Since she arrived at the University of Wisconsin–Madison as a faculty member in fall 2001, Aparna Dharwadker, professor of English and interdisciplinary theatre studies, has viewed the annual Fall Research Competition as an exceptional form of suppor
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Common microbes team up to degrade polymer composites
Different types of common bacteria team up to degrade polymer composite materials often used to make infrastructure, buildings and vehicles by eating away at them directly or weakening and cracking them through other biological processes. Image from UW-Madison College of Engineering
Polymer composites are durable, lightweight replacements for wood, metal or other materials and are used widely in everything from pipelines and utility poles to airplanes and cars.
Research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison is shedding new light on how common bacteria can degrade those materials.
“A lot of studies have focused on how these polymer materials would respond to environmental conditions like temperature, moisture or ultraviolet light,” says Pavana Prabhakar, a UW-Madison professor of civil and environmental engineering. “They’ve rarely been studied in the context of microbial interactions.”