This three-year REU Site program is a collaborative effort between Texas A&M University (TAMU) and the University of North Texas (UNT). The theme of the proposed site is energy and combustion research. Specific topics include alternative fuels combustion, solar cells, propellants and energetic materials, biodiesel fuels, and laser diagnostic development, among others. A unique aspect of this program is that students will be encouraged to participate in the program again in the following summer. This REU Site program will also allow 4 undergraduate students each year to participate in year-round, part-time research experiences 2 at TAMU and 2 at UNT. In addition to the research activities students will be involved in educational seminars, and social activities to foster the cohort experience. During week 4 of the 10- week summer program, the undergraduate students will be required to make a 10-minute presentation about their research project and its goals to the group. At the end of the program, the students will make a final presentation to the group about the results of their projects and will prepare posters. The participants will present their posters during the last week of the program along with other REU participants from the various summer programs sponsored by NSF, TAMU, and the College of Engineering (COE).
The PI will place special emphasis on the recruitment of students at lower-tier research universities, women minorities, and other ethnic minorities from universities in Texas that are not major research institutions. Texas has over two dozen universities with engineering and science programs, and many of them are located in areas that are ethnically diverse.
The efficient and environmentally friendly usage of our dwindling fossil fuels and the development of alternative sources require further research in energy and combustion science. Research in these general areas is therefore important on both local and global scales. Because of the resulting visibility and urgency of the topic, energy production can serve as a stimulus for young engineers to select careers in scientific research in an energy-related field because of its broader impact for all mankind. For these reasons, coupled with the exciting and challenging nature of the many different research projects that are possible, energy and combustion research can be used as a catalyst to encourage more engineering students to consider graduate school and ultimately a career in scientific research.
In recent years, the topic of energy production has been at the forefront of both scientific and political discussions in the United States and worldwide. The efficient and environmentally friendly usage of our dwindling fossil fuels and the development of alternative sources require further research in energy and combustion science. Research in these general areas is therefore important on both local and global scales. Because of the resulting visibility and urgency of the topic, energy production can serve as a stimulus for young engineers to select careers in scientific research in an energy-related field because of its broader impact for all mankind. For these reasons, coupled with the exciting and challenging nature of the many different research projects that are possible, energy and combustion research can be used as a catalyst to encourage more engineering undergraduate (UG) students to consider graduate school and ultimately a career in scientific research. A primary theme of this REU site was the importance of immersing the UG participants in their research activities and having them bond with the existing members of the particular research group, preferentially for periods longer than the duration of the main summer program. An important aspect of this REU site was therefore to make sure that the student participants are actively involved in the research group to which they are assigned. The PI has found that such an environment is more likely to develop when the UG student can be involved for periods longer than the main 10-week summer. Such a longer-term experience was done under the present REU site in two ways: 1) by choosing students who are open to returning for at least a second summer experience; and, 2) providing year-round experiences for at least a few of the students at TAMU. In large part, the reasoning behind this overall philosophy stems from the accumulated experiences of the PI and others. As mentioned above, the theme of the REU site was energy and combustion research. The nature of the research involved and the team that was assembled provided a variety of projects that were topical, multidisciplinary, and ideal for giving the UG participants experiences that will encourage them to enter graduate school. The projects all have a firm footing in energy and combustion science, but spanned a range of disciplines including mechanical engineering, chemistry, materials science, aerospace engineering, and chemical engineering. Intellectual Merit: Several established research groups at Texas A&M University were involved in new and novel research related to energy and combustion. Specific topics included alternative fuels combustion, biodiesel fuels, advanced energy conversion using supercritical CO2, hypersonic propulsion, biomass and coal combustion, petroleum processing using plasmas, and advanced rocket propellants. Eleven journal and conferences publications resulted from the site to date. A total of 17 students participated in the main 10-week summer sites, and 5 students participated in the year-round research on campus; the projects involved 8 different faculty mentors and their graduate students. Broader Impact: This REU site impacedt society in two major ways: 1) through the involvement of undergraduate students in scientific research, encouraging them to pursue advanced degrees in science and engineering; and 2) the energy-related research will potentially benefit thousands of people through alternative sources and improved, less-polluting combustion devices. Special emphasis will be given to the recruitment of ethnic minorities and women from universities in Texas that are not major research institutions, thus providing research opportunities to students who might not otherwise have them. Overall, a total of 17 undergraduate students participated in the two main summer sites. This participant pool included 5 female students, one African American student, and 4 Hispanic students. Most of these students came from the target, non-Tier-1 schools in Texas, namely 13 or the participants out of the 17 total. Five UG students participated in the year-round research in the PI’s laboratory, and 4 of them have gone on to pursue graduate degrees in engineering.
