The College of Engineering was abuzz with research and collaboration in the
Fall Term. Below is a summary of the publications, sponsored research and
other activity in the last several months.
Joshua Agar, PhD, assistant professor, of mechanical engineering and mechanics, published
"Deep learning for electron and scanning probe microscopy: From materials
design to atomic fabrication" in MRS Bulletin. The paper discusses
recent progress in the application of machine learning methods in
microscopy, in contexts from exploratory data analysis to atomic
fabrication.
Michel Barsoum, PhD, distinguished professor of material science and engineering, co-authered
“Ultra-High Speed, High-Sensitivity Spin-Cast MXene-Semiconductor-MXene
Photodetectors” for Advanced Functional Materials.
A team of researchers including
Amir Farnam, PhD, associate professor of civil, architectural and environmental
engineering;
Caroline Schauer, PhD, Associate Dean for Research;
Ahmad Najafi, PhD, PC Chou Assistant Professor of mechanical engineering and mechanics;
Christopher Sales, PhD, associate professor of civil, architectural and environmental
engineering; and Ali Rahmaninezhad, PhD environmental engineering ’25,
published “Evaluation of different strategies for efficient sporulation and
germination of the MICP bacterium Lysinibacillus sphaericus strain MB284”
in bioRxiv.
Yury Gogotsi, PhD, Distinguished University and Charles T. and Ruth M. Bach Professor of
materials science and engineering and director of the A.J. Drexel
Nanomaterials Institute (DNI), and the team at the DNI, authored or
contributed to more than two dozen peer-reviewed papers including papers
published in Nature family journals, cover articles in Advanced Materials and invited reviews related to the synthesis
and use of MXenes, including delamination, desalination, energy storage,
electromagnetic interference shielding, optoelectronics, printing,
plasmonics, sensing, and biomedical applications. Several articles address
the future of MXenes relative to their exponentially growing interest.
Patrick Gurian, PhD, professor of civil, architectural and environmental engineering,
co-authored a paper entitled “Nitrogen recovery from wastewater treatment
can cost effectively supply a circular fertilizer economy,” which was
published in Science of the Total Environment. The study explores
the process of removing ammonia from wastewater and converting it into
fertilizer.
Gurian was also co-author of “Quantitative assessment of microbial
pathogens and indicators of wastewater treatment performance for safe and
sustainable water reuse in India,” accepted for publication by Microbiology Spectrum. The paper details different methods for
testing water quality in resource-limited settings.
Gurian also contributed to a National Academy study entitled “Current
Methods for Life Cycle Analyses of Low-Carbon Transportation Fuels in the
United States.” The project aims to develop a reliable and coherent
approach for applying life cycle analysis to low carbon fuel standards.
LD Betz Chair Professor of Environmental Engineering
Charles Haas, PhD, co-edited the fall issue of the NAE publication, The Bridge.
Haas also contributed an article entitled “Microbiomes of the Built
Environment.”
Antonios Kontsos, PhD, professor of mechanical engineering and mechanics, published “An
Information Theory Approach for Internet of Things Enabled Damage
Monitoring” in
Proceedings of the ASME 2022 Conference on Smart Materials, Adaptive
Structures and Intelligent Systems
. The paper discusses an Internet of Things framework used in conjunction
with Nondistructive Evaluation datasets for real-time damage detection.
Christopher Li, PhD, professor of materials science and engineering, published
“Colloidosome-templated poly (L-lactic acid) crystalsomes” in Giant. The paper reports a new strategy to co-assemble polymer and
nanoparticles into hollow vesicles for energy and biomedical applications.
Steven May, PhD, professor of materials science and engineering, published “Correlating
electronic properties with M-site composition in solid solution TiyNb2-yCTx
MXenes” in 2D Materials. The paper investigates the factors that
control electrical conductivity in MXenes by studying the role played by
metal composition, flake size and flake spacing in conduction.
May also published “Voltage control of patterned metal/insulator properties
in oxide/oxyfluoride lateral perovskite heterostructures via ion gel
gating” in Advanced Functional. The paper demonstrates an approach
for dynamically and reversibly altering patterned materials using an
external bias, enabling voltage-control of in-plane anisotropic properties
and optical contrast.
Additionally, May, published “Efficient microwave absorption with Vn+1CnTx MXenes” in Cell Reports Physical Science. The paper demonstrates that
vanadium-based MXenes exhibit efficient microwave absorption, making them
promising candidates for electromagnetic shielding applications.
Matthew McCarthy, PhD, associate professor of mechanical engineering and mechanics, published
“Development of an optical thermography system using a pumped two-dye
fluorescence technique” in International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, September 2022.
