Tag: gateway research park

Lithium Discovery Could Spark Major Economic Growth in North Carolina

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GREENSBORO, N.C. (November 12, 2025) — As Toyota expands its footprint in our state, another breakthrough right here in the Triad is putting our area on the national map for battery innovation. A new discovery by UNCG researchers could change the way lithium batteries are made.

Lithium batteries power almost everything these days such as phones, laptops, and electric cars. But getting lithium out of the ground is a long, expensive process that requires large-scale mining. A team at UNCG believes they’ve found a cleaner, faster, and much cheaper solution: filtering lithium directly out of water.

Inside a Greensboro research lab located at Gateway Research Park’s North Campus location in Browns Summit,  Minerva Lithium LLC scientists are running groundwater through a new type of filter they developed. As the water flows through, the filter captures lithium. That becomes one of the key building blocks of modern batteries.

Dr. Hemali Rathnayake, who leads the project, says this technology could be a game changer for the state.

“This is a huge breakthrough for North Carolina.”

And the timing couldn’t be better. The U.S. Department of Energy projects our need for lithium will grow up to 1,000 percent over the next decade. North Carolina already sits on valuable pockets of the mineral, but mining remains costly and environmentally challenging.

That’s where UNCG’s new process stands out. Instead of digging into the earth, researchers say they can extract lithium from lakes and groundwater in a fraction of the time.

“Currently it takes up to 18 months to get that lithium concentrated,” said PhD student Shawn Adams. “But in less than 48 hours, we can get 99 percent purity.”

UNCG estimates their method is also more than 60 percent cheaper than traditional mining.

“If we use this technology to extract lithium, then we can have a huge economic impact and job growth,” Rathnayake said.

To help the project reach major manufacturers, NCInnovation is investing in the research and promoting it to global companies that are already eyeing North Carolina.

“As global companies look to North Carolina and look specifically to this region, they are looking for workforce, but they are also looking for all the ripple effects of having really strong clusters of innovative technology,” said Michelle Bolas with NCInnovation.

From cutting-edge filtration to future battery demand, UNCG’s breakthrough could help drive the next wave of economic growth in our state.

Source:  WFMY News 2, Ben Briscoe, author.

NC Researchers Fighting Honey Bee Extinction with New Technology

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RALEIGH, N.C. (September 5, 2025) — A pesky parasite is impacting bees, threatening colonies all over the world.

Bees keep our crops pollinated and now their keepers are looking for a way to stop this killer. Honey bees are a key contributor in the state’s largest industry.

“Part of our goal really is shoring up food security, crop production in North Carolina,” said Kaira Wagoner, a research scientist at UNC Greensboro works in the UNCG Plant & Pollinator Lab located at Gateway Research Park in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Wagoner and her team are keeping the buzz about bees going from the honeycomb to the fume hoods.  Wagoner’s passion is protecting one of the planet’s most prolific pollinators.

Researchers have pinpointed the parasite responsible for decimating bee colonies across the country.

The Varroa destructor, a small mite that’s living up to its name, is feeding on honey bees and amplifying deadly viruses, Wagoner said.  “That’s really the No. 1 threat to honey bee health in the United States, and really globally, is this mite and the damage that it causes through spreading of those diseases,” she said.  These sly creatures bury themselves in brood cells, the small hexagonal openings in the hive, where bee pupa are developing.

“She hides under that food and has a snorkel to breathe,” Wagoner said. “They cap over that cell so she can’t be detected as easily. Then the baby bee will eat up that food, releasing her from that brood food. She’ll come out and start feeding on the baby.”

Wagoner said some bees have a way of stopping the spread.

“The honey bees that can smell very well, that are very sensitive, can then detect these Varroa mites, these problems, and throw them out of the colony, preventing the colony from dying,” Wagoner said.

Wagoner developed a method to find these overly hygienic bees so they can be used for future breeding.

Her technology is called unhealthy brood odor or UBeeO. The pheromone-based spray mimics the scent of a Varroa mite. Once it’s on the frame, it’s placed back in the beehive. Two hours later the same frame is removed, examined and photographed to document the progress.  The tests we saw had mixed results.

The first frames were mostly untouched, and this hive didn’t uncap any cells.  A second set of bees removed a few, even pulling out some of the pupa to prevent potential spread and look for mites.  The final test we watched had near perfect results.  The bees checked every sprayed cell.

Wagoner says colonies that can identify at least 60% of the sprayed cells have fewer mites, less bacteria and lower fungal loads.

High-scoring colonies are also found to have fewer viruses, all qualities that make them good candidates for selective breeding, a process intended to strengthen bees.

Wagoner is exploring another discovery using NCInnovation funding from the state.

She found hygienic honey bees have a different microbiota from less-hygienic bees.  Her team of researchers is now exploring that link. “We have potential to develop a product out of this, finding that could actually improve honey bee health,” Wagoner said. “We’re starting to get into that in the last few years and we have a lot of exciting research ahead of us, thanks to NCInnovation.”

Wagoner said beekeepers from all over the world are interested in her research and starting to use UBeeO for themselves to identify hygienic bees.  She hopes her technology can promote more intentional breeding that can help bees be more resistant to parasites and save farmers money by eliminating the need for expensive miticides.

Source:  Spectrum News, article written by Marshall Keely, Central NC.

