AgendA
9 – 10:45 a.m. Session A – See schedule, page 2
10:45 – 11 a.m. Break
11 a.m. – 12:45 p.m. Session B – See schedule, page 5
12:45 – 1:45 p.m. Lunch Break
First, second, and third floors of Benedum Hall
1:45 – 2:15 p.m. Keynote Address by Brandon Contino CEO and Co-Founder, Four Growers
Benedum Hall, room 157 and broadcasted to the other conference rooms
2:15 – 2:45 p.m. Awards Presentation
Benedum Hall, room 157 and broadcasted to the other conference rooms
2:45 – 3 p.m. Break
3 – 4:45 p.m. Session C – See schedule, page 9
Thank you to
9 – 10:45 a.m. SESSION A
SESSION A1
Bioengineering Topics, Room: G31
BRAIN-CONTROLLED PROSTHETICS: GIVING THE BRAIN BACK CONTROL
Benjamin Bailey, Liliana Chmelar, Andrew Oliver
THE FLOATING CURE: UNLOCKING THE POTENTIAL JELLYFISH COLLAGEN SCAFFOLDING HOLDS FOR OSTEOARTHRITIS APPLICATIONS
Elizabeth Baxter, Amelie Collazo, Taylor Miller
THE IMPLEMENTATION OF NONELECTROENCEPHALOGRAM TECHNOLOGY FOR PORTABLE ACCURATE SEIZURE PREDICTION
Katelynn Hyndman, Sebastian Rosa, Abram Spinola
ORGANS ON CHIPS: THE FUTURE OF BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH AND DISEASE MODELING
Nadia Lynn Atkins, Arin Magesh, Andrew Yendluri
BIOPRINTING FOR ORGAN TRANSPLANT
Kaitlyn Angelucci, Gabrielle Camperson, Marcus Wahila
SMART PILLS: REVOLUTIONIZING NONINVASIVE DIAGNOSTICS IN THE GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT
Michael Hollihan, Samantha Meaney, Rachel Milcheck
SESSION A2
Civil and Environmental Engineering Topics, Room: 320
THE EMERGENCE OF VIRTUAL REALITY IN THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY TO CREATE A DIGITAL UNIVERSE
Jair Guerra, Elizabeth Peta, Ethan Poirot
KINETIC TILES: HARNESSING HUMAN MOVEMENT FOR SUSTAINABLE URBAN ENERGY
Jake Ochwat, Elamin Osman, Lakshman Sivaram
IMPLEMENTING CARBON NANOTUBES AS AN ADDITIVE IN CONCRETE FOR LONG-TERM STRUCTURAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL STABILITY
McKenna Brown, Maude Poirier, Elliot Reinking
ENGINEERING MARINE RESILIENCE: THE ROLE OF ARTIFICIAL REEFS IN COASTAL CONSERVATION
Noel Grignon, MacKenzie Rhykerd, Leila Usanovic
IMPROVING INFRASTRUCTURE IN OUR CITIES USING SELF-HEALING CONCRETE
Josh Kosmach, Hannah Mikovich, Lillyanna Staines
SESSION A3
Chemical Engineering Topics, Room: 318
POWERING THE FUTURE OF SUSTAINABLE ENERGY: THE ROLE OF LITHIUM-ION BATTERIES IN THE ELECTRIC VEHICLE REVOLUTION
Megan Grimm, Noah Morey, Abby Santora
HYDROGEN-POWERED ENGINES AS A WAY TO REDUCE CARBON EMISSIONS IN TRANSPORTATION
Miles Hartlage, Han Kloosterman, Joe Nguyen
REVOLUTIONIZING MEAT PRODUCTION WITH CELL-BASED PROTEINS
Ella Koontz, Savannah Lang, Aaron Ruth
ADVANCING CANCER TREATMENT: THE IMPROVEMENT OF TARGETED THERAPY USING CLICK CHEMISTRY
Joey Frank, Karis Judd, Amelie Turmel
ADVANCING ETHANOL: A SUSTAINABLE ALTERNATIVE TO TRADITIONAL GASOLINE IN THE UNITED STATES
Samuel Orshan, Camden Smith, Alexander Vincent
TREATING SICKLE CELL DISEASE AND BETA-THALASSEMIA USING CASGEVY AND CRISPR GENE EDITING
Danielle Berdik, Jacob Milgrub, Sarah Peduzzi
SESSION A4
Electrical and Computer Engineering Topics, Room: G30
CONTINUOUS GLUCOSE MONITORING: INNOVATIONS, CHALLENGES, AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS
Ethan Gubin, Mikayla Terrana, Gavin Valentino
NEUROMORPHIC COMPUTERS: BRINGING BRAIN POWER TO SELF-DRIVING CARS
Bilal Algarhy, John Mason, Joseph McNicholas
MICROCHIPS FOR BODY MODIFICATION
