgia New Materials Institute has been awarded a grant as the third site for the National Science Foundation’s Center for Bioplastics and Biocomposites, or CB2, an Industry/University Cooperative Research Center. UGA was selected, in part, on the strength of... Read more →
Ingestion of degrading ocean plastics likely poses a substantial risk to the survival of post-hatchling sea turtles because the particles can lead to blockages and nutritional deficiencies, according to new research from Loggerhead Marinelife Center and the University of Georgia. This puts the survival of all sea turtle... Read more →
Athens, Ga. – While recycling is often touted as the solution to the large-scale production of plastic waste, upwards of half of the plastic waste intended for recycling is exported from higher income countries to other nations, with China historically taking the largest share. But in... Read more →
Demonstrating UGA’s broad expertise in polymer science, biochemical engineering, textiles and plant science, faculty members representing the New Materials Institute recently presented a range of project ideas as part of the NMI’s pitch to become a site for the Center for Bioplastics and Biocomposites, known as... Read more →
Since 1950, when 1.7 million metric tons of plastic was first produced worldwide, we’ve managed to pollute the entire planet with it: the oceans, fresh water systems, every continent, even the air. While you may envision plastic water bottles and bags floating in an ocean,... Read more →
This webinar reviewed the strategic goals of a recently established Industry/University Cooperative Research Center supported by the National Science Foundation. Dr. Jason Locklin, director of the UGA New Materials Institute, was one of the presenters. The content of this webinar will be beneficial to representatives from... Read more →
Athens, Ga. – Plastic: Land to Sea Connections, a workshop on the problem of plastic waste in our oceans and what we can do about it, will take place at 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2017 in the University of Georgia Odum School of... Read more →
UGA Researcher Jenna Jambeck says that we need to know how much worldwide plastic waste there is before we can create a plan to tackle the problem. This is exactly what Jamback and her colleagues have done in there recent article in journal Science Advances.... Read more →
Two years ago, socially conscious entrepreneurs Rob Ianelli and Ryan Schoenike founded their company, Norton Point, to manufacture sunglasses made from the huge amounts of plastic cleaned up from ocean coastlines Their goal was to be a part of the solution to one of the planet’s greatest challenges:... Read more →
Dr. Jenna Jambeck, director of the Center for Circular Materials Management – part of the New Materials Institute – talks to middle school students about her successful Marine Debris Tracker mobile app. Read the full article from the Golden Isles News For more information on... Read more →
Corporations are recognizing the issues surrounding plastic pollution in the world’s oceans and beginning to make changes. NMI’s Dr. Jenna Jambeck is quoted in The Guardian Jenna Jambeck, associate professor of environmental engineering at the University of Georgia, says cooperation is key. “If industry can collaborate... Read more →
At UGA’s Skidaway Institute researchers are looking for plastics in the coastal environment and they are finding them almost everywhere, but not in the form they expected. Instead of finding tiny chunks of plastic they’re finding microscopic threads, or microfibers. Read More form the Savannah Morning... Read more →
The New Materials Information Summit will take place on February 14 beginning at 9:00 am at the UGA Special Collections Library. This event is open to UGA Faculty and Staff who are interested in new and advanced materials research. Please attend and discover UGA’s commitment... Read more →
“We want all our materials kept in a circular management system to recapture the valuable resources in them.” Dr. Jenna Jambeck Associate Professor College of Engineering NMI Lead Researcher, Dr. Jambeck, is quoted in the October 2016 issue of The Guardian. Read more from Dr.... Read more →
About 90 leaders from the fabric and textile industry, along with researchers and military officials, discussed the future of fabrics and textiles in the digital era during AFFOA Industry Day at the University of Georgia Oct. 20. Read more →
Leaders from the fabric and textile industry will join researchers and military officials in Athens Oct. 20 to discuss the future of the Advanced Functional Fabrics of America partnership as part of the inaugural AFFOA Industry Day. Read more →
Researchers at the University of Georgia will use a grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to create next-generation medical device coatings that combat antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Read more →
A team of scientists from the University of Georgia College of Family and Consumer Sciences has won first prize in the inaugural Green and Sustainable Chemistry Challenge for an innovative and environmentally friendly textile dyeing technology using nanocellulosic fibers. Read more →
Two graduate students in the Nanostructured Materials Laboratory have received funding from the American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists for ongoing research projects. Read more →
UGA researchers in the Nanostructured Materials Laboratory have proposed a faster, more efficient and scalable method of production of nanofibers that may have implications on tissue engineering, nonwoven textiles for personal care and biosensors. When coupled with stem cells, nanofibers, tiny threads of polymers, have the ability to help form bones, tissues and nerve cells. Read more →