Graduate School Newsblog

Tag: College of Engineering

Doctoral Finishing Fellowship – Summer 2023 Recipient – Evan Lucas

Published
By

I began my PhD journey in Fall 2019 in the Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) department studying underwater acoustic communication systems. After taking a machine learning course, I decided I wanted to make machine learning and artificial intelligence a larger focus of my studies and ultimately joined a project focused on natural language processing (NLP) technologies for the summarization of dialogue.

My main dissertation chapters primarily focus on text summarization (how to concisely and accurately represent a large body of text with a small one) and segmentation (how to split up long chunks of dialogue into smaller ones). In my favorite chapter contained in the dissertation, I propose a text segmentation metric that goes beyond current segmentation metrics by scoring a segmentation set without requiring a human to provide a reference, which is currently required by all existing segmentation metrics. I continued this segmentation work by considering the case of fuzzy text segmentation, where the boundaries between segments are no longer solid and a sentence within a document can belong partly to multiple segments.

The papers on summarization are still in preparation, with one discussing a small model architecture modification to improve summarization quality and another exploring methods of demonstrating summarization model ownership by adding watermarks to generated content. As language models become more widely used, concerns about their use will continue to grow; one solution to this is to have ways of detecting or proving that the origin of text comes from a language model. In addition to these papers, I have also published on a technique for using limited human feedback in the form of a binary good/bad response to help improve model performance for classification models that contain more than two classes.

I would like to thank my advisor, Dr. Timothy Havens, for his support, encouragement, and guidance throughout my PhD. The last two years of my work would also not have been possible without the support of Bob Friday and Paul Fulton from Visionyze; they have funded my research up until this point and collaborated with me on several projects. I’d also like to thank my committee and the ECE department for their support along the way. Finally, I am incredibly grateful to the Graduate School as well as the Graduate School Awards Advisory Panel for awarding me this fellowship, which will help me complete my dissertation and finish publishing the last papers of my PhD.

Continue Reading →

Doctoral Finishing Fellowship – Spring 2023 Recipient – Sid Gopujkar

Published
By

I started working at the APS LABS for my Masters’ thesis in Fall 2017. The research and the people at the APS are so amazing, that it wasn’t a difficult decision to stay for my PhD. I started my PhD in Summer 2018 under the guidance of Dr. Jeremy Worm, who is the associate director of APS LABS.

Majority of my PhD work has been on gasoline engines- how they can be further improved and made more efficient. The projects I have worked on have been industrial projects for major automotive companies like General Motors, Ford, Stellantis and Nostrum Energy. The current automotive climate is all about electrification. But I believe that the internal combustion engine, which is one of the major factors that has brought civilization to the advanced stage it is at right now, still has a massive role to play in the future. But the beauty of working at the APS LABS is that you are not confined to a single subject, and get exposure to all sorts of power systems. In the last five years, I have worked with hybrid electric vehicles as well, and also on a project to consider the environmental and economic impacts of electrifying the Mackinac Island ferry.

The last five years have been memorable and fulfilling, and a lot of that is thanks to my advisor, Dr. Jeremy Worm. With the help of the Finishing Fellowship, I will be able to write the final chapter of doctoral journey (figuratively and literally), and move a step closer to my goal of becoming an academic.

Continue Reading →

Doctoral Finishing Fellowship – Spring 2023 Recipient – Nikhil Mittal

Published
By

My passion for research developed early on in my life as I saw my father going to the laboratory, doing research using cool equipment. He inspired me to ask intriguing questions in life and find answers to them. My journey in biomedical research began during my undergraduate in biotechnology where I was introduced to the concepts of cell and molecular biology research and its application. In my undergrad, I got firsthand experience of working in a research lab where I learned to independently run PCR (polymerase chain reaction) and electrophoresis gels. This sparked my curiosity to further develop my career in research. That’s when I joined Michigan Tech as a master’s student in the biomedical engineering department. At Michigan Tech, I learned about the development of biomaterials and their physiological applications. During this time, I also got the opportunity to do an internship at a Biotech company.

