RTI International
Encyclopedia
RTI International is the trade name of the Research Triangle Institute, an independent research institute established in 1958. The founding tenant of North Carolina’s Research Triangle Park
, RTI was created as part of a larger effort to harness the intellectual capital of the area’s three major universities: North Carolina State University
, the University of North Carolina
at Chapel Hill and Duke University
.
Since that time, RTI has grown from a handful of scientists into an international research organization conducting research and development projects throughout the world. Its staff of more than 2,800 employees provides research and technical services to governments and businesses in more than 40 countries.
Since 1988, RTI has conducted the largest U.S. survey on illegal drug use, for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The National Survey on Drug Use and Health is the major source of information for the nation on the prevalence and consequences of drug use. Government agencies, private organizations, and individual researchers use the survey results to make policy and resource decisions that affect millions of Americans. For example, the U.S. Public Health Service and state substance abuse agencies use the survey results to estimate the need for drug treatment facilities. Other federal, state, and local agencies use the information to design their drug use prevention programs and to monitor drug control strategies.
Cleaner Energy from Coal
For six years, RTI has been developing a process designed to offer existing power plants a low-cost option for reducing carbon dioxide emissions. In FY2007, the “dry carbonate” process underwent several months of field testing under actual coal-fired conditions at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s combustion research facility. Results proved that RTI’s process is robust and reliable, capable of removing more than 90 percent of the carbon dioxide in flue gas.
Mental Illness Among Teenagers
In the January 2007 issue of The American Journal of Psychiatry, RTI and Duke University Medical Center researchers revealed that mental health services for teens cost more than $10 billion each year, a figure that has been vastly underestimated in the past. What’s more, some 70 percent of teens studied did not receive the services they needed. Those who did often received services from schools or other organizations not designed to provide mental health services.
Drug Metabolism and Toxicology
A project with the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) to identify drugs that can be used to treat spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). Infants with SMA typically live only two years. No treatment exists. RTI’s project is a fast-track effort to come up with the first effective therapies to extend the life of children with SMA. The goal of NINDS is to submit an Investigational New Drug Application (IND)within the next 12 months.
was discovered by RTI scientists and is used in chemotherapy to fight cancer. Taxol was discovered at RTI in 1971 and remains one of the most widely used anti-cancer drugs in the world.
In 1978, RTI initiated research into cochlear implant
technology and an RTI researcher is credited with inventing most of the speech processing strategies used in the original and subsequent generations of the device.
The first radar-based predictive wind shear detection system installed on commercial aircraft was developed at RTI in 1994, which helps pilots avoid wind shear, a major factor in aviation accidents and fatalities.
In 2001, RTI researchers developed a new thin-film superlatice material that is 2.4 times for efficient and 23,000 times faster than current technology.
In Zanzibar, malaria prevalence decreased from 75 percent in 2003 to 0.07 percent after a spray campaign led by RTI in 2009 in the Micheweni and North “A” districts.
Research Triangle Park
The Research Triangle Park is a research park in the United States. It is located near Durham, Raleigh, and Chapel Hill, in the Research Triangle region of North Carolina...
, RTI was created as part of a larger effort to harness the intellectual capital of the area’s three major universities: North Carolina State University
North Carolina State University
North Carolina State University at Raleigh is a public, coeducational, extensive research university located in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Commonly known as NC State, the university is part of the University of North Carolina system and is a land, sea, and space grant institution...
, the University of North Carolina
University of North Carolina
Chartered in 1789, the University of North Carolina was one of the first public universities in the United States and the only one to graduate students in the eighteenth century...
at Chapel Hill and Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
.
Since that time, RTI has grown from a handful of scientists into an international research organization conducting research and development projects throughout the world. Its staff of more than 2,800 employees provides research and technical services to governments and businesses in more than 40 countries.
Mission
RTI International is an independent research institute dedicated to improving the human condition by turning knowledge into practice.Markets
RTI provides research and technical experience to governments and businesses in 11 primary areas:- Drug discovery and development
- Education and training
- Survey research and services
- Energy research
- Laboratory and chemistry services
- Statistical research
- Advanced technology
- International development
- Economic and social policy research
- Environmental research services
Other research projects conducted by RTI
National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH)Since 1988, RTI has conducted the largest U.S. survey on illegal drug use, for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The National Survey on Drug Use and Health is the major source of information for the nation on the prevalence and consequences of drug use. Government agencies, private organizations, and individual researchers use the survey results to make policy and resource decisions that affect millions of Americans. For example, the U.S. Public Health Service and state substance abuse agencies use the survey results to estimate the need for drug treatment facilities. Other federal, state, and local agencies use the information to design their drug use prevention programs and to monitor drug control strategies.
Cleaner Energy from Coal
For six years, RTI has been developing a process designed to offer existing power plants a low-cost option for reducing carbon dioxide emissions. In FY2007, the “dry carbonate” process underwent several months of field testing under actual coal-fired conditions at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s combustion research facility. Results proved that RTI’s process is robust and reliable, capable of removing more than 90 percent of the carbon dioxide in flue gas.
Mental Illness Among Teenagers
In the January 2007 issue of The American Journal of Psychiatry, RTI and Duke University Medical Center researchers revealed that mental health services for teens cost more than $10 billion each year, a figure that has been vastly underestimated in the past. What’s more, some 70 percent of teens studied did not receive the services they needed. Those who did often received services from schools or other organizations not designed to provide mental health services.
Drug Metabolism and Toxicology
A project with the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) to identify drugs that can be used to treat spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). Infants with SMA typically live only two years. No treatment exists. RTI’s project is a fast-track effort to come up with the first effective therapies to extend the life of children with SMA. The goal of NINDS is to submit an Investigational New Drug Application (IND)within the next 12 months.
Achievements
In 1966, CamptothecinCamptothecin
Camptothecin is a cytotoxic quinoline alkaloid which inhibits the DNA enzyme topoisomerase I . It was discovered in 1966 by M. E. Wall and M. C. Wani in systematic screening of natural products for anticancer drugs. It was isolated from the bark and stem of Camptotheca acuminata , a tree native to...
was discovered by RTI scientists and is used in chemotherapy to fight cancer. Taxol was discovered at RTI in 1971 and remains one of the most widely used anti-cancer drugs in the world.
In 1978, RTI initiated research into cochlear implant
Cochlear implant
A cochlear implant is a surgically implanted electronic device that provides a sense of sound to a person who is profoundly deaf or severely hard of hearing...
technology and an RTI researcher is credited with inventing most of the speech processing strategies used in the original and subsequent generations of the device.
The first radar-based predictive wind shear detection system installed on commercial aircraft was developed at RTI in 1994, which helps pilots avoid wind shear, a major factor in aviation accidents and fatalities.
In 2001, RTI researchers developed a new thin-film superlatice material that is 2.4 times for efficient and 23,000 times faster than current technology.
In Zanzibar, malaria prevalence decreased from 75 percent in 2003 to 0.07 percent after a spray campaign led by RTI in 2009 in the Micheweni and North “A” districts.