MCSI Research Program

MCSI RESEARCH PROGRAM EXPANDS COHORT OF ENGAGED RESEARCHERS & FORGES NEW PATHWAYS

Covestro Circular Economy Program

Program Highlights

The new Covestro Circular Economy program at Pitt was created in November 2022, led by Drs. Eric Beckman and Melissa Bilec. The program is creating a comprehensive academic initiative focused on training the next generation of engineers and professionals to lead in the circular economy.

• Embark on a novel cohort-based training program • Conduct convergent circular economy research that addresses pressing societal needs • Experience a diverse and inclusive training program • Prepare them for multiple career pathways through internship opportunities.

Covestro PhD Fellows

First Cohort Starting Fall 2022

Nicole Bell

BS Civil and Environmental Engineering University of Pittsburgh

Ortiz L. Santiago

BS Chemical Engineering University of La Sabana

Lakshmi Yasodhara

BS Chemical Engineering Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham

New Course: DESIGN FOR CIRCULAR ECONOMY

Created & Taught by Melissa Bilec Offered beginning Fall 2022 The goal of this course is to provide students with a thorough introduction to circular economy, along with integrating design. Through experiential and project-based learning, the students will develop circular economy affinity groups that will tackle a pressing challenge including design for degradation solutions for ocean plastics and design for reuse of construction materials.

Collaboration with Lubrizol

Dr. Goetz Veser’s collaboration with Lubrizol Corp. resulted in deployment of two new processes for dispersant production which cut energy demand by ~30%, physical footprint of plant by >90%, and completely removed one major waste stream compared to the existing industrial process. Both modular processes are in full industrial operation now.

Corporate & Non-Profit Partners: Sustainability Capstone

Dr. David Sanchez ran the Sustainability Capstone in the Fall and Spring semesters, with Dr. Tony Kerzmann co-teaching in Spring 2022. The capstone students worked with 15 external stakeholders from industry, government, and nonprofits to complete their projects and the course, which is required for the Undergraduate Sustainability Certificate. The Sustainability Capstone course is also required for students pursuing the M.S. in Sustainable Engineering degree.

Collaboration with the City of Pittsburgh Optimization of Traffic Signals on Pitt’s Campus Road Network to Reduce Fuel Consumption & GHG Emissions from Vehicular Traffic

Fifth Ave & Craig St Pedestrian Exclusive Phase Contraflow Bus Lanes Bike Lanes Dr. Alex Stevanovic’s lab is developing a microsimulation model for the Pitt campus area and optimizing traffic signal timings in an effort to reduce fuel consumption and associated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Building a comprehensive and accurate model considering various transportation modes (cars, buses, bikes, and pedestrians) requires a great amount of data, including traffic demand, turning movement counts, signal timing plans, etc. Working with the City of Pittsburgh and Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission (SPC), the data collection procedure is facilitated. The network consists of more than 50 intersections.

RESEARCH RESULTS

2022 MCSI Seed Grant Follow-On Funding Totals $4.23M

The goal of the MCSI Research Seed Grant Program is to catalyze the formation of convergent research teams focused on sustainability and related solutions. Since 2004, MCSI has supported over 115 faculty research projects, resulting in nearly $34.5 million in follow-on funding.

Project Title Source Amount PI

LEAP-HI: Optimal design and life-long adaptation of civil infrastructure in a changing and uncertain environment for a sustainable future National Science Foundation, LEAP-HI

Nurdle Monitoring, Source Identification, and Impact Analysis in the Ohio River Valley. Heinz Endowments Total: $2,000,000 Pitt: $384,981 Melissa Bilec

$ 50,000 Mike Blackhurst

Uncovering mechanisms of amphibian resilience to global change from molecules to landscapes Beyond Biodiversity Monitoring: Expanding Automated Acoustic Survey Methods to Examine Fundamental Questions of Community Interactions, Population Processes, & Ind Movement Automated Acoustic Monitoring of Focal Bird Species in Dynamic Forest Restoration Blocks in the PA Wilds and Laurel Highlands

Automated Acoustic Monitoring of Focal Bird Species in Dynamic Forest Restoration Blocks in the Delaware River Watershed

Design for RE-SOLAR NSF: BII

Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation

National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Central Appalachia Program National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Delaware River Program National Renewable Energy Laboratory Total $12,499,319 Pitt: $898,917 Justin Kitzes

$ 1,001,283 Justin Kitzes

$ 183,568 Justin Kitzes

$ 167,194 Justin Kitzes

Total: $2,079,047 Pitt: $378,191 Paul Leu

IUCRC Phase I: University of Pittsburgh: Center for Materials Data Science for Reliability NSF: IUCRC Industry-University Research Partnerships Total: $1,500,000 Pitt: $600,000 Paul Leu

Rare Earth Free Motor Designs with MnBi US Department of Energy $ 55,000 Paul Ohodnicki

IUCRC Planning Grant University of Pittsburgh: Center for Advanced Magnetics for Power and Energy Development (AMPED) FMSG: Cyber: Establishing a Cyber-Physical Framework and Pilot System of Wavelength Selective Photopolymerization based Rapid Continuous Multi-Material Manufacturing NSF: IUCRC Planning Grant $ 19,967 Paul Ohodnicki

NSF: CMMI $ 500,000 Xiayun (Sharon) Zhao

Aaron Barchowksy

Pittsburgh Center for Healthy Environments and Equity Research (CHEER) Pitt Momentum Award $400,000

Primary project goal is to create a nexus of multidisciplinary, intersectional, and community-based environmental health research focused on identifying and mitigating environmental health disparities (EHD). CHEER is coalescing around a core of faculty, students, and community partners intent on applying for a National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (P30) Core Center grant to greatly support research that addresses the extensive EHD found in the region, nationally, and globally.