My research experience during my master’s and internship motivated me in advancing my professional career and join PhD. In 2018, I got the opportunity to join Dr. Sangyoon Han’s Mechanobiology laboratory. My research focus is to understand the mechanism of how cells sense the stiffness of their surrounding environment. Specifically, I am investigating how and when exactly the mechanical link between a cell and its extracellular matrix (ECM), known as focal adhesions, sense different stiffness and molecules involved in the process. For this purpose, I use soft elastic gels (biomaterials), live-cell imaging microscopy, and machine learning-based image analysis to study how different ECM stiffness can affect the force transfer through these connections. Mechanical stiffness of the matrix has been known to dictate cell behavior such as their survival, proliferation, migration, altered drug response and even tumor progression. With my research, I aim to provide new insights in physiology and pathophysiology for developmental disorders, cancer progression and metastasis and designs of tissue transplantation. This is critical in determining treatment strategies for these diseases. Along with research, I was fortunate to mentor and supervise many undergraduate and masters’ students for their respective projects. I also got the opportunity to present my work at different conferences and win grants for my research.

I am grateful to my advisor Dr. Sangyoon J. Han for his continued support and guidance over my PhD years at Michigan Tech. I am also grateful to my committee and biomedical engineering department for supporting me with my PhD journey. I am thankful to the Graduate school and Graduate Dean Awards Advisory Panel for granting me this fellowship. This fellowship will help me dedicate all of my time to complete my dissertation.

Continue Reading →

Doctoral Finishing Fellowship – Spring 2023 Recipient – Beth Bartel

Published
By

I arrived to MTU in August 2020 as a geoscientist and science communication specialist wanting to develop into a researcher in disaster risk reduction. I now study how people live with natural hazards with the goal of improving our ability to adapt to our changing environments.

My dissertation examines evacuation processes at Fuego volcano, Guatemala, where Tech has a long history of volcanological and risk reduction research. In 2018, an eruption of Fuego volcano destroyed three populated areas; one evacuated, resulting in no casualties, while two did not, resulting in hundreds of deaths. My work aims to understand information availability, use, and limitations in evacuation decision-making during this deadly eruption and present day. The overarching goal of my research is to decrease risk to communities on the flanks of Fuego volcano through informing improved evacuation practices. The research will also inform forensic disaster research and risk reduction in other contexts as well.

This fellowship will enable me to complete my dissertation in Spring 2023 to start my next chapter, a postdoctoral Mendenhall Fellowship with the USGS Volcano Hazards Program starting in June 2023. I am proud to be joining the ranks of the many other MTU alumni working in the Natural Hazards Mission Area at the USGS. I will be the first social scientist within the Volcano Hazards Program. I am grateful to my supportive, multidisciplinary committee, for which I chose MTU. Thank you to my co-advisors Greg Waite (GMES) and Rüdiger Escobar Wolf (GMES) and committee members Luke Bowman (GMES), Angie Carter (SS), and Kari Henquinet (SS).

Continue Reading →

Doctoral Finishing Fellowship – Spring 2023 Recipient – Sadaf Batool

Published
By

I joined Michigan Technological University as a Fulbright PhD Scholar in 2017. I earned a master’s degree on the fly in Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics in 2019. My doctoral research focuses on modeling and predictive control of a multi-mode engine. As we know, engine-out emissions increase air pollution and contribute to climate change. The transportation sector is one of the sources of air pollution. My research focuses on improving thermal efficiency and reducing engine-out emissions. 

Low-temperature combustion modes are among the advanced combustion technologies which offer high thermal efficiency and reduced engine-out NOx and soot emissions. A conventional spark ignition (SI) engine is modified to achieve low-temperature combustion modes. The main challenges associated with the low-temperature combustion modes include combustion timing and engine load control, high maximum pressure rise rate, cyclic variability and limited operating range. I have developed linear and nonlinear model predictive controller frameworks to control combustion phasing and engine load while restricting cyclic variability and maximum pressure rise rate for different low-temperature combustion modes. In addition, I have developed a closed-loop model predictive controller which ensures mode switching between conventional spark ignition (SI) engine and a low-temperature combustion mode to achieve better efficiency and reduced emissions. The developed controller performance is validated for the multi-mode engine operation in real-time.

I greatly appreciate the Graduate Dean Awards Advisory Panel for awarding me the finishing fellowship. I would like to extend my gratitude to my co-advisors, Dr. Jeffrey Naber and Dr. Mahdi Shahbakhti, for their guidance, support, and encouragement throughout my research.