Owen Denny, Sloane Dowd, Reeya Thakkar
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF LIDAR IN AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES
Colin Crawford, Nikhil Karthikeyan, Dante Smith
THE EMERGENCE OF AUGMENTED REALITY TO IMPROVE LEARNING OUTCOMES
Alvin Cheung, Elias Emahizer, Oscar Lorenzi
INCREASING ELECTRIC VEHICLE CAPABILITY THROUGH EMBEDDED DYNAMIC WIRELESS POWER TRANSFER SYSTEMS IN ROADS
Scott McShea, Alex Smith, Benjamin Vernon
SESSION A5
Assorted Engineering Topics, Room: G29
INNOVATIVE ADVANCEMENTS IN BIOELECTRONIC UPPER LIMB PROSTHETICS
Michael Bowser, Emerson Daneker, Molly Walsh
ARTIFICIAL HEARTS REVOLUTIONIZING THE TREATMENT OF HEART FAILURE
Chloe Acuna, Lillian Scarlett, Brian Schlafly
ADVANCEMENTS IN ROBOTIC ASSISTED TECHNOLOGIES
Mark Gray, Marianna Claire Lawrence, Liyana Paiker
THE DEVELOPMENT OF 3D BIOPRINTED CARTILAGE TO IMPROVE OSTEOARTHRITIS PATIENT OUTCOMES
Monish Botla, Maxwell Kennedy, Sarvesh Senguttuvan
THE ETHICS AND EFFECTIVENESS OF PREDICTIVE AI IN STROKE TREATMENT
Joseph George, Jude Howard, Riley Kish
THE USE OF LIDAR TECHNOLOGY IN AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES TO IMPROVE ROAD SAFETY
Kurt Maiden, Colton Park, Ayush Sanghavi
SESSION A6
Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science Topics, Room: 226
SOFT ROBOTIC PROSTHETICS: DEXTERITY IN LIGHT-WEIGHT ARTIFICIAL HANDS
Ashley Daley, Alyssa Trimble, Theo Wilkinson
THE APPLICATION OF MAGLEV TECHNOLOGY TO IMPROVE MODERN TRANSPORTATION
Peter Boswell, Ja Den Hudgens, Grant Miller
UTILIZING NUCLEAR POWER THROUGH SMR IMPLEMENTATION
Bennett Fix, Alexander Lieb
THE ADVANCEMENT OF BIODEGRADABLE BANDAGES TO ALLEVIATE SUFFERING CAUSED BY CHRONIC WOUNDS
Marcos Arbelaez, Michael Murphy, John Nikolatos
MEDICAL EXOSKELETONS: FUNCTIONALITY AND EFFECTIVENESS ON GAIT REHABILITATION IN AN OUTPATIENT SETTING
Sribhavya Adusumilli, Xiya Lin, Ian Whitaker
SOLID STATE LITHIUM SULFIDE BATTERIES AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO LIQUID CRYSTAL ELECTROLYTE LITHIUM ION CELLS
Daniel Elkoni, Conrad Gargani, Adamo Shugg
SESSION A7
Bioengineering Panel 1, Room: 229
SESSION A8
Civil and Environmental Engineering Panel 1, Room: 102
SESSION A9
Chemical Engineering Panel 1, Room: 319
SESSION A10
Electrical and Computer Engineering Panel 1, Room: 309
SESSION A11
Industrial Engineering Panel 1, Room: 227
SESSION A12
Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science Panel 1, Room: G27
10:45 – 11 a.m. BREAK
SESSION A13
Assorted Engineering Topics, Room: G28
HOW AI IS REWRITING THE CLASSROOM
Finn Carlin, Gavin Jacobs
FUTURE OF NUCLEAR FUSION: CHALLENGES, BREAKTHROUGHS, AND POSSIBILITIES ON MAGNETIC CONFINEMENT FUSION
Zachary Call, Marissa Fix, Merideth Oister
SYNTHETIC SPIDER SILK SUTURES: ENGINEERING BIO-INSPIRED SOLUTIONS FOR SURGERY
Abbie Bruce, Symon Seyfert, Jessie Wienckoski
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE NAVIGATION: THE BRAIN OF AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES
Daniel Kim, Louis Mariano, Adithya Ramadas Guptha
11 a.m. – 12:45 p.m. SESSION B
SESSION B1
Bioengineering Topics, Room: G31
NEUROMODULATION AND THE NEXT GENERATION OF SENSORY PROSTHETICS
Savannah Donahue, Luke Murray, Kathryn Wingerson
3D BIOPRINTING USING BIOMIMETIC NATURAL BIOMATERIALS IN TISSUE ENGINEERING
Samantha Cook, Kaylee Douge, Jacob Shaffer