Transportation Secretary Buttigieg, Gov. Cooper Tout A&T Transportation Innovation

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EAST GREENSBORO, N.C. (July 3, 2024) — U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg joined Gov. Roy Cooper on Tuesday to visit the transportation research facility at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University’s Gateway Research Park North Campus. Gateway North houses a diverse fleet of connected autonomous vehicles and one of the nation’s first rural test tracks for testing and developing autonomous vehicles.

Buttigieg, Cooper and North Carolina Board of Transportation Chair Michael Fox rode autonomous shuttles on the test track and witnessed the vertical takeoff and landing of prototype “air taxis” being developed for package delivery and urban air mobility. Students also demonstrated A&T capabilities in using autonomous aerial vehicles to inspect bridges and other infrastructure.

“The work that is being done here at North Carolina A&T is going to help make it possible for America to advance in transportation technology, like autonomous driving and flight,” said Buttigieg. “It is being done with a great deal of attention on safety and data on the equity implications like how we serve rural areas, improve access to healthcare and education and how we can support the disability community.”

Buttigieg is the latest federal Cabinet member to travel to A&T for review of significant research activity and federally sponsored projects. Others include EPA Administrator Michael Regan ’98, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona and U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.

Buttigieg, Cooper and Fox got a briefing Tuesday from an array of A&T faculty researchers focusing on high-profile current studies and other prominent research that has seen the university emerge as a national leader transportation research and autonomy in recent years. Those researchers included:

  • Maranda McBride, Ph.D., management professor and director of the Center for Advanced Transportation Mobility and co-director of Center for Regional and Rural Connected Communities
  • Rachel Liu, Ph.D., UPS Endowed Professor of Supply Chain Management and director of the Transportation Institute. McBride and Liu are Willie A. Deese College of Business and Economics faculty.
  • Ali Karimoddini, Ph.D., electrical and computer engineering professor and director of CR2C2, the Region 4 University Transportation Center, which also includes Clemson, Florida Atlantic, Alabama, Kentucky, Tennessee and Georgia as research partners. A&T is the first HBCU to serve as a regional lead in the UTC program’s history.
  • Abdollah Homaifar, Ph.D., Duke Energy Eminent Professor and director of the Autonomous Control and Information Technology Institute on air and ground transportation)
  • Venktesh Pandey, Ph.D., assistant professor of civil engineering and co-lead of CR2C2 on equity and accessibility of transportation systems.

Sarah Searcy, senior advisor for Innovation, Integrated Mobility Division, North Carolina Department of Transportation, concluded the session by detailing her agency’s support for transportation research at A&T.

The demonstration portion of the tour featured rides in Aggie Autonomous shuttles on the rural test track, a 2-mile-long route simulating rural driving conditions. This track allows researchers to test A&T-developed technology that enables vehicle autonomy in real-world conditions.

Guests then witnessed demonstration of the prototype aircraft being developed with support from NASA. These air taxis ultimately promise to relieve congestion on urban roadways and increase connectivity to rural communities by flying goods and passengers from location to location.

Media Contact Information: jmhowse@ncat.edu

By Michiko Horie and Jordan M. Howse / 07/03/2024 Research and Economic Development, College of Business and Economics, College of Engineering

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Paul Meyer Appointed as Executive Director of Gateway Research Park

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GREENSBORO, NC (January 23, 2024) – The Gateway Research Park (“Gateway”) Board of Directors have announced that Mr. Paul Meyer will assume the position of Executive Director of the organization effective Monday, January 29, 2024.  Meyer, who retired as Executive Director of the NC League of Municipalities in December 2021, has more than 25 years of non-profit leadership experience with a focus on growing organizations, developing talent, optimizing operations, and achieving positive financial performance.

In making the announcement and after a national search, Gateway Board Chair Kevin Baker said, “Paul’s experience in leading large and complex non-profit organizations, his deep understanding of both state and local government operations and funding, and his past ties to and relationships within the Piedmont Triad Region, all make Paul the right person to fill this critical role for Gateway.” Meyer will take over from Jim Westmoreland, who has served as Interim Director since March 2020 and announced his intention to resign in July 2023 to pursue other professional opportunities.

Meyer said, “I am honored to be provided the opportunity to serve as the Executive Director of Gateway. Having spent some time in the Piedmont Triad Region in the past and having become familiar with Gateway’s impressive portfolio of tenants and culture of on-going success, I look forward to working with the Gateway Board, NC A&T State University, UNCG, and the community to continue to advance the unlimited potential of Gateway and its future.”

The mission of Gateway Research Park, which is a partnership of NC A&T State University and UNCG, is to be a catalyst for university research, innovation, and economic development. Formed in 2003 as a 501(c) 3 not-for-profit, Gateway maintains a 70-year land lease with the State of North Carolina, operates two 75-acre research and development campuses in Greensboro, and has a diverse mix of private, non-profit, and academic tenants on its campuses. In addition, Gateway also provides management support services for Union Square Campus Inc.

Gateway Research Park provides a collaborative environment, which combines groundbreaking business organizations with world-class laboratories, highly advanced equipment and the intellectual capital of faculty and students from partner universities. The tenants and organizations connected to Gateway provide rich shared resources for technological growth, discovery, and progress. Any company that can benefit from collaboration is welcome at Gateway South, located at 2901 East Gate City Boulevard in east Greensboro, and Gateway North located at 5900 Summit Avenue, near the Bryan Park complex just off the Greensboro Urban Loop.

For more information, visit www.GatewayResearchPark.com.

For more information contact:

Mr.Kevin Baker
Chair, Gateway Board of Directors and Executive Director, Piedmont Triad International Airport.
bakerk@gsoair.org
336-665-5600