College of Engineering, Author at College of Engineering Blog

Outreach in Natural Resources and Engineering

Published July 25, 2019

Natural Resource and Engineering career activity Eighteen high school students from Detroit and across the lower peninsula are spending six days at Michigan Tech from July 22-27, 2019, to explore Natural Resources and Engineering majors and consider attending Michigan Technological University. This is the 5th year that the program has been conducted.

Students will investigate drinking water treatment, autonomous vehicles, forest management, and more, with Michigan Tech faculty from Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics (ME-EM), Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE), Electrical and Computing Engineering (ECE), as well as natural resource agencies, such as the US Forest Service. Students will participate in hands-on engineering explorations and enjoy a variety of outdoor activities, from kayaking to mountain biking and hiking at Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park.

Some of the engineering-related explorations include:

Value of STEM Careers, with Dr. Janet Callahan, Dean of the College of Engineering
Water Use and Cleaning Wastewater, with Joan Chadde, Center for Science and Environmental Outreach (CSEO)
Water Treatment and the Flint Water Crisis, with Brian Doughty, CSEO
Water Treatment Technologies, with Ryan Kibler, Benjamin Cerrados, Dr. Daisuke Minakata, CEE
Demo of acoustic triangulation and underwater autonomous vehicles, with Dr. Andrew Barnard and Miles Penhale, ME-EM
Stream Lab and Green Land and Water Management Practices, with Dr. Brian Barkdoll, CEE
Tour of Flood Damage in Houghton (and Detroit): Why does flooding occur and how can it be mitigated? with Dr. Alex Mayer, CEE, and Mike Reed, Detroit Zoological Society
Self-Driving Vehicles, with Dr. Jeremy P. Bos, ECE

The program is coordinated by Michigan Tech Center for Science and Environmental Outreach, with funding from: Michigan Space Grant Consortium, Michigan Tech School of Forest Resources and Environmental Science, College of Engineering, Departments of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics, Admissions, Housing and Residential Life, Great Lakes Research Center, and the Michigan Space Grant Consortium.

For more information, contact: Joan Chadde at 906-487-3341/906-369-1121 or jchadde@mtu.edu.

New High School STEM Internship Program at Michigan Tech

Published July 18, 2019

By College of Engineering

News

Chris Adams working at a bench with Riley Stoppa — Biological sciences graduate student Chris Adams works in the GLRC fisheries lab with STEM intern Riley Stoppa.

A total of 13 high school students from throughout Michigan are participating in a 5-day internship at Michigan Tech July 15-19, 2019. Faculty and their graduate students voluntarily host the students in engaging research activities during the week. The faculty’s department, along with the College of Engineering and College of Sciences and Arts, together provide a $600 scholarship for the student that covers their transportation, lodging and meals.

The interns work with Michigan Tech faculty and graduate students in their research lab or doing field work outside. During the week, students tour the Michigan Tech campus and local area, ‘experience college living’ in a residence hall, and meet students from across Michigan and beyond!

In Dr. Parisa Abadi’s Mechanical Engineering Lab, students will be 3D printing nanomaterials. Dr. Tara Bal in the School of Forest Resources and Environmental Sciences (SFRES) will conduct invasive species monitoring and forest health assessments. Dr. Will Cantrell in Atmospheric Physics will have the intern investigating why some clouds rain, while others do not.

Dr. Daniel Dowden in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) has his intern investigating which technologies will allow buildings to sustain minimal damage and be easily repairable after large earthquakes. Four faculty–Drs. Deering, Waite, Oommen, and Gierke in Geological and Mining Sciences and Engineering are providing a broad introduction of mapping geological features, conducting geophysical surveys, and working to construct a 3-D model of a geological feature. Dr. Casey Huckins and graduate student–Chris Adams in Biological Sciences–are monitoring Pilgrim River and measuring the results of a fish survey in the lab. Dr. Daisuke Minakata in CEE and Dr. Paul Doskey in SFRES, along with graduate students, are researching innovative drinking water and wastewater treatment technologies.

