2021-22 Undergraduate Research Awards Announced

October 4, 2021

The Allen E. Paulson College of Engineering and Computing College Research Committee is pleased to announce the recipients of the Undergraduate Research Awards for 2021-22. Recipients — students being mentored by faculty within the College — receive up to $2,000 primarily for supplies, but also some travel to help them publish their work at conferences. All winners are also expected to present at the College’s annual Student Research Symposium, which will take place this year on Friday, April 22, 2022.

In the Department of Civil Engineering & Construction, Mark Black (Dr. Shahnam Navaee) will research Seismic Analysis of Structures; Liam Boggs, Aldrick Alvarez, Mark Black, Carmen Coleston, Garrett Dean and Frank Martin (Dr. Gustavo Maldonado) will work on the 2022 AISC Student Steel Bridge Competition — this is always a strong competitor; Corina Fluke (Dr. Francisco Cubas-Suazo) will study Nitrate Removal via Denitrification in Aerobic Sediments from Freshwater Systems; and Frank Martin (Dr. Junan Shen) will research The Effect of Lignin on Aging Resistance of Asphalt Binders — Dr. Shen is the director of the state’s first Asphalt Research Lab.

With the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, Logan Dobar (Dr. Fernando Rios) will work on Intelligent Planogram Creation using an Autonomous Drone; Brianne Dollar, Aloaye Itueli, Jeremie Kalunga and Jonathan Ngoyi (Dr. Rocio Alba-Flores) will study Drone Control using an EEG; and Jack Nemee (Dr. Mohammad Ahad) will research Design of an Embedded System to Monitor the Health of Children with COVID-19 — a very timely study.

In Manufacturing Engineering, Torri Jackson (Dr. Yue Zhang) will research 3D Printing of Silicone Elastomers with Tailored Structure and Mechanical Properties; Brandon Jones (Dr. Kamran Kardel) will work on Characterizing the Mechanical Properties of 3D-printed Lattice Structure Polymers with Different Hardness Levels; Cameron Jones (Dr. Hossein Taheri) will investigate Stress Corrosion Cracking in Metal Additive Manufacturing through Electromagnetic Array Testing and Material Characterization; Ainsley Keller (Dr. Taheri) will investigate Mechanical Properties of Sheep Hoof Horn using Nanoindentation Technique; and Michael Runzi and Kevin McElrath (Dr. Haijun Gong and Dr. Lianjun Wu) will study the Effects of Humidity on the 3D Printing Process and Part Property of PEEK.

With Mechanical Engineering, Ana Abadie (Dr. Sevki Cesmeci) will research An Inexpensive, Lightweight and Field-deployable High-performance Liquid Chromatography; Jess Gale (Dr. Cesmeci) will look at Design of a Miniature HVAC System to Function as a Multipurpose Cooling Shirt — just in time for football season; Sam Hagler (Dr. Bishal Silwal) will study Integration of LabVIEW with KUKA Robot for Control of the Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing Technique; Jonah Henry (Dr. Cesmeci) will work on a Novel Micropump for Drug Delivery; Ashlyn Jackson (Dr. Aniruddha Mitra) will conduct an Experimental Study of Tall Structures under Wind and Seismic Loading; Daniel Johnson (Dr. Saman Hedjazi [CEC] and Dr. Silwal) will study Utilizing WAAM for Manufacturing of Construction Components with Geometries Previously Impossible with Standard Manufacturing Processes; Jenny Landers (Dr. Mitra) will work on Fabrication of a Test Chamber for Testing Personal Protective and Other Medical Equipment for Health Care Workers — another timely study; James O’Hara (Dr. Valentin Soloiu) will research Thermoelectric Power Generation in Extreme Environments; Lily Parker (Dr. Soloiu) will investigate the Low-Temperature Combustion Phenomena of a Fischer-Tropsch Synthetic Aerospace Fuel in a Constant Volume Combustion Chamber for Greenhouse Gas Reduction; and Seth Waters (Dr. Shaowen Xu) will work on Creating a High-performance Heat Exchanger using an Optimized 3D Surface.