NSF awards $4.1 million to University

Written by Julie Walsh/Contributing Writer

The University received a grant for a research, education and training project by the National Science Foundation.

The project will give FIU and the University of Florida the funds to expand work in their Wall of Wind hurricane simulator, better known as the Wall of Wind. This is a life-size simulator with a set of controls designed to produce Category 5, 157 mph hurricane winds.

It’s the only lab with this full-scale simulator in the nation.

Out of 11,000 proposals, NSF chose the University, providing a $4.1 million award for a five-year period.

The University will continue their work in the Wall of Wind. UF houses the Powell Family Structures and Materials Laboratory, which is part of a seven-lab network around the United States.

UF will be receiving $3.7 million to offer experts access to their wind tunnel. It will test bridge and building models in stretches of land.

The universities are the only two in the nation devoted to studying extreme wind events such as hurricanes.

“[It] runs the most rigorous proposal review competitions in the United States,” said Richard S. Olson, professor and director of extreme events research in the Office of the Vice President for Research. “FIU and UF had the two best proposals in engineering. It’s as simple as that.”

The NSF started research in natural hazards with a $40 million investment in Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure. This is a large, natural hazards engineering research facility.

According to Olson, the Network of Earthquake Engineering Simulation was the program that preceded it.

NHERI replaces the program, which was established by NSF as a national research infrastructure for earthquake engineering.

Olson said NHERI has collaborated multiple hazards and wind engineering into a single project. This is the first project to accomplish this.

“NSF is the principle federal government support for basic and applied research in the U.S. aimed at economic well being, knowledge advancement and safety,” said Olson.

The foundation funds research and education in most science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields.

“They had many proposals and they picked the best ones: FIU and UF,” said Olson.

According to Olson, the University is a part of the $40 million grant project, among other schools, including the University of Texas in Austin, the University of California in San Diego, Oregon State University, the University of California in Davis, Lehigh University and the University of Florida.

NSF awards hundreds of grants every year to universities.

Olson said NSF is the principle federal government support for basic and applied research in the U.S. The NSF is aimed at economic well being, knowledge advancement and national security.

NSF’s investments in NHERI will allow researchers at FIU and UF to test innovative concepts to protect homes and businesses.

Olson thinks that the University should be proud of being selected as a wind-engineering experimental facility because it will create jobs and careers that have not existed before.

He said this award is not only a research recognition for the University but also a “magnet” for graduate students to conduct wind engineering training.

“Students are going to want to come to an NSF designated experimental facility [because] it increases the value of their degree,” he said. “Everybody in the country and all over the world is noticing that FIU has an experimental facility designated by the NSF. It elevates the value of an FIU engineering degree.”

-news@fiusm.com 

Photo Courtesy of Creative Commons

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