MechE News - April 2022
Celebrate Our Graduates
Since August 2021, more than 200 mechanical engineering students have been working through the design process from start to finish and have engineered solutions to real-world problems.
Mechanical engineering graduates earn CU Engineering and Departmental Awards
Four graduating undergraduate students won college awards, while three undergraduate students were honored with Department of Mechanical Engineering Awards.
Department Highlights
Massimo Ruzzene named acting vice chancellor, dean of institutes
Provost Russell Moore announced he has appointed Professor Massimo Ruzzene to the post of acting vice chancellor for research and innovation and dean of the institutes, effective June 1. As associate dean for research in CEAS, he heads the college’s Research Support Office and is also the Slade Professor of Mechanical Engineering.
Virginia Ferguson elected to AIMBE College of Fellows
The American Institute for Medical and Biomedical Engineering's College of Fellows is a prestigious group comprised of the most accomplished and distinguished engineering and medical school professors, researchers, innovators and entrepreneurs.
Longji Cui and Gregory Whiting awarded 2022 Research & Innovation Seed Grants
The 2022 Research & Innovation Seed Grants are funding 25 new projects in all for up to $50,000 each. The seed grant program is designed to stimulate new and exciting areas of research and creative work on campus.
NSF honors mechanical engineering students with Graduate Research Fellowships
The National Science Foundation has awarded two Paul M. Rady Department of Mechanical Engineering students with Graduate Research Fellowships and two students with honorable mentions.
Alumni Stories
Alumni Spotlight: Sreyas Krishnan - Helping launch ULA rockets into space
Mechanical engineering alumnus Sreyas Krishnan has played a critical role in United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) latest Atlas V rocket launch, which carried another weather satellite into space on Tuesday, March 1.
Meet Graduation Recognition Ceremony Keynote Speaker Craig Sampson
Alumnus Craig Sampson (MechEngr’82) is the founder and leader of the Chicago consulting firm TBD Innovation. He will be delivering the Department of Mechanical Engineering’s keynote speech during the Graduation Recognition Ceremony on Saturday, May 7.
Research News
How to print a robot from scratch: Combining liquids, solids could lead to faster, more flexible 3D creations
Professor Robert MacCurdy has developed a new way to 3D-print liquid and solid materials together, potentially leading to more dynamic and useful products—from robots to wearable electronic devices.
Computer-simulated heart flow model could help treat pediatric heart disease patients
Research from Professor Debanjan Mukherjee and a collaborative team of biomedical engineers, physicians and researchers could enable significant advances for the 40,000 pediatric congenital heart disease patients (CHD) born each year.
Research collaboration explores multiple methods for brain imaging
Researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder and Anschutz Medical Campus are exploring several imaging techniques aimed at creating miniature microscopes that are lightweight enough to be worn by freely moving mice as they navigate a maze or socialize with other mice.
The physics of fire ant rafts could help engineers design swarming robots
A new study led by Professor Franck Vernerey lays out the simple physics-based rules that govern how these ant rafts morph over time: shrinking, expanding or growing long protrusions like an elephant’s trunk. The team’s findings could one day help researchers design robots that work together in swarms or next-generation materials in which molecules migrate to fix damaged spots.
Student Features
PhD student Jaylene Martinez wins Best Poster Award at American Chemical Society Meeting
The Division of Polymeric Materials: Science and Engineering recognized Martinez's research on membrane technologies that can ensure more scientifically reliable water treatment filtration systems.
Undergraduate research with the Animal Inspired Motion and Robotics Lab
Riley McGill is undergraduate student in Mechanical Engineering. She is working on research in the Animal Inspired Motion and Robotics Lab (AIMRL).
Education & Outreach
Michael Hannigan and Daniel Knight earn Outreach Award for K-12 soil quality education
Department Chair Michael Hannigan and Research Associate Daniel Knight will be using the $24,000 grant to expand their outreach program that engages K-12 students to conduct their own soil quality research.
Triple E Fair introduces 117 middle schoolers to mechanical engineering
The Early Engineering Exposure Fair, organized by mechanical engineering graduate students, was comprised of 16 interactive exhibits to demonstrate diverse engineering fields such as air quality, wind energy, robotics and microfluids.
Graduate students host high schoolers for engineering outreach event
The Committee for Equity in Mechanical Engineering invited freshmen from Arrupe Jesuit High School to campus, where they built robots and toured the Integrated Teaching and Learning Laboratory.