Over the next three years, researchers with the West Virginia University Center for Alternative Fuels, Engines and Emissions will try to gain a robust understanding of where and why leaks of methane and other gases happen and their effects on local air quality and global climate. With the support of $5.5 million in U.S. Department of Energy funding, the project, led by Derek Johnson, associate professor at the Benjamin M. Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources, will focus on methane emissions — a planet-warming greenhouse gas — from liquid storage tanks across West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Ohio.

David Mebane, associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at the Statler College, has been awarded a one-year, funded sabbatical from the NASA Ames Research Center to develop a theoretical framework and models of electrochemical devices like batteries and fuel cells using a combination of science-based models and machine learning.

A team led by Xueyan Song, professor and George B. Berry Chair of Engineering at the Statler College, has created an oxide ceramic material that solves a longstanding efficiency problem plaguing thermoelectric generators. Those devices can generate electricity from heat, including power plant heat emissions, which contribute to global warming.

WVU researcher Raymond Raylman has developed a new technology to improve the treatment of head and neck cancers. The prototype was made possible by funding from the National Cancer Institute, which awarded the project $1.9 million over five years. It’s also the result of a collaboration between Raylman and his colleagues in the School of Medicine, advanced manufacturing experts from the Statler College’s Lane Innovation Hub, and Xoran Technologies, a manufacturer of X-ray CT scanners.

Engineers at the Statler College are taking a major step into “bioelectronic medicine,” a cutting-edge approach that uses electric current as a treatment for pain and disease, with the development of MouseFlex. The device will facilitate research into a technique called “vagus nerve stimulation” or VNS.

Harvesting farm produce can be tedious and strenuous on laborers. This tough job can now be done by an automated system; using a gripper attached to a robotic arm. This research carried out by WVU mechanical engineering student Alexander Flasch focused on the design and development of a gripper for produce growing on trees. The robotic gripper was tested on its capability to grip varying diameters of fruits and vegetables, so that it can eliminate human labor and making harvesting automated.

WVU undergraduate Lilian Bischof wears many hats – or perhaps one big, amazing hat. But it’s what’s inside Bischof’s head, not on top of it, that earned her a prestigious invitation to present her research in the lobby of the Capitol building in Charleston during the February 2023 legislative session, as part of West Virginia Undergraduate Research Day. Her work on clean energy generation evaluates the feasibility of producing solar and wind power at several locations in West Virginia.

The WVU chapters of the Society for Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration, American Water Works Association and Chi Epsilon were announced as winners of the Statler College Day of Giving Student Organization Challenges.

Pedro Mago, Glen H. Hiner Dean of the Statler College, announced the winners of the College’s outstanding teaching, advising, research and staff awards for the 2022-2023 academic year on March 31, 2023.

Dear friends and colleagues,

This issue of EngineeringWV Wired highlights the diverse and impactful research of our faculty and students in the Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources. I invite you to read this newsletter's stories that showcase excellence in our engineering and computer science research.

I am also proud to announce the winners of the College's outstanding teaching, advising, research and staff awards for the 2022-2023 academic year and winners of the Statler College Day of Giving Student Organization Challenges. I am proud of them for their dedication and all they do to advance the College.

Spring commencement is approaching quickly, and I hope you join us as we say goodbye to the Class of 2023 and welcome a new generation of Statler College alumni.

Let's Go!

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PHONE: 304.293.4821 | EMAIL: engineeringwv@mail.wvu.edu

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