project-based research (spring 2021) project name: thermal ... · mechanical engineering building...

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Project-based research (Spring 2021)

Project Name: Thermal management of electronic devices

Project ID: R001

Supervisor: Justin A Weibel Number of Positions Multiple

Project Description: The continued miniaturization of electronic devices, with expanded functionality at reduced cost, challenges the viability of products across a broad spectrum of industry applications. Proper thermal management of electronic devices is critical to avoid overheating failures and ensure energy efficient operation, from supercomputers to electric vehicles. Research projects in the Cooling Technologies Research Center (CTRC) are exploring new technologies and discovering ways to more effectively apply existing technologies to addresses the needs of companies and organizations in the area of high-performance heat removal from compact spaces. One of the distinctive features of working in this Center is training in practical applications relevant to industry. All of the projects involve close industrial support and collaboration in the research, often with direct transfer of the technologies to the participating industry members.

Final Deliverables:

Weekly Working Hours Flexible, and to be decided based on discussion with the supervisor.

For Credits/Pay Flexible, and to be decided based on discussion with the supervisor.

Desired Qualifications Projects in the Center involve both experimental and computational aspects, are multi-disciplinary in nature, and are open to excellent students with various engineering and science backgrounds. Multiple different research project opportunities are available based on student interests and preferences.


Project Name: Purdue Overclocking (OC) Team

Project ID: R002

Supervisor: Justin A Weibel Number of Positions Multiple

Project Description: Computer overclocking takes advantage of thermal headroom in component designs to improve performance at the cost of increased power consumption and heat productions. Sponsored by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Electronics Packaging Society (IEEE EPS), and hosted by the Cooling Technologies Research Center (CRTC), the mission of the Purdue Overclocking (OC) Team is to push existing computer hardware to its limit with novel cooling solutions. Specifically, in the coming semester, the Purdue OC team aims to develop a liquid nitrogen cooled computer to compete in IEEE’s 2021 overclocking championship.

Final Deliverables: Deliverables include competing in both physical and virtual overclocking competitions, reporting performance benchmarks, and presenting design reviews of novel cooling solutions.

Weekly Working Hours Flexible, and to be decided based on discussion with the supervisor and other team members.

For Credits/Pay For credit or voluntary, depending on hourly commitment.

Desired Qualifications Open to any interested students.

Project Name: Nanoscale 3D printing Project ID: R003

Supervisor: Xianfan Xu Number of Positions Up to 2

Project Description: The ability to create 3D structures in the micro and nanoscale is important for many applications including electronics, microfluidics, and tissue engineering. This project deals with development and testing of a setup for building 3D structures using a femtosecond pulsed laser. A method known as two photon polymerization is used to fabricate such structures in which a polymer is exposed to laser and at the point of the exposure the polymer changes its structure. Moving the laser in a predefined path results in the desired shape and the structures. The setup incorporates the steps from designing a CAD model file to slicing the model in layers to generating the motion path of the laser needed for fabricating the structure. Possible improvements to the process by the undergraduate researcher include control algorithms, better CAD models, and better manufacturing strategies.

Final Deliverables: Summary Report

Weekly Working Hours 10

For Credits/Pay For credits: (# of credits) 3 For Pay: (Hourly rate) Voluntary

Desired Qualifications Mechanical Engineering Junior or Senior standing with GPA > 3.5, CAD models


Project Name: Laser micromachining of polymers and glasses

Project ID: R004

Supervisor: Yung C Shin Number of Positions 1

Project Description: The research is to investigate the effects of various process parameters on forming microchannels on polymers and glasses using a CO2 laser. These microchannels are useful for making micro heat exchangers or microfluidic devices. To this end the student will carry out the following tasks: 1. Literature review of related field 2. Design experiments and carry out systematic parametric study on the

relationship between process parameters and microchannel quality using the available laser micromachining system.

3. Characterize the resultant microchannel quality using various optical measurement techniques such as optical microscope and optical surface profiler.

4. Optimize the process parameters to achieve the best quality and throughput. 5. Generate a technical report summarizing all the findings.

The student will learn how to schedule and prioritize his/her work according to the overall goals and tasks. He will have a weekly meeting with me to discuss the progress and future directions.

The student will be required to write a weekly report summarizing the results, ideas and future plans.

The student will be required to write a final report summarizing all the findings and achievements during the course of the program.

The student will gain the knowledge and skills about lasers, operation of the laser, and characterization method.

