Texas A&M Engineering News

Texas A&M Engineering and Alamo Colleges District co-enrollment program to begin offering classes fall 2018

Thu, 01 Feb 2018 00:00:00 CST

Texas A&M University, Chevron and Alamo Colleges District will enroll the first cohort of students for the Texas A&M-Chevron Engineering Academy at Alamo Colleges District in fall 2018. This innovative co-enrollment partnership was developed to address the state’s growing need for engineers. Qualified students will be admitted to the Texas A&M College of Engineering, complete the first two years of coursework at an Alamo Colleges District college and finish their engineering degrees in College Station, Texas. The program will begin accepting student applications March 1.

The Texas A&M-Chevron Engineering Academy at Alamo Colleges District allows students to remain close to home for their first two years while pursuing one of 19 majors within the College of Engineering at Texas A&M. This program is generously supported by Chevron.

“We are pleased to offer students in the Alamo Colleges District a unique pathway toward a first-rate degree from an engineering college ranked among the top 10 in the world,” said Texas A&M University System Chancellor John Sharp. “Our goal is to attract the very best students to Texas A&M Engineering, even if circumstances require them to stay close to home for the first two years of college. These students will be Aggies in San Antonio from day one.”

“We are always eager to offer our students new opportunities for continuing their education once they graduate from one of the colleges of the Alamo Colleges District,” said Alamo Colleges District Chancellor Dr. Bruce Leslie. “Our latest partnership with Texas A&M University and Chevron will offer our students a pathway to a bachelor’s degree in a field with excellent job growth and high salaries, benefiting not only the students, but the state’s economy as well,” he added.

In Texas, the projected need for engineers in the workforce is 53,000 by 2024. To meet this need, universities and two-year colleges will need to work together to bridge the gap and attract and retain students who are interested in STEM fields. Engineering students in the Engineering Academy program enroll in math, science and core curriculum courses through Alamo Colleges District and have the unique opportunity to enroll in Texas A&M engineering courses taught by Texas A&M faculty at Northeast Lakeview College, part of Alamo Colleges District.

“Northeast Lakeview College is proud to be home for this program,” said Dr. Veronica Garcia, Northeast Lakeview College president. “This new program will help address the need for more programming in high-demand STEM fields and provide an opportunity for more students, in San Antonio and surrounding areas, to pursue engineering coursework.”

Chevron has donated $5 million to support Texas A&M-Chevron Engineering Academies across the state at Austin Community College; Houston Community College, Spring Branch in Houston; Texas Southmost College in Brownsville; El Centro and Richland Colleges in Dallas; and Alamo Colleges District in San Antonio.

“Chevron is committed to increasing access to, and the quality of, education around the world. We are proud to partner with Texas A&M on this important initiative to help ensure an educated and skilled workforce,” said Shariq Yosufzai, Chevron vice president of ombuds, diversity and inclusion and university and association relations.

“Our longstanding relationship with Texas A&M, through support of the Engineering Academy initiative, will help provide opportunities in the field of engineering for many underrepresented and first-generation college students,” Yosufzai said. “Partnering with Texas A&M, a top source of engineering hires for Chevron, to help provide opportunities in the field of engineering will support our efforts to help build the diverse workforce of tomorrow that will be required to meet the energy needs of the future."

Texas A&M Engineering Vice Chancellor and Dean Dr. M. Katherine Banks said the academies have the potential to reach beyond the typical pathways for access to a top-ranked engineering program.

“The academies, through our partnership with Chevron and the two-year colleges, provide new pathways to a first-rate engineering education,” Banks said. “Through this co-enrollment program, students can live at home for the first two years of college without postponing their participation in an engineering program that is highly regarded by employers across the country.”

For more information about how to apply and other details, visit /academies or email engineeringacademies@tamu.edu.

Aquifer research leads to effective, cost efficient water acquisition and aids in drought recovery

Tue, 07 Nov 2017 00:00:00 CST

It’s no secret to anyone that Texas is hot and that with heat comes drought. Across the more than 269,000 square miles that make up the state, many Texans constantly fight cycles of drought or flooding season after season. In these places, good water management is essential and thanks to new research by Dr. Gretchen Miller in the Zachry Department of Civil Engineering at Texas A&M University, getting clean water to communities that need it most may now be easier and more cost-effective than ever.