SIMULATING THE FUTURE: EVALUATING DIGITAL TWINS
Ava Gray, Rishi Manoj, Ava Murnyack
AN IN-DEPTH EVALUATION OF THE DA VINCI SURGICAL SYSTEM’S EVOLUTION IN THORACIC SURGERY
Tessa Kehler, Chace Snyder, Mia van Heerden
TREATING SICKLE CELL DISEASE AND BETA-THALASSEMIA
USING CASGEVY AND CRISPR GENE EDITING
Micah Nagle, Declan Waters, Damian Winters
A NEW ERA IN MEDICAL RESEARCH: ORGAN CHIPS AS A REPLACEMENT FOR ANIMAL TESTING
Leah Kerber, Slade Pfadt, Dawson Wenslovas
SESSION B2
Civil and Environmental Engineering Topics, Room: 320
PIEZOELECTRIC ENERGY-HARVESTING PAVEMENTS: A NEW AVENUE FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY
Madeline Dillon, Joel Sommers, Rylee Yeager
LOOKING INTO THE FUTURE OF 3D PRINTED HOMES
Kyle Johns, Evan Kaminski, Collin Kerrigan
HOW BASILISK’S SELF-HEALING CONCRETE INCREASES CONCRETE DURABILITY
Tyler Hoff, Caroline Taylor, Elizabeth Warwick
THE TECHBRO SOLUTION FOR ELECTRIC CARS
Trey Bauer, Theo Dankoff
REDUCING DETRIMENTAL PARTICULATE MATTER THROUGH THE USE OF POLLUTANT ABSORBING BRICKS
Yanni Rose Chau, Olivia Jeram, Jonas K. Wilbur
THE UTILIZATION OF CERAMIC ULTRAFILTRATION
MEMBRANES FOR WASTEWATER TREATMENT
Shriya Bapat, Andrew Ko, Martin Rice
SESSION B3
Chemical Engineering Topics, Room: 318
TRAIN EMISSION REDUCTION USING HYDROGEN FUEL CELLS
Ethan Bell, Lorenzo Reid, Charlie Sinrod
ADVANTAGES OF LITHIUM GLASS BATTERIES OVER LITHIUM-ION BATTERIES AND ITS APPLICATIONS IN ELECTRIC VEHICLES
John Dufour, Nathan Mathias, Jakub Orybkiewicz
THE INTEGRATION OF MICROBIAL BASED PLASTICS IN ORDER TO REPLACE POLYETHYLENE TEREPHTHALATE (PET) IN SINGLE USE WATER BOTTLES
Jack Bozarth, Tyler Craciun, Alex Gordon
CO2 -DRIVEN ENHANCED OIL RECOVERY: APPLICATION, SUSTAINABILITY, ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
Ricardo Moctezuma-Medina, Mandresy Raparaoelina, Elliott Sanders
USE OF IRON FUEL AS A REUSABLE ENERGY CARRIER TO REPLACE FOSSIL FUELS
Jack Barbutes, Kylee Bernhard, Sarah Pomager
BIOFUELS: A SUSTAINABLE PATH TO RENEWABLE ENERGY
Zachary Davis, Albert Levin, Jack Nolin
SESSION B4
Electrical and Computer Engineering Topics, Room: G30
THE FIGURE 2 ROBOT AND ITS POTENTIAL IMPACT ON THE MANUFACTURING WORKFORCE IN THE UNITED STATES
Aiden Abreu, Karsten Bardenhagen, Ari Hernandez
EXPLORING SOLID-STATE BATTERIES AS A POWER SOURCE FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLES
Danny Blanch, Owen Liu, Eric Van de Putte
HYDROGEN-BASED ENERGY TO FUEL IRON ORE REDUCTION IN THE STEEL INDUSTRY
Robert Beckman, Brayden Luke, Joshua Zipay
THE ROLE OF LIDAR AND CAMERA TECHNOLOGY IN ADVANCING AUTONOMOUS VEHICLE FUNCTION AND SAFETY
Brock Alekson, Jimmy Howe, Owen Teufel
PIEZOELECTRIC FLOOR TILES: PROVIDING ENERGY ONE STEP AT A TIME
Jeremiah Cessna, Nick Euteneuer, Nick Frascella
THE EMERGENCE OF TRIBOELECTRIC NANOGENERATORS IN WEARABLE HEALTH MONITORING TECHNOLOGY
Benjamin Kitchen, Issa Lan Taitt
SESSION B5
Assorted Engineering Topics, Room: G29
INTEGRATION OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN MODERN PROSTHETICS
Marko Rudek, Pranav Vaddadi, Eric Zheng
SAVING LIVES THROUGH THREE-DIMENSIONAL BIOPRINTING
Natalie Burrell, Francesca Gambino, Matthew Maniscalco
EXPLORING POTENTIAL BIOMEDICAL APPLICATIONS OF SYNTHETIC SPIDER SILK
Nolan Mcginn, Maddy Moore, Tim Unurchuluun
THE USE OF LIDAR TECHNOLOGY IN AUTOMOBILES TO ENHANCE DETECTION CAPABILITIES
Sean Armour, Jasmine Horton, Elijah Phillips
