Armour R&D Results in Research Publications for Three Undergraduates
Armour R&D, a Distinctive Education program at Armour College of Engineering, provides students the opportunity to conduct faculty mentored research and development projects as an undergraduate. This hands-on, in-depth exposure to engineering research and development helps prepare students for successful careers in research and industry.
“Working on faculty mentored research projects is not a common experience for an undergraduate” states Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and Associate Professor of Environmental Engineering, Paul Anderson, “The experience teaches students valuable lessons about working on a team, project management, experimental design, and collecting and analyzing data.”
Three recent participants of Armour R&D, Padraic Chronowski (CE, 5th year), Bhaskar Babu Koyyalamudi (ChE/PHYS, 4th year), and Omar Sherif Tawakol (BME, 3rd year) have published papers outlining the work they completed in the program.
“Being published as an undergraduate is a special acknowledgement of a student’s talent and motivation,” says Dr. Anderson, “The accomplishment will put them ahead of the pack in the eyes of potential employers or graduate schools.
Learn more about each students’ project and read their full publications below.
A Data-Driven Investigation into Causes of Collapse in Scaffolds
Padraic Chronowski and his mentor Mehdi Modares, Associate Professor of Civil and Architectural Engineering, partnered together for one semester in Armour R&D. The team worked with Jamshid Mohammadi, Professor of Civil and Architectural Engineering to better understand what causes scaffolds to collapse by analyzing data collected from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). This research provides a better understanding of what causes scaffolding to collapse and will lead to improved designs in the future. This work resulted in a Journal Publication in the American Society of Civil Engineer (ASCE) Practice Periodical on Structural Design and Construction. Chronoski was awarded the Runner-Up at for Fall 2015 at the 2nd Annual Armour R&D Expo for his work on the project.
View the article here.
Improved Capacitive Energy Storage via Surface Functionalization of Activated Carbon as Cathodes for Lithium Ion Capacitors
Bhaskar Babu Koyyalamudi teamed up with Leon L. Shaw, Rowe Family Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, for one semester in Armour R&D to investigate how to increase the storage capacity of lithium ion capacitors by engineering the surface of activated carbon (AC) cathodes. This research has opened up a new route to increase the specific capacitance of AC powder for Li-ion capacitors. The team’s novel procedure could lead to low cost energy storage systems that have high energy and power densities in addition to superior cycle life. The research was published in the journal Carbon, a leading international forum for communicating scientific advances in the field of carbon materials and carbon nanomaterials.
View the article here.
Preparation of a Neural Electrode Implantation Device for In-Vivo Surgical Use
Omar Sherif Tawakol partnered with Philip R. Troyk, Associate Dean of Armour College of Engineering and Professor of Biomedical Engineering, in the Armour R&D program for two semesters to develop an improved design for a device that will be used to insert wireless electrode arrays into brain neural tissue. The arrays inserted by the device will be wirelessly controlled by an intracortical visual prosthesis (IVCP) system that is being developed by Dr. Troyk’s research group to restore vision in blind patients. The team’s manuscript describes the modifications they have made to the instrument, testing they performed, as well as further modifications they plan to implement in the future. The group’s research was displayed at the 38th Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (EMBC) and published in the conference proceedings.
