University of Arkansas
Ralph E. Martin Department of Chemical Engineering
3202 Bell Engineering Center
Fayetteville, AR 72701-1201
Phone: (479) 575-4951
Fax: (479) 575-7926
MAST Center
Under the direction of Professor Ranil Wickramasinghe, the University of Arkansas was admitted in 2014 as a site of the Membrane, Science, Engineering and Technology Center (MAST), a multi-campus National Science Foundation Industry and University Cooperative Research Center (I/UCRC). In 2017, Dr. Wickramasinghe was elected Center Coordinator for the MAST Center and now oversees all four sites. Dr. Xianghong Qian serves as Site Co-Director at the University of Arkansas.
The MAST Center consists of three other sites: The University of Colorado Boulder, the New Jersey Institute of Technology, and Pennsylvania State University. The Center focuses on developing materials for energy production, water treatment, pharmaceutical purification and chemical processing. Dr. Wickramasinghe’s team will focus on water treatment, wastewater recovery and reuse, and bioseparations for the manufacture of biopharmaceuticals. The center’s expertise in membrane separations will enhance its research mission with emphasis on industry participation.
The University of Arkansas site currently has eight industry sponsors, who each support a specialized research project. Industry sponsors include Arkansas Bait and Ornamental Fish Growers Association, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Garver USA, Southwestern Energy, Tyson Foods, Inc., Asahi Kasei, Membrane Science, and Hawaii Department of Agriculture.
Prof Wickramasinghe is an Arkansas Research Alliance (ARA) Scholar. The ARA Scholars program drives economic development by providing funding and assisting research universities in identifying and recruiting esteemed researchers with strong credential and entrepreneurial records.
Cato Springs Research Center
1475 Cato Springs Road
Fayetteville, AR 72701
Tel: 479-575-4969
Fax: 479-575-4940
Learn more about the MAST Center here.