Miller works on what is known as managed aquifer recharge or aquifer storage and recovery. These methods are used to intentionally refill aquifers, or water sources that live in permeable rock, from which many communities draw groundwater. Using these techniques, municipalities and utility districts can draw water from the aquifers during times of drought, but also put water back in them during rainier seasons.

“We are hoping to advance the science on aquifer storage and recovery in order to help local entities better implement these techniques as water conservation strategies,” Miller said. “We want to determine how well current techniques are working and how they can be improved.”

Miller’s research focuses on the feasibility of these water extraction and recharge methods, and seeks to improve not only the efficiency of how water is removed or stored in the aquifer, but the quality of water that is used. In working with these systems, Miller is looking for the best places to implement them across the state and has worked with water management agencies in San Antonio, El Paso and Harris County, Texas.

“How the aquifers are used and managed changes depending on the geology,” Miller said. “We can use models to represent a typical managed aquifer recharge system and then test different methods of running it, when and how we extract or inject water and how we can best use the wells.”

According to Miller, it takes a lot of energy to pump water either in or out of a system, so in using these modeling techniques researchers can now give water municipalities the power to understand when they decide to inject or extract water in a well and how it will affect other wells in the system. It will also give them a better understanding of how to best pump wells efficiently to conserve energy and achieve the highest quality of water available. Miller hopes a better understanding of these processes will benefit communities around the state.

“We see this as a mechanism for helping communities be more resilient against environmental changes,” Miller said. “Some of the cities in Texas are so water stressed that they need a whole arsenal of ways to adapt, and we think this can be one of many tools they can use to help communities bounce back faster. Hopefully we can help prevent them from needing to impose tight drought restrictions.”

In her work with municipalities in Harris County, Miller has also looked at reducing the impacts of flooding by storing excess storm water in managed aquifers. While Miller explains that such measures will not prevent flooding on a large scale, it still has the opportunity to reduce some flood impacts. Miller also sees potential in using aquifer storage and recovery to allow the continued use of groundwater in areas of Houston, where prolonged groundwater extraction has caused portions of the city to sink as the water that fills the porous sediments is drained away.

“If we pump water into the areas that are experiencing high usage, then we can stop the subsidence [the sinking of land] and those people can still use groundwater in those areas without restriction,” said Miller. “We are keeping up with the demand in these areas so that more water isn't taken out of these already taxed areas.”

Miller is also optimistic about the impacts of her research and how it could help communities outside of Texas and even abroad.

“The ideas we are developing on how to operate these facilities and how to make them more efficient can definitely be applied elsewhere,” Miller said. “Looking forward, we want to be able to determine how much water needs to be stored in order to provide an adequate buffer given that there are factors that we can’t fully take into account. We hope this can best help communities in a variety of conditions.”

*This research is conducted in collaboration with Dr. Zhuping Sheng of the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering at Texas A&M, as well as the contributions of doctoral students Saheli Majumdar, Ben Smith and Liting Tao.

This research is also a result of collaborations with the Clearwater Underground Water Conservation District, the El Paso Water Utility, the Harris County Flood Control District and the San Antonio Water System.

Texas A&M Engineering rises in rankings to 7th in newest US News & World Report undergraduate rankings

Thu, 14 Sep 2017 00:00:00 CST

Texas A&M Engineering climbed to seventh among public engineering schools offering a doctorate and 14th overall in the 2018 U.S. News and World Report Best College Rankings for undergraduate engineering programs released this week. The college rose two places overall from 16 to 14 and one place among public institutions from eight to seven among its peers.

The Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering and the Department of Biological & Agricultural Engineering, which is part of both the College of Engineering and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Texas A&M, moved up to the top spot in the individual program rankings.

Five more departments, aerospace engineering (7th), civil engineering (8th), computer engineering (8th), industrial & systems engineering (8th) and mechanical engineering (7th) ranked in the top 10 among public institutions and top 15 overall.

