COLLEGE STATION, Texas, May 8, 2009 – Three groups of students from Texas A&M University’s Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering have been recognized by the Fluor Corporation for their designs of a crude oil processing plant.

Thomas Carmine, Haley Holub, Jennifer Loving and Phillip Niksch are members of the team awarded first place by Fluor for its original design of a crude oil processing unit that operates per Flour’s specifications and which was undertaken as part of an intense senior-level capstone chemical engineering course taught by John Baldwin, senior lecturer in the department.

The team of Carla Beutlich, Jennifer Cunningham, Michael Kingrey, Tri Le, and Felipe Rendon was awarded second place, and the team composed of Lance Brockway, James Hall, Jordan Orsak and Tina Parthum received third-place honors.

The plant design competition, said Baldwin, requires students to conceptualize the comprehensive organization of a process plant. It’s a task, he said, that his soon-to-be graduates are almost certain to encounter in some form as they enter their professional careers.

This semester, students were tasked with developing a new crude oil processing unit that can take incoming oil and separate it into basic distillation products. As part of the project, Baldwin explained, students were required to determine the cost of the crude oil to be purchased by the company utilizing their plant designs with the intent of selling the oil back to the primary company at a fixed price. In addition to determining the new price, the students were required to demonstrate how their plant designs are safer, more reliable and generally superior to competitors.

Each of the winning teams receives a monetary prize from Fluor, this semester’s sponsor of the plant design competition, and the first-place team will be recognized with a plaque commemorating its achievement.

Employing a global workforce of more than 46,000 people, Fluor is one of the world’s largest, publicly owned engineering, procurement, construction and maintenance services companies. A FORTUNE 500 company that is ranked first in FORTUNE magazine’s “Engineering, Construction” category of America’s largest corporations, Fluor maintains a network of offices in more than 25 countries across six continents.

COLLEGE STATION, Texas, May 6, 2009 – Peng Cheng and Santosh Koirala have been named recipients of the 2009 Outstanding Undergraduate Research Award, presented by the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering at Texas A&M University.

Working with Assistant Professor Arul Jayarman, Cheng, who is from China, conducted research using a systems biology approach to investigate interleukin-6 (IL-6) signal transduction. Cheng employed a fluorescence microscopy to monitor dynamics of molecules that are involved in the IL-6 signal transduction. Data from Cheng’s research will be utilized in the development of models that will help control and modulate cell behavior and function.

“More than his excellent GPA and academic record, Peng has impressed me with the way he approaches problems,” Jayaraman said. “He is a very logical and methodical student, and he uses those qualities extremely effectively for problem solving. Peng’s performance in the lab has been nothing short of stellar. Despite his full load of classes, he has been very productive. He clearly understands what needs to be done in research. He is very good at the bench, and more importantly, equally good at analysis and interpretation.”

Koirala, who hails from Nepal, conducted his research with Professor Perla B. Balbuena. His work involved utilizing first-principles computational methods to probe the electronic structure and electronic-level interactions of polybithiophene-linked transition metal atoms. His preliminary results suggest that metal atoms linking bithiophene molecules may act as efficient catalytic sites for oxygen reduction.

“Santosh Koirala was the best student in my Thermodynamics CHEN 354 class during Fall 2007, and I was lucky to engage him to do research in my group during Spring and Summer 2008,” Balbuena said. “He rapidly learned molecular dynamics techniques and the use of quantum-mechanical programs, but more importantly he was extremely motivated and did an outstanding job in modeling potential new materials to catalyze the decomposition of molecular oxygen.”

As award recipients, Cheng and Koirala will each receive a plaque commemorating their achievements as well as a monetary award.

COLLEGE STATION, Texas, May 4, 2009 – A student-led effort to help Texas A&M University Dining Services reduce food waste by taking advantage of compost and recycling processes is among four local community-based initiatives that will be reviewed in detail Tuesday, May 4 at the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering.