The student will gain the essential knowledge about how to do research or solving an open ended problem using creative thinking.

Final Deliverables: It is expected to submit weekly or bi-weekly reports describing the findings and results of research project during the regularly scheduled meeting. A final written report is required for the final grade, which contains all the experimental results, collected microstructure data and analysis results.


For Credits/Pay For credits: 3 For Pay: (Hourly rate) Voluntary

Desired Qualifications Junior or higher standing with the minimum GPA of 3.4


Project Name: Mechanical properties of additively manufactured parts

Project ID: R005


Project Description: This study is to investigate the tensile strength and failure characteristics of metal alloy parts built by additive manufacturing and to establish the relationship between the microstructure and mechanical properties. Additive manufacturing is gaining global popularity due to its unprecedented capabilities that it can provide. One of the challenges remaining for wide spread industrial use of AM is to predict/control the resultant mechanical properties. Additive manufacturing due to its nature of localized heating and solidification layer by layer inherently produces non-homogeneous microstructure. This study is to establish property-structure-parameter relationships of AM built metal parts. The participating undergraduate student(s) is expected to work on preparation of tensile and compression specimens by additive manufacturing alone or with a graduate student, prepare samples for microstructure measurement, conduct heat treatment, if necessary, and mechanical testing using a universal testing machine, and analyze the results to generate reports on findings. Finally, it is expected to establish microstructure-mechanical property relationships using a machine learning technique such as multilayer neural networks and deep learning method.

Final Deliverables: It is expected to submit weekly or bi-weekly reports describing the findings and results of research project during the regularly scheduled meeting. A final written report is required for the final grade, which contains all the experimental results, collected microstructure data and analysis results.


For Credits/Pay For credits: 3 For Pay: (Hourly rate) Voluntary



Project Name: Comparative assessment of

mechanical properties

of polymers built by

various 3D printing

machines and strategies

Project ID: R006


Project Description: This study is to investigate the tensile strength and failure characteristics of polymer parts built by various additive manufacturing strategies and

machines. Additive manufacturing is gaining global popularity due to its

unprecedented capabilities that it can provide. One of the challenges

remaining for wide spread industrial use of AM is to predict/control the

resultant mechanical properties. Due to its layer by layer building, parts

built by additive manufacturing exhibit directional properties. In addition,

scanning strategies, build parameters and different machines are known to

affect the final mechanical properties. This study is to characterize the

resultant mechanical properties in terms of those parameters. The

participating undergraduate student(s) is expected to work on preparation of

tensile and compression specimens by additive manufacturing alone or with

a graduate student, prepare samples for microstructure measurement,

conduct heat treatment, if necessary, and mechanical testing using a

universal testing machine, and analyze the results to generate reports on

findings. Finally, it is expected to establish microstructure-mechanical

property relationships using a machine learning technique such as

multilayer neural networks and deep learning method. 1. Literature review of related field 2. Build parts by using various 3D printers with different build strategies and

prepare samples for tensile testing 3. Carry out the tensile testing using the available universal testing machine and

document the results 4. Analyze the results and make comparative assessment of final mechanical

properties in terms of different machines, build strategies and build parameters

5. Generate a technical report summarizing all the findings.

Final Deliverables: It is expected to submit weekly or bi-weekly reports describing the findings and results of research project during the regularly scheduled meeting. A final written

report is required for the final grade, which contains all the experimental results,

collected microstructure data and analysis results.


For Credits/Pay For credits: 3 For Pay: (Hourly rate)

Voluntary



Project Name: First principles calculations of thermal properties

Project ID: R007

Supervisor: Xiulin Ruan Number of Positions 2

Project Description: Thermal properties, such as thermal conductivity, reflectivity, absorptivity, and transmissivity are critical in thermal management of electronic devices and sustainable energy applications. In this work, the undergraduate students will assist PhD students to predict these properties from the atomic structure of materials, using methods based on quantum mechanics and machine learning.

Final Deliverables: Literature and information search, modeling results, final presentation.


