Membrane Projects with an Industrial Focus in the Curriculum

Authors

  • Stephanie Farrell Rowan University
  • Robert P. Hesketh Rowan University
  • Mariano J. Savelski Rowan University
  • Kevin D. Dahm Rowan University
  • C. Stewart Slater Rowan University

Abstract

The Rowan junior and senior engineering clinics give students real-world experience with many projects imported from industry. This paper describes some of the educational objectives of several externally funded projects in the membrane field and how industry is involved in our clinic program. Some of the realistic and challenging experimental projects done in the last several years include: ceramic membrane reactors used in petrochemical processing, electrodialysis and ultrafiltration processes for precious metals separation in the specialty chemicals industry, and membrane separations in food processing. In these process research and development projects, students learn how to function in a team to solve complex problems, interpret and analyze data, use modern technologies, understand safety/environmental issues, and communicate their results to various audiences. These membrane projects have helped improve student learning and assessment data, which indicates that the Junior/Senior Clinic projects are a valuable component of the students’ educational experience at Rowan.

Author Biographies

Stephanie Farrell, Rowan University

Stephanie Farrell is Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering at Rowan University. She received her BS in 1986 from the University of Pennsylvania, her MS in 1992 from Stevens Institute of Technology, and her PhD in 1996 from New Jersey Institute of Technology. Her teaching and research interests are in controlled drug delivery and biomedical engineering.

Robert P. Hesketh, Rowan University

Robert Hesketh is Professor of Chemical Engineering at Rowan University He received his BS in 1982 from the University of Illinois and his PhD from the University of Delaware in 1987. His research is in the areas of reaction engineering. novel separations. and green engineering.

Mariano J. Savelski, Rowan University

Mariano J. Savelski is Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering at Rowan University. He received his BS in 1991 from the University of Buenos Aires, his ME in 1994 from the University of Tulsa, and his PhD in 1999 from the University of Oklahoma. His technical research is in the area of process design and optimization with over seven years of industrial experience.

Kevin D. Dahm, Rowan University

Kevin Dahm is Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering at Rowan University. He received his PhD in 1998 from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His primary technical expertise is in chemical kinetics and mechanisms, and his recent educational scholarship focuses on incorporating computing and simulation into the curriculum.

C. Stewart Slater, Rowan University

C. Stewart Slater is Professor and Chair of the Department of Chemical Engineering at Rowan University. He received his BS. MS. and PhD from Rutgers University. His research and teaching interests are in separation and purification technology, laboratory development, and investigating novel processes for fields such as biolpharmaceuticallfood engineering and specialty chemical manufacture.

Downloads

Published

2003-01-01

Issue

Vol. 37 No. 1 (2003): Winter 2003

Section

Manuscripts