Dr. Michael Mullins in the Department of Chemical Engineering (ChE) has his intern researching ways to remove PFAs contaminants from water. Dr. Rebecca Ong in ChE has her two interns investigating biofuel production from native grasses. Dr. Chelsea Schelly in the Department of Social Sciences and Dr. Robert Handler in the Sustainable Future Institute are measuring food, energy, and water consumption in residential homes and looking for ways to reduce household resource consumption. Dr. Kuilin Zhang and his graduate student Qinjie Lyu in CEE have their intern studying traffic data collection, traffic signal timing, eco-driving, and using traffic simulation software.

The program is coordinated by the Michigan Tech Center for Science and Environmental Outreach, in partnership with Summer Youth Program who provides logistical support and supervises the students in the residence halls in the evening.

Funding for the program is received from the Michigan Tech College of Engineering, the College of Sciences and Arts, the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, the Department of Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics, the Department of Chemical Engineering, the School of Forest Resources and Environmental Science, the Department of Biological Sciences, the Great Lakes Research Center, Youth Programs, and an anonymous donor.

The STEM internship program is coordinated by Joan Chadde at Michigan Tech Center for Science and Environmental Outreach.

Outstanding Alumni and Friends to be Recognized at Alumni Reunion Dinner August 2019

Published July 8, 2019

By College of Engineering

News

Engineering alumni will be among those recognized at the Alumni Reunion Awards Dinner on campus August 2, 2019.

Outstanding Young Alumni

Distinguished in their careers before the age of 35; achieved a position or some distinction noteworthy for one so recently graduated

Andrew H. Baker ’11 and ’14 Materials Science and Engineering
Amberlee Haselhuhn ’11 and ’16 Biomedical Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering

Outstanding Service

Significant contributions to the success of the Board of Directors and/or the University

Lou Anne ’81 and Fred ’81 Koerschner Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering

Distinguished Alumni

Outstanding contributions in both their careers and to Michigan Tech

Iver Anderson ’75 Metallurgical Engineering

Humanitarian Award

Volunteer leadership or service that has improved or enriched the lives of others and the welfare of humanity, and whose accomplishments reflect admirably on or bring honor to their Alma Mater

Christine ’85 and Karl ’85 LaPeer Medical Technology, Mechanical Engineering

Collaborative Research Funding for Extreme Hydrometeorological Events

Published May 31, 2019

By College of Engineering

News

Landslide El Salvador terrain map — El Salvador’s Volcán San Vicente showing landslide scars from 2009 torrential rains. NASA Earth Observatory image by Robert Simmon, based on data from the NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team.

John Gierke (GMES/EPSSI) is Principal Investigator on a project that has received a $582,752 grant from the National Science Foundation. This is a potential three-year project.

Luke Bowman (GMES), Alex Mayer (CEE), Fengjing Liu (Forestry), and Angie Carter (SS) are Co-PI’s on the project titled “IRES Track III: Collaborative Research: Coupling Participatory and Hydrological Research for Adapting to Extreme Hydrometeorological Events in Agricultural Communities, El Salvador.”

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In this project, graduate students from US universities obtain international research experience in social and hydrological sciences while working on a scientific problem with real-world implications.

Changes in climate cause communities to adapt to enhance resiliency and foster practices that are more appropriate for new conditions. In regions where dry seasons are increasingly long, the shorter rainy seasons experience more severe storms.

Rural and agricultural communities are especially vulnerable to new seasonal conditions and their resources for adaptation are limited.

The Dry Corridor of Central America (spanning parts of El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua) is an important region for agriculture and needs adaptation strategies. The project location is ideal because of its many-decades history of changing climate.

The project participants work with local farmers and agricultural stakeholders to gain experience in adapting to climate change. The interdisciplinary scientists and development professionals work together in participatory research in communities experiencing water scarcity and extreme rainfall events.

Engineering Alumni Activity Summer 2019

Published May 20, 2019

By College of Engineering

News

Owen-Ames-Kimball Co. (O-A-K), a construction company based in Grand Rapids, has added eight employees. Among them is alumnus Eric Dean. Dean is a licensed professional engineer with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Michigan Technological University. He has 10 years of experience in various roles, ranging from superintendent to estimator to project manager.