For Credits/Pay For credits: (# of credits): 3 (preferred) For pay: (hourly rate): $14

Desired Qualifications Junior or senior year

Project Name: High-performance radiative cooling nanocomposites

Project ID: R008

Supervisor: Xiulin Ruan Number of Positions 2

Project Description: Radiative cooling is a passive cooling technology by reflecting the sunlight and emitting heat to the deep space. It has the promise to provide free air conditioning to buildings and other infrastructures. Learn more about our recent work covered by BBC News, Purdue News, and many other news media (Google search “cooling paint Xiulin Ruan”). In this project the undergraduate students will assist PhD students to design, fabricate, and measure nanoparticle-polymer composites for high-performance radiative cooling. The nanoparticles will be mixed with polymers such as acrylic to form nanofluids, which are then cured into thin films with various thicknesses. The optical properties will be characterized with UV-VIS-NIR and FTIR spectrometers. Field tests will be performed to assess the temperature they can cool below the ambient temperature and the net cooling power of these nanocomposites. Modeling and simulations are also a component of the work to guide the design of the nanocomposites.

Final Deliverables: Literature and information search, modeling results, synthesized nanocomposites samples, measurement data, final presentation.


For Credits/Pay For credits: (# of credits): 3

Desired Qualifications Junior or senior year

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-54632523https://www.purdue.edu/newsroom/releases/2020/Q4/this-white-paint-could-reduce-the-need-for-air-conditioning-by-keeping-surfaces-cooler-than-surroundings.html


Project Name: Virtual Reality animations of blood flow in a vessel network

Project ID: R009

Supervisor: Hector Gomez Number of Positions 1

Project Description: The recently developed Paraview Immersive toolkit provides a simple way to produce virtual reality animations compatible with the Oculus Rift application using data from 3D simulations. This is a unique opportunity to better analyze the data by literally walking around inside them. In this project, the undergraduate students will produce a virtual reality animation using our 3D simulations of blood flow in capillaries.

Final Deliverables: Virtual reality animation of blood flow in a vessel network

Weekly Working Hours 3h

For Credits/Pay For credits: (3 credits)

Desired Qualifications Interest in computer graphics and programming

Project Name: Efficient and sustainable water technology

Project ID: R010

Supervisor: David Warsinger Number of Positions 4

Project Description: Water and energy are tightly linked resources that must both become renewable for a successful future. However, today, water and energy resources are often in conflict with one another, especially related to impacts on electric grids. Further, advances in material science and artificial intelligence allow for new avenues to improve the widespread implementation of desalination and water purification technology. This project aims to explore nanofabricated membrane, artificial intelligence control algorithms, and thermodynamically optimized system designs. Students will be paired with a graduate student mentor to guide an individually tailored research plan. Each will be responsible for fabricating membranes, building hydraulic systems, modeling thermal fluid phenomenon, analyzing data, or implementing control strategies.

Final Deliverables: All students will be required to read relevant, peer-reviewed literature and keep a notebook or log of weekly research progress. At the end of the semester or term, each student will present a talk or poster on their results.

Weekly Working Hours 10-12

For Credits/Pay For credits: (# of credits) For Pay: (Hourly rate) Voluntary

Desired Qualifications Applicants should have an interest in thermodynamics, water treatment, and sustainability. Applicants with experience in some (not all) of the following are preferred: experimental design and prototyping, supply chain/manufacturing, database construction, Python, LabView, EES, MATLAB, 3D CAD Software, & Adobe Illustrator. 2nd semester Sophomores, Juniors, and 1st semester Seniors are preferred.


Project Name: Nanotechnology Project ID: R11

Supervisor: Jong Hyun Choi Number of Positions 3

Project Description: 1. Optoelectronics: preparation and characterization of 2D semiconductors 2. Energy storage: manufacturing and characterization of supercapacitors from 2D materials 3. Synthetic biomaterials: design and construction of synthetic cells

Final Deliverables: Final presentation at the end of the semester

Weekly Working Hours 9~10 hours per week for each individual

For Credits/Pay For credits: (# of credits): 3 credits for each individual For Pay: (Hourly rate) Voluntary

Desired Qualifications Preferably juniors who are interested in fundamental research in nanotechnology

Project Name: High Temperature Rheology for Casting Applications

Project ID: R012

Supervisor: Amy Marconnet Number of Positions 1-3

Project Description: The objective of this research project is to observe and record the viscosities of slags, specifically those used in electroslag remelting (ESR). While prior data exists for ESR slags, new slag blends have been created, making simulations of ESR processes with these new slags difficult. This project will focus on measuring the viscosity of molten slags as a function of temperature using a high temperature viscometer (located in Kepner lab).

