New Kummer ignition grants

Diagnosing a disease from your wearable. Making electrical infrastructure more resilient. Predicting catastrophic events. These innovations and more could result from the latest round of Kummer Ignition Grants for Research and Innovation at Missouri S&T.

Ranging from $25,000 to $50,000 per project, these grants support researchers’ efforts to develop compelling proposals for multi-million-dollar grants from federal agencies, foundations and corporations.

When added to the first 12 Ignition Grants and second round of five grants funded in Fiscal Year 2022, the Kummer Institute tallies 29 projects funded by nearly $900,000.

“Even if a small percentage is funded, we will see an excellent return on investment,” says Dr. Kamal Khayat, vice chancellor for research and innovation at Missouri S&T. “From the fall 2021 cycle of Ignition Grants, 13 external proposals totaling $25 million were submitted and we expect a similar level for future cohorts.”

Two proposals from our department funded by the Ignition Grants are: “Cost-Effective and Ecological 3D Printing of Reinforced Concrete Structures through Vibration Dynamics and Granular Physics” led by Dr. Dimitri Feys and “Planning an ERC and Other Significant Projects on Gigaton-Scale Carbon-Negative Engineering” led by Dr. Hongyan Ma