UConn Tech Park

UConn Tech Park Hosts 4th Annual Separations Workshop, Showcasing Innovation Across Industry and Academia

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Jeff McCutcheon giving a tour of the CCAST lab to visitors

UConn Tech Park was a hub of scientific exchange and industry collaboration earlier this month as it hosted the 4th Industrial Workshop on Separations Technology, organized by the Connecticut Center for Applied Separations Technologies (CCAST). The two-day event held in early October drew more than 100 participants from over 70 companies and universities, highlighting cutting-edge research and commercialization in the separations field.

The workshop opened with an Early Career session featuring 14 talks, a keynote by renowned separations scientist Kamalesh Sirkar, and a career panel with experts from academia, national labs, and startups. The following evening, a lively poster session showcased 25 research projects from students and postdocs representing more than a dozen labs nationwide.

This year’s program expanded on its tradition of connecting science with application. Technical presentations and panels covered a range of topics, including new membrane materials, gas and water separations, and critical materials recovery. Speakers from both industry and academia—including Francesco Benedetti (Osmoses), Emily Rabe (Membrion), Eric Hoek (UCLA), and Tom Pankratz (Global Water Intelligence)—shared insights into emerging technologies and market trends.

Panels on venture capital, critical materials, and water technology brought together investors, entrepreneurs, and researchers to discuss commercialization challenges and sustainability opportunities. In the popular startup pitch competition, Recovered Potential, a Stanford spinout developing ammonia recovery technologies, won first place, followed by OsmoPure Technologies from the University of Colorado Boulder.

CCAST also showcased its state-of-the-art separations laboratory, located at Tech Park, where it advances both academic and industry research in water treatment, gas separation, and membrane development.

Sponsored by the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development, UConn College of Engineering, Verico Technology LLC, and others, the workshop continues to grow as a premier forum for innovation at the intersection of science, engineering, and sustainability.

Interested in attending or participating in future workshops? Click here to join the mailing list.

Eversource Energy Center Faculty Receive Prestigious NSF CAREER Awards

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The Eversource Energy Center at UConn is celebrating the achievements of two of its leading researchers, Diego Cerrai and Junbo Zhao, who have each received the National Science Foundation’s highly competitive Faculty Early Career Development (NSF CAREER) Award.

 

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Diego Cerrai, Ph.D.

Dr. Diego Cerrai, Interim Director of the Eversource Energy Center and Assistant Professor in the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, is advancing the science behind power outage prediction and restoration. His research focuses on improving how utilities forecast outages caused by snow and ice storms — and how they respond. By combining detailed observations of snow density with improved weather models, Cerrai’s work will refine the UConn Outage Prediction Model, already used by major utilities. His project also includes developing a new restoration model that factors in road conditions during winter weather, with the aim of reducing inequities in power restoration for rural communities. Read more about Cerrai’s research.

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Junbo Zhao, Ph.D.

Dr. Junbo Zhao, Associate Director of the Eversource Energy Center and Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, is tackling the challenges of keeping our power grid stable and secure in an era of rapid growth in renewable energy. Zhao’s CAREER project will improve grid operators’ ability to monitor and control power systems in real time, helping prevent large-scale blackouts like the 2003 Northeast blackout. His integrated research and education plan also includes hands-on training, industry collaboration, and outreach to inspire the next generation of energy innovators. Learn more about Zhao’s research.

Congratulations to both faculty for their exceptional contributions to grid reliability and resilience — and for strengthening the Eversource Energy Center’s role as a leader in energy research.

Leadership Horizons Workshop Empowers UConn Engineering Grad Students

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UConn Tech Park was pleased to host the Leadership Horizons: Exploring Paths Beyond Graduation leadership workshop from the UConn Engineering – John Lof Leadership Academy on May 13. The workshop was designed to educate graduate students from the UConn College of Engineering about leadership opportunities in various career sectors (industry, academia, and entrepreneurship).

Attendees heard from guest speakers from both industry and academia, who discussed the opportunities and hurdles students may face as they move forward in their careers. Thank you to all speakers for your invaluable expertise and guidance!