Her project is titled “Control of Advanced Fuel-Flexible Multi-Cylinder Engines”.  This Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) project will investigate the dynamics and control of advanced combustion strategies that have the potential to increase the efficiency of fuel-flexible diesel engines by up to 20 percent. The use of alternative fuels in modern vehicles typically results in higher production of some pollutants, as well as a drop in efficiency. However, the combination of alternative fuels along with more advanced combustion techniques has the potential to solve this problem, and provide efficient, clean power for transportation. While the benefits of this strategy have been demonstrated in highly monitored laboratory environments, significant improvements in the control of multi-cylinder engines are needed before these benefits can be realized in production vehicles. This project will create estimation and control methods for complex engine systems. The project will also provide opportunities for underrepresented students to work in this critical area of transportation energy research.

Carrie received her Ph.D. under the direction of Prof. Greg Shaver.  She is currently an Assistant Professor of Mechanical Materials and Aerospace Engineering in the Armour College of Engineering at Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, IL.

Her NSF award description is available at http://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1553823