The Michelman Green, Clean, and Sustainable Technology Research Innovation Program is supported for a second year by the generous contributions of the Dr. John S. Michelman Fund for the Advancement of Sustainable Technology. Dr. Michelman’s 57-year career at Michelman, Inc. focused on developing products that improve the performance of many common materials; for example, making paper more water-resistant but still biodegradable and recyclable.

Consistent with UC’s Research2030 strategic plan and the Next Lives Here strategic direction, the Michelman Green, Clean, and Sustainable Technology Research Innovation Program supports applied research & development (R&D) and use-inspired research with the potential to meaningfully contribute to improvements in environmental health, environmental stewardship, and sustainability by demonstrating new and marketable scientific and technical (S&T) innovations intended to address real-world problems in the Green-tech and Clean-tech fields. This program will also help to establish UC as a recognized leader in the development of applied technologies addressing sustainability through S&T fields.

Applicants for the second cohort of Michelman grantees could apply as either single investigators or multi-investigator teams. Grantees were selected based on the quality, novelty, and creativity of their proposed applied research topic which demonstrated a clear potential to make tangible contributions that improve societal outcomes. Single investigator grantees were awarded up to $35,000 and multi-investigator teams were eligible for up to $80,000 for a 24-month project period to accelerate their applied R&D activities to the point that they can obtain external funding.

Congratulations to the following grantees!

Single Investigators

Shaaban Abdallah

Professor

Department of Aerospace Engineering & Engineering Mechanics

College of Engineering and Applied Science

Sustainable Savonius Wind Turbine for Generating Electricity

"In this study, we developed an augmented-blade Savonius wind turbine that has higher efficiency than the classical Savonius turbine and enjoys all the advantages of the classical Savonius turbine. That is achieved by increasing the number of blades without increasing the rotor solidity. Two added blades are attached to the outer surface of the classical two blades Savonius wind turbine. The function of the added blades is to generate additional forces/torques to increase the power output of the turbine in order to increase its efficiency. The location of the added blades is dependent on the wind speed relative to the blades. For smooth operation of the turbine, the torque generated by all blades should be equal. It is clear from the figure that the added two blades have different torque arms compared to the main blades, therefore for generating equal torques it will require the blades to have different diameters. Note that the drag forces on the blades are proportional to their areas (diameters). The orientation of the added blades towards or away from the surface of the main blades is dependent again on the relative wind speed to maximize their drag forces."

Multi-Investigator Teams

Dionysios (Dion) D. Dionysiou

Professor

Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering

College of Engineering and Applied Science

Kelly Cohen

Professor

Department of Aerospace Engineering & Engineering Mechanics

College of Engineering and Applied Science

Uncrewed Aerial Systems for Water Collection and Quality Monitoring for Predictive AI Modeling of Harmful Algal Blooms Risk

"This project combines AI/ML modeling, drone technologies, and water quality analysis to develop a monitoring and prediction solution for addressing harmful algal blooms (HABs) and other water quality issues. With this award, the proposed model and sample collection in this project can be applied to lakes that suffer from HABs, assist in efforts for the protection of drinking water sources, and the development of “smart” water treatment systems. The proposed model will reduce or eliminate the need for extensive labor-intensive water quality analysis methods that need to be completed by a trained lab professional. The novel UAS design proposed in this project could be developed for future use by water treatment facility operators so they can easily collect water samples from drinking water sources to better understand the water quality entering their treatment facility."

Donglu Shi

Professor

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering

College of Engineering and Applied Science

Anton Harfmann

Professor

Department of Architecture and Architectural Engineering

College of Engineering and Applied Science, College of Design, Art, Architecture, and Planning

Solar harvesting and energy generation via transparent photothermal nanohybrids for building heating system

"The new concept of Energy-Free Photothermal Heating System (EFPHS) is based on solar harvesting and energy generation via multi-layers of transparent photothermal thin films. Solar light is harvested by a dome of solar light collector and directed through an array of parallel transparent panels coated with photothermal films in a solar tunnel. Upon solar irradiation, the photothermal coating can convert photons to heat efficiently, thus raising the surface temperature of these panels which function as a “photothermal radiator.” The entire system uses natural sunlight, requiring no electric power. The EFPHS system will be environmentally resilient and energy sustainable.  The nanostructured films will be developed enabling the most efficient solar-mediated energy harvest, generation, and photothermally activated heating utilities. The success of the proposed research will transform the current electricity consuming heating utilities to the next generation energy-neutral infrastructure that is net zero, energy neutral, and climate positive."

Maobing Tu

Professor

Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering

College of Engineering and Applied Science

Drew McAvoy

Professor Educator

Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering

College of Engineering and Applied Science

Jonathan Nickels

Assistant Professor

Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering

College of Engineering and Applied Science

Green and sustainable production of hydrogen and volatile fatty acid from organic waste

"This project is to enhance process stability of H2 and VFAs production from organic waste by microbiome engineering and co-digestion. Process instability (accumulation of VFAs and imbalance of C/N ratio) in acidogenesis results in failure of operation and low H2 and VFAs yield. Microbiome engineering and co-digestion of organic waste with biomass will be developed to improve dark fermentation process stability. It is expected that novel processes of H2 and VFAs production will be established, and unique microbiomes associated with process stability will be identified. The project will also seek collaboration with UC cafeteria to divert one million tons of food waste per year from landfills and to generate renewable energy to power 30,000 homes."