AUBURN - The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded Auburn University a $4.9 million grant to develop new production systems to collect woody biomass from pine plantations for making bioenergy.

Auburn's Center for Bioenergy and Bioproducts will lead the project, "High Tonnage Forest Biomass Production Systems from Southern Pine Energy Plantations," as part of a consortium that includes central Alabama company Corley Land Services, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service and companies from the U.S. and Canada.

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AUBURN - Researchers with Auburn University's Space Research Institute have played an integral role in installing a solar power system at Lee County's T.K. Davis Justice Center, the first public building in the state to be outfitted with such a system.

After months of research and analysis, the Auburn team managed the installation of a 16.56 kW grid-connected solar-powered system on the new addition to the center. The system will offset the energy costs of electricity the building uses.

"The Lee County Commission contracted with Auburn University to procure and install the system, to develop and manage a Web site and to conduct systems analysis and modeling," said Henry Brandhorst, director of Auburn's Space Research Institute. "We want to show that solar power is successful and to have others invest in it."

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AUBURN - Auburn University and Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc. have announced the signing of a master research agreement for the establishment of the Auburn University Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) Research Center.  The center, to be constructed in the Auburn University Research Park, brings together Auburn's expertise in the areas of engineering, science, and pharmaceutics with Siemens' expertise in magnetic resonance imaging.

The alliance with Siemens, one of the world's largest suppliers to the healthcare industry, will advance Auburn University to the forefront of biomedical engineering and has the potential to bring lifesaving technologies to the citizens of Alabama and the region.  Examples of current and potential areas of MRI-related research include cognitive neuroscience, metabolic imaging, and pharmaceuticals, as well as research into diabetes and heart disease.

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AUBURN - Auburn University will receive $14.4 million in federal stimulus funds for construction of a science, technology and commerce research facility, university officials announced today.

The competitive grant is from the U.S. Department of Commerce's National Institute of Standards and Technology. It will aid Auburn researchers working on standards, measurements and forecasting related to food safety, bioenergy technologies, aquaculture development and sustainability, and water and environmental quality.

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AUBURN - A water-purification technology developed at Auburn University has been granted United States Environmental Protection Agency registration. This technology, when used in appropriately designed drinking water devices, could save lives in remote areas or during natural disasters.

Professor Dave Worley, of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry in the College of Sciences and Mathematics, developed the technology that Seattle-based HaloSource Inc. is commercializing as "HaloPure Br." The company, which pays royalties to Auburn through a technology transfer agreement, markets the technology in a disinfecting cartridge to drinking water device manufacturers around the world.

"The EPA registration not only will benefit U.S. citizens, but also will help provide safe, clean drinking water to consumers in many other countries," said Worley. "Once the U.S. EPA grants registration to a new technology, many other countries will adopt the view that it is safe and proven."

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AUBURN – An Auburn University professor has received a $424,000 National Science Foundation grant for research in the fight against infectious diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis and anthrax, as well as staph infections.

Evert Duin, an assistant professor of biochemistry in the College of Sciences and Mathematics, is focusing his research on the different steps that biological cells use in making a group of lipids, called isoprenoids. These are fatty substances that are essential for the survival of all organisms including humans.

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AUBURN – A team of four researchers at Auburn University are collaborating on a year-long project that will give the parking lot at Auburn's Donald E. Davis Arboretum a "green" makeover with pervious concrete.

Pervious concrete is a porous concrete that supports loads while absorbing and filtering stormwater on its way into the soil and is the focus of the Auburn team's research study on stormwater quality improvement.

The team project was conceived by Michael Hein, professor in the McWhorter School of Building Science and principal investigator; Mark Dougherty, assistant professor of biosystems engineering in the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering; Charlene LeBleu, associate professor in the landscape architecture program in the School of Architecture; and Dee Smith, curator of the College of Sciences and Mathematics' Donald E. Davis Arboretum.

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AUBURN – Auburn University researchers Mark Byrne and Jacek Wower have developed a way to control the release of drugs into the body and, as a result, reduce the frequency of doses and side effects from multiple medications.

Their work involves harnessing the power of nucleic acids to control the rate, release amount and delivery location of medications throughout the body.

"We anticipate tremendous benefits to the treatment of various cancers and viral infections," said Wower. "There is a need to create tailor-made treatments for these kinds of diseases because one person may respond differently to a medication than another. Medicine of the future will take into account a unique genetic blueprint of every patient, increased risks for certain illnesses and how patients respond to disease and therapy."

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AUBURN – The Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art at Auburn University will host its fourth annual "Art in Bloom" exhibition from Thursday, April 2, through Saturday, April 4, in a three-day event featuring art-inspired floral designs. "Art in Bloom" will be open to the public during regular museum hours beginning April 2 at 10 a.m.

The exhibition will showcase floral designers and garden club representatives from the community and across the Southeast with their interpretations of the museum's permanent collection. Lectures and demonstrations from experts on floral design will enhance the exhibition of paired floral arrangements and artwork.

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AUBURN – John Mason, Auburn University's associate provost and vice president for research, has announced the selection of Carl Pinkert as associate vice president for research in the Office of the Vice President for Research.

Pinkert will promote and develop multidisciplinary research initiatives across the Auburn University campus, coordinate activities among the associate deans for research and work on projects to improve proposal development and submission. He will also represent the Office of the Vice President for Research in certain external roles in the state and national arena.

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