News | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

Francis Assadian brings vehicle dynamics expertise to new $7M Department of Transportation project

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering professor Francis Assadian is a co-PI on a $7 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to study cooperative automated vehicles (CAVs) in rural and multimodal environments. Led by at Texas A&M University, the four-year project titled, “AVA: Automated Vehicles for All” involves collaborators at George Washington University, General Motors, NVIDIA and National Instruments.

Faculty

Modeling small cigar smoke in the lungs

Young people are adopting new nicotine products faster than they can be researched or regulated, though the health effects are still unknown. MAE distinguished Professor Tony Wexler looks to change this by studying smoke deposition in the lungs through a three-year grant from the UC Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program (TRDRP).

Research

A Breath Test for Opioids

By Andy Fell, originally posted on UC Davis News.

A test to detect opioid drugs in exhaled breath has been developed by engineers and physicians at the University of California, Davis. A breath test could be useful in caring for chronic pain patients as well as for checking for illegal drug use.

Research

Francis Assadian partners with Ford to research innovative advanced controls and control system architectures

Professor Francis Assadian is working on two projects with Ford Motor Company to bring intelligent control systems design and artificial intelligence to enhance vehicle safety and performance and automating manufacturing.

Research

Bahram Ravani and Stephen Robinson receive College of Engineering Outstanding Faculty Awards

Distinguished Professor Bahram Ravani and Professor Stephen Robinson received Outstanding Faculty Awards from the UC Davis College of Engineering for their outstanding work during the 2018-19 academic year. Ravani received the Outstanding Senior Faculty Research Award and Robinson received the Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award. These awards are the college's highest honors given to faculty.

Faculty

Niels Grønbech-Jensen re-appointed COSMOS Systemwide Faculty Executive Director

Mechanical and aerospace engineering professor Niels Grønbech-Jensen was re-appointed as faculty executive director for the California State Summer School for Mathematics and Science (COSMOS) program for another five-year term. Grønbech-Jensen is the first person to serve in the role, which was created in 2014.

Faculty

Giving Electric Car Batteries a Second Life

Though electric cars are great for the environment, the batteries they use are not. Because recycling is extremely expensive, they end up thrown into storage at car dealerships or buried in landfills. As electric cars become an increasingly large part of the market, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Professor Jae Wan Park and his lab have found an inexpensive and environmentally-friendly solution to this problem by giving these batteries a second life in electrical energy storage systems for renewable energy power grids.

Research

Stephen K. Robinson’s Lab Receives NASA Grant to Study Hypersonic Entry Vehicle Control

Professor Stephen K. Robinson’s lab has received a grant from NASA to study the aerodynamics of flap-based steering system for small atmospheric entry vehicles moving at hypersonic speeds. The proposal, titled “Aerodynamic Flaps for Control of Hypersonic Atmospheric Entry Trajectories,” will receive $215,400 over two years.

Research

Microbes Make Chemicals for Scent Marking in a Cat

Domestic cats, like many other mammals, use smelly secretions from anal sacs to mark territory and communicate with other animals. A new study from the University of California, Davis, shows that many odiferous compounds from a male cat are actually made not by the cat, but by a community of bacteria living in the anal sacs.

Research

Becoming a community leader by philanthropy

By Trevor Stewart

Hope is a powerful emotion –– it can get us through tough times, it can help us persevere trials and tribulations until we reach our goal. Third-year mechanical engineering student Martin Vega-Martinez ‘20 is the perfect embodiment of what hope, combined with hard work, looks like.

Students

Can Science Save Citrus?

Farmers and researchers, including MAE Professor Cristina Davis, try to hold off deadly citrus greening long enough to find a cure

Research

Aerospace engineering senior design teams place first, third in NASA Design Challenge

UC Davis aerospace engineering senior design teams finished first and third in NASA’s 2018-19 Aeronautics University Design Challenge. The designs are the culmination of two quarters of work through the senior design course, led by Professor Case van Dam.

Students

Ph.D. student Peng Wei wins 2019 N&M Sarigul-Klijn Flight Research/Space Engineering Award

Ph.D. student Peng Wei has been named the recipient of the 2019 N&M Sarigul-Klijn Flight Research/Space Engineering Award. The award is given every other year to top graduate students in the UC Davis Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering pursuing flight-related research.

Wei, a 3rd year Ph.D. student in Assistant Professor Zhaodan Kong’s lab, studies aerodynamic effects on multirotor unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), colloquially known as drones.

Students

Jonathon Schofield: Human-machine translator

Humans and machines communicate using different languages, and like any language barrier, it can be reduced through mutual understanding and translation. New mechanical and aerospace engineering assistant professor Dr. Jonathon Schofield aims to break down this barrier by improving communication between humans and robotic rehabilitation technologies.

Faculty

Destined for success

By Aditi Risbud Bartl

Originally posted by the UC Davis College of Engineering.

Destiny cannot be contained. After a decade in the College of Engineering, Destiny Garcia is now mere months away from earning her Ph.D. in mechanical and aerospace engineering. An energetic and warm young woman, she is finally taking a moment to reflect on her experiences at UC Davis.

Students

Ralph Aldredge: Engineering success for all students

By Brady Oppenheim

When Dr. Ralph Aldredge begins his new position as the UC Davis College of Engineering’s Associate Dean of Undergraduate Studies in summer 2019, he will bring a long history of student advocacy to his latest role.

Faculty

Cristina Davis named MAE Department Chair

Professor Cristina Davis has been named chair of the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, effective July 1, 2019. Davis has been at UC Davis since November 2005 and has served as vice chair for the past two years.

