Federal Project Grant Summary

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute received a $400,000 Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Division of Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and Transport Systems under the Engineering program (CFDA 47.041), effective July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2028. This award supports fundamental research investigating the effects of curvature and inertia on the hydrodynamics of protein solutions at complex fluid interfaces. The project utilizes the microgravity environment of the International Space Station (ISS) to conduct experiments with protein solution drops in a ring-sheared drop module, eliminating gravitational and wall interaction complications that occur in terrestrial laboratories. By studying how surface tension, curvature, and fluid inertia influence protein solution behavior in microgravity, the research will generate predictive models applicable to both fundamental physics of complex fluids and industrial applications, particularly in the manufacturing of biologics and pharmaceutical products.

The research deliverables include the development of first-principle predictive models for protein structure and function at fluid interfaces, complemented by analogous laboratory experiments on Earth. The project advances scientific understanding of how environmental conditions affect protein conformation and functionality in solution, with direct applications to pharmaceutical development and biomanufacturing processes. The microgravity environment enables unique characterization of protein solution dynamics that cannot be readily replicated on Earth, positioning this research to yield insights beneficial to both fundamental science and commercial biopharmaceutical manufacturing.