Civil engineering ’94 alumna, Amy (Grisdale) Trahey, P.E. was recently honored as the ASCE of MI Outstanding Civil Engineer of the Year for 2019. Amy has had 25 years of bridge engineering experience and is the president and founder of Great Lakes Engineering Group. Amy’s ongoing curiosity with bridges has taken her to different levels–above and underwater–to make sure that Michigan bridges are safe.

Alumna Denise M. Rizzo ’14 made national news for earning for receiving SAE International’s Rodica Baranescu Award for Technical and Leadership Excellence for her technical contributions to industry and her key leadership achievements. Dr. Rizzo received her PhD in Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics from Michigan Technological University in 2014. She currently holds the role of a Senior Research Mechanical Engineer for the Powertrain Modeling & Simulation Team at US Army CCDC Ground Vehicle Systems Center. She specializes in modeling, simulation and control of propulsion systems of ground vehicles.

The last time Reagan May raced weekly on Thursday nights at Wisconsin International Raceway in Kaukauna she was a teenager bouncing around in a Wisconsin sport truck on the track’s bumpy quarter-mile. That was in 2008. Fast forward to 2019. Now graduated from college (Michigan Tech) and working full time at Oshkosh Truck Corporation as a rotational engineer, May is putting good use to the mechanical engineering degree she earned up in snowy Houghton. May is also racing full time on Thursday nights in the late model class, wheeling a car owned by the Devine family and Mackville Motorsports

Marquis Who’s Who, the world’s premier publisher of biographical profiles, is proud to present Craig Allen Pollock with the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award for his work in the automotive and manufacturing industries. Earning a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering, summa cum laude, from Michigan Technological University in 1980, he soon after completed a Master of Business Administration, summa cum laude, at the University of Michigan in 1983. He is a registered professional engineer in Michigan.

The Doe Run Company (Doe Run) is pleased to announce that John Uhrie, PE, Ph.D., QP, has joined the company as vice president – exploration, research and technical development. Dr. Uhrie earned a bachelor’s degree in geological engineering from Michigan Technological University, a master’s in geology from the University of Wyoming, and a doctorate in metallurgical engineering from Michigan Technological University.

Wayne Bergstrom, Ph.D., P.E., D.GE, F.ASCE, has agreed to serve as the Chair of the Civil Engineering Program Criteria Task Committee at the University of the Pacific in Stockton, CA. His current role is as Assistant Chief Engineer with Bechtel Infrastructure and Power. Bergstrom received a BS in Civil Engineering at Michigan Tech in 1976.

Henkel, the company behind well-known brands such as Loctite®, Dial®, Right Guard®, Schwarzkopf®, and Persil® has appointed Mike Olosky as its regional President in North America and Regional Head of Adhesive Technologies for North America and Latin America. Additionally, he will continue to serve in a global leadership role in the company’s Adhesive Technologies business. Olosky graduated from Michigan Technological University with a Bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering in 1991. He also holds an MBA from Michigan State University’s Eli Broad College of Business.

Brett Belan made news in Ashland, Oregon, for selling an electric solar-powered home-on-wheels that he and his wife, Kira, engineered. It sports a dozen 245-watt solar panels on two leaves that slide out sideways to capture the sun’s energy, which goes into batteries that drive its electric motor for about 100 miles. With plug-in charging, it can travel up to 600 miles a day, says Brett. Belan is a mechanical engineering graduate of Michigan Tech and went on to work for Ford Motor Co. in Detroit and Jaguar in England.

Tooling Tech Group (TTG), a leading provider of highly engineered tools and assembly equipment to a wide range of industries, has announced that it has hired Todd Wodzinski as the company’s Chief Commercial Officer (CCO). Wodzinski will be responsible for leading the sales and marketing activities for the company including sales team management, market planning and business development. Prior to entering the private sector, Wodzinski was an operations officer in the United States Navy. He has a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Michigan Technological University and a master’s in marketing and supply chain management from Michigan State University.

INCE-USA Beranek Medals

Published May 20, 2019

By College of Engineering

News

Andrew Barnard (ME-EM) presented students with the Leo Beranek Student Medal for Excellence in the Study of Noise Control through The Institute of Noise Control Engineering of the USA (INCE-USA). Barnard is the Vice President – Student Activities and Education for INCE-USA.

