Dr. Wang’s primary interest is in applying emerging technologies to improve manufacturing competitiveness. He specializes in process development for affordable composite materials and is widely acknowledged as a pioneer in nanomaterials science. His work in “buckypaper” has applications in aerospace structures, energy and power efficiency, thermal management of engineering systems, and computer displays.
Dr. Wang’s team is developing bioprinting technology that will allow scientists to produce tissues and organs. They also have combined polymers to mimic the properties of soft tissue on a large enough scale to validate medical imaging techniques, medical devices, and surgical plans.
For example, the team produced a 3D printed heart valve also called a phantom from a patient’s heart scan. The valve can emulate conditions present in the patient’s aorta, which can help doctors and surgeons consider treatment options and develop an optimum plan for surgery.
Research Goals
- Improve manufacturing competitiveness: Collaborate with academia, industry, and government to accelerate innovation and deployment of advanced composites and develop their application
- 3D printing of tissue-mimicking phantoms: Achieve geometrical and biomechanical accuracy on a large enough scale to allow for the improvement of tools used to plan and execute surgery
- Engineered tissues: Improve the viability and quality of cells for tissues and organs by providing scaffold walls that accommodate microfluidic circulation and one-way valves that introduce nutrients and growth factor while eliminating waste
Activities
- Tissue-mimicking phantoms: Dual-material 3D printed metamaterials with micro-structured reinforcement embedded in soft polymeric matrix
- 3D printed auxetic scaffolds: Resist fracture, change volume through continuous stretching and compressing, and assume complicated shapes
Leadership
- Executive Director, Georgia Tech Manufacturing Institute
- Eugene C. Gwaltney Chair in Manufacturing Systems
- Georgia Tech Chief Manufacturing Officer