The School of Mechanical Engineering has announced recipients for several graduate-level departmental fellowships and scholarships for the 2023-2024 academic year.

Graphene, a material which consists of a single layer of carbon atoms, has been celebrated by many as the “next big thing” in material science. But according to Purdue University researchers, its thermal properties may not be as revolutionary as previously thought.

On the highway of heat transfer, thermal energy is moved by way of quantum particles called phonons. But at the nanoscale of today’s most cutting-edge semiconductors, those phonons don’t remove enough heat. That’s why Purdue University researchers are focused on opening a new nanoscale lane on the heat transfer highway by using hybrid quasiparticles called “polaritons.”

Every year, the intrepid students of Purdue Baja Racing design and build their own off-road race car, competing against other universities in a series of challenges. In 2023, Purdue Baja capped a season of top finishes with a 1st place triumph at Backwoods Baja in Wisconsin.

The Electrochemical Safety Research Institute (ESRI) and Purdue University have signed an agreement to establish the Center for Advances in Resilient Energy Storage (CARES), a research hub that will explore the design and operation of batteries and energy-storage systems in general, as well as their impact on safety and sustainability.

A team led by Guillermo Paniagua was honored with the “Best HPC Collaboration” award in HPCwire’s 2023 Readers’ and Editors’ Choice Awards for its work developing novel engine components that will have implications for decarbonized power generation. The team used the Rosen Center for Advanced Computing (RCAC)’s Bell supercomputer to run simulations.

Purdue’s Herrick Labs hosts the world’s largest academic lab devoted to heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration (HVAC&R). Two Herrick faculty recently received funding from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to advance HVAC&R technologies designed to be more sustainable, resilient, and energy efficient.

Mukerrem Cakmak and Alex Chortos are part of a $3 million NSF project to manufacture electronic components using sustainable bioplastics.

Thermal grease is the goop inside your computer that seals the heat sink to the processor. But like all complex fluids, the way thermal grease flows and moves depends on the conditions it is exposed to. And when it deteriorates, so does your processor’s performance. Purdue University researchers have used machine learning to uncover the rheology of thermal grease, determining what causes it to flow or break down, and how to stop it from happening.

Marcial Gonzalez, Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering, was chosen to attend the 2023 EU-US Frontiers of Engineering Symposium in October 2023.