NEUTRON IMAGING TO STUDY MOLTEN-SALT INTRUSION OF GRAPHITE MODERATORS
Jason Cushing, Ian Ireland, Zachary Rudoi
THE WEAPONIZATION OF INTELLIGENCE: AI’S EVOLVING ROLE IN MODERN WARFARE
Beau Cochrane, Ryan Ford, Korey Lowe
SESSION B6
Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science Topics, Room: 226
REUSABLE ROCKETRY: A SUSTAINABLE APPROACH TO SPACE TRAVEL AND RESEARCH
Luke Latyak, Logan Willrich, Noah Zimmerman
SOLID-STATE BATTERIES: A CLEANER PATH TO ENERGY STORAGE
Andela Dozier, Mackenzie Gutberlet, Drew Hendricks
THE UTILIZATION OF THE GRCOP-42 SUPERALLOY IN CONSTRUCTING ROCKET COMBUSTION CHAMBERS WITH ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING
Nathan Collis, Paulien Donnelly, Brendan Johns
THE POTENTIAL FOR THORIUM AS A CLEAN NUCLEAR FUEL SOURCE
Michael Mccollum, Luke Neiswender, Sophia Russo
OFFSHORE WIND POWER: ADVANCEMENTS TOWARD CARBON NEUTRALITY
Alannah Carter, Liam Ong, Beatrix Pawlikowsky
ELECTRIC TURBOCHARGERS: REVOLUTIONIZING AUTOMOTIVE PERFORMANCE AND ENHANCING EFFICIENCY
Thomas Conrad, Abrar Hossain, Tyler Rosario
SESSION B7
Bioengineering Panel 2, Room: 229
SESSION B8
Civil and Environmental Engineering Panel 2, Room: 102
SESSION B9
Chemical Engineering Panel 2, Room: 319
SESSION B10
Electrical and Computer Engineering Panel 2, Room: 309
SESSION B11
Industrial Engineering Panel 2, Room: 227
SESSION B12
Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science Panel 2, Room: G27
SESSION B13
Assorted Engineering Topics, Room: G28
ORGAN-ON-CHIP TECHNOLOGY: UTILIZING ORGAN MICROENVIRONMENTS TO CREATE A MORE EFFICIENT DRUG TESTING INDUSTRY
Clayton Ackerman, Samuel Koehler, Jack Robertson
ARTIFICIAL POLLINATION TECHNIQUES: COULD ROBOTIC INSECTS SOLVE OUR POLLINATION PROBLEM?
Kyle Johnson, Matthew Stonis, Horacio Tous
ARTIFICIAL MYOFIBERS AND REVOLUTIONARY INFLUENCE IN HUMANOID ROBOTS
Colleen Fromhartz, Anya Nair, Jean Paul Portuguez
HOW AI IS FURTHER DEVELOPING PROSTHETICS AND HELPING AMPUTEES
Albert Foessel, Niall Hughes, William Richards
12:45 – 1:45 p.m. LUNCH BREAK
1:45 – 2:15 p.m. Keynote
During this time, Brandon Contino from Four Growers will give the keynote talk.
Biography – Brandon Contino
Brandon graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a BS in Electrical Engineering in 2017. While at Pitt, Brandon had the opportunity to simultaneously be the President of the Engineering Student Council, where he led an established organization of 100+ members, the President of the Robotics and Automation Society, where he grew the club from 5 to 60 people in two years and won multiple robotics competitions, and the President of the Panther Amateur Radio Club. In addition to his work in clubs, Brandon worked as a researcher for different professors and worked on projects from designing algorithms for optimal solar cell functioning, to using radio frequencies to localize objects in the human body, to developing artificial neural networks to assist in brain surgeries. During his final summer Brandon secured two different grants which enabled him to fund a self-designed low-cost IoT water quality sensor to help improve the monitoring of our waterways. It was through this he learned about water scarcity, and became heavily interested in how we can reduce the demands placed on our freshwater resources, which led to a focus on agriculture and the creation of Four Growers with his friend and labmate, Dan.
