WKU News & Events

April 12, 2002

WKU Project Receives State Science
And Engineering Grant

Bowling Green, Ky. - A Western Kentucky University research project on solar energy has received a grant in the 2002 Kentucky Science and Engineering Foundation Awards.

WKU researchers requested $83,930 for a project to study solar energy and its conversion to domestic use, according to Kaveh Khatir, an associate professor of engineering.

Khatir is conducting the project "Advanced Research into Application of Solar Energy to Residential and Commercial Units" with staff engineer Ron Rizzo and Neal Downing, visiting assistant professor in the Department of Architectural and Manufacturing Sciences.

The ultimate goal of Western's research project is to design more affordable energy conversion systems that would allow homes or businesses to convert solar energy for lighting, electrical units or heating and would reduce the dependency on fossil fuels, Khatir said.

The grant to Western was part of $2.1 million the Kentucky Science and Engineering Foundation awarded to 32 researchers at four universities and one entrepreneurial firm. Those funds will be matched with $2.2 million from the applicants in the program to aid researchers in developing products and attracting high-tech companies to Kentucky.

The foundation, created by the Kentucky Innovation Act of 2000, is operated by the Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation through a contract with the Council on Postsecondary Education. Its mission is to build science and engineering capacity and excellence by investing in exploratory advanced research, purpose-driven research and emerging technology programs, human resource development and technological innovations in Kentucky.

More information on the grant program is available online at http://www.kstc.com/KSEF/

For more information, contact Kaveh Khatir at (270) 745-5849. More WKU news is available on the World Wide Web at www.wku.edu. If you'd like to receive WKU news via E-mail, send a message to WKUNews@wku.edu.