Penn State Energy and Environment News

Five Penn State researchers awarded grants by Kaufman Foundation

| psu.edu

The Charles E. Kaufman Foundation has selected two projects led by Penn State researchers to receive New Initiatives grants in 2019.

Four new faculty members join Department of Chemical Engineering

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Four new faculty members joined Penn State’s Department of Chemical Engineering this academic year.

Innovating vehicle technology possible with new mechanical engineering faculty

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Herschel Pangborn, a State College native, is returning to Penn State in January 2020 as an assistant professor of mechanical engineering.

Nanotechnology expert joins industrial engineering department

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Hongtao Sun, an expert in nanoscience and nanotechnology, will join the Penn State Harold and Inge Marcus Department of Manufacturing and Industrial Engineering as an assistant professor on Aug. 15. He is also a co-hire of the Materials Research Institute.

Data assimilation method offers improved hurricane forecasting

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Operational models for severe weather forecasting predicted Hurricane Harvey would become a Category 1 hurricane in 2017, according to the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research. Instead, it became a massive Category 4 just before it made landfall, tying Hurricane Katrina for the costliest hurricane on record.

Researchers develop novel process to fabricate battery materials

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By discovering a way to combine lithium salts with ceramics, researchers in the Penn State College of Engineering and the Penn State Materials Research Institute may have created a new class of materials for longer-lasting batteries. According to researchers, the composite nature of the batteries could make recycling easier, reducing landfill waste.

Historic Greenland melt is a "glimpse of the future"

| scientificamerican.com

A major heat wave pushed melting into areas of the ice sheet that normally stay frozen year-round

Extreme ice melt in Greenland threatens coastal communities across the world, scientists warn

| cnbc.com

Greenland is the biggest contributor to sea level rise, which threatens to destroy property value in coastal regions, displace residents and eventually impact global markets.

Penn State-led Global Building Network at forefront of building performance

| psu.edu

A large-scale interdisciplinary effort led by Penn State, called the Global Building Network, is underway to create high-performance buildings, which are buildings capable of achieving net-zero carbon-based energy usage while increasing occupant performance and reducing health risks.

Penn State professor co-chairs roadmap to guide synthetic biology investments

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Howard Salis, associate professor of biological engineering and chemical engineering at Penn State, helped to draft a technical roadmap recently published by the public-private Engineering Biology Research Consortium that will guide future investments in synthetic biology, including encouraging partnerships to enable these innovations to make the most positive societal impact.

How to restore a coral reef

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New guidelines drafted by a consortium of concerned experts could enable corals to adapt to changing environments and help restore declining coral populations in the Caribbean. The guidelines provide a definitive plan for collecting, raising and replanting corals that maximizes their potential for adaptation.

Accomplished plastics pollution researcher joins Penn State Behrend

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Sam Mason joined Penn State Behrend at the start of the spring 2019 semester as the college's sustainability coordinator. The Texas native is known for her groundbreaking research on plastics pollution.