Undertaken by service-minded Texas A&M students throughout the past semester, each of the four projects is part of an engineering course known as EPICS, which stands for Engineering Projects in Community Service. Project presentations are scheduled to begin at 12:45 in Rm 256 of the Jack E. Brown Engineering Building on campus.

Students participating in the EPICS program earn academic credit with multiyear, multidisciplinary projects that solve engineering and technology-based problems for community service and education organizations.

This semester’s projects include partnerships with Texas A&M Dining Services, the Children’s Museum of the Brazos Valley, Texas A&M Transportation Services and Habitat for Humanity.

A partnership between EPICS and the university’s dining services has been formed in an effort to reduce the amount of food waste transported to landfills. This semester, a team of students has focused on determining food-waste output in Texas A&M dining facilities as well as the treatment of this waste. The team also has explored a new system of efficient food-waste treatment, including compost and recycling.

Another team of students is assisting the Children’s Museum of the Brazos Valley in providing more interactive and quality educational programs and exhibits. The project team has worked to create a safe, sustainable, and fun health exhibit for children and their families as part of an attempt to improve science and engineering educational resources for the community.

EPICS also has partnered with Texas A&M Transportation Services, helping to upgrade the design of parking garages throughout campus with the goal of lowering transportation services’ utility costs while also reducing its overall carbon footprint. A student team is studying the feasibility of implementing the installation of solar panels and high efficiency light bulbs. The team is also examining methods of water reclamation, creating a green roof habitat, and utilizing better use of natural light.

A student team also is working closely with Habitat for Humanity as part of a project aimed at designing independent green homes for the organization’s clients. These homes are intended to help the environment and the families inhabiting them by conserving energy, gas and water, and making use of environmentally friendly products in the construction of these homes.

Though it’s only been offered at Texas A&M for two semesters, EPICS has existed since 1995 when it was developed at Purdue University. Through the years, it has gained popularity throughout the country, and today it can be found at 15 universities, attracting thousands of students.

At Texas A&M, the course is open to all engineering students and is instructed by Lale Yurttas of the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering. For more information on the EPICS program at Texas A&M, contact Yurttas at (979) 847-9316 or via email: yurttas@chemail.tamu.edu.

COLLEGE STATION, Texas, May 6, 2009 – Two undergraduate students from the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering were among a select group of students receiving recognition for their scientific poster presentations at the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) Annual Meeting and National Student Conference this past academic year.

Competing in the event’s 2008 Undergraduate Poster Competition, Lucas A. Kinard and Santosh Koirala placed second and third, respectively, in their divisions.

Kinard’s poster “Novel Method of Scaffold Formation for Artificial Vascular Network” was awarded second place in the Food, Pharmaceutical & Biotechnology division. Koirala received third-place honors for a poster titled “Structural and Electronic Properties of Poly-Bithiophene Linked Transition Metals for Catalysis,” which was entered in the Materials Engineering & Sciences division.

During the National Student Conference, student engineers from more than 100 schools participate in four days of career information, social events and academic competitions while being provided the opportunity to network with other young professionals, AIChE leaders and industry professionals from numerous engineering specialties.

AIChE is the world’s leading organization for chemical engineering professionals, with more than 40,000 members from 93 countries.

COLLEGE STATION, Texas, April 29, 2009 – Evan M. Cherry, a student in the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering at Texas A&M University, has been awarded a GEICO scholarship for his senior year of study from Tau Beta Pi.

Cherry, who hails from Arlington, will receive a cash award of $2,000 for the 2009-10 academic year. His selection was based on the competitive criteria of high scholarship, campus leadership and service, and the promise of future contributions to the engineering profession.

Tau Beta Pi is the National Engineering Honor Society, founded at Lehigh University in 1885. It has collegiate chapters in 234 engineering colleges throughout the United States and active alumnus chapters in 18 cities. It has initiated more than 505,000 members in its 124-year history and is the world’s largest engineering society.