This paper covers the development of a novel backside thermography
technique based on the temperature sensitivity of laser-induced
fluorescence in flowing two-dye solutions.
Ahmad Najafi, PhD, published “Influence of age-related changes on crack
growth trajectories and toughening mechanisms in human dentin” in Dental Materials. The paper investigates the influence of
increased filled tubules and decreased materials properties on the fracture
behavior of human dentin.
Along with PI
Franco Montalto, PhD, professor of civil, architectural and environmental engineering, Gurian
co-authored “Climate Vulnerability, Impact, and Adaptation Analysis” for
the New York City Town and Gown Consortium, a city-wide
university-community partnership program that fosters relationships between
academic research institutions and practitioners, using New York City as a
living laboratory.
Ekaterina Pomerantseva, PhD, associate professor of materials science and engineering, published
“Chemical Preintercalation Synthesis of Versatile Electrode Materials for
Electrochemical Energy Storage” in Accounts of Chemical Research.
The paper presents the review of past work and prospects of chemical
preintercalation synthesis strategy for innovative battery electrode
materials.
Pomerantseva also authored “Free-Standing α-MoO3/Ti3C2 MXene Hybrid Electrode in Water-in-Salt Electrolytes” in Energy & Environmental Materials, September 10, 2022. This
paper shows that by combining MXenes and oxides into a hybrid electrode
structure enhanced electrochemical charge storage is achieved.
A team including
Michael Waring, PhD, professor and department head of civil, architectural and environmental
engineering; Alexander Fridman, PhD, John A. Nyheim Chair Professor;
Alexander Rabinovich, PhD, research professor; and
Christopher Sales, PhD, associate professor of civil, architectural and environmental
engineering, published “Plasma-Generated Reactive Water Mist for
Disinfection of N95 Respirators Laden with MS2 and T4 Bacteriophage
Viruses” in Scientific Reports. The study explores sterilization
methods of protective equipment.
Richard Cairncross, PhD, professor of chemical engineering, and
Ajmal Yousuff, PhD, professor of mechanical engineering and mechanics, formed a collaborative
team between Drexel and Springside Chestnut Hill Academy (SCA) and that was
selected to participate in the Nationwide Eclipse Balloon Project (NEBP).
This NEBP effort will immerse teams in an innovative, NASA-mission-like
adventure in data acquisition and analysis through scientific ballooning
during the next two domestic eclipse events. The team, known as the “Devil
Dragon Balloon Team”, will fly scientific equipment during these eclipse
events with a team of researchers and students to address relevant
scientific and engineering questions related to the eclipse.
Cairncross also received an award from NASA to participate in the AEROKATS
and ROVER Education Network (AREN). AREN is a group of educators
(university and K-12) focused on promoting STEM education through using
low-cost vehicles for remote sensing of the environment. This project
supports undergraduate design projects developing kite-based sensor
systems. Drexel students on this project are measuring aerodynamic
properties of kites, building light-weight datalogging systems for kites,
modeling static and dynamic behavior of kite systems, and developing STEM
educational modules using kites to demonstrate physics principles and the
engineering design process.
Anup Das, PhD, received an award from Accenture National Security Services
for his project “Software Framework for SNN on FPGA.” This project will
develop a user-friendly open-source software interface which will be used
to map machine learning workloads.
Yalcin Ertekin, PhD, clinical professor of engineering leadership and society, was
selected by SME, “a nonprofit association of professionals, educators, and
students committed to promoting and supporting the manufacturing industry,”
as one of six Distinguished Faculty Advisors for 2022 in recognition of his
service to the organization and their student chapters in advancing
manufacturing knowledge.
Yury Gogotsi, PhD, is working with Directed Vapor Technologies
International and received an award from the U.S. Army for his project
“Army MXene SBIR Phase II.” The goal of the project is to make “electronic
invisibility cloaks” using MXene coated fabric that would be impermeable to
electromagnetic waves.
Simi Hoque, PhD, professor of civil, architectural and environmental engineering, is a
co-PI on an NIH R56 grant for in collaboration with Dornsife School of
Public Health faculty member, Leah Schinasi, PhD. The project is entitled
“The housing environment and ambient temperature (HEAT) study” and will
establish preliminary analysis for a planned R01 study on heat stress in
the indoor built environment. It will be the first national study to
identify the physical determinants of heat-related mortality in housing
across America.