Continue Reading →

Doctoral Finishing Fellowship – Spring 2023 Recipient – Lauren Mancewicz

Published
By

When I was in middle school there was a question on a standardized test about the water table. I had never heard that term before and was completely confused, having no clue what it meant.  That moment sparked a natural curiosity in me about groundwater and prompted me to learn more. When I took a hydrogeology course at Michigan Tech during undergrad, taught by my now co-advisor, I knew that this was the field I wanted to go into. Not only did I find it interesting from a scientific viewpoint, but also working in this field allows me the opportunity to work on projects that positively impact people and the environment.

I eventually returned to Michigan Tech in Fall 2018 to pursue a PhD in Environmental Engineering.  My research focuses on the process of groundwater inundation (flooding) driven by sea level rise on small islands. As sea level rises, the water table also rises and can flood low lying areas. This flooding exposes what was once groundwater to evaporation, leading to an accelerated loss of freshwater.  My work uses numerical modeling to better understand groundwater inundation and explore the relationship between hydrogeologic features, fresh groundwater, and lake salinity on small islands.

I am truly grateful to the Graduate Dean Awards Advisory Panel for awarding me with this fellowship. I would also like to thank my co-advisors, Alex Mayer and Dave Watkins, and my committee for all of their guidance and support through my pursuit of this degree.

Continue Reading →

Doctoral Finishing Fellowship – Spring 2023 Recipient – Wei Zhang

Published
By

My interest in the field of fuel cells was ignited when I was a master’s student in China. I enjoyed the sense of achievement when I constructed my first small fuel cell device that successfully converted hydrogen to electricity. I wished to broaden my vision in this field and prepare myself to be a qualified researcher with international experience, thus I started my PhD study at the Department of Materials Science and Engineering under the guidance of Prof. Yun Hang Hu in Spring 2018.

My PhD research focused on advanced electrode materials for solid oxide fuel cells. The stability of lithium-containing electrodes under fuel cell operating conditions was systematically investigated. Furthermore, a new fuel cell structure was designed based on the decomposition and diffusion of electrodes, achieving excellent device performance. I am pleased that my research could contribute to efficient and clean energy conversion technologies.

I would like to thank the graduate school and the evaluation panel for providing me with this important fellowship. This would help me concentrate on the completion of my PhD dissertation during the upcoming semester. I also sincerely appreciate my advisor, Prof. Hu, the MSE department, and my group members for all their support.

Continue Reading →

Doctoral Finishing Fellowship – Spring 2023 Recipient – Yuhuan Fei

Published
By

I started my Ph.D. program in Materials Science and Engineering at MTU under the supervision of Dr. Yun Hang Hu in the Fall of 2018. My research is focused on synthesis and characterization of novel graphene materials and their applications in energy conversion and storage, which have been further extended to water desalination and heavy metal removal based on my research background in water treatment. It is always exciting to see a project completed and published, knowing that my efforts would finally make a slight contribution to the world.


I am sincerely grateful to the Graduate Dean Awards Advisory Panel for awarding me the finishing fellowship, which would allow me to focus on my dissertation and defense. My special thank goes to my advisor, Dr. Yun Hang Hu, for providing not only conceptional and technical training crucial for an individual researcher, but also continuous guidance and encouragement whenever I doubted myself. I would also like to express my gratitude to my committee members (Dr. Ranjit Pati, Dr. Gerard Caneba, and Dr. Shiyue Fang), my lab members, and my family and friends for their invaluable help and support throughout my doctoral journey.

Continue Reading →

Doctoral Finishing Fellowship – Fall 2022 Recipient – Xuebin Yang

Published
By

My PhD started in Fall 2016 at the Department of Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics. My research activities centers around the project titled “High BMEP and High Efficiency Micro-Pilot Ignition Natural Gas Engine”. The objective of DOE project in partnership between MTU and Westport is to develop a robust combustion system for a low-cost, low diesel contribution, premixed charge medium/heavy duty (MHD) natural gas engine. The research goal with respect to my contribution is to develop a novel physically based ignition model for micro-pilot diesel NG dual fuel combustion leveraging results obtained from S&CV, engine data, and analytical modeling. Ignition delay in micro-pilot diesel NG dual fuel engines is of critical importance to the operation and control as it directly affects the combustion phasing, initial heat release, and combustion stability. 

I greatly appreciate the Graduate Dean Awards Advisory panel for awarding me the fellowship. I am grateful to my advisors, Dr. Naber and Dr. Shahbakhti, and the department for all their support along my amazing journey.

Continue Reading →