As a comprehensive public research university, FIU is committed to providing excellence in education and engaging in impactful, multidisciplinary research. FIU is one of the fastest-growing public research universities in the United States. The College of Engineering and Computing more than doubled its research expenditures over the last five years, and we are continuously climbing in the rankings. In 2021 and 2022, the college secured 45 patents, helping to rank FIU No. 42 for U.S. patents issued.
60
University Patents
44
College Patents
FIU's Wall of Wind leads to upgraded building codes
With the Wall of Wind as a backdrop, FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell announced a new initiative to modernize building codes, improve climate resilience and reduce energy costs.
This initiative will help state, local, tribal and territorial governments adopt current building codes and standards, enabling communities to be more resilient to hurricanes, flooding, wildfires and other extreme weather events that are intensifying due to climate change.
Research Stories
FIU receives NSF grant to design full-scale testing facility
Professor Arindam Chowdhury is leading a $12.8 million, four-year cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation to design a unique, national-scale, multi-user facility to study the impact of extreme winds, storm surges and waves on different types of civil infrastructures.
NSF awards FIU grant to develop new materials for quantum technologies
Professor Daniela Radu has received a $3.7 million grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation PREM to develop new 2D materials and processes that can be transformative in the field of Quantum Science and ensure long-term 2D resilience in future quantum devices.
FIU receives grant to further research in kidney-related cardiovascular disease
Using a $1.8 million, five-year National Institute of Health grant, Professor Joshua Hutchenson is studying the ways in which chronic kidney disease causes heart disease and how we might be able to treat it with currently approved drugs.
FIU receives $3 million to train next-generation workforce
The College of Engineering and Computing received a three-year grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to lead an initiative to prepare minority students for careers with national security entities. With the grant, Professor Sumit Paudyal is building a sustainable pipeline of highly trained engineers to form a national security enterprise workforce.
FIU Engineering receives $22.9 million from U.S. Army
Professor Arvind Agarwal is using a five-year grant to collaborate with the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Army Research Laboratory in support of the Army’s modernization strategy by enabling the research necessary for the development of next-generation materials and manufacturing processes.
- $52million in annual research expenditures; $320 thousand per faculty
- $187million in active research projects
- 50research laboratories, centers and institutes
Academic Accolades
Jessica Ramella-Roman, who is also an associate research professor at the Herbert Wertheim School of Medicine, was elected Senior Member of the Optical Society of America. Ramella-Roman developed a system that uses light to examine the composition and structure of cervical tissue to measure preterm labor risk.
Osama Mohammed was named a 2021 National Academy of Inventors Fellow. He's credited with establishing the mainstream analysis methods for computational electromagnetics and developing breakthrough designs and controllers for electric machines and drives. He also is credited with making great contributions to the enhancement of innovative power electronics architectures and switching techniques, transportation electrification and smart grid communications and cyber security.
Shekhar Bhansali was elected Honorary Fellow by the International Society for Energy, Environment and Sustainability. His research interests are in nanotechnology, biosensors and microfluidics. Bhansali holds 40 patents, has published more than 300 publications and has advised more than 40 doctoral students and postdoctoral fellows in research.
David Garber received the 2021 Educator of the Year award from the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute. He joined FIU in 2014 and has since led many large-scale experimental and analytical research projects related to precast, prestressed concrete and accelerated bridge construction. He's also facilitated and organized numerous educational outreach activities, including summer camps for elementary school students and their parents, teacher workshops and others with the local public library system.
Christian Poellabauer received the IEEE Computer Society Distinguished Contributor Award. He directs FIU's Mobile Sensing and Analytics Lab, which focuses on developing novel personal, social, and crowdsensing solutions, primarily in the healthcare field. Poellabauer has developed various solutions using mobile devices, wearables, and virtual assistants for the diagnosis of concussions, the rehabilitation of amputees and stroke survivors, the monitoring of the progression of neurological conditions and the detection of depression in college students and PTSD in first responders.
Mark Weiss received the ACM Karl V. Karlstrom Outstanding Educator Award for advancing the art and science of computer science education. His most significant contributions to the evolution of data structures and programming curricula have been through his textbooks, which have been used in numerous countries and published in multiple editions over three decades. Weiss is one of the most widely adopted textbook authors in computer science. Notably, he has also been a champion for increasing diversity in the computing field, primarily through partnership programs with other universities in the state of Florida.
Arvind Agarwal was elected to the rank of Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Agarwal's research interests include nanocomposites and coatings, thermal spray, surface engineering, nanomechanics and nanotribology, bioceramic coating, nanomechanics of biological cells and spark plasma sintering. He holds 10 U.S. patents.
Berrin Tansel was elected to the Turkish Science Academy. She's made countless distinguished contributions in the field of environmental research, particularly for the development of innovative processes for water treatment and waste management to reduce pollution loads in coastal systems. Her transformative theoretical and experimental research work includes effectively removing oil and oil particles from water. Her research has also been used in the development of hands-on activities that have been integrated into the science curriculum of some middle and high schools as multi-disciplinary science learning modules on coastal ecosystems
Faculty Honors
37
Fellows and senior members in professional societies
24
NSF CAREER awards
8
Members of the National Academy of Inventors
3
Members of the National Academy of Engineers
2
Test of Time award recipients