College of Engineering News • Iowa State University

FHWA awards top graduate fellowship to Iowa State students

This fall Iowa State University’s civil engineering program attracts two exceptional graduate students as Dwight David Eisenhower Graduate Fellows, a national graduate student award that the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) sponsors. Ellen Nightingale and Patricia Thompson, both master’s students in civil engineering, bring a wealth of experience to Iowa State’s transportation engineering research program. Each …Continue reading “FHWA awards top graduate fellowship to Iowa State students”

Iowa State, Argo Genesis Chemical to dedicate new, $5.3 million bio-polymer pilot plant

Eric Cochran led the way, counterclockwise, from one 500-gallon industrial tank to another and then another. By the time he got to the 1,300-gallon holding tank at the end he had explained how Iowa State University engineers are producing bio-polymers from soybean oil.

Iowa State’s Alleman completes US Department of State, USAID fellowship

Ukraine. Armenia. Moldova. Bosnia-Herzegovina. Jim Alleman, Cerwick Faculty Professor of Environmental Engineering at Iowa State University, provides his environmental engineering expertise to these countries as a way of implementing, in part, key U.S.-eastern Europe policy. Alleman is one of 13 U.S. university professors to complete a 2014-2015 Jefferson Science Fellowship. The Jefferson Science Fellow Program …Continue reading “Iowa State’s Alleman completes US Department of State, USAID fellowship”

Opinion: Improved testing could reopen bridges

Imagine pulling up to a bridge that you previously used but now is closed to you because of weight restrictions. What will you have to do to get to your destination? How far out of your way do you think you’ll go to complete a delivery or make it home? Well, that is exactly the kind of scenario that happened to me just last year. It was after harvest, and I was taking a shipment of soybeans to the local elevator. I arrived at a small, rural bridge that recently had been given a weight limit that I couldn’t clear. When that happens, it can be a lot more than just an inconvenience.

Iowa State researchers mentor high school student in river contaminant flow study

Diana Rodriguez, incoming senior at Hoover High School in Des Moines, Iowa, took advantage of an opportunity that most high school students don’t experience – develop research at Iowa State University. Throughout summer 2015, Chris Rehmann, associate professor of civil, construction and environmental engineering at Iowa State, and Lauren Schwab, Iowa State master’s student in …Continue reading “Iowa State researchers mentor high school student in river contaminant flow study”

Iowa State civil engineering awarded national fellowship for concrete pavement research

The National Concrete Pavement Technology Center (CP Tech Center), which is housed at the Institute for Transportation (InTrans), partnered with the Civil, Construction and Environmental (CCEE) department at Iowa State University to receive the Portland Cement Association (PCA) Education Foundation J. P. Gleason Fellowship. Peter Taylor, research associate professor of CCEE and director of the …Continue reading “Iowa State civil engineering awarded national fellowship for concrete pavement research”

Architectural firm hires civil engineering alum

Cannon Moss Brygger Architects (CMBA) announced that Mat Higgins has joined its staff.
Higgins is joining CMBA’s Sioux City team as a structural engineer-in-training. He received his Bachelor of Science in civil engineering from Iowa State University in Ames.

Schemmer announces civil engineering alum as manager of transportation

The Schemmer Associates Inc. (Schemmer), a national full-service architecture, engineering and planning firm, is pleased to announce Matt Shimerdla, P.E., has joined the firm as manager of transportation for the Lincoln, Nebraska office.

Iowa State Traffic Operations Lab partners civil engineering, Institute for Transportation, Iowa DOT

Many Iowa State University students, faculty researchers, and engineers at the Iowa Department of Transportation (Iowa DOT) have partnered to develop traffic solutions for Iowa’s highways. Neal Hawkins, director of the Center for Transportation Research and Education (CTRE) and adjunct lecturer of civil, construction and environmental engineering at Iowa State, and Mike Jackson, state traffic …Continue reading “Iowa State Traffic Operations Lab partners civil engineering, Institute for Transportation, Iowa DOT”

Iowa State among top universities granted U.S. patents

Iowa State is ranked 70th in the world among universities granted U.S. utility patents in 2014, according to a report released this week by the National Academy of Inventors (NAI) and the Intellectual Property Owners Association (IPO). Iowa State researchers earned 31 U.S. patents in 2014, including patents for wind turbine tower systems, computer encryption logic, bioasphalt, use of mesoporous silicates for delivering biomolecules into plant cells and improved treatment of Parkinson’s disease.

Iowa State engineers develop micro-tentacles so tiny robots can handle delicate objects

The tiny tube circled an ant’s thorax, gently trapping the insect and demonstrating the utility of a microrobotic tentacle developed by Iowa State University engineers. “Most robots use two fingers and to pick things up they have to squeeze,” said Jaeyoun (Jay) Kim, an Iowa State University associate professor of electrical and computer engineering and an associate of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Ames Laboratory. “But these tentacles wrap around very gently.”

Minnesota DOT hires civil engineering alumnus

John McDonald was selected as assistant district engineering, state aid for the Minnesota Department of Transportation District 1 in Duluth. McDonald has a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Iowa State University in Ames and a master’s degree in civil engineering from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis.

Jordan Creek sixth-graders learn Iowa State concrete engineering

Forty-eight sixth-graders from Jordan Creek Elementary School of West Des Moines, Iowa, experienced cement concrete engineering April 30 at the Iowa State University Portland Cement Concrete and Materials Research Laboratory (PCC Laboratory). Students mixed water, cement, and sand in 4-gallon plastic tubs to form concrete mortar. Later, all were clad in laboratory safety gear as they …Continue reading “Jordan Creek sixth-graders learn Iowa State concrete engineering”

Biopolymers plant nears opening

The industrial-scale pilot biopolymers plant being built at the BioCentury Research Farm for use in several different industries nears its completion. The plant, which is a collaboration between the Department of Civil Construction and Environmental Engineering (CCEE), the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering (CBE), and industry partners (most prominently Argo Genesis Chemical, a subsidiary …Continue reading “Biopolymers plant nears opening”

Iowa State’s Jeong named Construction Industry Institute Distinguished Professor

David Jeong, associate professor of civil, construction and environmental engineering at Iowa State University, has received the Construction Industry Institute (CII) 2015 Distinguished Professor Award. He will officially accept the honor at the 2015 CII Annual Conference, held this August in Boston, Mass. Jeong is honored for consistent efforts and active application of CII-sponsored research …Continue reading “Iowa State’s Jeong named Construction Industry Institute Distinguished Professor”

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