Sunit Girdhar (ME) won the graduate pewter medal for his work on IIC test method improvement and Josh Langlois (EE) won the undergraduate gold medal for his work on real-time signal processing for CNT speakers.

INCE-USA allows universities to award the INCE-USA Beranek Medal for Excellence in Noise Control Engineering. Congratulations to Sunit and Josh for their excellent research in Noise Control Engineering over the past year.

By Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics.

2019 Faculty and Staff Service Recognition

Published May 20, 2019

By College of Engineering

News

On Tuesday, May 14, 2019, faculty and staff members, along with their guests, gathered at the Memorial Union Ballroom for an awards dinner recognizing 25, 30, 35, 40 and 50 years of service to Michigan Tech. Within the College of Engineering, the following employees were recognized:

25 Years

Jeffrey Burl, Electrical and Computer Engineering

Tony Rogers, Chemical Engineering

David Shonnard, Chemical Engineering

30 Years

Mary Crane, Civil & Environmental Engineering

Michael Mullins, Chemical Engineering

35 Years

Jiann-Yang Hwang, Materials Science and Engineering

Michael Pionke, Civil & Environmental Engineering

40 Years

Ashok Ambardar, Electrical and Computer Engineering

Congratulations to all of our honorees and thank you for your service to Michigan Tech.

Engineering Graduates on What Makes a Husky

Published May 9, 2019

By College of Engineering

News

One of more than 1,000 students who walked across the stage during Saturday’s ceremony was student commencement speaker Monica Brechting of Grand Rapids, who is the 12th member of her family to attend Tech.

The mechanical engineering major was active on campus, being part of St. Albert the Great University Parish, playing piccolo in the Huskies Pep Band, was team lead of Robotics System Enterprise and president of Tech’s chapter of Silver Swings, a national community service organization.

Brechting’s speech, “What Makes a Husky?” took fellow graduates through a host of common experiences.

Rebecca Spencer, a mechanical engineering major, got her first exposure to Tech through the Detroit Area Pre-College Engineering Program (DAPCEP), which brought students up for the Summer Youth Program.

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Former President Ray Smith Included in Oral History Collection

Published May 1, 2019

By College of Engineering

Former Michigan Tech president, the late Raymond L. Smith is among 15 oral histories included in a collection by the American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers (AIME).

The section on Smith, who passed away last September at the age of 101, includes a written biography, a 50 minute interview video and the interview transcript.

Smith, Michigan Tech’s president from 1965 to 1979, is a recipient of the TMS/ASM Joint Distinguished Leadership in Materials and Society Award (1983) and the TMS Fellow Award (1973).

Williams Seed Grant Funds Underwater Acoustic Communications Research

Published April 25, 2019

By College of Engineering

News

Underwater acoustic communication has been in use for decades, but primarily for military applications. In recent years, private sectors such as environmental monitoring, off-shore oil and gas exploration, and aquaculture have become interested in its possibilities.

But existing research about underwater acoustic communication networks often relies on human-operated surface ships or cost-prohibitive autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs). And these cost barriers can limit academic research evaluation to computer simulations, constraining research innovation towards practical applications.

Recognizing the above gap, Michigan Tech Institute of Computing and Cybersystems (ICC) researchers Zhaohui Wang, assistant professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Nina Mahmoudian, adjunct professor, Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics, saw an opportunity to combine their areas of expertise: for Wang, underwater acoustic communications, for Mahmoudian, low-cost marine robotics and AUVs.

Also part of the research team were PhD student Li Wei, Electrical and Computer Engineering, and post-doc research engineer Barzin Moridian, Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics. The team also collaborated with scientists at Michigan Tech’s Great Lakes Research Center.

With a $50K seed grant from Electrical and Computer Engineering alumnus Paul Williams ’61, the team took the research beneath the surface to develop a low-cost marine mobile infrastructure and investigate the challenges and possible solutions in engineering a leading-edge AUV communication network.

Download a summary of the research from the ICC website at icc.mtu.edu/downloads.

Related:

Zhaohui Wang Wins CAREER Award

Author: College of Engineering

Outstanding Young Alumni

Outstanding Service

Distinguished Alumni

Humanitarian Award

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25 Years

30 Years

35 Years

40 Years