Record numbers highlight 5th annual Engineering Project Showcase

Thu, 04 May 2017 00:00:00 CST

For the 5th annual Engineering Project Showcase, the work of more than 1,000 students was represented on April 29 in the Hall of Champions at Texas A&M University’s Kyle Field.

The Engineering Project Showcase provides students an opportunity to demonstrate and display their engineering projects, highlighting the ingenuity of engineers solving real-world problems.

“The showcase is one of the largest exhibits of student design projects in the country and a unique opportunity for industry to see the innovative skills of our students across all engineering majors,” said Magda Lagoudas, executive director for industry and non-profit partnerships.

The showcase has become the pinnacle event of the year and has nearly doubled in size since its inaugural event. This year hosted more than 180 engineering projects representing the work of more than 1,000 students. The event brought industry representatives and judges from nearly 70 companies to campus, providing students an opportunity to network and discuss potential collaborations for their innovations.

The awards ceremony at the end of the showcase recognized the top teams with more than $10,000 in prize money awarded. Baker Hughes, Emerson and Shell sponsored the showcase.

The $1,000 Baker Hughes Award went to High Heat Flux Two Phase CPU Cooling from the mechanical engineering department. Its team members included Nick Cangelose, Justin Feldt, Qijun Liu and Kevin Wu, and faculty advisor Noushin Amini. It was sponsored by DELL EMC- Kevin Mundt and Robert Curtis.

The $1,000 Emerson Award went to Texas Children’s Hospital - Pediatric Gynecology from the biomedical engineering department. Its team members included Hannah Pearce, Omar Wyman, Sydney Roach and Hannah Humbert, and faculty advisor Maurice Brewer. It was sponsored by Dr. Jennifer Dietrich and Dr. Julie Hakim.

The $1,000 Shell Award went to Turtle Rescue from the ENGR 289 – Engineering Creativity course. Its team members included Dustin Ladd, Logan Skipper, Michayal Matthew and Matthew Laux.

In addition to the top three overall awards, 17 awards of $500 each were given for best project in each competing category listed below, such as capstone within specific majors, AggiE_Challenge, design competition teams, other course projects and ENGR 112 (freshman engineering course project).

Biological and agricultural engineering
Cacao Pod Cracker — Weston Yap, sponsor. Dr. Rabi Mohtar, faculty advisor. Team members: Cecily Molina, Hilda Villarreal and Sreevidya Ghantasala.

Biomedical engineering
Texas Children’s Hospital - Pediatric Gynecology — Dr. Jennifer Dietrich and Dr. Julie Hakim, sponsors. Maurice Brewer, faculty advisor. Team members: Hannah Pearce, Omar Wyman, Sydney Roach and Hannah Humbert.

Computer science and engineering
Ghost Ship VR — Department of Computer Science and Engineering, sponsor. Dr. Bruce Gooch, faculty advisor. Team members: Thomas Sell, Cody Leuschner, Josh Hooton and Jacob Stafford.

Electrical and computer engineering
Vibration Navigation Team — Dr. Stavros Kalafatis, faculty advisor. Team members: Jordan Wenske, Cooper Rehn, Benjamin Jack and Karl White.

Engineering technology and industrial distribution
Autonomous Garden System— Department of Engineering Technology and Industrial Distribution, sponsor. Dr. Ana Goulart, faculty advisor. Team members: Benedict Dike, John Stockton, Anthony Mendiola, Samuel Herrera, Philip Kelly and Hector Rafael.

Industrial and systems engineering (top two teams)
San Antonio Military Medical Center (SAMMC) Research Catalog — SAMMC, sponsor. Ricardo Villarreal, faculty advisor. Team members: Luke Hicks, Olufemi Bada, Stanley Chan and Travis Korry.

MD Anderson’s Molecular Diagnostics Lab: Determining Optimal Batch Size — MD Anderson and Dalia Farhat, sponsor. Dr. Guy Curry, faculty advisor. Team members: Katherine Klassen, David Corro, Magdalene Kramer, Carter Harvey and Benjamin Babcock.

