For release: Dec. 3, 2007

Contacts: 
Thomas Lograsso, Materials and Engineering Physics, (515) 294-8425
Alan Goldman, Ames Laboratory director, (515) 294-2770
Steve Karsjen, Public Affairs, (515) 294-5643

AMES LABORATORY PROGRAM DIRECTOR NAMED

Lograsso to head up Materials and Engineering Physics

AMES, Iowa –Thomas Lograsso has been appointed director of the Materials and Engineering Physics, or MEP, program at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Ames Laboratory.  His appointment will be effective Dec. 1, 2007.

Lograsso has been serving as interim director of the Lab’s MEP program since March 2007.  He has led the effort to reorganize the MEP program to more strongly align with the mission of the Division of Materials Science and Engineering within the DOE’s Office of Basic Energy Sciences, or BES.  The restructuring effort has been directed toward strengthening the focus of the MEP program, creating new research thrusts and organizing core research programs that are prepared to respond to future BES priorities.    Alan Goldman, Ames Laboratory interim director, praised Lograsso for his contribution to reorganizing the MEP.  “Tom has played a critical role in helping Ames Laboratory better position itself to respond to the core research areas of the DOE,” said Goldman.  “The Laboratory is better positioned now than ever before to play a critical role in helping solve our nation’s energy challenges.”

In addition to its research programs, the MEP also manages the Ames Laboratory’s  Materials Preparation Center, which is a specialized research center primarily dedicated to the preparation, purification, and characterization of metallic materials that are not available from commercial suppliers for university, industry and government facilities. 
Lograsso has been a materials scientist at Ames Laboratory since 1988.  Among his research interests is the understanding of the synthesis–property relations in highly responsive materials.  He pursues this interest through the synthesis of bulk single crystals of intermetallics, martensitic, magneto-responsive and quasicrystalline alloys.
 
“I am honored to have the opportunity to direct the MEP program on a more permanent basis,” said Lograsso.  “Finding opportunities in support of the DOE’s mission will remain our focus.”

Ames Laboratory, celebrating its 60th anniversary in 2007, is operated for the Department of Energy by Iowa State University. The Lab conducts research into various areas of national concern, including the synthesis and study of new materials, energy resources, high-speed computer design, and environmental cleanup and restoration.

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