In recognition of the university's strong and growing materials science program, UNT established the Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Processes Institute (AMMPI) last year as one of its four Institutes of Research Excellence. Part of UNT's College of Engineering, AMMPI touts a multidisciplinary team of researchers committed to collaborating on large research projects with an emphasis on the application of findings and solutions to meet market issues and needs. The institute's diverse faculty are focused on structural and functional materials, computational tools and advanced manufacturing processes to help design high-performance materials for industries in the aerospace, automotive and energy sectors.

A recent grant from the Army Research Laboratory for $20 million will have AMMPI, in collaboration with three other universities, working to understand why body and vehicle armors fail so that they can create stronger, better armor to keep soldiers safe. It is one of the ways the institute is able to invest in equipment and lab space to provide state-of-the-art research opportunities and experiences for faculty and students.

"AMMPI recognizes the evolving science associated with materials of all types, and we strongly believe that an integrated design approach to manufacturing — our specialty — will create much-needed, high-throughput techniques in materials genomics and computational materials discovery and design," says Rajiv Mishra, Distinguished Research Professor of materials science and engineering and director of AMMPI. "This is what will produce more efficient and more competitive products."

Learn more about UNT's Institutes of Research Excellence. >>