Mechanical engineering (top two teams)
High Heat Flux Two Phase CPU Cooling — ASHRAE and Kevin Gardner, sponsor. James Thomas, faculty advisor. Team members: Elias Rosedahl, Matthew Pledger, Daniel Harris and Ty Williams and faculty.

Smart-Glove Stroke Hand Rehabilitation Device — Dr. Arun Srinivasa, sponsor. James Thomas, faculty advisor. Team members: Trey Torno, Aaron Graeve, Casey Fattig, Sean Sculley and Eric Redondo.

Other capstone design – chemical engineering
Sustainable and Self-Sufficient Production of Propylene through Oleflex Technology — Ineos Olefins and Polymers, sponsor. Dr. Debalina Sengupta, faculty advisor. Team members: Harry MacTough, Eric Fris, Christopher Riggs and John Mark Zimmerman.

Student design competition
TAMU Hyperloop — Engineering Advisory Council, sponsor. Dr. Adonios Karpetic, faculty advisor. Team members: Jordan Daly, Nathan Brunner, Kasper Egholm, Armando Gonzalez-Feuchter, Frank Malambri, Jakob Parnell, Bradley Petras, Gabriel Pirmez, McKenna Roberts and Austin Schneider.

Other course projects
Turtle Rescue — EPICS 289, sponsor. Magda Lagoudas, faculty advisor. Team members: Dustin Ladd, Logan Skipper, Michayal Matthew and Matthew Laux.

ENGR 112 (three awards)
ENGR 112-540 — Paul Koola, faculty advisor. Team members: Christopher Alexander, Ross Carpenter, Abigail Dougherty, Garrett Janda, Samuel Kuehnhold, Samuel Murley, Jaclynn Turnbaugh and Zachary Wilson.

ENGR 112-203 — Dr. Allen Godwin, faculty advisor. Team members: Michael Martin, Jacob Dewey, Alicia Morales, Erica Hall, Thomas Dane, Oscal Villarreal, Richard McCalley and Tate Banks.

ENGR 112-511 — Jacquelyn Huff, faculty advisor. Team members: Bailey Eberle, David Bleiler, John Klaerner, Angelina Garcia, Sarah Khan, Josh Regresado, Nick Lugo, Sarnia Alghazo and Samantha Wilson.

AggiE_Challenge (two awards)
Point-of-Care Health Informatics for Proactive Epilepsy Seizure Alert — Texas A&M College of Engineering, sponsor. Dr. Satish Bukkapatnam, faculty advisor, and Afrin, student mentor. Team members: Kyle Reagan, Alan Ngo, Bryan Arnold, Stefan Manoharan, Sagar Patel, Sandesh Reddy, Srujan Kancharia, and Ishan Vasandni.

Advanced Vapor Compression Desalination (AVCD) – Business and Administration Team — Texas A&M College of Engineering, sponsor. Dr. Mark Holtzapple, faculty advisor. Team members: Yndalecia Ojeda, Esteban Saba, Audrey Munson, Gene Markantonis, Regan Hess, Will Lipscomb, Daisy Enriquez, Sarah Mustafa, Myada Abdelrahman, Carolynn Van Zandt and Talon Page.

Further details on each project can be found here. The 2018 Engineering Project Showcase will be April 27, 2018 in the Hall of Champions at Kyle Field.

Texas A&M launches inaugural Grand Challenge Scholars Program

Thu, 13 Apr 2017 00:00:00 CST

The Grand Challenge Scholars Program (GCSP) at Texas A&M University is a selective three-year program offered to sophomore students with the intent to attract, retain and graduate future leaders who are equipped to solve engineering grand challenges facing our society today and in the future. While achieving in-depth understanding of their chosen research areas, Grand Challenge scholars will also be prepared to be global leaders in academia, government and industry.

“The Texas A&M Grand Challenge Scholars program provides students with a truly unique experience, combining research on one of the 14 Grand Challenges for Engineering with coursework or other activities providing the scholars with competence in interdisciplinary work, entrepreneurship, service learning and global perspective,” said Dr. Nancy M. Amato, GCSP director.

