College of Engineering News • Iowa State University

BEI Student Continues Poster Excellence at Thermochemical Conference

Picture of Joseph Polin

Original story published by by Robert Mills on Bioeconomy Institute.

Picture of Joseph Polin
Joseph Polin holding the Student Poster Challenge award he received at the tcbiomass2015 conference.

Joseph Polin, an Iowa State University Ph.D. student working in the Bioeconomy Institute, won second place in the Student Poster Challenge at the tcbiomass2015 conference held recently in Chicago. It marks the third time in a row that an Iowa State student has placed in this prestigious competition.

Polin’s poster, “Investigation of autothermal operation of a fluidized bed pyrolyzer,” was selected from some 38 entrants. Polin also received a cash award of $500. You can view a PDF of Polin’s poster as well as a list and PDFs of all BEI posters.

Joseph Polin, a Ph.D. student at Iowa State University and BEI, won second place in the Student Poster Challenge at the recent tcbiomass2015 conference.

Polin is majoring in mechanical engineering and co-majoring in Biorenewable Resources and Technology (BRT). His major professor is Robert C. Brown, BEI director and Anson Marston Distinguished Professor in Engineering. Polin is studying autothermal pyrolysis in pilot-scale reactor systems. In contrast to traditional pyrolysis, the autothermal method uses some oxygen, with the goal of overcoming heat transfer limitations and increasing yields of pyrolytic sugar and phenolic oil. Polin hopes to graduate in December 2017.

Highlighting BEI’s Thermochemical Conversion Research

The tcbiomass conference focused on thermochemical conversion science to turn biomass into fuels and chemicals. It was a busy conference for BEI. The host of the conference, the Gas Technology Institute (GTI), presented BEI’s Brown with the 2015 Don Klass Award for Excellence in Thermochemical Conversion Science. The program featured four Iowa State researchers as speakers and over 20 as poster presenters. In all, over 35 Iowa State people attended the conference.

The BEI 2015 Virtual Tour video made its premiere at the event. The institute also had an exhibit to showcase its thermochemical research capabilities.

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