The Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation (IACMI) marked a major milestone with an open house event at its new headquarters in Innovation South, Tennessee. The celebration honored a decade of advancements in composite materials and manufacturing while showcasing the organization’s cutting-edge laboratory and expanded facilities.
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Fibers and Composites Manufacturing Facility at Innovation South Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering


IACMI’s InnoCrate 2025
Starting off the new year of 2025, IACMI hosted InnoCrate at the newly developed Innovation South building at the UT Research Park at Cherokee Farm. This unique event blended a “bring your kid to work” day with an interactive scientific playground, sparking curiosity and creativity in young minds.
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Two Wins and Research Shared at CAMX 2022 Anaheim
UT FCMF actively participated in CAMX 2022 with two winning teams and presented research. UT had a booth at the educational pavilion in the exhibition hall. UT closely coordinating with IACMI-The Composites Institute at the event.
Two UT students presented their research on (1) Kaustubh Mungale on magnesium-carbon fiber composite bonding; and (2) Benjamin Schwartz on bio-composites manufacturing and characterization. Continue reading

FCMF & Collaborators Selected Finalist for CAMX ACE Entry for Infinite Market Growth
Visit this story at CAMX 2022 ACE entry Infinite Market Growth
FCMF is honored to be named a finalist for the energy-efficient composite modular
Residential Retrofits Lead to Energy Efficiency
The residential sector accounts for approximately 21% of total U.S. energy consumption, and the average household is responsible for releasing 70% more CO2 emissions than the average car, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Researchers at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK) have developed a solution to help combat the problem.
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Pritesh Yeole Recognized with SAMPE Young Professional Award
Congratulations to Pritesh Yeole, PhD, Research Associate at FCMF and member of the South Carolina SAMPE Chapter for being nominated for the Young Professional Emerging Leadership Award at SAMPE Charlotte, 2022.
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Lockheed Tech Day hosted by Composites Applications Group (CAG)
Thanks to our friend and supporter Peter Hedger, Vice President at Composites Application Group (CAG), for organizing and hosting Lockheed Technology Day in Knoxville, TN, July 12 & 13, 2022.
Participants ranging from Wabash National, CAG, Structural Composites, and a host of material suppliers, Tiers, and a contingent from Lockheed Martin attended this event. The line of speakers was impressive and full of rich content.
The entire group of 50+ attendees toured the FCMF and interacted directly with our undergraduate and graduate students to exchange the latest technologies and opportunities.
Thank you, Peter, for bringing such a quality event to us!
Ryan Spencer recognized by ORNL Composites Section
Congratulations to Ryan Spencer, PhD student, for being recognized as an outstanding collaborating student between FCMF and the ORNL Composites Section. Ryan has been exemplary in his efforts to work between UT and ORNL in numerous high-value projects.
These include NDE (High Fidelity DIC, Acoustic Emission), Additive Manufacturing, Effects of Extreme Environments, to name a few. Ryan is also an excellent mentor to his undergraduate students – he provides them with the best practice(s), research protocols, data analysis, and interpretation leading to high-impact-factor publications.
Congratulations, Ryan, we are proud of you!
Ryan Spencer receiving award from Vlastimil Kunc (ORNL Composites Section Head, and Ahmed Hassen, ORNL Composites Innovation Group Leader)
Dr. Alex Stiles Defends PhD Dissertation
Congratulations to Alex Stiles, and now Dr. Alex Stiles, for successfully defending his PhD dissertation on Ultraviolet Curing of Thermoset Resins.
Alex did fine work in understanding the cure kinetics and mechanisms of UV-cured resins in fiber preform. He published his work in Additive Manufacturing and Polymers journal(s), among others.
A mentor to numerous undergraduate and graduate students, Alex always contributed to FCMF in numerous ways, including STEM and workforce training.
Ryan Ogle Defends Masters
Ryan Ogle completed his MS in May of 2022.
He did excellent work in Additive Manufacturing and Optimization of PEEK-based thermoplastics for innovative adaptive pore applications. His work involved high-fidelity geometries, and he investigated the extreme bounds of printing these high-temperature, high-performance polymers.
Ryan started at FCMF as an undergraduate biomedical engineer and went on to do his MS in an exemplary manner.
Congratulations Ryan!
Dr. Soydan Ozcan named Group Leader for ORNL Sustainability & Circular Economy
Congratulations to Dr. Soydan Ozcan for being named the Group Leader for ORNL Sustainability & Circular Economy.
In this role, he leads the significant emerging area of recycling, circular economy, life cycle analysis and decarbonization initiatives. Ozcan already leads a multi-million-dollar program in sustainability in collaboration with the University of Maine.
The UT FCMF team works closely with Ozcan and his incredible team.
Congratulations! We gratefully acknowledge the collaboration.