A group of 24 scholars from various engineering departments were selected to participate in the inaugural cohort of the program. These students include aerospace engineering students Eghosasere Alao, Milton Garza and Kanika Gakhar; biological and agricultural engineering student Zhoucheng Li; biomedical engineering students Hector Linares Garcia and Luke Oaks; chemical engineering students Agnes Aina, Victoria Hicks, Ricci Seguban and Alex Strasser; civil engineering students Alyssa Ornelas, Brian Welsh and Samantha Wilson; computer engineering student Josiah Coad; computer science and statistics student Jusung Lee; electrical engineering students Andrew Allen, Millie Krel, Bryton Praslicka, Jorge Vasquez and Stephanie Wilcox; industrial engineering student Lorenzo Riddle; and mechanical engineering students Andy Alcantar, Melissa Burket and Yuming Zhao.

During their first year in the program, Grand Challenge scholars work with faculty mentors to plan their customized GCSP curriculum. During their second year, they are actively engaged in the research for the GCSP thesis and make progress on achieving the other components of the GCSP. During their final year in the program, Grand Challenge scholars complete their program requirements and mentor other participating students. There are five components of the curriculum, including research related to one of the engineering grand challenges, multidisciplinary, entrepreneurship, global experience and service learning.

For her research thesis, junior aerospace engineering student Kanika Gakhar is working with Dr. Moble Benedict, aerospace assistant professor, to improve the design and efficiency of his robotic hummingbird.

“Spending endless hours next to a setup that mimics a hummingbird’s flapping motion reminded me of how close we were to understanding the aero-elastic relationship between the shape of the wing and the interdependent aerodynamics associated with it,” Gakhar said. “This helped me realize that I wanted to engage in the Grand Challenge Scholars Program and help contribute toward engineering tools for scientific discovery. Moreover, I was so inspired by this research experience that I decided to encourage other students to engage in undergraduate research. As an undergraduate research ambassador and executive leader for the Council of Undergraduate Research in Engineering, I currently work on helping students gain valuable research experience.”

The GCSP program will also provide students with unique and exciting opportunities to grow as students and individuals. Five students will attend the upcoming Grand Challenge Summit this summer in Washington, D.C.

Amato, who is also senior director of the Engineering Honors Program and Unocal and Regents Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, said, “We are very excited to launch the Texas A&M Grand Challenge Scholars Program. We have selected an amazing set of students for the inaugural cohort and I'm really looking forward to seeing what they will achieve.”

Texas A&M College of Engineering fares well in latest U.S. News graduate rankings

Wed, 15 Mar 2017 09:00:00 CST

Texas A&M Engineering’s graduate program was again ranked 11th overall nationally in the latest U.S. News & World Report survey, “America’s Best Graduate Schools 2018.” The college also ranked seventh among public institutions.

Individual programs ranked were: aerospace engineering, 7 (4 public); agricultural engineering 2 (2); biomedical engineering 39 (20); chemical engineering 27 (17); civil engineering 12 (8); computer engineering 21 (11); electrical engineering 22 (13); industrial engineering 13 (10); materials 39 (25); mechanical engineering 17 (8); nuclear engineering 4 (3); and petroleum engineering 3 (2).

Computer science, which was last ranked in the Sciences category in 2014, was 40th nationally and 23rd among public institutions.

Texas A&M Engineering entrepreneurs among Aggie 100

Wed, 16 Nov 2016 00:00:00 CST

The 100 fastest-growing Aggie-owned or Aggie-led businesses in the world were recognized Nov. 11 at the 12^th Annual Aggie 100 program, and 37 of the 100 companies recognized are owned or led by graduates of the Texas A&M University College of Engineering.

The Aggie 100 is sponsored by the Center for New Ventures and Entrepreneurship in the Mays Business School at Texas A&M.

“I applaud and congratulate our former students who are among the Aggie 100 for embracing the entrepreneurial spirit and mindset,” said M. Katherine Banks, vice chancellor and dean of engineering. “It takes courage to set an idea in motion, manage the highs and lows and see it through to ultimate success.”

