The Barometer Online

Issue date: 5/14/07 Section: News

Media Credit: Peter Strong Ethan Sauret, 8, controls a FIRST robot constructed by Crescent Valley High School students at the OSU Engineering Expo Friday at Kelley Engineering Center, while his sister Genevieve, 5, looks on.

Racecars, bridges, robots and everything in between were on display at the Kelley Engineering Center Friday afternoon as students from every department of the college of engineering got a chance to display their latest work.

The OSU Engineering Expo and Robo*Palooza filled all four floors of the building as well as the surrounding sidewalks, showcasing over 100 student design prototypes and projects that engineering students had been developing this year as part of their senior capstone projects.

"This is a point when students demonstrate that they're ready to solve real engineering problems," said Ron Adams, dean of the college of engineering. Most students had been working on these projects all year, and many of them were sponsored by companies from the engineering industry.

Part trade show, part science fair, the expo offered a very diverse selection of high-tech gadgets as well as prototype solutions for real-world problems.

Renewable energy generators had a major presence, with projects that utilized wave, wind and solar power as well as biodiesel.

"[Projects] tend to be whatever is important today," Adams said. "That's why you're seeing a lot of renewable energy."

One project was a model batch reactor that could convert food oils produced on campus and alcohol into biodiesel fuel. Researchers have been looking into the process as a way to power campus.

"The tool shows where the problems would be," said Beth Knight, a senior in chemical engineering who worked on the model. "Figuring out … how to set things up, it's been a real learning experience, the highlight of my year."

Ian McDowell and Michael Munn, both majoring in computer science, created a software program that allows buoys to more effectively measure ocean wave activity. The goal is to monitor ocean currents to determine how much electricity could be produced from wave energy. They estimated that wave energy could be commercially viable within the next five years.

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