ME-EM
Alumni NewsBrief
January 2009
Vol. 4, No. 4
ME - EM NewsBrief, Vol. 4, No. 4 Jan 2009
Greetings from William (Bill) W. Predebon, Chair, Department of Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics. For the latest news and information about our faculty, students, and staff please visit our web site at http://www.me.mtu.edu/.
Upcoming Events
The 9th Annual ME-EM Alumni Winter Carnival Hockey Social will be held on Saturday, February 7, 2009 during the Michigan Tech versus Colorado College (Winter Carnival) game in the MacInnes Skybox of the Student Development Complex (SDC). The game has a 5:07 PM start time. RSVPs are requested to Kathy at kagoulet@mtu.edu or 906-487-2911. Space is very limited, please RSVP early.
Michigan Tech's 2009 Winter Baja Competition will be held on Saturday, February 14, 2009 in Lake Linden, Michigan.
The MEEM Department along with the Keweenaw Research Center will again be hosting the SAE Clean Snowmobile Challenge on March 16-21, 2009. For more information on sponsorship of this event, please contact the department at 906-487-2551 or email me at wwpredeb@mtu.edu.
The MEEM Annual Alumni/SAE Reception will be held at the 2009 SAE World Congress in Detroit, MI. Please join us in room W1-52 at Cobo Hall from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 22nd. For more information please call Kathy at (906) 487-2551 or email at kagoulet@mtu.edu.
MEEM Department Chair Travel
When on travel for the Department, Dr. Predebon visits with alumni to get their feedback on our programs and their career and to give an update on the department and university. Please let the Department know if you would be available for a visit when he is in your area. (906) 487-2911.
Dr. Predebon will be traveling to the following cities this coming spring:
March 26-31 - Hilton Head, SC for the ASME Education Conference
Week of April 20th - Detroit, MI for the SAE World Congress
Alumni Accomplishments & Awards
It is my intent to highlight alumni accomplishments on a regular basis. I would like to hear from you about your accomplishments and those of other MTU ME-EM alumni who have achieved recognition. Please email me this information at wwpredeb@mtu.edu or Kathy at kagoulet@mtu.edu.
Sam Barros (BSME '07) was featured in two episodes of the Science Channel's new TV series "Sci-Fi Science" last October. The show "pits scientists, engineers and particle physicists against the most bizarre tabloid accounts of the supernatural to learn the real science behind the crazy headlines. Unreal Stories, Real Science," according to the channel's description. Pictures are available at his website, www.powerlabs.org/ .
Michael Uhl (BSME '96), Supervisor of Project Managers , and Jerry Pospiech (BSME '95), Sr. Account Manager, at A & D Technology Inc. played key roles in helping Tech's Alternative Energy Research Building (AERB) obtain a data acquisition and control system from their company. It is the first time A & D's monitoring and control system is used in a stand-alone, non-rotating combustion vessel.
Kimberly Ingles (BSME '01) of Caterpillar Inc. is the 2008 winner of the AEM Outstanding Young Engineer Award sponsored by the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) for SAE International. Ingles is a Design Engineer in the Large Power Systems Division of Caterpillar Inc. She has been a Governing Board member of the Central Illinois Section for five years, spending the first three years coordinating A World in Motion in Central Illinois Schools. Before residing in her current role as Vice Chair, she served as Program Committee Chair. Kim looks forward to becoming involved in the Carolina Section as she relocates to the Caterpillar Marine Center of Excellence in Greenville, SC.
Alumni Deaths
Tanya J. (Wareham) Klain, BSME '90, of West Bloomfield, Michigan, died unexpectedly Sunday morning, Dec. 7, from complications following recent surgery. Tanya was a devoted supporter of Michigan Tech having served on ME-EM's External Advisory Board and the Endowing Excellence, Building for the Future Phase II Campaign. She also was active in the Alumni Association serving on its Board of Directors. Tanya was employed by GM as an engineering group manager.
University News/Awards
Michigan Tech has been named a university partner in three of the six Centers of Energy Excellence funded by the Michigan Strategic Fund. Tech also is a university partner for a seventh center, approved but not yet funded. The goal of the centers is to make the state a leader in the alternative energy industry. The initiative is a three-way partnership between public and private sectors and universities and ties university research to economic development.
Michigan Tech was highlighted in the October 5 edition of Great Lakes IT report. Read the whole article at http://www.wwj.com/GLITR-Friday--January-9--2009/3630428
Michigan Tech President, Glenn Mroz, was featured in a Detroit Free Press article regarding the bailout of the automakers. The article quotes Dr. Mroz: "Most of us in Michigan know that the auto industry does a lot more than make cars and trucks. The Big Three support millions of employees and retirees - not just their own, but those of their suppliers and dealers - and millions more in the health care, retail and service industries that those employees and their families use." Read the complete article
Fifty seven (57) businesses and twenty four (24) colleges and universities hosted nearly 20,000 middle-and high-school students on November 6, 2008 at the fifth annual YES!Expo at Ford Field in Detroit. The exhibits are designed to get kids excited about educational programs that can prepare them to be engineers and scientists. Michigan Tech started the Yes! Expo in 2004 and continues to host it each year.