This year marks the 12^thyear for the award, and to celebrate the milestone, all honorees and past honorees were invited to attend an evening gala at the Hall of Champions at Kyle Field. Over the last 12 years, a total of 217 companies owned or led by Aggie engineers have been recognized by the Aggie 100.

2016 Aggie 100 Engineering Companies:

AAA Technology & Specialties Co., Inc.

Reid McNally – Mechanical Engineering ‘65

Accent Wire-Tie

William Sims – Mechanical Engineering ’89 (ME – Civil Engineering)

AG|CM, Inc.

Patricia Gail Anderson, P.E. – Civil Engineering ‘78

Argen Polymer LLC

Anthony Bahr – Petroleum Engineering ‘91

Attabox

Mike Meinscher – Industrial Distribution ‘89

Brazos Valley Bombers

Uri Geva – Computer Science ‘98

Broadleaf Commerce, LLC

Brian Polster – Computer Science ‘92

Capital Project Solutions, Inc.

James Pustejovsky - Engineering Technology – Civil Construction ‘85

Credichapin

Alvaro Stein – Industrial Engineering ‘82

CRU, Ltd.

Robert Martinez – Civil Engineering ‘88

Crystal Mountain Sel Sahara (TX), LLC

Richard R. Lonquist – Petroleum Engineering ‘88

Brian D. Davis – Petroleum Engineering ‘88

Ben H. Bergman – Mechanical Engineering ‘92

Stephen L. Pattee – Petroleum Engineering ‘13

Delta Structural Technology LLC.

Paul Gugenheim – Industrial Engineering ‘73

DIFFCO

Matt Diffendal – Industrial Distribution ‘01

eCatholic

Josh Simmons – Industrial Distribution ‘00

FrogSlayer, LLC

Kyle Marshall – Electrical Engineering ‘06

Grapevine Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram

Ben Keating – Industrial Engineering ‘94

Hayden Consultants, Inc.

Rachel Hayden – Civil Engineering ‘89

HMT Engineering & Surveying

Stephen Hanz – Civil Engineering ‘92

KFW Engineers

George Weron – Civil Engineering ‘97

Craig Fletcher – Agricultural Engineering ‘97

Blaine Lopez – Civil Engineering ‘96

LJA Engineering, Inc.

Calvin T. Ladner, PE – Civil Engineering ‘80

Jeff Collins, PE – Civil Engineering ‘80

James Moehlman – Civil Engineering ‘73

M-erg

Martha Parker – Bioengineering ‘95

Miner Corporation

Phil Miner – Ocean Engineering ‘80

MP2 Energy

Terry Dodson – Electrical Engineering ‘87

OTA Compression, LLC

Grant Swartzwelder – Petroleum Engineering ‘85

PinnacleART

Ryan Sitton – Mechanical Engineering ‘97

Jennifer Sitton – Mechanical Engineering ‘97

Premier Coil Solutions, Inc.

Brett White – Industrial Distribution ‘99

Ray Rothrock – Nuclear Engineering ‘77

Protection Engineering Consultants

Kirk Marchand – Civil Engineering ‘79

RAS A/C & Heating Services

Lance Abney – Engineering Technology ‘93

Refund Retriever, LLC

Brandon Byers – Computer Science ‘01

Sabre Commercial, Inc.

John P. Cyrier – Mechanical Engineering Technology ‘95

Shift Administrators, LLC

Blake Birkenfeld – Computer Science ‘06

Sledge Engineering

Casey Sledge – Civil Engineering ‘93

Superior Delivery Service, a J.H Walker Company

Jefferson Walker – Industrial Distribution ‘12

Texas Swim Academy

Robert Bruce McMordie – Marine Engineering ‘78

The Wood Group of Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation

Matt Wood – Industrial Distribution ‘99

Trilliant Surgical, Ltd.

