2022 CU SPUR Projects

Project Description The recent Marshall Fire in Boulder County dramatically changed the landscape surrounding Coal Creek, which flows through the towns of Superior and Louisville, CO. The Coal Creek Trail is an important recreational resource for the community. Our team will be evaluating how the changes in water chemistry associated...

Project Description The McMurdo Dry Valleys in Antarctica is a polar desert that contains many glacial meltwater streams that flow in the summer. Perennial microbial mats composed of cyanobacteria and diatoms are freeze-dried in the winter and begin to grow once there is flow. These microorganisms in these mats are...

Project Description Stable sources of time have made navigation systems like GPS possible. Navigation, global transportation, the power grid, etc, all depend on precise sources of time to keep the modern world synchronized. In fact, GPS itself is often used to provide this synchronization. In recent years, research into alternative...

Project Description In connection with NTIA/ITS (National Telecommunications and Information Administration/Institute for Telecommunication Sciences) we are collecting LTE and 5G NR cell phone radio signals in the Boulder area and CBRS (Citizens Broadband Radio Service) signals in the Denver area. The purpose is to study spectrum usage and to devise...

Project Description Spatial variability in soil composition leads to resource distribution inefficiencies in agriculture. This issue can be addressed by tailored soil management in heterogeneous fields. Current state-of-the-art soil sensors are typically expensive and labor-intensive to install/uninstall, thereby restricting the high-density deployment required for refined spatial resolution measurements. Our group...

Project Description Most people have tried to solve Rubik’s cube. In this project we will examine what happens if the colored faces of the cube get replaced with colored quantum particles. If the colored quantum particles are Bosons (particles that stay the same when you swap their positions) then solving...

Project Description Astronauts on long-duration missions experience extended periods of time between their initial training and when they are expected to perform mission-critical tasks. Virtual reality may enable continued training throughout the transit periods of a mission, and could even provide a countermeasure to cognitive deficits associated with time in...

Project Description Students joining this project will learn about modern wind turbines and the controllers needed to yield high performance. Advanced control algorithms play a key role in maximizing the power production of modern wind turbines. Thereby, several hard constraints like a maximum rotor speed or blade loads must not...

Project Description Alternative display modalities, like virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) may influence how someone perceives information, which can change how they trust autonomous systems. There are open questions on how different display modalities can influence one’s trust. Students will work closely with faculty and graduate students to...

Project Description Traditional composite materials are designed to avoid couple deformation (e.g., bending or twist as a result of an applied extension). However, this coupling is useful in the case of elastic composites that could be used in stretchable electronics, soft robotics, and other systems that require large deformation actuation...