COLLEGE STATION, Texas, April 13, 2009 – Tarun Bansal, a graduate student in the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering at Texas A&M University, has been recognized by the American Society of Microbiology (ASM) for his research.

Bansal, who is co-advised by Assistant Professor Arul Jayaraman and Professor Thomas Wood, has been named a recipient of a travel grant that will enable him to present his research at the ASM annual meeting, scheduled to be held in Philadelphia in May.

In addition, Bansal is one of only six students selected from a pool of 700 total presenters to give an oral presentation at the annual meeting as part of the Richard and Mary Finkelstein Student Award Presentation portion of the event.

“At the ASM meeting, there are very few oral presentations given, and Tarun is the only non-biologist in the group who was asked to do this; it speaks to the quality of his work,” Jayaraman said.

Bansal’s abstract is titled “Inter-kingdom Signaling: A Molecular Framework for Host-Pathogen Interactions.” His project seeks to understand how molecules present in the human gastrointestinal tract are involved in bacterial infections. He has shown that human cells can sense bacterial molecules, and bacteria can, in turn, sense and respond to human molecules.

Last year, Bansal was awarded the Paul and Ellen Deisler Fellowship in Chemical Engineering on the basis of his scholarly productivity and excellence in graduate studies. The fellowship was endowed in 2000 by the Deislers as a means of promoting advanced studies in chemical engineering.

COLLEGE STATION, Texas, April 3, 2009 – A team of student engineers from Texas A&M University has received top honors in the American Institute of Chemical Engineers’ (AIChE) regional Chem-E-Car competition for the performance of its student-designed alternative-powered vehicle.

With the big win, the hydrogen-powered mini-vehicle, which was designed by Ani Attang, Mark Deimund, Elida Espinoza, Michael Finkelstein and Gene Hackebeil, will advance to the national Chem-E-Car competition. That competition is scheduled to take place in November during the annual AIChE meeting in Nashville, Tenn.

“I felt confident that our car would do reasonably well,” said Deimund, a junior in the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering. “Our design is pretty simple, pretty straight forward. We did a basic systems check when we got [to the competition] to make sure everything was working properly. After that, I felt confident that things were going to go well.”

The Chem-E-Car competition, first raced in 1999, provides students the opportunity to apply their knowledge of chemical engineering principles while helping build interest and expertise in alternative fuels.

The goal of the competition is to create a shoebox-sized car that runs off of a chemical reaction a distance from 50 to 100 feet. The distance is specified at the competition, and teams calculate the amount of reactants needed to move the correct distance.

In this year’s event, students were challenged to transport 250 milliliters of water 63 feet. Each team received two chances  to run their cars, with their final score being their best attempt at meeting the established distance.

“This year we decided to bring it back to basics,” Deimund said. “We have to use a different drive train system each year, so we figured this would be good time to just use a hydrogen fuel cell and focus on distance and get our precision down. We learned more about the experimenting process, how we could control parameters, how we can get the absolute best results. That was kind of the philosophy behind this car, and it ended up paying off pretty well.”

In the time leading up the national competition, the team, Deimund says, will focus on making modifications to improve the overall reliability of the car. In addition he and his fellow team members will be working to improve other variations in the car’s design in an effort to make the care perform as precisely as possible.

The complete research, design and construction of the vehicle required about a semester, Deimund said, and was undertaken as part of a one-hour course in the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering, established by Senior Lecturer Lale Yurttas and Associate Professor Victor Ugaz.

The course, which began in 2007, helps to formalize the work of the student participants while introducing them early in their academic careers to all phases of engineering design. Students use project management tools, learn issues of safety, reliability and environment, and recognize the importance of working in teams. Prior to the establishment of the course, preparation for the competition was entirely extracurricular and undertaken as part of the Texas A&M’s AIChE student chapter.

