2007 President's Fall Address and All-University Picnic
What: President Penley's Annual Fall Address and All-University Picnic
When: Sept. 6, 2007 at 11:15 a.m.
Where: Colorado State Oval
An annual event, President Penley's Fall Address and the All-University Picnic, is going green this year. Focused on sustainability, the event will feature everything from biodegradable plates and compostable utensils to campus and student-sponsored booths highlighting different aspects of CSU's dedication to the environment. Featuring displays from several departments within the College, engineering students and faculty will be among those showcasing a commitment to our earth and atmosphere. The following exciting engineering projects will be on display.
Chemical and Biological Engineering
ChemE Students Develop Alternative Fuels of the Future
- Students in the Department of Chemical & Biological Engineering accepted the challenge to design and build a car that is powered by a chemical reaction and will also fit inside a shoebox when disassembled. CSU students competed this year in the ChemE Car competition during the Regional Student AIChE Meeting in Tempe, AZ. The main objectives are for the car to go a certain distance while carrying a certain amount of weight. This is not known until about 30 minutes prior to the competition! So, the approach the ChemE Car team from CSU used included a very light car powered by a reaction between baking soda and hydrochloric acid. CSU's team placed 2nd overall and as a result, they will be competing at the national competition in Salt Lake City, UT this November.
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Recycling Tires Leads to Cleaner Environment and Better Roads
- A civil engineering group is researching whether some of Colorado's 40 million stockpiled rubber tires - the largest batch in the nation - can be reused to improve residential foundation soils and road bases and mitigate the effects of expansive soils. Antonio Carraro, assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering, is leading a research program that will test mixtures of expansive soils and scrap tire rubber. The research has the potential to mitigate the shrink-swell potential of roadbed and foundation soils and help clean up the environment at the same time. Carraro also recently received a $128,913 grant from the Colorado Commission on Higher Education to test his expansive soil-rubber mixtures in residential foundations.
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Early Detection of Severe Storms Saves Lives and Property
Search-and-Rescue Robotics Project: Mechanical/Electrical
- CSU students have earned 2nd place in the U.S. open and 4th in the world championships in the annual NIST/RoboCup Urban Search and Rescue Robot Competitions, competing against the leading robotic research groups from around the world. The goal of the RoboCup contest is to increase awareness of the challenges involved in search and rescue applications and provide a public proving ground for field-able robotic systems that will ultimately be used to save lives. Student teams are required to demonstrate their robots capabilities in mobility, sensory perception, and practical operator interfaces, while locating simulated victims in unstructured environments.