ELSAYED-ALI WINS INNOVATION AWARD

Hani E. Elsayed-Ali, Old Dominion University professor of electrical and computer engineering and eminent scholar, has won an Excellence in Innovation Award from the Hampton Roads Technology Council.

The award, which was for Elsayed-Ali's role in the development of an inert barrier coating to increase corrosion resistance, was announced at the council's Tech Nite '06 Awards Gala in Hampton on May 4.

Elsayed-Ali directs the university's portion of the Applied Research Center (ARC) in Newport News, where researchers have a special interest in space-age coatings and nanotechnology.

The overall goal of ARC is to promote innovative, high-tech solutions for private industries and help stimulate the Hampton Roads and Virginia economies.

Elsayed-Ali collaborated with engineering colleagues at ODU and with the local private company Control Corporation of America (Concoa) in developing and obtaining a patent for the corrosion resistant coating. Although the coating has multiple uses, it was conceived for use on regulators exposed to very corrosive gases.

The award that Elsayed-Ali won is sponsored by the law firm of Willcox & Savage P.C.