Habib Tabatabai, professor, civil & environmental engineering, was quoted in the Baltimore Banner in a March 26 article, “Can Maryland rebuild the Key Bridge by 2028?”
Tabatabai is an expert in cable-stayed spans, the kind of bridge replacing Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key bridge which collapsed in 2024. He told the news outlet, there is an “honor and privilege in building a bridge of this size.” Read the article.
John Kissinger (’79 BS Engineering), CEO of Graef-USA Inc., is among those with ties to UWM who have been named to this year’s Milwaukee Business Journal Power Players list.
The list recognizes 100 people in southeastern Wisconsin who get things done, whether they be up-front leaders of important organizations or movers-and-shakers behind the scenes. The list also includes Chancellor Mark Mone, along with 18 others, either alumni or honorary degrees recipients.
Congratulations to the students in the college who were awarded Graduate School Fellowships, which are offered through a highly selective process. The Distinguished Graduate Fellowship provides a stipend of $15,500 in addition to full tuition coverage and a $1,000 travel award. The same benefits apply to the Distinguished Dissertation Graduate School Fellowships except the stipend is $17,000. The AOP Fellowship stipend is $18,000 for recipients in a doctoral-level program.
Distinguished Graduate Fellowships:
Distinguished Dissertation Fellowships:
Advanced Opportunity Program Fellowship:
Wick-based air fresheners and insect repellents are multi-billion-dollar markets, and yet the products could work better: Their effects often fade before the liquid within them is depleted.
The problem, says mechanical engineering professor Krishna Pillai, is that heavier molecules clog the wick, slowing evaporation.
“Lighter molecules evaporate first, leaving the heavier ones behind,” said Pillai, who encountered this problem with working with SC Johnson years ago. “It’s like a traffic jam where there are no small cars that can quickly move through small spaces, only big trucks that clog the road.”
Pillai and doctoral student Abul Borkot Md Rafiqul Hasan have developed a next-generation device to solve this problem. Their innovation, which improves the evaporation rate of volatile liquids, has earned a provisional patent – one of six filed from the college in the past year (see sidebar).
The science of wicking
Wicking is a common way of moving a liquid without a power source using a porous channel, Pillai said. The process works by “capillary action” – liquid is drawn upward into the porous material through the forces of adhesion and surface tension. But the lighter molecules evaporate more quickly, leaving the heavier molecules to accumulate and clog.
To fix this, the researchers created a device with three rotating wicks. As they move in and out of a liquid reservoir, they pass in front of a fan, ensuring better dispersion and circumventing the logjam.
The concept could work for dispersal in room-sized areas or for entire buildings if integrated with HVAC systems, Pillai said. Another application could be insect control in outdoor areas, such as arenas.
Testing various scenarios
With help from two undergraduates, the team tested five different designs using three substances similar to fragrances. Each of the substances – Hexadecane, Dodecane and Decane – are hydrocarbons with different-sized molecules. Hexadecane is the heaviest and Decane is the lightest.
The team recorded evaporation rates for multiple designs of dispensing devices over 24 hours, said Hasan, while also analyzing surface area, airflow velocity, and molecular concentration. The final prototype achieved the highest evaporation with the least remaining concentration of Decane in the reservoir.
“Bridging the gap between theoretical and experimental, and then seeing the device function as intended, was an incredibly fulfilling experience,” said Hasan, whose doctoral research focuses on how temperature variations influence liquid transport in porous structures.
Research with the prototype device has just been published in the International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer.
It’s not just a computer that makes a vehicle autonomous. Tom Shi, assistant professor, civil & environmental engineering, told TJM4 reporter Charles Benson about the many devices involved in collecting the right information for AI decision making on a driverless vehicle.
Lab members Muhammad Fahad and Narayan Rai were also interviewed for the segment, along with U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy.
Shi’s lab has a $1.4 million slice of a larger grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to work on overcoming obstacles of putting AVs into use in rural areas where transportation options are limited. As researchers find solutions and create devices during this grant period, Shi said, those discoveries will contribute to making AVs viable everywhere.
When he began his graduate studies, Hamza Alnawafah joined UWM’s Industrial Assessment Center as an energy engineer. Through Wisconsin’s only U.S. Department of Energy funded center, teams of engineering students consult with industries to find ways to save companies money using energy-efficiency strategies. While assessing a wastewater treatment plant Alnawafah hatched an idea.