Final Deliverables: Final report with data on slag viscosity as a function of temperature

Weekly Working Hours Volunteer


Project Name: Li-ion Battery Thermal Analytics

Project ID: R013

Supervisor: Partha P. Mukherjee Number of Positions 2-3

Project Description: Lithium ion (Li-ion) batteries are ubiquitous. Thermal characteristics of these systems are critical toward safer and high-performance batteries for electric vehicles. As part of this research, thermal analysis of heat generation rates under normal and anomalous operating conditions of Li-ion cells will be performed.

Final Deliverables: The student will work closely with a senior graduate student researcher on the modeling and data analysis in the form of weekly reports. The final deliverable will be one end-of-summer research report (based on the weekly progress) and a presentation at the research group meeting.

Weekly Working Hours As per discussion with the supervisor.

For Credits/Pay For credits: (# of credits) 3

Desired Qualifications Rising senior or Junior (with good analytical thinking and skills with Matlab or similar analysis tools)


Project Name: High Pressure Combustion Performance of Additively Manufactured Propellants

Project ID: R014

Supervisor: PI: Dr. Steven Son Mentor: Aaron Afriat [email protected]

Number of Positions

2

Project Description: Two students will team up to investigate the combustion characteristics of additively manufactured propellants. The main tasks will include the following:

- Extrude propellants via a single screw extruder - Additively manufacture propellants using a vibration-assisted 3D printer

(VAP) o Solid cylinders, perforated cylinders and gyroidally-infilled

cylinders - Test propellant samples in a closed pressure vessel at up to 55,000 PSI

o Collect pressure trace data and perform burning rate and vivacity calculations (the burning rate data will be used to fire propellants in a real gun system at the Army Research Lab)

- Report on the differences seen between the extruded propellants and the additively manufactured propellants

Final Deliverables: A final report including - Pressure trace, vivacity, burning rate data for additively manufactured vs

extruded gun propellants (industry-standard) - A performance comparison and survivability assessment of the different

shapes printed, based on collected data - A final assessment of whether additively manufactured propellants can

survive in a gun system

Weekly Working Hours 15 minimum, 20 is preferred.

For Credits/Pay For credits: (3 per student) OR For Pay: ($10/hour)

Desired Qualifications - Senior status strongly recommended. Junior status may apply - Must have experience with 3D printing. Mechanical experience is strongly

recommended. - Shows interest in combustion of energetic materials


Project Name: Mechanical and chemical stability atomic force microscopy tips

Project ID: R015

Supervisor: Ryan Wagner Number of Positions 1

Project Description: Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is an important scientific tool in many research areas ranging from nanotechnology, material science, and biology. It is used in diverse applications such as atomic resolution imaging of crystalline lattices, mapping doping concentration of transistors, and measuring the mechanical properties of living cells. An AFM utilizes a sharp tip mounted on the end of a silicon microcantilever. To make meaningful measurements the tip shape and tip surface cannot change during the measurement period. This stability is difficult to achieve for two reasons. First, due to the small contact area between the tip and surface, stress in the tip tends to be high. Second, material from the surface can stick to the tip. The proposed research will seek to develop a broadly useable metric for characterizing the stability of an AFM tip. Potential metrics include monitoring the resonance frequency of the cantilever or characterizing an aspect of the interaction between the tip and the surface.

Final Deliverables: Report and/or a scientific paper detailing and demonstrating the developed AFM tip stability metric

Weekly Working Hours 9 to 12 hours

For Credits/Pay For credits: 3

Desired Qualifications Junior or senior standing, GPA greater than or equal to 3.0, an interest in experimental work.

Project Name: Low noise humidity controller for nanoscale imaging

Project ID: R016


Project Description: An atomic force microscope (AFM) consists of a cantilever mounted, nanometer scale tip interacting with a surface. In AFM, nanoscale imaging is obtained by scanning the tip over the surface. If an electrical potential is applied to the tip, the electrical properties of the surface can be probed. The presence or absence of water on a surface mediates tip-surface interactions in AFM. For example, a water layer that forms between the surface and tip will affect the contact area, conductivity, capacitance, stiffness, and adhesion of the contact between the tip and sample. In turn, these variations affect AFM measurements of resistance, conductance, piezoelectricity, ferroelectricity, and electrostatic forces. A low noise, fast controller that uses PID control to adjust the humidity of the imaging environment would be a valuable tool for understanding interactions between the surface, water, and tip. The goal of this project is to build such a humidity controller.

Final Deliverables: Prototype humidity controller



Desired Qualifications Junior or senior standing, GPA greater than or equal to 3.0, an interest in design.