Four Growers is a YCombinator backed startup that develops and deploys world leading AI and robotics to create a world where sustainably grown, nutritious food is accessible for everyone. Their first product, a harvesting and analytics robot, is already deployed across North American and European greenhouse farms, and has picked millions of tomatoes at speeds faster than people. This versatile technology has expanded to harvest cucumbers and provides detailed plant-by-plant scouting feedback – capabilities unprecedented in agricultural robotics. Their solution is augmenting the vanishing farm labor force to ensure the resiliency of our food system and enabling countries to continue to produce higher quality, sustainable produce, with less.
2:15 – 2:45 p.m. Awards Presentation
2:45 – 3 p.m. Break
3 – 4:45 p.m. SESSION C
SESSION C1
Bioengineering Topics, Room: G31
FROM JEDI TO ENGINEER: AN EVALUATION OF ADVANCED BIONIC PROSTHETICS AND THE “LUKE” ARM
McKenna Kerns, Sophie Lopez, Brandon Mason
INTEGRATION OF BIOENGINEERED LUNGS-ON-CHIPS IN PULMONARY DISEASE OBSERVATION
Nora Broering, Rabia Guler, Mary Muirhead
ANALYZING ROBOTIC ASSISTANCE IN LAPAROSCOPIC SURGERY
Akhilesh Baddi, Morgan Jackson, Sage Szumski
USING SPRAYABLE NANOFIBERS TO REVOLUTIONIZE THE MEDICAL FIELD
Aidan Quinn, Cosimo Rich, Ethan Simeral
NANOBIOTECHNOLOGY AND ITS APPLICATIONS IN CANCER RESEARCH
Joy-Shiloh Beltchika, Alex Metz, Harini Sundar
COLLAGEN-BASED BIOMATERIALS AND THEIR APPLICATIONS IN TISSUE GROWTH AND ORGAN MANUFACTURE
Abraham Tay, Keller Ulrich, Jakob Weisser
SESSION C2
Civil and Environmental Engineering Topics, Room: 320
USING EXPANDED POLYSTYERENE FOR STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS IN RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION: ENERGY EFFICIENCY, ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY, AND DURABILITY
Ilim Abzarov, Jonathan LeStourgeon, Sean McGuigan
UTILIZATION OF MICROBIAL DEGRADATION TO BREAK DOWN MICROPLASTICS IN WATER
Autumn Tapia, Tyson Truong
EVALUATING THE EFFICIENCY AND SUSTAINABILITY OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING IN CONSTRUCTION
Lola Abraham, Terran Henderson, Abbey Stewart
REDUCING ATMOSPHERIC CARBON DIOXIDE THROUGH THE USE OF SOLID SORBENTS IN DIRECT AIR CAPTURE DEVICES
Cole Casner, Eymi Ibarra Vazquez, Elena Polar
DEVELOPMENT AND UTILIZATION OF SELF-HEALING CONCRETE
Spencer Armbrust, Emmanuel Kasato, Elliott Webb
SESSION C3
Chemical Engineering Topics, Room: 318
HYDROGEN FUEL CELLS: CURBING FOSSIL FUEL USAGE AROUND THE GLOBE
Aidan Chau, Ashley Hosni, Kacper Nieradka
DECREASING PLASTIC POLLUTION THROUGH FAST-PETASE ENZYMES
Evan Baird, Molly Sickles
EXPLORING HYDROGEN AS A GREEN FUEL SOURCE FOR AVIATION
Aleeza Greenstein, Hugo Seehaver
PEROVSKITE SOLAR CELLS: ADVANCING BEYOND SILICON TO POWER THE FUTURE OF SOLAR ENERGY
Lucas Bucht, Patrick Dugan, Aubrey Macri
OPTIMIZING GRID STORAGE: THE ROLE OF MANGANESE ZINC DIOXIDE BATTERIES IN SUSTAINABLE ENERGY STORAGE
Manny Arias, James Cerny, Jake Watson
EFFECTIVENESS OF MODIFICATIONS IN SINGLE CRYSTAL CERAMIC SUPERCONDUCTORS FOR SUPERCONDUCTING WIRE IN MICROELECTRONICS
Collin Hinkley, Brayden Reeves, Ryan Shollenberger
SESSION C4
Electrical and Computer Engineering Topics, Room: G30
THE INTEGRATION OF AI IN DIGITAL TWIN TECHNOLOGY FOR INDUSTRIAL PROCESS OPTIMIZATION