Jon Olson – Biomedical Engineering ‘00

Chat Steitle – Biomedical Engineering ‘98

Tropacaval Media

Ben Keating – Industrial Engineering ‘94

Activating the waters

Tue, 27 Sep 2016 00:00:00 CST

The Earth can only handle so many contaminants in excess water released into the environment by homes, businesses and industries before becoming overwhelmed. To prevent this daunting introduction of pollutants to the environment, wastewater must be treated adequately prior to being released.

Dr. Yongheng Huang, associate professor in the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering at Texas A&M University, is working to develop cost-effective water treatment technologies to meet industrial, agricultural and domestic needs.

“We focus on discovering and using iron chemistry to immobilize and secure heavy metals and to remove nutrients and other undesired impurities from various impaired liquid streams,” Huang said. “We use these new understandings to develop innovative water technologies and solutions to help meet our society’s needs in reducing water pollution, protecting our environment and safeguarding public health.”

Huang’s research led to the invention of the Activated Iron Technology that has been exclusively licensed by the Texas A&M University System and Texas A&M AgriLife Research to Evoqua Water Technologies, LLC.

“The new technology has been commercialized as a cornerstone for Evoqua for water and wastewater treatment, including electric power, mining, refinery and other industries as well as for environmental remediation and municipal drinking water applications,” Huang said.

The invention was accomplished after a series of breakthroughs made by Huang in iron chemistry to help sustain iron corrosion reactivity. These breakthroughs have solved the issue related to the formation of passive iron oxide coatings on iron surface that could stop iron corrosion reaction, often referred to as iron passivation, which has troubled scientists and the industry for many years.

“The main chemical used by the Activated Iron Technology is metallic iron powder, which is inexpensive and widely available around the world.” Huang said. “With the solving of the iron passivation issue, the technology could now use the full reactive power of iron for targeted contaminant treatment, thus greatly reducing the usage rate of the chemicals and generating less solid wastes.

The new technology is robust and versatile, capable of removing a broad spectrum of toxic materials from some of the most challenging and complex wastewaters. The materials removed include metals such as selenium, mercury, arsenic, chromium, cadmium, vanadium and lead.

If these metals were left untreated in the wastewater and discharged into the receiving water bodies, they could hurt the health of the environment, disrupting the ecosystem, and in many cases, pose an immediate or long-term threat to human health.

“Through this process, soluble and toxic heavy metals in wastewater are transformed and secured in non-toxic solid forms, mostly being incorporated into the iron rust produced from iron corrosion,” Huang said.

The new technology is a solution for industry to be within the new United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Effluent Limitations Guidelines (ELGs).

“The activated iron technology is a cost-effective solution for the steam-electric power industry to comply with the new USEPA ELGs on mercury, arsenic and selenium discharge,” Huang said. “With the success of the activated iron technology, a single treatment can now decrease selenium, arsenic and mercury simultaneously to below the ELG limits; particularly it can remove mercury to a much lower concentration than other technologies can achieve.”

Effective in removing a broad spectrum of heavy metals and metalloids from many of the most challenging and complex water streams, the technology is gaining attention in various industries around the world.

“In North America alone, it is expected that nearly 200 coal-fired power plants will be required to install new wastewater treatment facilities at a total cost of billions of dollars in the next few years in order to comply with the new ELG regulation,” Huang said. “The technology, being part of the clean coal solution, could contribute in a significant way to reduce pollution associated with coal industry. Similarly, the technology can be used in many industries troubled by heavy metals pollutions around the world.”

Huang’s team is aiming to refine and further improve the Activated Iron Technology and expand the application scope to cover more pollutants and impaired water sources. In addition, the team digs into the fundamental chemistry to further advance the understandings of the mechanisms and kinetics related to the interactions among metallic iron, iron oxides and contaminants.

“We believe there are numerous potentials in iron chemistry that have yet to be discovered and that may help solve some existing or emerging environmental problems,” Huang said. “We will strive to advance the science of iron chemistry and fulfill its potential as a powerful tool for protecting our environment and human health.”

Texas A&M Engineering ranked 8th in newest "U.S. News & World Report" undergraduate rankings

Thu, 15 Sep 2016 00:00:00 CST

Texas A&M Engineering ranked eighth among engineering schools at public institutions offering a doctorate, according to the latest U.S. News & World Report rankings of the country’s undergraduate universities and programs.