Wastewater treatment, an operation that exists in every community, is an energy-intensive process, he said. But because there’s also widespread inefficiency, he saw an opportunity to create a single platform that could produce more than one resource while also contributing to energy sustainability.
He based the work on creating “green” hydrogen.
Hydrogen isn’t naturally available as a fuel. It must be produced, using water and electricity in a process called electrolysis which splits water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen. For hydrogen production to be green however, the electricity used would have to come from a renewable source, driving up the cost. The highly flammable gas is also difficult to store and transport.
Solving these obstacles could pay off handsomely. Once produced, hydrogen is three times more efficient than fossil fuels and burning it gives off only water vapor.
Closed-loop system could offset electricity purchased from the grid
Alnawafah, a doctoral student in mechanical engineering, proposes using gray water at treatment plants and electricity from solar cells to produce green hydrogen on site. He then uses the two resulting elements – hydrogen and oxygen – in a “closed loop” where the hydrogen heats the plant and oxygen improves the efficiency of the water treatment. Nothing goes to waste.
“Wastewater treatment plants take in gray water – why not instead use that in electrolysis?” Alnawafah said.
By optimizing the processes, he believes his closed-loop system could mean that treatment plants could make and use green hydrogen to offset much of the electricity they currently buy from the grid.
“Our technology can be used in many different processes to arrive at several outcomes,” said Ryo Amano, professor of mechanical engineering and Alnawafah’s advisor. “It provides extra power and additional energy sources for utility operations.” It’s the only research into green hydrogen at UWM that he’s aware of, Amano said.
“A few employees from local companies came to see the lab because there isn’t anywhere else where the system concept can be displayed in a real environment,” he said. “In addition, Hamza has successfully demonstrated a 15% increase in energy efficiency at one Wisconsin wastewater treatment facilities.”
More avenues for optimizing
The researchers said their technology aims to make hydrogen a viable secondary source of energy at certain locations. The key to adopting green hydrogen, is controlling costs by optimizing its production.
Warmer water temperature in electrolysis and boosting the pressure of the hydrogen produced make a difference in the amount of hydrogen that can be produced, Alnawafah found. In fact, it’s the pressure and the flow rate that determines how much hydrogen you produce with a set amount of energy.
A unique aspect of the work is the researchers’ recognition that oxygen is not simply a by-product, but a valuable resource. Oxygen is pumped into the plant’s aeration tanks – the tanks that combine water and oxygen to accelerate the breakdown of organic material that is then removed from wastewater.
Air is currently used for this, but air contains only 21% oxygen. Alnawafah’s system would collect and immediately use 100% oxygen. He is now testing a hypothesis that pure oxygen will decrease the amount of time that the oxygen takes to accomplish its task.
The researchers cite hospital complexes, which also use oxygen as a raw material, as another example of how the technology could be used.
“With this project, we are showing how it could be done,” he said. “It won’t be as cheap as using natural gas, which creates carbon emissions, but by building in efficiencies for certain large-capacity needs, we give it a place in the overall energy equation.”
Colleagues:
At the last faculty meeting, I updated everyone on the FY26 budget and the very near-term $3 million gap we face in the coming fiscal year. Of course, we either cut expenditures or increase revenues to close this gap. The latter is where we have greater opportunities for long-term success, and we’ve already begun to make progress.
It will be challenging, but we can manage our new budget reality if each of us puts effort into where we can make the greatest impact.
As for reducing expenditures,most of our expenses go to salaries (about $19 million of a total of $22 million) and, clearly, this is not where we want to cut. Other expenses include items like necessary supplies and laboratory support. We can achieve some short-term savings through expense reductions or purchase deferrals, although not enough to close the entire $3 million gap. Thus, increasing revenue is critical both for FY26 and especially beyond.
Increase Revenue: RESEARCH, RETENTION, RECRUITMENT
This is where we can collectively make the greatest impact, and we already have some good news here from your efforts:
Here are five steps we, as a college, must take, without delay:
3. Solidify the transfer pathway to the college’s new BS in Engineering. We are promoting this program with a goal of enrolling the first students in Fall 2025 and setting the stage for larger future classes.
