UMaine Advanced Structures & Composites Center

UMaine Research takes an innovative approach to reduce the reliance on plastic packaging for food products. The ASCC's Mehdi Tajvidi, and University of Maine School of Food and Agriculture's SuriyaPrakaash LakshmiBalasubramaniam and Denise Skonberg explore a new way to make #biodegradable packaging films stronger and more water-resistant by combining cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) derived from wood pulp with corn zein (CZ), a protein from corn. Accepted to the journal #FoodChemistry. #sustainablefoodpackaging #foodpackaging #cornzein #cellulosenanofibril

Don't miss #AFloat2024!

Can your platform weather the wind? Maine middle and high school students recently took on the Windstorm Challenge at the UMaine Advanced Structures & Composites Center. The Windstorm Challenge is an exciting annual competition where students design and construct a floating platform for a scale model wind turbine. Teams present their creations to a panel of expert judges, showcasing their engineering prowess and problem-solving skills. Learn more and find out how you can participate next year at https://lnkd.in/eu4baJkt. #UMaine #Maine #STEMEducaiton #engineering

University of Maine's BioHome3D, the world’s first 100% biobased #3Dprintedhouse featured on CNN. “The ASCC is flipping the script. Its giant printer, and its predecessor, which in 2019 was certified by Guinness World Records as the ‘largest prototype polymer 3D printer,’ are the only printers building homes with wood residuals” (CNN). UMaine is looking to address the critical affordable housing shortage in Maine and beyond with an innovative and sustainable solution Read the full CNN article here:  https://lnkd.in/gvUqRe85 #Sustainability #UniversityofMaine #BioHome3D #UMaine #biomaterials #housing #climatesolutions

Look at this small-scale model of BioHome3D! This model is a 1:50 scale of the 600 sq ft. BioHome3D model! 🏠 BioHome3D is the world’s first Bio-Based 3D printed house. It was 3D printed out of wood-residual materials, this renewable and recyclable material is the future of 3D printing and affordable housing! 🌲 Learn more about BioHome3D here: https://lnkd.in/g86heE2Q #BioHome #3Dprinting #AdditiveManufacturing #B3D #BioHome3D #UMaine  #biomaterials #housing #sustainability #climatesolution University of Maine

Working with our partners at TimberHP to meet their #sustainabilitygoals with Maine's abundant natural resources. #MaineMade Read more: https://lnkd.in/exJe7tzg

The University of Maine’s #VolturnUS technology will be at the forefront of the next wave of clean energy in our state! #BOEM's recent announcement about the proposed Gulf of Maine Offshore Wind Research project is a significant milestone. This initiative involves up to 12 #floatingoffshorewindturbines located 28 miles off the coast of Portland, Maine, capable of generating up to 144 megawatts of renewable energy. This project is pivotal not just for advancing technology but also for researching the environmental impact of #floatingoffshorewind. "We look forward to working with the State and Diamond Offshore Wind on this first of its kind floating project in the US. The VolturnUS technology has evolved and improved over the past decade, while maintaining the ability to produce the hulls locally, creating local jobs," said Dr. Habib Dagher, P.E. #OffshoreWind #RenewableEnergy #MaineInnovation #CleanEnergyFuture #BOEM #EnvironmentalSustainability #floatingoffshorewind

Register Today for TIDC’s FREE June Webinar on Dynamic Remote Sensing and Optical Distributed Sensing Applications for Bridge Health Monitoring! https://buff.ly/3V2hcqg Join TIDC Researchers, Tzuyang Yu, Ph.D., and Xingwei Wang of the University of Massachusetts Lowell as they present two emerging bridge health monitoring techniques that are being investigated and implemented on New England Bridges. They will be joined by industry partners Elvis Higgins of CSX Transportation and Aileen Fowler of Saint-Gobain North America for an Audience Q&A session. We hope to see you on Wednesday, June 26th, 12 PM - 1 PM! #tidc #umaine #uml #csx #saintgobain #bridge #monitoring #sensing #drones #transportation #infrastructure #durability

From all of us here at the University of Maine Advanced Structures & Composites Center, thank you to all attendees of the 2024 Windstorm Challenge! This year we had over 1000 students, volunteers, teachers, chaperones, and community members on campus for our #STEM carnival and hull design competition! Congratulations to the Bucksport Breezy Bucks High School Team and the Penobscot Christian School Middle School Floating Farmers for earning First Place in the Windstorm Challenge! You can find the full photo album here: https://lnkd.in/ek42h3pX #WindstormChallenge2024

Last week, Jacob Ward, Senior Naval Architect at the ASCC, presented a paper titled “Comparison of FEED Level Design and Performance of Chain Catenary and Synthetic #MooringSystems for a 10 MW #FloatingOffshoreWind Turbine” during the “Offshore Wind Design Challenges and Advancements" session at the Offshore Technology Conference held in Houston, TX, USA, 6 – 9 May, 2024. #OTC2024