The college of engineering is ranked 16^th overall in engineering programs at public and private national universities, tied with Virginia Tech.

The Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering had the highest ranking at second overall and among public institutions in the nation, while the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering was fourth in both categories. Biological and agricultural engineering is part of both the college of engineering and the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences at Texas A&M.

The Department of Aerospace Engineering moved up one spot overall to 11^th and maintained its ranking at 7^th among public and private universities.

Other specialties ranked among public institutions were: civil 8^th; industrial 9^th; and mechanical 8^th. Overall, civil was 12^th; industrial 13th; and mechanical 15^th.

U.S. News & World Report does not rank nuclear engineering every year. The last time the magazine surveyed this area, Texas A&M’s nuclear engineering program was third (second public).

Texas A&M and Austin Community College announce new Engineering Academy

Tue, 13 Sep 2016 00:00:00 CST

Texas A&M University, Chevron and Austin Community College (ACC) have announced the formation of the Texas A&M-Chevron Engineering Academy at ACC, an innovative co-enrollment partnership developed to address the state’s growing need for engineers. Qualified students will be admitted to the Texas A&M College of Engineering, complete the first two years of coursework at ACC and finish their engineering degrees in College Station, Texas.

The Texas A&M-Chevron Engineering Academies will allow students to remain close to home for their first two years while pursuing one of 18 majors within the college of engineering at Texas A&M. This program is being generously supported by Chevron.

“We were excited to be contacted by Austin Community College to explore an engineering academy partnership and are pleased now to offer ACC students a unique pathway toward a first-rate degree from an engineering college ranked among the Top 10 in the world,” said Chancellor John Sharp. “Our goal is to attract the very best students to Texas A&M Engineering, even if circumstances require them to stay close to home for the first two years of college. These students will be Aggies in Austin from day one.”

“It’s about opportunity. This academy makes it possible for more students to pursue their dreams; starting at ACC and finishing at one of the most prestigious engineering schools in the nation,” said Dr. Richard Rhodes, ACC president and CEO. “This partnership is a great example of industry and higher education working together to accelerate pathways into the workforce.”

A 2012 report by the President’s Advisory Council on Science and Technology projected that 1 million more STEM degrees would be needed in the next decade. In Texas alone, the projected need for engineers in the workforce is 62,000 by 2022. To meet this need, universities and two-year colleges will need to work together to bridge the gap and attract and retain students who are interested in STEM fields.

"ACC has inked another innovative partnership which will help area employers receive more quality engineering talent,” said Drew Scheberle, Austin Chamber of Commerce senior vice president. “It’s important that we do our job and recruit them to return to Central Texas after graduation."

Chevron has donated $5 million to support five total Texas A&M-Chevron Engineering Academies across the state that include Austin Community College; Houston Community College, Spring Branch in Houston; Texas Southmost College in Brownsville; El Centro College in Dallas; and Alamo Colleges in San Antonio. Texas A&M also has successful Engineering Academies at the Blinn College campuses in Brenham and Bryan.

“Chevron is committed to increasing access to, and the quality of, education around the world and is excited to be able to continue our longstanding relationship with Texas A&M through support of the Engineering Academy initiative. Our Engineering Academies will help provide opportunities in the field of engineering for many underrepresented and first generation college students,” said Shariq Yosufzai, Chevron vice president of Global Diversity, Ombuds & University Partnerships & Association Relations. “Partnering with Texas A&M, a top source of engineering hires for Chevron, to help provide opportunities in the field of engineering will support our efforts to help build the diverse workforce of tomorrow that will be required to meet the energy needs of the future.“

Texas A&M Engineering Vice Chancellor and Dean M. Katherine Banks said the academies have the potential to reach beyond the typical pathways for access to a top-ranked engineering program.

“The academies, through our partnership with Chevron and the two-year colleges, provide new pathways to a first-rate engineering education,” said Banks. “Through this co-enrollment program, students can live at home for the first two years of college without postponing their participation in an engineering program that is highly regarded by employers across the country.”