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Kobina Akyea Ofori Represents Michigan Tech for the MINER BOOST Research Program

Published October 19, 2023

Ph.D. student Kobina Akyea Ofori (chemical engineering) is currently representing Michigan Tech and the Department of Chemical Engineering during a four-day intense training session in Baltimore, Maryland, as part of the MINER BOOST research program and featuring tons of information and socialization opportunities.

MINER BOOST (Mining Innovations for Negative Emissions Resources – Business Orientation and Origination of Spinouts Training) is organized by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), specifically ARPA-E (the Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy), under Douglas Wicks, the program director for waste-to-energy projects.

The program caters to graduate students, stakeholders and investors, and aims to address the absence of a vibrant mining and mineral processing start-up community. It seeks to:

Create a community of mining and mineral processing innovators by bringing together students and postdocs from academic groups within the MINER program.
Teach participants practical skills related to pitching, networking and company building.
Develop case studies evaluating the commercial potential of current projects students and postdocs are working on within the MINER program.

Ofori expressed his enthusiasm about the journey thus far, stating, “The experience has been incredibly exciting!”

My Story: Katherine Baker, MTUengineer

Published October 16, 2023

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Katherine Baker ‘26, chemical engineering

Katherine holds a helmet and stands in front of the Billerud company entrance sign. — Katherine Baker ‘26, chemical engineering

I’m originally from Austin, Texas and grew up in that area, then eventually moved up to McAlester, Oklahoma. I decided on Michigan Tech because of its strong engineering program. I also wanted to experience living in a new area and see some snow, which I’ve definitely been able to do. I started out in the general engineering program and settled on chemical engineering towards the end of my first year because I enjoy math and chemistry and really like learning how different processes work.

“My time at Tech has shaped my life in incredible ways.”
Katherine Baker

I attended the fall career fair last month and had a great experience, both personally and professionally. I learned about companies I am interested in and connected with recruiters, and many are Tech alumni. I ended up accepting a hybrid co-op offer from Kimberly-Clark. I’ll work onsite at their facility in Neenah, Wisconsin over the summer, then part-time remotely from campus next year.

In August I completed an eight-month co-op with Billerud at their paper mill in nearby Iron Mountain, Michigan. Most of my projects revolved around chemical savings and energy optimization. I worked in a process engineering role on their pulp mill team, and was able to learn from both engineers and operators. I learned a ton about trial planning, technical communication, and the paper industry.

Huskies Pep band members holding flutes and wearing funny hats — Katherine plays flute in the Huskies Pep Band, with a Shrek hat.

I have a few other jobs on campus. I work as an RA in the dorms at Michigan Tech. I also work as a peer mentor in the Department of Chemical Engineering. Both roles give me opportunities to connect with new students and help them navigate their first few years at Tech, which is really fulfilling for me. I also serve as the treasurer of the Chemical Engineering Student Advisory Board, and flute section leader in the Huskies Pep Band.

I’m an active member of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE). It’s given me so many opportunities to connect with other women on campus and figure out my career path. I recently completed the SWE 2022-2023 Collegiate Leadership Institute, a professional development program. I attended seminars put on by successful women in industry, met with a professional mentor, and grew in my leadership skills.

Lauren stands at the shore of Lake Superior at night with Northern Lights in the background. — Katherine came to Michigan Tech all the way from Austin, Texas. She wanted to see some snow, and also got to see the Northern Lights!

This month I will be attending the national SWE conference, WE23, in Los Angeles with other members of the Michigan Tech SWE section. I’m super excited for all the opportunities at WE23—to hear from more women in engineering and broaden my professional network.

My time at Tech has shaped my life in incredible ways. I’m so grateful for the strong, tight-knit community up here and feel super supported in my goals by both faculty and other students. As an RA and peer mentor, I try to give back to the community by supporting incoming students, just like I was supported my first few years. Being in the engineering program has given me so many opportunities to grow professionally.

After college, I plan to work as a process engineer, hopefully at a plant where I can really get hands-on with my projects. I’m not yet sure which industry I want to be in long-term, but I’ve learned about so many different ones through my co-op and networking with company recruiters. I’m excited to continue learning and choose one that turns out to be the best fit for me.

