ECE graduate student Zekeriya Dereli, Cengiz Yücedağ (SFRES) and Joshua Pearce (MSE/ECE) co-authored a paper “Simple and Low-Cost Method of Planning for Tree Growth and Lifetime Effects on Solar Photovoltaic Systems Performance” for the journal Solar Energy.
From Tech Today.
Michigan Tech has launched a new virtual tour of campus and the local area. The Minerals and Materials Engineering building is included among the virtual walking tours. There is an interactive panorama of the foundry as well.
New ranking: Mich. Tech engineering 14th in U.S.
Michigan Technological University has steadily ranked near the top 50 U.S. schools in terms of the quality of its engineering programs, but a recent ranking put Tech in the top 50 for quantity as well.
The College Database ranked Michigan Tech 14th among the top 50 U.S. colleges and universities for engineering, based on the number of different programs offered.
Read more at the Mining Gazette, by Stephen Anderson.
Assistant Professor Yongmei Jin (MSE/IMP), “Computational Modeling and Simulation of Complex Structures of the High Energy Lithium and Manganese Rich Composite Cathode Materials,” Argonne National Laboratory, DOE.
Ben Wittbrodt ’13 and current masters student (MSE) presented and demonstrated 3-D printing to the Cummins Inc board of directors and their distinguished guests during their annual Science and Technology conference. He explained the opportunities 3-D printing could bring to the company and the advances in the technology under development at Michigan Tech.
From Tech Today.
SmartZone Start-up Company, QTEK Receives ‘New Business Idea’ Award in State Competition
A growing MTEC SmartZone start-up company that developed an antimicrobial technology, earned an award in a business plan competition in East Lansing.
QTEK founders Bowen Li (MSE) and Amy Zhi received the “New Business Idea” award during the Statewide Business Plan Competition Award Ceremony, held on June 18 at Michigan State University. The event was hosted by Great Lakes Entrepreneur’s Quest (GLEQ), a support organization that assists entrepreneurs in starting, developing or accelerating high-growth businesses.
From Tech Today. Read more at MTEC SmartZone.
Start-up Company Wins State Award
Jim Baker, executive director of innovation and industry engagement at Michigan Tech, helped Li and Zhi craft their business plan, and Professor Jim Hwang (MSE) worked with Li on the underlying technology.
Read more at Tech Today.
Two publications by Joshua Pearce (MSE/ECE) were quoted by the Guardian in an article discussing the deficiencies of Obama’s climate policy plan.
From Tech Today.
Obama’s fracked-up climate strategy will guarantee global warming disaster
What about nuclear power? A 2008 study in the International Journal of Nuclear Governance, Economy and Ecology pointed out that the construction, mining, milling, transporting, refining, enrichment, waste reprocessing/disposal, fabrication, operation and decommissioning processes of nuclear power all release fossil fuel emissions. Also, nuclear power is not efficient enough to replace oil, gas and coal. To do so nuclear production would need to increase by 10.5 per cent every year from 2010 to 2050 – an “unsustainable prospect” requiring a “cannibalistic effect”, whereby nuclear energy itself must be used to supply the energy for future nuclear power plants.
Study author Dr. Joshua Pearce further argued last year that unless nuclear power adopts “improved technology and efficiency through the entire life cycle to prevent energy cannibalism during rapid growth”, the industry could “face obsolescence” compared to renewables.
Read more at The Guardian, by Nafeez Ahmed.
Tech Supermileage Enterprise Team Fares Well
At the recent SAE Supermileage event in Marshall, Mich., Michigan Tech’s team placed sixth overall.
Below are some highlights and related links, including video footage featuring Joe Eckstein (MSE/MEEM dual major).
WILX | CBS Detroit | Facebook
Read more at Tech Today.
Students Compete to Build Fuel Efficient Cars
With gas prices in Michigan hovering around $4.29 per gallon, how does a car that can get up to 1,000 miles per gallon sound?
It’s that lofty goal that has Joseph Eckstein and his team from Michigan Tech going the extra mile to build the most fuel efficientvehicle possible.
“From the ground up, we design our chassis to be aerodynamic as possible and to have the lowest rolling resistance as possible,” Eckstein said.
Eckstein said he can apply what he learns at events like this to the real world.
“The skills as engineers we learn working on these vehicles do translate when we work on actual passenger vehicles for road use,” he said.
The team of students from Michigan Tech were one of 25 teams from colleges across the country competing in the annul SAE International Super-mileage Collegiate Engineering Competition. Other teams from the state included University of Michigan and Calvin College.
Read more and watch the video at WILX 10 in Lansing, MI.
Research by Professor Jaroslaw Drelich and PhD student Patrick Bowen (MSE) is highlighted in the June edition of the MRS Bulletin. The story, “Is Zinc the Perfect Material for Bioabsorbable Stents?” appears in the bulletin’s Bio Focus section.
From Tech Today.
Printable library makes one-of-a-kind optics affordable
Inspired by the need for optics used in a specialized tool for photovoltaic research, a professor at Michigan Technological University has created an open-source optics library that is gaining popularity around the world.
“We want to help build a library of tools that spans all the disciplines and helps make scientific research less expensive and much more accessible to everyone,” Joshua Pearce, an associate professor of materials science and engineering and electrical and computer engineering at MTU, told Photonics Spectra.
Read more at Photonics Spectra, by Ashley N. Rice.