News & Announcements

The Environmental Engineering & Earth Sciences undergraduate department has moved on campus.  Undergraduate services and faculty offices for Environmental Engineering, Biosystems Engineering and Geology are all now located in Brackett Hall.  If you are on campus, stop by 340 or 441 Brackett Hall to say hello to Cindy and Jessica!

In August, Dr. Annick Anctil joined the EEES department. Dr. Anctil received a Ph.D. in Sustainability from the Rochester Institute of Technology in 2011 where she also received her M.S in Materials Engineering (2007) after a B.S. in Materi als Engineering from Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal (2005). Prior to joining Clemson, she worked as a Research Associate at the National Photovoltaic Environmental Research Center at Brookhaven National Laboratory where she worked on the environmental impact of large-scale photovoltaic power plants and resource availability of critical metals for solar technologies. Dr. Anctil's major research interest is in sustainable energy, in particular photovoltaics, where she uses life cycle assessment to identify the main issues of current technologies and propose alternative solutions. A primary focus of her work is in the environmental impact of nanomaterials and fine chemicals for energy applications, in particular as it relates to reducing the impact of industrial production.

Dr.Cindy Lee has been appointed the Interim Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies. This position reports to the dean of Engineering and Science and includes oversight of the college's research centers, alliances and institutes. The associate dean for research and graduate studies assists in the coordination of research activities for the college by identifying and cultivating possible research opportunities. In this role, Dr. Lee also approves the GS-2 forms for the college, along with coordinating the Graduate Teaching Assistant Certification Seminar and the Testing Program. The associate dean also oversees the master’s degree programs offered externally

Dr. Tim DeVol, Professor in EEES and Scott Husson of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering received a $1.05 M grant (over three years) entitled “Ultra-Trace-level Quantification of α- and β-emitting Radionuclides with Extractive Scintillating Resin” from Defense Threat Reduction Agency. Under this grant, the research team proposed research to understand the fundamental science associated with a new class of extractive scintillating resins for radionuclide detection. Scientific advancements from completion of the proposed work will lead toward an on-line monitoring system for α- and β-radioactivity in water, air and sewage sludge which is needed by state, federal and international law enforcement authorities

Dr. Kevin Finneran, Associate Professor, was named a Kavli Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) in May 2012.  The Kavli program recognizes young scientists who are leaders in their field, and brings them together in the Frontiers of Science program, which is a collaborative symposium between the NAS and the leading scientific academy of a foreign country. Professor Finneran was invited to speak and become a Kavli Fellow at the German-American Frontiers of Science conference (GAFOS), held May 10-14, 2012 in Potsdam Germany. The Alexander Von Humboldt Foundation is the participating organization in Germany. Kavli Fellows are encouraged to establish overseas research collaborations with counterparts from their respective Frontiers of Science symposia, and the hosting organizations provide funding to initiate these visiting professorships.  His presentation “Bioremediation: basic science meeting applied goals” can be viewed at http://vimeo.com/44772026.  Information on the Kavli Frontiers of Science Program can be found here: http://www.kavlifoundation.org/kavli-frontiers-science.

We would like to extend a special WELCOME to the new graduate students:  Semra Bakkaloglu, Jill Brandy, Chris Carlson, Kayla Collins, Stephanie Ely, Alex Hanna, Alex Haluska, Marjorie Hekman, Joel Hirsh, Derrell Hood, Ben Huffer,  Alexandra Jarvis, Tao Jiang, Ayushya Khanna, Mengfei Li, Amy Meldrum, Ellie Miller, Alex Ramos, Ben Rhiner, Ani Sawant, Tuanhong Song, Colby Thrash, Kata Tisza, Ying Tu, Wenwen Wang, Mary Ann Williford, Mike Witmer

Victor Y. Liao, senior Biosystems Engineering major, has been selected as one of the nation’s top rising young leaders in the clean energy sector by the national organization Focus the Nation. He is among 20 students from across the country selected for their dedication, passion and unique contribution to increasing clean energy in America.

David Hahn, one of our M.Sc. Hydrogeology students, was awarded with the National Association of Geoscience Teachers (NAGT) Outstanding Teacher Assistant Award for his outstanding contributions to many of our Geology and Physical Sciences courses. This is a great recognition for David’s strong commitment to high quality teaching and continuous hard work.

Dr. David Ladner’s research group hosted four undergraduate and high school students in June and July as part of summer research programs. Two students, Colin Richards (from the University of Arizona) and Deidre Baker (from Lehigh University) came as part of the Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) in Advanced Functional Membranes. Another student, Graham von Oehsen (South Carolina Governor’s School for Science & Mathematics), came as part of Clemson’s Summer Program for Research Interns (SPRI). The fourth student, Cassidy Laird, is a new freshman in Engineering and participated in the Experiences in Undergraduate Research, Exploration and Knowledge Advancement (EUREKA!) program. Muriel Steele was the research mentor for Cassidy and Graham. Meg Smith was the research mentor for Colin and Deidre.

Pooja Mahajan, Masters Student in Environmental Engineering and Earth Science, attended the Cleantech Conference and Showcase 2012 in Santa Clara, CA, in June. She presented a poster entitled “Enabling wind-energy driven reverse osmosis desalination using integrated compressed gas energy storage—bench-scale experiments and modeling.”

Muriel Steele (MS – EE&S) and Dan Carey (PhD – EE&S) attended the 2nd International Conference on Algal Biomass, Biofuels & Bioproducts in San Diego, CA, in June. Muriel presented a poster entitled, ”Mixotrophic Growth of Chlorella protothecoides for Wastewater Treatment, Effects of Retention Time on Membrane Harvesting, Treatment, and Productivity.” Dan presented a poster entitled, “Algal dewatering by microfiltration: membrane flux improvement with NaCl addition in a stirred filtration unit.

This summer Biosystems Engineering Research Associate David Thornton, and recent BE graduate Jared McKnight, led a group of Creative Inquiry students to collect wild yeast samples from the Clemson Musser Fruit Farm. Following a mix of historical and microbiological methods, the group has captured and refined about a dozen yeast cultures containing saccharomyces and brettanomyces yeast, and a host of other beneficial bacteria. Using differential media and adjustments to pH, temperature, and alcohol content, the strains are being selectively refined to distinguish the best uses of the various yeasts. Uses include production of beer, wine, spirits and fuel. The research will continue this semester in The Science of Beer – Introduction to Zymology. This C.I. course partners varying engineering majors pursuing scholarly research in brewery optimization and waste reduction, analytical methods for the testing of beer, and the production of unique regionally specific beers for the Upstate SC through domestication of wild yeast and sustainable production of regional grains and hops. You can follow more at clemsonbiofuels.wordpress.com. Stay tuned for a host of workshops regarding “nano”brewery construction and design for home or commercial brewing, beer analytics, and microbiology techniques for capturing your own yeasts!