“Be confident in yourself and learn as much as you can.”
Advice to incoming students, from Lauren Spahn

My advice to incoming students? Chemical engineering classes can be challenging and there might be points when you think you’re not cut out for it and should choose an easier major (I know I’ve had those moments). Be confident in yourself and learn as much as you can. Keep your head up and try to develop a support system early on with fellow students.

Sustainable Foam: Coming Soon to a Cushion Near You

Published October 6, 2023

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Chemical engineering major Lauren Spahn presented her research at the Michigan Tech Undergraduate Research Symposium. Her lignin project was supported by Portage Health Foundation, the DeVlieg Foundation, and Michigan Tech’s Pavlis Honors College.

Most polyurethane foam, found in cushions, couches, mattress, insulation, shoes, and more, is made from petroleum. What if it could be environmentally-friendly, sustainable, and made from renewable biomass? It’s entirely possible, thanks to the work of chemical engineer Lauren Spahn ’22 (now an alumna) and her fellow researchers at Michigan Tech. It all happens in the Biofuels & Bio-based Products Lab at Michigan Tech, where researchers put plants—and their lignin—to good use. The lab is directed by Dr. Rebecca Ong, an associate professor of chemical engineering.

Q&A with Lauren Spahn

Please tell us a little about your work in the lab.

Our goal in working with Dr. Ong is to develop sustainable industries using renewable lignocellulosic biomass⁠—the material derived from plant cell walls. There are five of us working on Dr. Ong’s team. We develop novel co-products from the side streams of biofuel production, and pulp and paper production. We’re trying to make good use of the leftover materials.

Lignocellulose, aka biomass, is the dry matter of plants. Energy crops like this Elephant Grass, are grown as a raw material for the production of biofuels.

What kind of research are you doing?

My particular research project involves plant-based polyurethane foams. Unlike conventional poly foams, bio-based foams are generated from lignin, a renewable material. Lignin is like a glue that holds wood fibers together. It has the potential to replace petroleum-derived polymers in many applications. In the lab, we purify the lignin from something called “black liquor”⁠. It’s not what sounds like. Black liquor is a by-product from the kraft process when pulpwood is made into paper. Lignin is collected by forcing dissolved lignin to precipitate or fall out of the solution (this is the opposite of the process of dissolving, which brings a solid into solution). By adjusting the functional properties of lignin during the precipitation process, we hope to be able to tailor the characteristics of resulting foams. It’s called functionalization.

Typically in the lab process, functionalization occurs on lignin that has already been purified. What we hope to do is integrate functionalization into the purification process, to reduce energy and raw material inputs, and improve the economics and sustainability of the process, too.

Purified lignin, used to make bio-foam. The resulting foam will likely be light or dark brown in color because of the color of the lignin. It would probably be used in applications where color does not matter (such as the interior of cushions/equipment).

How did you get started in undergraduate research?

I came to Michigan Tech knowing I wanted to get involved in research. As a first-year student, I was accepted into the Undergraduate Research Internship Program (URSIP), through the Pavlis Honors College here at Tech. Through this program I received funding, mentorship, and guidance as I looked to identify a research mentor.

How did you find Dr. Ong, or how did she find you?

I wanted to work with Dr. Ong because I found the work in her lab to be very interesting and relevant to the world we live in, in terms of sustainability. She was more than willing to welcome me into the lab and assist me in my research when I needed it. I am very thankful for all her help and guidance.

What is the most challenging and difficult part of the work and the experience?

Not everything always goes according to plan. Achieving the desired result often takes many iterations, adjustments, and even restructuring the experiment itself. After a while, it can even become discouraging.

What do you do when you get discouraged? How do you persevere?

I start thinking about my goals. I enjoy my research—it’s fun! Once I remind myself why I like it, I am able to get back to work.

Lignin at the nanoscale, imaged with transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Raisa Carmen Andeme Ela, a PhD candidate working in Dr. Ong’s lab, generated this image to examine the fundamental mechanisms driving lignin precipitation.

What do you enjoy most about research?

I enjoy being able to run experiments in the lab that directly lead to new designs, processes, or products in the world around me. It’s wonderful to have the opportunity to think up new product ideas, then go through the steps needed to implement them in the real world.

What are your career goals and plans?

I plan to work in R&D for industry. I am very passionate about research—I want to continue participating in research in my professional career.