Faculty

Raissa D'Souza appointed lead editor of Physical Review Research

Mechanical and aerospace engineering and computer science professor Raissa D’Souza has been named lead editor of the American Physical Society’s new open access journal, Physical Review Research.

Faculty

Student Spotlight: Shail Trivedi

Originally posted on the UC Davis Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship website.

Making electric vehicles, autonomous fleets ubiquitous

Shail Trivedi is a third-year mechanical engineering student who hopes to work with mechatronics/robotic systems or mechanical design of devices. “I love to learn,” he says, “and I find myself curious to learn more about the types of roles mechanical engineers play in today’s world and where I can best find my fit.”

Students

Raissa D’Souza receives two honors from the Network Science Society

MAE and CS professor Raissa D’Souza was honored twice by the Network Science Society, being named a Fellow of the society and receiving the inaugural Euler Award for an outstanding research contribution that changed paradigms or assumptions in the field.

Faculty

MAE Energy Startup Wins Big at 2019 Big Ideas Contest

UC Davis mechanical and aerospace engineering startup, RePurpose Energy, won big at the 2019 Big Ideas contest, taking home first place in the Energy and Resources category and winning grand prize at the competition’s Pitch Day.

Students

MAE Ph.D. Student Henry Jia Named a 2019 Vertical Flight Society/Vertical Flight Foundation Scholarship Recipient

The UC Davis Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department congratulates Ph.D. student Henry (Zhongqi) Jia upon being named a 2019 Vertical Flight Society/Vertical Flight Foundation scholarship recipient.

Students

New Institute Eyes HOME in Deep Space

NASA has awarded a grant of up to $15 million over five years to a new research institute led by the University of California, Davis.

Faculty

Students Design Greenhouse for Mars

A student team from the UC Davis Space and Satellite Systems Club was one of five university teams invited to present their plans for a Mars greenhouse at the NASA Langley Research Center.

Students

MAE Professor Cristina Davis Named a UC Davis Distinguished Scholarly Public Service Award Recipient

The UC Davis Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department congratulates Dr. Cristina Davis upon being named a 2019 UC Davis Distinguished Scholarly Public Service Award recipient.

Faculty

Faculty Positions in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering: Apply by May 31

The Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of California, Davis, invites applications for two tenure-track faculty positions at the Assistant Professor level in these areas: 1) Multibody & System Dynamics, and 2) Machine Design & Robotics.

Opportunities

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Team Advances in SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition

A UC Davis Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department team has advanced to the top 20 groups of the 2019 SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition, making the team’s pod officially eligible to go through safety checks and, pending results, to race at the July 21 event.

Students

Exotic Synchronization Patterns Emerge in a Simple Network

In a new paper published March 8 in Science, a team led by researchers at the University of California, Davis, and the California Institute of Technology show how complicated and surprising behavior can emerge in a very simple experimental network.

Research

National Engineers' Week: MAE Major Valerie Quiroz Shares Her Story

As part of the UC Davis College of Engineering's recognition of 2019 National Engineers' Week, several engineering faculty, alumni and students shared their personal stories about how they became involved in engineering.

Students

At the Interface Between Robots and Humans

UC Davis MAE doctoral student Sarah O'Meara's ultimate goal is an assistive robot that a person can control by contracting a muscle or making a gesture.

Students

COSMOS Aims to Inspire Future Scientists, Engineers

The California State Summer School for Mathematics and Science (COSMOS) is a four-week statewide program for the most talented high-school students in the disciplines of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).

Students

MAE Alumnus Adam Davis: Building an Engineering Career

Adam Davis graduated from UC Davis in 2004 with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. He is a Principal Engineer at Weston & Associates Mechanical Engineers, Inc., a full-service design engineering firm providing mechanical engineering services to architects and owners for projects throughout California.

Alumni

Aerospace Engineers Explore Infinity and Beyond

As a UC Davis aerospace science and engineering major, you will learn core mechanical engineering concepts and applications, and practice computational analysis. You’ll also learn the fundamentals of design, propulsion and aerodynamics.

Students

MAE Alumnus Jose Velazquez: Toward a Future of Electric Cars

Jose Velazquez is now an engineer at Ford and the holder of seven pending patents.

Alumni

Ron Hess receives the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics de Florez Award for Flight Simulation for 2019

Professor Emeritus Ron Hess has received the de Florez Award for Flight Simulation from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) for outstanding individual achievement in the application of flight simulation.

Faculty

Vinod Narayanan Receives $2.2M Department of Energy Grant

Narayanan’s project, “Additively-Manufactured Molten Salt-to-Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Heat Exchanger,” received $2.2 Million from the Department of Energy to create a high-pressure heat exchanger for concentrating solar thermal power (CSP) systems.

Faculty

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Associate Professor Barbara Linke Named 'Outstanding Junior Faculty' by UC Davis College of Engineering

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Associate Professor Barbara Linke was named "Outstanding Junior Faculty" by the UC Davis College of Engineering at the college's 2018 Celebration of Faculty Excellence event October 3.

Faculty

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering's Dr. Jason Moore Co-Awarded $5M U.S. Department of Education Grant

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Lecturer Jason Moore is a co-awardee for an inaugural $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to further the LibreTexts project.

Faculty

MAE Senior Design Teams Win NASA’s Aeronautics University Design Challenge

Three UC Davis mechanical and aerospace engineering senior design teams received top honors in NASA’s 2017-18 Aeronautics University Design Challenge. One MAE team tied for first, another placed second and another tied for third. The fifteen undergraduates involved presented their designs at a symposium on September 20 at NASA headquarters in Washington, D.C. and were treated to a private tour of the facilities and the Capitol building.

Students