Project Name: Interferometric characterization of vibrating structures

Project ID: R017


Project Description: Laser doppler vibrometry (LDV) is an interferometric based vibration characterization technique that measures vibrations as small in amplitude as picometers and as high in frequency as gigahertz. A laser is focused on a surface and the velocity as a function of time is recorded. By scanning the laser spot position, the vibrational modes of the sample can be determined. The purpose of this project is to apply LDV to study the vibrational characteristics of numerous systems and structures. You will be trained and educated in the use of a Polytec LDV system and you will support other research groups on campus in carrying out vibrational characterization. Application areas include the characterization of vibrating membranes used for water filtration, studying the vibrational characteristics of natural structures such as insect antennas, and calibration of microcantilevers used in atomic force microscopy.

Final Deliverables: Report detailing the measurement results that will be used as a contribution to scientific publications.




Project Name: Mechanical loss tangent characterization with atomic force microscopy

Project ID: R018


Project Description: An atomic force microscope (AFM) consists of a cantilever mounted, nanometer scale tip interacting with a surface. Because the tip physically interacts with the sample it is possible to use the response of the cantilever to infer the mechanical properties of the surface. The loss tangent is the ratio of energy lost to energy stored in a viscoelastic sample when it is dynamically deformed. This is an important property for understanding the behavior of polymers and biological materials. This project will seek to develop, test, and implement improved methods of loss tangent characterization with AFM. This method will be based on considering how the energy in the sample differs as a function of system operating conditions.

Final Deliverables: Report and/or scientific paper detailing the results.




Project Name: Experimental turbine research at engine conditions

Project ID: R019


Supervisor: Guillermo Paniagua Number of Positions Six (6)

Project Description: Measurements in a turbine facility: - Testing of low Reynolds turbine profiles - Investigation of the blade-row interactions in a 2stage turbine - Aero-thermal effect of the turbine tip gap flows - Stator rim -rotor platform leakage effects on the rotor - Effects of acoustic and pulsating flows in high work turbines Within the different tasks we will design and characterize fast-response instrumentation for aero and heat transfer measurements. The test articles will be investigated in several test rigs, including the demonstration in linear, annular and rotating facilities. Research will also focus on the data reduction and analysis of the measurements and integration with our Computational Fluid Dynamics tools, including uncertainty quantification.

Final Deliverables: Presentation of the final results to a panel of experts in the PETAL group and representatives from the industry.

Conference publication if the contribution is significant

Brief technical report of the work including the technical drawings of any developed component or sensor.

Weekly Working Hours 7 hours (minimum) – if possible 20 hours per week

For Credits/Pay For credits: (# of credits) - 3 credits For Pay: (Hourly rate) $11/hour Voluntary

Desired Qualifications ME309


Project Name: Stretching equipment for soft robotics research

Project ID: R020

Supervisor: Alex Chortos Number of Positions 1

Project Description: Soft and stretchable electronics offer the potential to interface with the human body to repair or augment biology. Understanding the electromechanical properties of materials is essential for these devices. However, electrical measurements and mechanical measurements are typically done on separate sets of equipment (electrical measurements in a probe station, mechanical measurements in a tensile tester). We would like to assemble a testing station that stretches materials while measuring their electrical properties. The system will be composed of two linear stages that move synchronously to apply mechanical deformations, a load cell to measure forces, and a sourcemeter to measure electrical properties.

Final Deliverables: Set up two linear actuators (Newmark, 12 in travel)

Set up load cell and electrical measurement equipment

Create a program in Labview or python to send control signals to the actuators while receiving sensory feedback from the load cell and electrical measurement equipment

Weekly Working Hours ~10

For Credits/Pay For Pay: $12 Voluntary

Desired Qualifications Minimal experience necessary; will need to be relatively independent since the lab does not have senior grad students


Project Name: Multimaterial 3D Printer Design

Project ID: R021

Supervisor: Alex Chortos Number of Positions 1

Project Description: Soft and stretchable electronics offer the potential to interface with the human body to repair or augment biological systems. This requires developing highly specialized materials that can be patterned and distributed in precise 3D arrangements. We are designing electromechanical actuators using a combination of materials design, 3D printing, and mechanical design. As part of this process, we are setting up a multimaterial 3D printing system to deposit multiple soft materials that include sensors and actuators.