Why did you choose engineering as your major?

The field is so large. Chemical engineers can work in industry in numerous areas. I liked the wide variety of work that I could enter into as a career.

Editor’s note: Lauren graduated with a BS in Chemical Engineering in April 2022, and started work at Hemlock Semiconductor in Saginaw, Michigan soon after.

Did you know?

Michigan Tech has more than 35 research centers and institutes
20 percent of all Michigan Tech patent applications involve undergraduate students
Students in any engineering discipline are welcome to give research a try
Research expenditures at Michigan Tech—over $44 million-—have increased by 33% over the last decade, despite increased competition for research funding.
Michigan Tech research leads to more invention disclosures—the first notification that an invention has been created—than any other research institution in Michigan.

Natalie Nold Makes an Appearance in the Heldt Lab

Published October 4, 2023

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Natalie Nold in the Heldt Bioseparations Lab.

Caryn Heldt (ChE/HRI) was quoted and Ph.D. student Natalie Nold (chemical engineering) was pictured by Chemical & Engineering News Magazine in a photo essay featuring images of the laboratories where C&EN readers work and what makes those spaces special to them.

A version of the essay appeared in Volume 101, Issue 32 of the magazine.

Read more and view the gallery in “Scenes from Where Chemists Work” in Chemical & Engineering News Magazine.

Heldt Group Attending ACS Fall 2023

Published August 3, 2023

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ACS Fall 2023 Harnessing the Power of Data

Researchers in the Heldt Bioseparations Lab will be attending the ACS fall meeting on August 13–18.

Caryn Heldt – “Empty and full AAV capsid charge and hydrophobicity differences measured with single particle AFM”

Caryn Heldt is the James and Lorna Mack Chair in Bioengineering in the Department of Chemical Engineering.

Caryn Heldt – “Virus encapsulation in polypeptide complexes for thermal stable vaccine formulations”

Caryn Heldt – “Expanding the diversity, equity, inclusion, and sense of belonging of graduate students at Michigan Tech”

Vaishali Sharma – “Mechanistic understanding of eco-friendly surfactants for virus inactivation”

Vaishali Sharma is a PhD student in biological sciences.

Seth Kriz – “Scaling down to scale up: Mass transport of viruses in aqueous two-phase systems”

Seth Kriz is a PhD student.

Natalie Nold – “Economics and process monitoring of continuous vaccine production using aqueous two-phase systems”

Natalie Nold is a PhD student.

The meeting will be held in San Francisco with a hybrid format. The 2023 meeting title is Harnessing the Power of Data.

ACS Meetings and Expositions are where chemistry professionals meet to share ideas and advance scientific and technical knowledge.

The Heldt Bioseparations Lab focuses on the science of viral surface interactions and applies it to vaccine manufacturing and purification.

ChE Convocation 2023 Awards Announced

Published April 24, 2023

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These students, faculty and staff were presented awards on Friday (April 14) at the Department of Chemical Engineering (ChE) Convocation held in the MUB Alumni Lounge.

Bryan Glover, president and CEO of Honeywell UOP—the leading provider of technologies for the global energy and petrochemicals industries—was our keynote speaker. Glover graduated from Michigan Tech in 1986 with a BS in Chemical Engineering and he earned an MBA from the University of Chicago in 2009. In his 36 years with UOP, Glover has held positions across the company, including R&D, technical services and business management.

Congratulations to all!

Chair’s Award for Outstanding Chemical Engineering Senior

This award recognizes a graduating ChE senior for their academic achievement, experiential learning activities and community engagement. This award consists of a certificate and monetary award in the amount of $1,000.

Recipient: Brooke Bates

Excellence in Communication Award

This award acknowledges the critical role that effective communication plays in successful leadership and recognizes a graduating ChE senior for their effective use of communication of the highest standard.

Recipient: Zach Geiger

Professional Ethics Award

This award recognizes a student who has exhibited exemplary ethics and admirable professional conduct during Plant Design and Unit Operations experiences and throughout their academic career at Michigan Tech.

Recipient: Sheridan Waldack

Prevent Accidents With Safety (PAWS) Award

The Prevent Accidents with Safety (PAWS) Undergraduate Lab Safety Program is a comprehensive safety program requiring training, constant vigilance and incident reporting and documentation systems — all with an eye toward critical review and continuous improvement. The PAWS program provides a framework to develop the necessary safety culture within the student community.

