Power of Choice for Sustainable Transportation

 

Abstract:

Powering a more sustainable and prosperous world requires both daring technical innovation and careful long-term goal setting. While serving as the backbone of the global economy by moving people and freight, the transportation sector has a complex environmental footprint. Its impact is further shaped by a combination of various national and local regulations and incentives, economic factors, ethical supply considerations, infrastructure, and of course rapidly evolving powertrain technologies. In this presentation we will examine recent advances in propulsion technologies based on batteries, fuel cells, and clean internal combustion engines from the perspective of their total “wells-to-wheels” emissions of greenhouse gases and other pollutants, as well as their demand for natural resources. The resulting solutions present a nuanced mix of technologies which may be best suited for different applications in the future, translating into a growing demand for research and education in multiple areas of engineering.

 

Biography:

At Cummins, a global power leader with a 100-year history of innovation, Dr. Aleksey (Alex) Yezerets leads the global Advanced Technologies Team in the corporate Research and Technology organization, responsible for the development of and support to electrification and emission control products across their life cycle. He also coordinates a portfolio of internal and collaborative programs with industrial and academic partners worldwide. This includes a very fruitful, two-decade partnership with the Catalysis group at Purdue, reflected in many high-impact joint publications. Alex maintains currency in his field through various professional, editorial, and graduate education activities in the U.S. and Europe. He holds a special appointment to the graduate faculty with the Department of Chemical Engineering at Purdue, having contributed to the training of 8 graduate students. He has co-authored 38 patents and 90 peer-reviewed publications, with over 4000 citations, and has presented numerous invited lectures. His contributions to a cleaner environment and to the professional community have been recognized by two innovation awards from Cummins, multiple awards from the International Society of Automotive Engineers, as well as from the American Chemical Society, the American Institute of Chemical Engineers,

the Catalysis Club of Chicago, and R&D100. He is an SAE Fellow.