Mechanical Engineering Department celebrates 2020-21 research, other achievements
Faculty, students have a productive academic year despite COVID-19 challenges
The Department of Mechanical Engineering at the Thomas J. Watson College of Engineering and Applied Science has had a productive academic year in 2020-21, despite the ongoing challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Research news
Assistant Professor Mir Jalil Razavi received a $587,853 grant from the National Science Foundation’s Biomechanics and Mechanobiology Program to use computer modeling and advanced brain imaging of developing fetal brains to research brain growth and folding. Co-principal investigator will be Assistant Professor Weiying Dai from the Department of Computer Science.
Associate Professor Xin Yong teamed up with two Iowa State University researchers for a study of Janus particles that shows how they could be the key to more environmentally friendly paints and coatings.
Professor Changhong Ke is co-principal investigator on a three-year, $609,436 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to investigate a new method of producing microscopic circuits. Leading the research will be Assistant Professor Jia Deng from the Department of Systems Science and Industrial Engineering.
Assistant Professor Scott Schiffres and his graduate students worked with Intuitive Surgical — best known for designing and manufacturing da Vinci medical robots — to research the best face masks to filter out COVID-19. The 300,000 masks that Intuitive distributed to employees and healthcare workers went through different iterations, each design using the most current research findings from Schiffres and his team.
Student news
In a story about senior capstone projects for the Watson Review magazine, one ME team was highlighted for creating a CPR-assist device that would help first responders with chest compressions.
Junior Hannah Gill, who came to Watson College in fall 2020 from Clemson University, is featured in a piece about students transferring to Binghamton during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Faculty news
This year’s Watson Review had a “Women in Engineering” theme and featured input from professors in each department, including Associate Professor Shahrzad “Sherry” Towfighian: “If [parents] think that girls should not go into engineering and they’re not good at math, that transfers to the kids. If they believe in their kids, the girls don’t get that idea.”
Alumni news
Swapnil Nibe, MS ’19, turned an internship with Ansys — one of the largest software companies in the world — into a full-time job. The native of Pune, India — located about 100 miles from the city of Mumbai — Nibe had to adjust fast to the world of a graduate student at Binghamton.
Mark Pallay ’14, MS ’16, PhD ’20, was honored with a Bearcats of the Last Decade (BOLD) 10 Under 10 Award as part of 2020’s Virtual Homecoming celebrations. He is currently working at Seagate Technology as a senior research and development engineer.