The North Carolina Agricultural Research Service (NCARS) office is pleased to announce the five recipients of the 2020 CALS Research Committee (CRC) equipment grants. The CRC equipment grant program provides funding for research equipment with the goal of advancing research within CALS. The equipment grant proposals are reviewed by the CRC and the final decisions are determined by the NCARS office. The CRC equipment grant proposals were submitted in November 2019 and funded in January 2020, and the equipment must be purchased before the end of June.
Gina Fernandez, a professor in Horticultural Science, received funding to purchase a 16 cubic foot growth chamber. The chamber can increase and decrease the internal temperature and will be used to study the resilience of small fruit crops such as raspberries, blackberries, blueberries and grapes to heat waves and cold snaps. Colleen Doherty, in Biochemistry, and Hamid Ashrafi and Mark Hoffmann, both in Horticultural Science, were co-PIs on the grant.
Rebecca Irwin, a professor in Applied Ecology, received funding to purchase a flexible optical sorter which uses full-color cameras and advanced image processing software to pick out “odd” items from normal items. The sorter will be used for everything from studying the pollen diets of bees to controlling weed populations. Faculty in Prestage Poultry Science, Horticultural Science, Plant and Microbial Biology, Entomology and Plant Pathology and Applied Ecology expressed interest in using the sorter as well.
Chadi Sayde, an assistant professor in Biological and Agricultural Engineering, received funding to purchase a large, blimp-like, tethered aerostat. The aircraft will monitor temperature, wind speed and air quality as well as taking images for weeks at a time over campus or research stations across the state. Sierra Young and Lingjuan Li, both in Biological and Agricultural Engineering, were co-PIs on the grant.
Ross Sozzani, an associate professor in Plant and Microbial Biology, received funding to purchase a 3D bioprinter. The 3D bioprinter will be used to precisely deposit plant cells layer-by-layer to study cell-to-cell communications and ultimately, produce new, optimized plants. Tim Horn, in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering; Rohan Shirwaiker, in Industrial and Systems Engineering; and Michael Daniele, in Electrical and Computer Engineering, were co-PIs on the grant.
Matthew Vann, an assistant professor in Crop and Soil Sciences, received funding to purchase new temperature and humidity monitoring equipment for small-scale post-harvest curing and storage research at the Central Crops Research Station. Crops that are important for the North Carolina economy including tobacco, sweet potatoes and industrial hemp require post-harvest curing and drying. This equipment will improve accessibility and data acquisition for research in this area. Charlie Cahoon, Ralph Dewey, Ramsey Lewis, David Suchoff, Rachel Vann and Alex Woodley, all in Crop and Soil Sciences; Anders Huseth and Lindsey Thiessen, both in Entomology and Plant Pathology; Katie Jennings and Jonathan Schultheis, both in Horticultural Science; Grant Ellington, in Biological and Agricultural Engineering; and Cathy Herring, the Interim Superintendent of Central Crops Research Station; were co-PIs on the grant.