Recipients: Lauryn Elsholz, Nicholas Henderson, Emerson Ross, and Nicholas Scott

Dow Chemical Marriott W. Bredekamp Award

This award recognizes outstanding technical skills in the laboratory, outstanding teamwork and professionalism, effective oral and written communication and strong adherence to process safety practices as recognized by your peers and supported by the faculty of the department. This award is in memory of Marriott W. Bredekamp.

Recipients: Brooke Bates, Michael Durbin, Lydia Jackels, and Nick Schiavo

Three students holding awards and a faculty member. — L-R: Brook Bates, Lydia Jackels, and Michael Durbin with Kurt Rickard.

Senior Design Team Awards

John Patton, as chair and faculty member, initiated much of today’s design course content in ChE. He brought his experiences at Exxon to the classroom to provide students with a systematic way to design and analyze a new, large-scale capital project. This award recognizes the student team in CM 4861 that created the best plant design and recommendation for Fictitious Chemical Company. It is given in recognition of the engineering design and creativity, safety and environmental considerations, technical communication skills, and teamwork in the capstone design project.

Finalist Teams

Third Place ($400): Amelia Kramer, Tailyn Klepsa-Orrey, TJ Stachowski, and Steven Markert

Runner-Up ($600): Zach Geiger, Andy Ward, Jordan Rathke, and Kyle Hooper

Winner ($1,000): Caleb Diekema, Josiah Diekema, Riley Smith, and Kade Wirth

Two students holding awards standing on either side of a faculty member. — L-R: Caleb Diekema, Jon Herlevich, Jr., and Riley Smith.

Davis W. Hubbard Outstanding Junior Award

The eligible candidate for this award has completed all their junior-level core chemical engineering courses. Selection is based on GPA for coursework done at Michigan Tech, research engagement and internship/co-op work experience. The award consists of a certificate and monetary award in the amount of $1,000.

Recipient: Mikayla Marshalek

Student with award standing with a faculty member. — L-R: Mikayla Marshalek with Kyle Griffin.

Outstanding Sophomore Award

This award recognizes an outstanding sophomore in chemical engineering who has demonstrated exemplary academic performance in coursework and exhibited excellence in related academic enrichment activities such as research, internship/co-op work experience and Enterprise Program.

Recipient: Margaret Roelant

Student with award standing next to a faculty member. — L-R: Margaret Roeland with Kyle Griffin.

Outstanding New Student Award

This award recognizes an outstanding new student in chemical engineering who has demonstrated exemplary academic performance in coursework and exhibited excellence in related academic enrichment activities such as research, internship/co-op work experience and Enterprise Program.

Recipient: James Hays

Leadership Awards

Recipients:

AIChE: Nathan Summers

CMLC: Michael Durbin

CPM: James Staley

OXE: Nathan Summers

SAB: Riley Smith

AEE: Libby Umlor

Green Campus: Ray Buenzli

Finally, ChE students voted on these categories to honor our outstanding department employees!

Teacher of the Year: Kyle Griffin
Research Mentor of the Year: Timothy Eisele
Graduate Teaching Assistant of the Year: John Szczap
Undergraduate Grader of the Year (tie): Michael Johnson and Riley Smith
Staff Making a Difference: Katie Torrey
Peer Mentor and Coach of the Year: Riley Smith

Student standing next to a faculty member with an award. — L-R: Student presenting an award to Tim Eisele.

Graduate Student Spotlight: Sarvada Chipkar

Published March 13, 2023

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PhD candidate Sarvada Chipkar (chemical engineering) was featured by the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center in a Q&A spotlighting her research in the lab of Rebecca Ong (ChE).

“Today we spoke to Sarvada Chipkar, a PhD candidate in Ong Research Laboratory at Michigan Technological University. Sarvada is from Mumbai, India and received her B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Mumbai in 2017. She speaks on the power of positivity and passion when it comes to taking a leap.”

Shonnard, Handler, and Chaudhari on the Circular Economy for PETs

Published November 29, 2022

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David Shonnard, Robert Handler, and graduate student Utkarsh Chaudhari (chemical engineering) were mentioned by Waste Today Magazine in “Gauging the flows,” a story about a report they co-authored (DOI: 10.1021/acssuschemeng.2c04004) that gauges whether a circular economy is achievable for polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polyolefin polymers in the U.S.