XYZ gantry onto which the z-axis actuators and

materials dispensers will be

attached.

Final Deliverables: Design a Z-axis actuator that can be secured onto the XYZ gantry that can be independently controlled. Fabrication will most likely be done in the machine shop.

Design and fabricate a system to dispense materials using a miniaturized version of a syringe pump that can be integrated with the control system of an XYZ gantry. Fabrication will most likely be done in the machine shop.

Weekly Working Hours ~10

For Credits/Pay For credits: 1-3 For pay: $12 Voluntary

Desired Qualifications Minimal experience necessary, machine shop training would be valuable.


Project Name: Design 3D printer with embedded 3D vision

Project ID: R022

Supervisor: Song Zhang Number of Positions 2

Project Description: This project aims at designing a 3D printer that can incorporate a high-end customized 3D vision system for close-loop controls.

Final Deliverables: Design of system

List of hardware components and prices

List of parts to be manufactured and costs

Weekly Working Hours 10 hours / week

For Credits/Pay For credits: (3 credits each) or For Pay: $12/hour

Desired Qualifications Prior experiences using Solidworks or CAD design software; strong communication skills; GPA > 3.2s

Project Name: Autonomous vehicle based on 3D sensing

Project ID: R023

Supervisor: Song Zhang Number of Positions 2

Project Description: Develop autonomous vehicle control system based on 3D sensing technologies (i.e., Microsoft Kinect Azure).

Final Deliverables: Software package and demonstration

Documentation of the developed software

Final presentation

Weekly Working Hours Per discussion with advisor

For Credits/Pay For credits: (3 credits each)

Desired Qualifications Prior experiences with C++ programming experience; Strong communications; GPA > 3.5

Project Name: Distance learning module for hydraulic trainer

Project ID: R024

Supervisor: Sadegh Dabiri Number of Positions 4

Project Description: The goal of this project is to develop an attachment for hydraulic trainer systems so that students can remotely control and observe the trainer and gain hands-on experience in fluid power. This laboratory experience will be utilized in online and distance learning classes. Students need to learn about components of fluid power systems and hydraulic trainers.

Final Deliverables: Design and prototype of the frame. Selection of sensors and actuators for the control system.

Weekly Working Hours 12 hours

For Credits/Pay For credits: (# of credits) 3 credit For Pay: (Hourly rate) Voluntary

Desired Qualifications Hands-on experience with CAD design and prototyping; experience with sensors, actuators, raspberry-pi.


Project Name: WeAR Project ID: R025

Supervisor: Professor Karthik Ramani Number of Positions 2

Project Description: The project intends to provide designers with a system that allows them to design wearable devices using an augmented reality interface via devices such as Hololens. The users should be able to personalize functionalities and forms of their wearables by rendering wires over complex geometric shapes, visualizing electrical components, and manipulating them in AR environments. If interested please contact Luis Paredes at: [email protected]

Final Deliverables: AR design interface - virtual 3D object manipulation, 3D electronic components rendering, circuit traces generation, shape configuration, and printable file generation.


For Credits/Pay For credits: 3 For Pay: $10/hr

Desired Qualifications Programming experience 3D Graphics software is required (C++/OpenGL or C#/Unity or JavaScript/Tree.js) Backgrounds in CGT, CS, or ECE preferred

Project Name: VR From X Project ID: R026


Project Description: The objective is to allow users to create Virtual Reality based applications with cues from physical reality. If interested, contact Ananya Ipsita at [email protected]

Final Deliverables: will be informed by the RA.



Desired Qualifications Programming: Unity (C#) Design : CAD (basic) Electronics : Arduino programming (basic)

Project Name: MakAR Project Project ID: R027


Project Description: RA will be helping maintain an existing block programming IDE, build an AR application for IoT devices, and are paid hourly. If interested, please contact Terrell Glenn at [email protected]

Final Deliverables: Mobile application in Unity 3D, added features to a block-based programming environment, and/or new designs for our electronics.