Alexander Braun, Isabella Keller, Annalise Stroup
COMPLEMENTARY FIELD-EFFECT TRANSISTORS: AN ANALYSIS OF ITS ABILITY TO CONTINUE TRANSISTOR DEVELOPMENT
Aidan Duong, Dennis Kindig
OPTIMIZING EFFICIENCY WITH MICROINVERTERS
Anna Farmer, Shane Mcdonough, Caden Roper
INTRUSION DETECTION SYSTEMS AND THEIR GROWTH THROUGH MACHINE LEARNING
Hania Ahmad, Michael Kawczynski, Krishna Srigiriraju
THE ROLE OF AUTONOMOUS TECHNOLOGY IN MODERN FARMING
Peter Ricci, Luke Shope, Samuel Tristani
SESSION C5
Industrial Engineering Topics, Room: G29
REVOLUTIONIZING SHIPPING PROCESSES THROUGH THE IMPLEMENTATION OF MACHINE LEARNING
Julia Cooney, Ryan Linnenbaugh, Angus Penn
OPTIMIZING METAL ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING WITH DIGITAL TWINS
Sarah Hogan, Ava Paolone
THE ROLE OF DIGITAL TWINS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE BOEING REDHAWK T-7A
Dan Dalton, Sofia Dillon, Elena Fairfull
THE IMPACT OF 3D-PRINTED SHOES ON FOOTWEAR AND FOOT CARE
Grant Fodi, Simon Moak, Jonathan Sair
NVIDIA OMNIVERSE AND THE MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY
Daniel Bracken, Joseph Mollura, Spencer Walsh
MAXIMIZING THE ECONOMY EFFICIENCY OF 3D/ADDITIVE PRINTING BY MINIMIZING MATERIAL WASTE THROUGH EFFECTIVE MANUFACTURING DESIGN
Aiden Corage, Eric Klaiman
SESSION C6
Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science Topics, Room: 226
SMRS: A CLEAN APPROACH TO WATER DESALINATION
Emma Curry, Alexis Hammerling, Ricky Harless
HYDROGEN FUEL CELLS: FUNCTIONALITY, IMPLEMENTATION, PERFORMANCE AND BENEFITS AS ALTERNATIVE TO INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES
Jacob Cable, Thomas Mcguire, Pranav Udupa
THE PROPOSED GO-LOW SATELLITE ARRAY FOR DEEP-SPACE OBSERVATION OF LOW-FREQUENCY
RADIO SIGNALS
Noah Buffington, Cadence Ford, Sophia Perezous
USAGE OF COLLABORATIVE ROBOTS IN AUTOMOTIVE MANUFACTURING TO KEEP JOBS AND IMPROVE EFFICIENCY
Owen Acitelli, Jacob Lefebvre, Philip Sharp
THE USE OF 3D PRINTING IN THE PRODUCTION OF CAR PARTS
Braden Bauer, Anthony Crago, Dylan Roberts
ANALYZING THE CAPABILITIES AND USE CASES OF BOSTON DYNAMIC’S SPOT ROBOT
William Beck, Caleb Custer, Aaron Smith
SESSION C7
Bioengineering Topics, Room: 229
ASSESSING THE DEVELOPMENT OF SMALL-DIAMETER TISSUE-ENGINEERED VASCULAR GRAFTS
Chris Margadonna, Umur Turgut, Matthias Wiezorek
ORGAN ON A CHIP: AN EXAMINATION OF A NEW DRUG TESTING INNOVATION
Vicki Dong, Theodore Pilko, Emmie Stouffer
EVALUATING ACTIVE-TARGETING LIPOSOMES FOR IMPROVED CHEMOTHERAPEUTICS DELIVERY
Vibha Mitti, Sasha Roth, Travis Shaffer
LIPID-NANOPARTICLE DELIVERY SYSTEMS: THEIR APPLICATION IN MRNA VACCINE DELIVERY
Catherine Kirkwood, Maximilian Levine, Jameson Slusarek
BIOMIMETIC APPROACHES IN SOFT ROBOTICS: EVALUATING EFFICACY AND LIMITATIONS IN PROSTHETIC TECHNOLOGY THROUGH HOLISTIC ANALYSIS
Alex Adams, Manya Natakala, Naz Sarikaya
BRAIN-COMPUTER INTERFACE (BCI) TECHNOLOGY: REVOLUTIONIZING PROSTHETICS FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH LIMB LOSS
Akshat Barjatiya, Sophia Liao, Aashi Patel
SESSION C8
Assorted Engineering Topics, Room: 157
EMERGING INFRARED LICENSE PLATE SCANNERS AND ITS EFFECTS ON TRAFFIC CONGESTION PRICING
Ryleigh Marks, Gavin Pollock, Sarah Yoon
