Project goal: To minimize hazards, increase sampling location accuracy, and decrease cross-contamination when sampling irrigation canal water for microbial analysis. Identifying pathogen vectors in commercial food production and supply chains is critical to maintaining food safety. The designed system is an arm,with an adjustable reach to accommodate different canal widths, mounted on a base that can be positioned over the sampling location, which is scanned by a depth-detection sensor using a dual-beam transducer sonar. Arm and base are fabricated from ASTM A513 Grade B square tubular steel, with a tensile strength of 58 kilopounds per square inch and a flexile strength of 46 kilopounds per square inch. Samples are collected using a 1-liter Nalgene container with a custom closure cap that is 3-D printed in high-density plastic. A bicycle brake was repurposed to build the remote operation assembly, which opens and closes the submerged sample collector.

Project goal: To create a web-based mapping system that meets the needs of agricultural map-making. Creating, saving and sharing data relevant to agricultural ranches in Arizona’s Yuma County involves multiple software applications and a lot of manual data capture. The data is imported into drafting software to create a map that shows boundaries, layout and information relevant to the agricultural ranch. These maps are then printed.The Django web framework was used to develop a system incorporating all the current cartographic functions in a single web application that is executable in Windows 10 and on Samsung Android 5.0 and later tablets. Maps are created on a tablet using automated GPS, eliminating the need for multiple software applications in the field. Maps are saved in a MySQL database for registered users to see via the developed website.

Project goal: To design a process for converting guayule waste from biorubber production into bio-fuel in the form of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel. The guayule plant, which is used to make biorubber, doesn’t need much water to grow, which makes biorubber an increasingly popular alternative to petrochemical rubber. Much of the waste from biorubber extraction, called “bagasse,” is discarded or reprocessed into low-profit secondary products. This design involves extracting, upgrading and refining hydrocarbons from the bagasse into bio-fuels. Hydrocarbons are extracted by fast pyrolysis, which creates char (for fertilizer) and a bio-oil that is rich in hydrocarbons and unwanted oxygen. The oxygen is removed by hydrodeoxygenation using hydrogen gas, and distillation separates the upgraded oil by carbon-chain length to produce output streams of pure gasoline, diesel and jet fuel. Steam reforming the waste products yields hydrogen gas that can be recycled into the hydrodeoxygenation process.

Project goal: To design a receiving terminal for large cargo ships carrying liquefied natural gas, or LNG, and a plant to vaporize it back to a gaseous state for distribution via pipeline. Natural gas has to be liquefied cryogenically for transoceanic transportation by large cargo vessels. It then has to be vaporized so it can be transported in distribution pipelines.Design optimization and regulatory factors were considered in the design of the LNG receiving terminal. Aspen Plus was used to model and optimize the thermodynamics of the process, which includes cryogenic factors. This allowed the team to determine the economic feasibility of the plant and to decide which vaporization process would be ideal for a plant of this nature. A plant was designed that can accommodate 12 LNG carriers and deliver 1.2 trillion MMBtus per day of vaporized natural gas.

Project goal: To design an economically feasible process to produce dimethyl ether for transportation fuel. When dimethyl ether burns it produces virtually zero particulates and it has been suggested as a possible fuel for slightly modified diesel engines. The process designed feeds methanol through a catalytic reactor to create dimethyl ether, with water as a byproduct. A side-reaction from the catalyst produces methyl formate. Recycling the water produced by the reaction for various on-site uses will help save money and reduce the environmental impact of the process. Methyl formate has various industrial uses,as a blowing agent for foams or as an agricultural pesticide, for example. The economical production of dimethyl ether as a transportation fuel could have significant environmental benefits.

Project goal: To design a 25,000-gallon direct potable wastewater-reuse system for Biosphere 2. Directly treating wastewater to produce potable drinking water is known as “toilet to tap” and is the basis of this project, which aims to make Biosphere 2 as close as possible to 100 percent self-sustaining in terms of drinking water. The equipment was designed to treat the pathogens present in the water and to remove any harmful chemicals, solids or elements. The design incorporates an aerobic plug flow reactor, sludge-removal techniques, reverse osmosis, and ultraviolet and chlorine disinfection to achieve the potable water quality guidelines specified by the Environmental Protection Agency. The process was also designed to be economically feasible for Biosphere 2.

Project goal: To design a facility for large-scale manufacture of cancer immunotherapy drug bevacizumab. Immunotherapy treats cancer by using the body’s immune system to attack cancerous cells. Monoclonal antibodies such as bevacizumab can stimulate this immune response. Bevacizumab treats glioblastoma as well as colorectal, lung, kidney, cervical and ovarian cancers by inhibiting the growth of new vascular tissue. In the United States, over half a million people are diagnosed with these types of cancer every year. Bevacizumab is produced in a cascade of bioreactors charged with recombinant Chinese hamster ovary cells that proliferate and produce the antibodies, which are secreted into the extracellular medium. The secreted antibodies are purified using a process that involves centrifugation, affinity chromatography, ion exchange chromatography, and ultra-filtration. The final purified antibodies are freeze-dried and packaged in vials for shipment to healthcare providers.

Project goal: To develop a system that can treat effluent wastewater produced by hydraulic fracturing.Effluent wastewater produced by hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, often contains high levels of salts, toxic metals, and radioactive particles. Treating this toxic wastewater so that it can be responsibly reused or disposed of in a cost-effective and environmentally safe manner is a hurdle that gas companies must overcome. The design uses membrane distillation and crystallization in a system that can be easily transported and implemented for on-site treatment of fracking effluent. The treatment process will be able to generate 2,000 cubic meters of distilled water daily from effluent containing total dissolved solid levels that often exceed 100,000 parts per million.

Project goal: To design a nearly carbon-free application to grow approximately 3 million pounds of mushrooms per year. Recent developments in the field of medicinal mushrooms have shown that two species, commonly known as turkey tail and lion’s mane, are linked to possible cancer treatments, increased immune system function, and enhanced brain and liver function. Both mushroom species are grown in a commercial atrium containing a humidifier and drip system to maximize growth. Nearly all the water used in this process goes to the growth of the mushrooms, while any excess is reused and filtered using reverse osmosis.The used mushroom substrate, which is made primarily of straw, is exposed to the cellulase enzyme, which breaks down the substrate into simple sugars that can be fermented into bioethanol. The process has been shown to be sustainable and economically efficient.

Project goal: To design a solar energy plant that uses directed sunlight to produce electricity with zero emissions. The plant uses sustainable technology and renewable energy to produce electricity. The design includes solar arrays that direct sunlight to heat molten salt in a closed pipe circuit. The molten salt passes through a heat exchanger that transfers the heat to carbon dioxide. The super-critical carbon dioxide is used to spin a turbine, creating usable electricity. This system does not use water in any form for electricity generation, and can operate during the night due to a storage system that retains the heat of the molten salt.