Desired Qualifications Programming: HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Github, C# Design: AutoCAD, Eagle, Inkscape/Illustrator


Project Name: Fabrication of a table-top compression feed screw for particulate materials

Project ID: R028

Supervisor: Prof. M. Gonzalez Prof. C. Wassgren

Number of Positions 2

Project Description: The objectives of this project are to 1. fabricate a table-top compression feed screw for particulate materials

designed by an ME Senior Design (ME 463) team during Summer of 2020, and 2. run the compression feed screw with micro-crystalline cellulose powder and

verify proper operation of all sensors. Compression feed screws are used to convey particulate matter, such as milled or pelleted biomass, into chemical reactor vessels. Compression of the material is needed to densify the material so that when it is fed into the reactor, high pressure reactor gases cannot flow through the material and out through the feed screw. Compression of the material is achieved by tapering the screw barrel so that flow channel area decreases as material moves toward the feed screw exit. The table-top design will be used to gather experimental data for comparison to computational model predictions. The computational models will be used to provide guidance on designing and operating feed screws to feed biomass materials, such as corn stover, into biorefineries. References: Purdue Center for Particulate Products and Processes (CP3): link Prof. Wassgren: link Prof. Gonzalez: link

Final Deliverables: The project deliverables and responsibilities are as follows: 1. Review and understand the ME463 design team materials. 2. Modify ME463 design, if required, to satisfy project goals. 3. Purchase required supplies, equipment, and manufacturing outsourcing. 4. Manufacture parts at a Purdue machine shop. 5. Assemble the feed screw components. 6. Perform testing to ensure that the device operates safely and properly.

Weekly Working Hours 9 – 12 hrs/wk, on average

For Credits/Pay For credits: 3 Voluntary

Desired Qualifications Junior or senior standing

GPA greater than or equal to 3.0

Sufficient time to devote ~9 – 12 hrs/wk to the project, on average

Project Name: Soft-swelling structures Project ID: R029

Supervisor: Prof. M. Gonzalez Number of Positions 1

Project Description: The objectives of this project are to: 1. Design and build experiments to measure elasto-plastic, absorption and

swelling properties of superabsorbent polymeric or hydrogel spherical particles (Acrylamide/Potassium Acrylate Copolymer Crosslinked) at different water contents, quantified as the percent in weight of water absorbed relative to the dry weight of the sphere;

https://engineering.purdue.edu/CP3https://engineering.purdue.edu/~wassgren/http://www.marcialgonzalez.net/


2. Design and build experiments to measure particle-to-particle transport and bonding formation properties using a packing of hydrogel spheres largely deformed inside a rigid die;

3. Calibrate experimental results with numerical simulations (provided by Prof. Gonzalez) to estimate material properties that cannot be directly measured;

4. Design soft-swelling structures, by tuning the composition of hydrogel mixtures, to achieve targeted structural integrity and morphing capabilities upon water absorption and swelling.

Superabsorbent polymers are highly swelling, chemically cross-linked polymer networks, which are widely used in food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical applications because of their absorption/release properties. In pharmaceuticals, for example, disintegrant excipients are mainly composed of insoluble polymers that quickly swell upon contact with water. In fact, swelling of individual particles is considered the primary mechanism responsible for tablet disintegration, which, in turn, controls the drug release rate. Therefore, deformation, swelling, and mass transport properties of these polymers are required to model, design, and optimize pharmaceutical solid dosage forms effectively. The goal of this project is to characterize and explore the use soft-swelling structures in structural mechanical applications. References: Purdue Center for Particulate Products and Processes (CP3): link Prof. Gonzalez: link

Final Deliverables: The project deliverables and responsibilities are as follows: 1. Measure the swelling equilibrium response, mass absorption kinetics, elasto-

plastic deformation of superabsorbent polymers spherical particles. 2. Design and execute an experimental protocol to measure particle-to-particle

transport and bond strength formation behavior using a packing of hydrogel spheres largely deformed inside a rigid die.

3. Calibrate experimental results obtained in (1) and (2) with numerical simulations provided by Prof. Gonzalez.

4. Design soft-swelling structure with unique structural integrity and morphing capabilities relevant to structural mechanical engineering applications.

5. Report your progress at the end of the semester in a weekly research group meeting. (approx. 15 minutes). The objectives of this meeting are: (i) to give you presentation practice, (ii) keep others in the group up-to-date about the work you are doing, and (iii) get help and advice from the group on your work.

Weekly Working Hours 9 – 12 hrs/wk, on average

For Credits/Pay For credits: 3 Voluntary

Desired Qualifications Junior or senior standing

GPA greater than or equal to 3.5

Basic knowledge of MATLAB

Sufficient time to devote ~9 – 12 hrs/wk to the project, on average
https://engineering.purdue.edu/CP3http://www.marcialgonzalez.net/

project-based research (spring 2021) project name: thermal ... · mechanical engineering building...

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