COMBATTING CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES WITH ARTIFICIAL CARDIAC TISSUE ENGINEERING AND BIOPRINTED HEART VALVES
Josiah Lieb, Kavya Patel, Avery Yelle
A COMPREHENSIVE ASSESSMENT OF MRNA VACCINES
Owen Cobb, Logan Hunt, Christian Jantio
CRISPR TECHNOLOGY AND EBT-101: A POTENTIAL CURE FOR HIV
Michael Benke, Diya Bhagat, Julia Jordan
USING INFRARED IMAGING DEVICES TO ENHANCE SAFETY, SITUATIONAL AWARENESS, AND EFFECTIVENESS OF MILITARY AIRCRAFT
Justin Fry, Harkrit Sandhu, Stephen Showalter
GRAPHENE SUPERCAPACITORS USED FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY STORAGE IN THE ENERGY GRID
Jack Estock, Derek Fetsko, Harrison Jordan
SESSION C9
Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science Topics, Room: 319
THE EMERGENCE OF AI AND RESCUE ROBOTS TO IMPROVE WILDFIRE RESPONSE AND DISASTER RELIEF
Matthew Farrah, Jake Orenstein, Alexander Smolens
GRAPHENE-NANOCOMPOSITES: SHAPING THE FUTURE OF AEROSPACE
Nathan Belculfine, Ethan Gutstadt, Logan Mierzwicki
PRODUCING LIGHTWEIGHT, DURABLE AUTOMOTIVE PARTS USING DIRECT METAL LASER SINTERING
Dylan Bedoya, Aubrey Gonzalez, Jolie Rodriguez
DART: PLANETARY DEFENSE TECHNOLOGY THAT CAN SAVE THE WORLD
Brody Dugan, Isaac Jiang, Charlie Spoales
MECHANISMS OF SMALL MODULAR REACTOR TECHNOLOGY AND THE APPLICATIONS OF THEIR GENERATIVE OUTPUTS
Ricardo Cabrera, Jack Craig, Charlie Sweeney
THE EMERGENCE OF E-VTOLS TO REVOLUTIONIZE URBAN AIR MOBILITY
Nicholas Palone, Ryan Zergani
SESSION C10
Electrical and Computer Engineering Topics, Room: 309
3D-PRINTING’S IMPACT ON THE HOUSING INDUSTRY TO CREATE MORE SUSTAINABLE, EFFICIENT, AND COST-EFFECTIVE HOMES
Anthony Arlia, Aaron Gross, Jackson Kime
SENSORS AND SENSOR FUSION IN AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES
Dillon Gibbons, Joseph Longhi, Tony Rigas
THE DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF SMART GRID SYSTEMS TO CREATE A MORE EFFICIENT AND SUSTAINABLE FUTURE
Evan Benscoter, Nick Porter, Alexander Stec
THE ADVANCEMENT OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TECHNOLOGY THROUGH GRAPHICS CARDS
Tarnveer Blagan, Perry Bowser, Dylan Monte
BEHAVIORAL MACHINE LEARNING AND UEBA: THE FUTURE OF CYBER SECURITY
Jackson Brotman, Ben Klaus, Evan Reddinger
EXPLORING THE USE OF VIRTUAL REALITY IN ENGINEERING DESIGN MODELS
Victoria Caroddo, Emanuel Gayanilo
SESSION C11
Bioengineering Topics, Room: 227
REVOLUTIONIZING BURN TREATMENT THROUGH UTILIZATION OF 3-D PRINTED SKIN TISSUE
Brooke Hudec, Kennedy Lutz, Oliver Williams
NANOPARTICLE TECHNOLOGY AND THE DIRECT TRANSPORTATION OF CHEMOTHERAPY DRUGS TO BRAIN TUMORS
Marco Basso, Robert Hoffmann, Richard Polovina
MAGNESIUM AS A BIOMATERIAL FOR BONE FRACTURES: CONTEMPORARY MATERIALS, CURRENT APPLICATIONS, RESEARCH, AND THE FUTURE OF ORTHOPEDIC IMPLANTS
Jacob Gilmore, Andrew Nawn, Jude Taha
CRISPR/CAS9 TO INCREASE HBF PRODUCTION AS A TREATMENT OF SICKLE CELL DISEASE
Akash Malleeswaran, Alaina Wenitsky, Michael Wylie
INNOVATING BLOOD TRANSFUSIONS THROUGH SYNTHETIC BLOOD
Zaina Ansari, Mathew Hernandez, Alyssa Weber
REVIVING THE BRAIN: THE CURE OF NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASES WITH STEM CELL THERAPY
Steve Grud, Anthony Hollo, Samantha Solomon
SESSION C12
Chemical Engineering Topics, Room: G27
RENEWABLE WATER: A SUSTAINABLE SOLUTION TO GLOBAL WATER SCARCITY
Chidinma Egbeni, Jesse Sommers