COLLEGE STATION, Texas, March 12, 2009 – Shanna Lynn Schrock, a sophomore in the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering at Texas A&M University, has been named a recipient of the 2009 Thomas S. Gathright Scholar Academic Excellence Award.

Named in honor of Texas A&M’s first president, Thomas S. Gathright, the award is presented annually to the sophomore, junior and senior with the highest grade point average in each academic college.

Schrock, who has been named the outstanding sophomore in the Dwight Look College of Engineering, is a native of Slidell, La. She will receive the Gathright Award during Parents’ Weekend at the All-University Awards Ceremony. Schrock was selected based on her 4.0 grade point ratio as well as her total number of hours completed in residence at Texas A&M.

The Gathright Award was established in 1973 by student government in order to recognize superior academic achievement and is sponsored by The Association of Former Students.

The following courses will be offered this summer by the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering.

CHEN424 – Chemical Engineering Mass Transfer Operations (first five weeks)

CHEN 424 introduces mass transfer operations with applications to design and analysis of process equipment. Course outcomes include the ability of students to define and construct microscopic mass balances for given physical situations as well as define and apply mass and molar fluxes in microscopic mass balances. In addition, students will solve diffusion equation for concentration and flux as a function of position in rectangular and cylindrical coordinates with various boundary conditions and homogeneous reactions.

CHEN464 – Chemical Engineering Kinetics (10 weeks)

CHEN 464 introduces the basic concepts of chemical kinetics and chemical reactor design and analysis. Emphasis is placed on homogeneous reactions occurring in batch, plug flow, and perfectly mixed flow reactors. Methods of analyzing data from these reactor types to determine the reaction order and mechanism are also discussed.

CHEN414 – Chemical Engineering Lab (10 weeks)

In CHEN 414, engineering problem solving is taught through hands on experience with pilot-plant scale equipment in the atmosphere of a technical task group. In the course, skills for accurate data collection, analysis and communication are developed. Students learn to operate equipment and modern instrumentation with precision.

For more information, contact Assistant Head for Upper Division Programs Lale Yurttas at (979) 847-9316 or via email: yurttas@chemail.tamu.edu.

COLLEGE STATION, Texas, Jan. 13, 2008 – A Texas A&M University class that melds innovative engineering principles with community service has received a $5,000 grant from The Association of Former Students, which will help it build on the initial success it demonstrated during its inaugural launch last spring.

EPICS, which stands for Engineering Projects in Community Service, is a program in which teams of undergraduates earn academic credit with multiyear, multidisciplinary projects that solve engineering and technology-based problems for community service and education organizations.

“I am pleased to inform you that the Board of The Association of Former Students has approved your request for funding for the Engineering Projects in Community Services,” said Texas A&M Interim Vice Provost Luis Cifuentes in a letter to Vice Chancellor and Dean of Engineering G. Kemble Bennett. “This funding is provided to the university though the generous contributions of former students and friends of Texas A&M.”

The course, which is open to all engineering students, is instructed by Lale Yurttas of the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering.

Though it’s only been offered at Texas A&M for one semester, EPICS has existed since 1995 when it was developed at Purdue University. Through the years, it has gained popularity throughout the country, and today it can be found at 15 universities, attracting thousands of students.

Last spring, Aggie students enrolled in the course applied their engineering knowledge to two community service projects, Habitat for Humanity and Texas A&M University Recycling.

Working with Habitat for Humanity, the students explored ways to make a house affordable and “green,” Their investigation took them out of the classroom and onsite where they helped construct the home they designed.

Another team of students worked to enhance recycling efforts at Texas A&M, exploring ways to increase the amount of paper and cardboard recycled and attempting to improve the efficiency of the process and the project as a whole.

For more information on the EPICS program at Texas A&M, see the latest edition of the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering magazine at http://www.che.tamu.edu/wp-content/uploads/newsletter.pdf. Also, contact Lale Yurttas at (979) 847-9316 or via email: yurttas@chemail.tamu.edu.