Department Accomplishments
Michigan Tech's Clean Snowmobile Challenge was highlighted in the August 2008 issue of the SAE International's Automotive Engineering magazine. The article written by David Schutt mentioned that the event brought several CEOs and senior executives in the aerospace, automobile, and commercial vehicle industries to the Houghton area. They emphasized "the need for workforce development has never been greater. . without it their competitive edge is lost, as is the luster and vitality of the great companies they represent and lead."
The U.S. Peace Corps has approved the establishment of a Peace Corps Master's International (PCMI) in mechanical engineering at Michigan Tech - the first and only one of its kind in the nation. This new program was highlighted on Inside Higher Education. This article located at: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2008/10/20/
This article provides a link to the Michigan Tech ME website for the program at http://www.me.mtu.edu/peacecorps/.
Faculty/Staff Awards/Accomplishments
ME-EM staff promotions:
* Nancy Barr to Technical Communications and Senior Design Program Administrative Associate
* Kathy Goulette to Executive Assistant
* Marlene Lappeus to Program Coordinator/Academic Advisor
* Renee Ozanich to Staff Assistant, Level 6
Nancy Barr (administrative associate - MEEM) received the University's Making a Difference Award in the Rookie category. Robert Greenhoe (User Support Supervisor - WECN) was nominated in the Serving Other category and Renee Ozanich (staff assistant - MEEM) in the Unsung Hero category.
Dr. John Beard (associate professor, ME-EM) is the recipeint of the General Motors Technical Education Program (TEP) Outstanding Distance Learning Faculty Award. The award letter states that his "excellent level of instruction in delivering the 'Product Realization II' course and your attention to the students' needs were remarkable." Dr. Beard was selected over 50 other instructors delivering courses to GM students.
Dr. Bo Chen (assistant professor, ME-EM) has received the Best Paper in Computational Methods and Software Award at the 2008 IEEE/ASME International Conference on Mechatronic and Embedded Systems and Applications. The award was presented by the IEEE Intelligent Transportation Systems Society, the ASME Division of Computers and Information in Engineering, and the ASME Division of Design Engineering.
Dr. Roshan D'Souza (assistant professor, ME-EM) was interviewed for ABC news regarding his research in capturing the computing power of video games to forecast and simulate complex biological systems interactions and their effects on the whole system. The interview can be seen at: http://www.sciencentral.com/video/2008/10/24/video-games-biology/. This research was also highlighted in the INSIDER Special Edition - Embedded Technology on October 13th. The article was reprinted at: http://www.admin.mtu.edu/urel/news/media_relations/742/
Dr. John H. Johnson (Presidential Professor Emeritus and research professor, ME-EM) has been selected for membership on the National Research Council (NRC) Committee on Fuel Economy of Medium- and Heavy-Duty Vehicles. The NRC is part of the National Academies. The committee's function is to conduct an assessment of fuel economy technologies for medium and heavy-duty vehicles.
Dr. John H. Johnson has been notified that SAE will create and name an award after him. The SAE John Johnson Award for Outstanding Research in Diesel Engines will recognize the lead author of an original and outstanding technical paper presented at an SAE meeting on the subject of diesel engines in the on- or off-road industries. Johnson is a nationally recognized expert on diesel engines. The story appeared many places, including the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal.
Dr. KVC Rao (principal lecturer, ME-EM) has authored a User Guide on the newly created PACE SAE/Siemens Automotive CAD Professional Certificate. Dr. Rao served as the lead investigator in this project.
Dr. John W. Sutherland (Henes Chair Professor - MEEM/SFI) and Dr. David R. Shonnard (Robbins Chair Professor - Chemical Engineering/SFI), along with four other foreign experts, will serve as advisors to the "111" International Collaborative Research Project. This prestigious, government-funded project sends 100 world experts to Chinese universities and considers 100 research areas and 100 collaborative platforms. Sutherland and Shonnard attended the opening ceremony for the research project and the Symposium on Sustainable Manufacturing in Hefei, China, on Sept. 26. While in Hefei, they also attended the Second Sustainable Manufacturing Symposium as honored guests, and Sutherland gave a keynote presentation there, "Sustainable Development: Challenges for the Manufacturing Enterprise."
Current Contracts and Grants
Beard, John (PI, ME-EM); "Enterprise: EcoCar - The NeXt Challenge"; sponsor: Argonne National Laboratory; total award amount: $120,525.