DIRECT METHANOL FUEL CELLS AS AN ALTERNATIVE ENERGY SOURCE FOR THE DISADVANTAGED
Evan Allen, Gage Pegher, Lino Zosa
REDUCING CARBON DIOXIDE EMISSIONS THROUGH ALTERNATIVES TO FLY ASH IN CONCRETE
Ethan Dibonifazio, Leo Ladik, Andrew Schmithorst
HYDROGEN FUEL CELL APPLICATIONS IN COMMERCIAL AIRLINES
Khylee Hollins-Greene, Frederick Ortiz, Victoria Rivera Quadreny
REDUCING GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS USING THERMOELECTRIC WOOD-BASED SPONGES
Evan Comiciotto, Stella Kennedy, Madeleine Stone
THE EXPLORATION OF HYDROGEN PRODUCTION AND THE FUTURE OF GREEN ENERGY
Chase Davidson, Althea Kermah
SESSION C13
Assorted Engineering Topics, Room: G28
ADVANCING DATA TRANSMISSION: HARNESSING SILICON PHOTONICS FOR HIGH-SPEED, ENERGY-EFFICIENT OPTICAL COMMUNICATION
Augustine Cho, Tomer Tuti, Sean Vargas
AN IN-DEPTH REVIEW OF NANOCELLULOSE SOFT ACTUATORS IN BIOMIMETIC ROBOTICS
Sophia Cramer, Ali Siddiqui, Nadia Zribi
THE ROBOTIC HEART SLEEVE; CHANGING THE FUTURE OF HEART FAILURE TREATMENT
Maxwell Bauman, Jared Johnson
MYOELECTRIC PROSTHESES: A CONNECTION TO PROSTHETICS FROM ELECTROMYOGRAPHY, MULTIARTICULATING JOINTS, UTILITY, AND DEVELOPMENT
Lindsey Caplan, Michael Chibisov, Timothy Driscoll
CONFERENCE PANELISTS
The Swanson School of Engineering would like to recognize and thank all the panelists for their participation in this event. Their efforts are essential to the success of the conference.
Emma Ahlgren
Jared Andes
Nick Andes
Robert Boback
Casey Cadman
Michael Casey
Josh Ciampini
Elizabeth Cook
Dave Gau
Nicole Gaussa
Alyssa Long
Beth Lyman
Patrick Lyons
Joe MacDonald
CONFERENCE CO-CHAIRS
Kerry McCarthy
Nate McGuire
Rachel McLoughlin
Chris Mensah
Michael Reinhart
Paige Risley
Liam Salter
Taylor Shippling
Jami Stuckey
Dustin Taylor
Adam Walkowiak
Conference co-chairs are instrumental to the success of the First-Year Engineering Conference. They serve as resources and mentors as students prepare for their conference presentations. They also serve as session moderators during the conference.
Karleigh Bubeck
Evan Chao
Andrew Cohen
Madelyn DiMarco
Kayla Franchetti
Ryan Fry
Simeona Hein
Kristina Heins
Daniel Marren
Emma Mills
Christopher Moran
Heather Phillips
ENGISH DEPARTMENT FACULTY AND LIBRARIANS
Hannah Reeve
The Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts & Sciences Department of English faculty teaching with the English/First-Year Engineering Writing Program are essential to the First-Year Engineering Conference. These Writing Instructors create the assignments that guide students through the conference paper process, read and evaluate all conference papers, and provide support to students throughout the writing process.
Renee Prymus Director
Liberty Ferda
Assistant Director
Julie Albright
Amanda Brant
Laura Brown
Engineering Library
Tina Cafasso
Janine Carlock
Cristina D’Imperio
Nora Fussner
Deborah Galle
Tyler Hensley
Isabella Luciani
Nancy Koerbel
Thomas Marchi
Jenna Massaro
Tyler McAndrew
Dan McMillan
Rachel McTernan
Johanna Murphy
Kat Myers
Emelyn Smith-Ferris
Katy Rank Lev
Andrew Yim
Thanks also to the Bevier Engineering Library and to the University of Pittsburgh Writing Center. Librarians and Writing Center consultants assist many first-year engineering students throughout spring and fall semesters.