4. Formalize international partnerships in progress.
5. Lean into recruiting.
In summary, our near-term outlook is challenging, but manageable. We must put our efforts toward revenue growth to avoid having painful reductions imposed on us. We must heed this sense of urgency as change takes time to implement and the return on those investments will also take time. We must work together as a college. No department is “OK.” No department is well-positioned to “save itself.” Collectively, we can survive … and thrive.
Questions about your role in our success? Reach out to your department chair, the associate deans, or me. Thank you for all you do for our students, for our college, and your colleagues across the college.
Best,
Brett
Ebrahim Forati (’14 PhD, electrical engineering) was among the many researchers behind Google’s Willow, the most advanced quantum computing chip to date. This breakthrough paves the way for lightning-fast quantum computers, which operate on the principles of quantum mechanics – how matter behaves at the atomic scale.
Traditional computers process information using bits, which exist in a physical state of either “0” or “1,” akin to “on” or “off.” Quantum computers, however, use qubits, which can exist in a superposition of states, enabling them to perform calculations on multiple solutions simultaneously. Quibits are key to the speed of quantum computers.
Until now, however, quantum chips have been highly prone to errors. The research behind the new chip significantly reduces the error rate. Google claims that its new chip can solve problems in five minutes that would take today’s fastest supercomputers 10 septillion years to complete.
The findings, published in the journal Nature in December 2024, have been widely covered by outlets like the BBC, The New York Times, and Scientific American.
Forati has been with Google’s Quantum Computing division since September 2021, specializing in electromagnetism – important because qubits are controlled through magnetic fields. Willow isn’t perfect. A practical quantum computer would require even lower error rates, and the Willow chips also must also be stored at ultra-low temperatures.
In this Q&A, Forati discusses his role in this breakthrough work and why he chose UWM for graduate school.
I realize the coauthors list is quite long, but how does it feel to be a part of this work?
I feel fortunate to be part of this team, which includes many experts, particularly in the areas of my interest. The team is driven by a shared mission to develop a tool with ground-breaking potential.
Can you briefly explain the specific part that you worked on?
Yes, I was an electromagnetic engineer on the processor design team. (I’m on a different team now.) I was mostly responsible for the electromagnetic modeling of this device and its preceding test devices, along with a few team members. This step is essential for predicting the device’s behavior and interpreting its measured results. The insights gained are then used to refine the design and iterate until the measured results meet the desired criteria.
Why did you choose to study at UWM for your PhD?
It was mainly because of my passion for becoming an expert in electromagnetics. The electrical engineering department at UWM had several faculty members conducting research relevant to this field. In particular, Professor George Hanson (now emerit) is highly regarded for his significant contributions to electromagnetics. It was a privilege to complete my PhD under his mentorship.
How did your years at UWM prepare you to get to this point in your career?
It significantly broadened my perspective and deepened my understanding of my field, thanks to the professors in the department and collaborations with fellow graduate students. I was also surrounded by a community of friends at UWM, many of whom I remain connected with today. We continue to support each other professionally, including in career decisions.
From this point, do you have a guess as to when the next breakthrough in quantum computer chips will come?
The anticipated breakthroughs align with the milestones our team has set for this goal. The next milestone is the development of a long-lived logical qubit (Google Quantum AI Roadmap). While I cannot provide an exact timeline, it is a matter of years.
Spectrum News talked with Brooke Slavens, Richard and Joanne Grigg Professor of Mechanical Engineering, recently about her work with young manual wheelchair users. Slavens and her team are studying overuse injuries and ways to preserve their shoulder joints as they get older.
Nine-year-old Delaney Allen, who has spina bifida, has been a volunteer in some of Slavens’ studies. In the report, Allen said being a part of the researcher’s work “makes me feel happy and seen.”
Slavens, was awarded the prestigious Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers earlier this year. The award is highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government on outstanding scientists and engineers early in their career. View the report.
Tom Shi, assistant professor; Xiao Qin, professor; and Yang Li, research associate, all civil engineering, are partners with UW-Madison on a six-year, U.S. Department of Transportation grant to explore the use of autonomous vehicles in rural areas where transportation services are limited. The college’s share of the $15 million grant is $1.4 million.
Researchers will develop solutions to enabling nondrivers to better access health care, groceries and other amenities, and helping people without vehicles commute to work. Read more in the UWM REPORT.