Gershenson, John; (PI, ME-EM); "MTU-CAT Product and Process Commonality Collaborative Project"; sponsor: Caterpillar; total award amount: $115,271
Haut Donahue, Tammy L.; (PI, ME-EM); "New Methodologies in Design of Small Blood Pumps"; sponsor: Pennsylvania State University; total award amount: $22,481
Jayaraman, Gopal (Co-PI, ME-EM); "Enhanced Bio-Morphic Helmet"; sponsor: University of Michigan, Michigan Universities Commercialization Initiative (MUCI); total award amount: $21,600
Maiti, Spandan (PI, ME-EM); "Grain Size Dependence of Fracture Toughness for Geological Materials"; sponsor: American Chemical Society; total award amount: $141,939
Meng, Dennis (PI, ME-EM); "REF-MG Collaboration with UIUC on Innovative Micro Fuel Cells Architectures for Biomedical and Military Applications and the Development of Mentoring"; sponsor: REF - State of Michigan; total award amount: $10,000
Michalek, Donna J. (PI, ME-EM), Predebon, William W. (Co-PI, ME-EM); "Engineering Equality Extension Program Grant"; sponsor: National Academy of Engineering/ Center for the Advancement of Scholarship on Engineering. Education; total award amount: $3,456
Michalek, Donna J. (Co-PI, ME-EM), Predebon, William W. (Co-PI, ME-EM); "Changing the Face of Michigan Tech"; sponsor: National Science Foundation ADVANCE Grant; total award amount: $532,786
Naber, Jeffery. (PI, ME-EM), Beard, John, (Co-PI, ME-EM), Michalek, Donna J.(Co-PI, ME-EM), Mukherjee, Abhijit,(Co-PI, ME-EM), Worm, Jeremy, (Co-PI, ME-EM),"Development of an Improved Efficiency Low Emission DI-SI Ethanol Flex-Fuel Powertrain for Hybrid Application"; sponsor: State of Michigan - Michigan Public Service Commission; total award amount: $2,575,109
Naber, Jeffery. (PI, ME-EM), Blough, Jason R., (Co-PI, ME-EM); "Prototype Development and Testing of a Combustion Sensing Technology for John Deere Powertrains"; sponsor: MUCI; total award amount: $193,986
Odegard, Gregory M.; (PI, ME-EM); "Active Structural Fibers for Multifunctional Composite Materials"; sponsor: Arizona State University; total award amount: $28,000
Shahbazian Yassar, Reza; (PI, ME-EM); "REF-IE Adding Chemical Microwave Reactor Capability to the Department of Chemistry"; sponsor: REF - State of MI; total award amount: $12,000
Faculty and Student Invention Disclosures
Dr. Desheng Meng (assistant professor, ME-EM) has filed an invention disclosure, "Integrated microfluidic self-regulating self-circulating gas generation system for fuel cells."
Dr. Brad King (associate professor, ME-EM) has filed an invention disclosure, "Improved Ion Thrusters".
Student Accomplishments/Awards
ESPN The Magazine has named two ME-EM football players to an academic all-district team. The teams are nominated and voted on by the College Sports Information Directors of America
* Sean Spellman (ME Sr.) was selected to the Division District IV First Team in the linebacker position
* Keith White (ME Sr.) was selected to the Division District IV First Team in the wide receiver position
Mark Griep (PhD candidate, ME-EM) was awarded the best paper award in the nanotechnology category at the recently held 26th Army Science Conference. Co-author, Dr.Shashi Karna, is a senior research scientist at the US Army Research Lab (ARL) and member of the ME-EM External Advisory Board. Out of 845 paper submissions, they were awarded the Bronze Medal for the 2nd best paper of the entire conference. The work was done while Mark was a guest researcher at the ARL. His faculty advisor is Dr. Craig R. Friedrich (professor, ME-EM).
Justin Keske (PhD candidate, ME-EM) has been awarded a Finishing Fellowship for fall 2008. The Neil V. Hakala Endowed Fellowship and the Charles L. Lawton Endowed Fellowship support the fellowships. His faculty advisor is Dr. Jason Blough (assistant professor, ME-EM).
Michigan Tech's Society of Women Engineers (SWE) won first place in the nation for their website for a collegiate section at the SWE national conference in Baltimore in November.
Keith White (ME Sr.) was selected as the top scholar-athlete from among the state's nine NCAA Division II institutions. The wide receiver posted 63 catches for 944 yards and eight touchdowns in 2008 while maintining his 3.97 grade point average in mechanical engineering.
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William W. Predebon, Ph.D.
Professor and Chair
Department of Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics
Michigan Technological University
1400 Townsend Drive
Houghton, MI 49931-1295
Phone No.: 906-487-2551
Fax No.: 906-487-2822
E-mail: wwpredeb@mtu.edu
For more news and information about our faculty, students,and staff - please visit our web site news pages:: Department News -- Research News -- Alumni News -- Student News |
