Srinivasan Srivilliputhur, assistant professor of materials science and engineering, has received a National Science Foundation CAREER award, the most prestigious offered by the NSF for young researchers. The award supports the early career development activities of educators who effectively integrate research and education within the context of the missions of their organizations.
 
Srivilliputhur’s $430,000 grant will support a five-year research study of ultra-light materials, focusing on magnesium-lithium alloys. The materials could someday replace steel and result in significant cuts in fuel consumption, revolutionizing automobile construction.
 
Srivilliputhur also will focus on increasing the enrollment of blind students in science and engineering programs, working with the students and educators to develop course modules incorporating Braille and other useful tools.
 
He is the first faculty member in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering to win the CAREER award and the fifth at UNT.