The report, published by ACS Publications, provides material flow and life cycle assessment data sets for these materials while also estimating total supply chain greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and energy consumption.

The report provides material flow and life cycle assessment data sets for polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polyolefin polymers in the U.S. while also estimating total supply chain greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and energy consumption. Polyolefins [DT1] researched include high-density polyethylene (HDPE), polypropylene (PP), low-density polyethylene (LDPE) and linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE).

Shonnard says phase one findings show where improvements need to be made to achieve a circular economy for plastics.

“We were able to develop a systems analysis of the entire U.S. plastics supply chain for these plastics,” he says.

2022 ChE EAB Poster Exhibition Winners

Published November 8, 2022

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Some of the exhibit posters in the hallway.

The Department of Chemical Engineering (ChE) would like to congratulate the following students as winners of the External Advisory Board (EAB) Poster Session.

Undergrad Research

First Place: Libby Umlor
Second Place: Sheridan Waldack

Graduate Research

First Place: Seth Kriz
Second Place (tie): Sarvada Chipkar and Grace Dykstra

Student Organization

First Place: Nathan Summers and Addymae Palecek (AIChE)
Second Place: Katie Smith (Omega Chi Epsilon)

These posters and their research are posted in the hallways (Chem Sci second and third floors). All faculty, staff and students are encouraged to come see what research our students and faculty are involved in.

By Chemical Engineering.

Outstanding Scholarship Award for Sarvada Chipkar

Published October 27, 2022

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Chemical engineering graduate student Sarvada Chipkar is a recipient of the Outstanding Scholarship Award for Fall 2022, as announced by Michigan Tech’s Graduate School. She was nominated by her department in recognition of her academic performance. A certificate of recognition for this award will be presented at the Graduate Research Colloquium Banquet that is held in the spring.

Chipkar is a fifth year PhD student in Rebecca Ong’s Biofuel and Bioproducts Laboratory at Michigan Tech. She completed her Bachelor of Engineering (BE) in Chemical Engineering from University of Mumbai, India, in 2017. Her current research focuses on characterizing fungal inhibitors generated in switchgrass during the U.S. Midwestern drought of 2012. In her free time, she likes to do gardening, painting, and cooking/baking. She won an award for her research poster in the “applied research” category at the Symposium for Biomaterials, Fuels and Chemicals (SBFC) organized by SIMB, the Society for Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology, in May 2022.

Research Abstract

Developing economically viable and greener pathways to synthesize renewable energy has become an important research theme in recent years. Lignocellulosic biomass is a promising group of feedstocks that can be used for second-generation biofuel production. Recent research has shown that environmental growth conditions alter biomass characteristics and directly influence the extent of biomass conversion to fuels. Environmental scientists have predicted that the effects of climate change would affect marginal lands more than fertile ones. Previously, drought experienced during the growth of switchgrass on marginal land led to complete inhibition of yeast growth during fermentation. Our goal in this project was to characterize specific compounds that led to this inhibition. Switchgrass harvested in drought (2012) and non-drought (2010) years were pretreated using Ammonia Fiber Expansion (AFEX). Untreated and AFEX processed samples were then extracted using solvents (i.e., water, ethanol, and ethyl acetate) to selectively remove potential inhibitory compounds. A key goal was to determine whether the microbial inhibitors were plant-generated compounds, by-products of the pretreatment process, or a combination of both. High solids loading enzymatic hydrolysis was performed on all samples, followed by fermentation using Saccharomyces cerevisiae (GLBRCY945). Cell growth (OD₆₀₀), sugar consumption, and ethanol production were used to evaluate fermentation performance. Extracts were analyzed using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) to identify potential inhibitory compounds. Non-targeted positive ion mode MS analysis was conducted to annotate the identities of unknown inhibitors. We found that water extraction of drought-year switchgrass before AFEX pretreatment was most effective in overcoming yeast inhibition. We identified plant-generated compounds called saponins, commonly known as “natural laundry detergents”, in the water extracts that foam on agitation with water. These may potentially contribute towards yeast inhibition.

Category: Students