Vibha Kalra, PhD, George B. Francis Chair Professor of chemical and biological engineering and Michel Barsoum, PhD, Distinguished Professor of materials science and engineering, received an award from NSF for their project titled “GOALI: Development of Next Generation MXene-based Lithium-Sulfur (Li-S) Batteries with Practical Operating Temperatures.” As part of this GOALI grant, Kalra and Barsoum will collaborate with Nikola Corporation and Saft Batteries for industry perspective in the heavy-duty electric vehicle and battery industries respectively. The team will study a new class of MXene-based sulfur cathodes to enable an electrolyte that can operate at higher temperatures while also mitigating capacity loss due to polysulfide shuttling in Lithium-Sulfur batteries. If successful, this technology could lead to longer lasting batteries, create new jobs and ensure that the United States becomes a major player in the energy storage field, and would allow for training and research opportunities for graduate students pursuing PhDs and undergraduates’ involvement in the research.
James Lo, PhD, associate professor of civil, architectural, and environmental
engineering, received an award from the National Institute of Standards
& Technology for his project “Machine Learning Based Approximation for
Rapid indoor Environmental Quality Assessment.” The project aims to test
the viability of using machine learning methods to approximate indoor
conditions in real time for occupancy comfort and indoor air quality
predictions.
Michael Waring, PhD, is a co-PI on a DOE-funded grant led by Johns Hopkins
University to establish an Urban Integrated Field Laboratory (IFL) in
Baltimore, MD. This project specifically focuses on a metropolitan area
facing interlinked challenges of aging infrastructure, increased heat and
flood risk, and inequitable burdens of air and water pollution that are
common to many other mid-sized industrial cities in the Eastern and
Midwestern United States.
Gail Rosen, PhD, professor of electrical and computer engineering, is the recipient of an
award from the National Institute of Standards and Technology for her
project “Quantifying and Interpreting Computational Techniques for Somatic
and Structural Variant Calling Using Validated Reference Samples.” This
project will evaluate somatic variant calling algorithms for use in the
Medical Device Innovation Consortium (MDIC) Somatic Reference Samples
Project.
Nagarajan Kandasamy, PhD, professor of electrical and computer engineering, and
Anup Das, PhD associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, received an
award from the National Science Foundation for their project “Software
Infrastructure for Programming and Architectural Exploration of
Neuromorphic Computing Systems.” This project aims to develop a software
infrastructure that helps both end-users as well as developers of
neuromorphic systems by allowing for machine-learning tasks to be mapped on
to neuromorphic chips in the most efficient way possible and providing
analysis, simulation, and synthesis tools that can be used to explore new
chip designs to meet the needs of emerging machine-learning workloads.
Ahmad Najafi, PhD, Gail Rosen, PhD and
Jennifer Atchison, PhD, assistant teaching professor of mechanical engineering and mechanics,
received an award from the National Science Foundation for their project
“Awards to Increase Mechanical and Electrical Engineering Diversity.” The
team seeks to enhance enrollment, retention, academic performance, and
graduation rates for low-income academically talented students, with a
focus on those pursuing baccalaureate degrees in the mechanical engineering
and mechanics and electrical and computer engineering departments at
Drexel, while engaging in special efforts to attract female and
underrepresented minority students to apply to be scholarship recipients.
Afshin Daryoush, PhD ’86, professor of electrical and computer engineering,
has been named
an Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Life Fellow.
Yury Gogotsi, PhD,
has been named
a 2022 National Academy of Inventors (NAI) Fellow. Election as an Academy
Fellow is the highest professional distinction awarded to academic
inventors. Fellows are selected for demonstrating “a highly prolific spirit
of innovation in creating or facilitating outstanding inventions that have
made a tangible impact on the quality of life, economic development, and
welfare of society.”
Clarivate, a British-American analytics company, has named 2022’s
most frequently cited researchers, identified as the top 0.1% by citations for field and year. Less than
7,000 researchers worldwide met this criteria, and several Drexel faculty
and alumni made that list, including Gogotsi and Michel Barsoum, PhD.
Simi Hoque, PhD, has been named the 2022-23 Kleckner Scientist in Residence
to work with the 8th grade science classes at Springside
Chestnut Hill Academy. The Kleckner Scientist in Residence works with SCH
students over a three-day period to learn about the scientist’s current
work and passions and work with the scientist collecting and analyzing data
using new, state of the art equipment supported by the program. Students
also have the opportunity to visit with the scientist at their lab, when
appropriate.
Aspasia Zerva, PhD, professor of civil, architectural and environmental engineering,
was appointed
to the National Construction Safety Team Committee (NCSTAC) at the National
Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). This Committee advises the
NIST on procedures used to investigate major building failures and reviews
the reports of such investigations. The committee has aided in the
investigations of the World Trade Center as well as buildings affected by
tornadoes and hurricanes, and has advised the NIST on its disaster
readiness protocols.