What if a fabric could conduct heat like metal, but still be flexible enough to be worn on the body? A Purdue ME team have discovered that a commercial polymer fabric called Dyneema, used for bulletproof vests, has remarkable heat-conducting properties, on par with stainless steel. This could lead to wearable electronics that successfully cool both the device and the wearer's skin.

This past semester, the College of Engineering offered associate professors the chance to introduce themselves and their work. Get to know Ilias Bilionis, Marcial Gonzalez, and Kejie Zhao in these engaging presentations.

Congratulations to all our Purdue ME graduates! Here are some photos from the Spring 2021 Commencement ceremonies.

Making fresh water out of seawater usually requires huge amounts of energy. The most widespread process for desalination is called reverse osmosis, which works by flowing seawater over a membrane at high pressure to remove the minerals. Now, David Warsinger's team has developed a variant of the process called “batch reverse osmosis,” which promises better energy efficiency, longer-lasting equipment and the ability to process water of much higher salinity. It could end up a difference-maker in water security around the world.

Purdue Formula SAE is a student design team that designs and builds a race car every year, competing against hundreds of other universities from around the world. Purdue has placed 2nd place in the Knowledge Events portion of the competition, where the team presents information about the car's design, business plan, and cost.

You've seen the Hoberman sphere: a toy with multiple joints and arms that expands into a sphere when you pull on it. Purdue University engineers have successfully created the first 2D nanoscale version of this structure using synthetic DNA molecules, furthering the potential of "DNA origami" as a manufacturing tool.

Purdue University has won 1st place in the Marine Energy Collegiate Competition, a contest sponsored by the US Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE).

Hypersonics, the study of vehicles that can travel faster than Mach 5, is the next uncharted frontier of aerospace. Thanks to a grant from the US Navy, a new Purdue Engineering collaboration is developing propulsion technologies that bring that vision closer to reality.

Associate Professor Tahira Reid Smith leads a lab focused on human-centered design. Over her career, she's gone outside the "traditional engineering box" and integrated compassion for the users of products and services into the design process - what she and colleagues refer to as "compassionate design." She has also leveraged her insights as a Black woman in mechanical engineering in her work. Together, these considerations led to the development of a compassionate design framework that helps engineers think critically about their design decisions and, in her case, an investigation of how heat from flat-irons can damage curly hair.

In the midst of a challenging semester (in which many students never even met face-to-face), Purdue ME seniors have created amazing new prototype products. The most innovative have received the Malott Innovation Awards.