WORKING IN THE FIELDIntroducing our new Mine Rescue Team

PLUSt See the winning photos from the 2010 EME Student Photo Contest

t Find out how a team of EBF students fared at the Alberta Energy Challenge

t Learn about a new online program in Energy and Sustainability Policy

t Catch up on all the latest news in each of our degree programs

And more...

www.eme.psu.edu

Newsletter

Fall/Winter 2010

Penn State’s Mine Rescue TeamFront (left to right) : Evan Garfield, Drew Mason, and Ben KleinBack (left to right) : Ryan Mauser, Patrick D’Elia, Thomas Cook, and Robert Burns

Christopher Landry earned 2nd place in the masters division (see page 6). We are very proud of them and all of our students from every program who have been competing this semester. I hope you enjoy reading about their experiences.

As you will read about on the next page, we have three new faculty members to introduce to you. Dr. Russell Johns joins us as a professor of petroleum and natural gas engineering, bringing with him many years of experience in both industry and academia. Dr. Samuel Oyewole, who served as an instructor in the department last year, accepted the new post of assistant professor of environmental health and safety engineering. Finally, Dr. Anastasia Shcherbakova comes to us as an assistant professor of energy economics, risk, and policy.

We still have one junior level position in mining engineering to fill, and we just opened up a new search for the Endowed Leone Family Chair in Energy and Mineral Engineering. This is a new endowed faculty chair created as part of the generous $5 million gift from John and Willie Leone to the department. The successful candidate will be expected to further scholarly excellence through contributions to instruction, research, and public service that fosters a combined business and engineering education. If you know of anyone who might be a good match for either of these positions, please let us know.

We appreciate your continued support, which enables us to meet the needs of our students, and send our best wishes for a safe, healthy, and joyous season.

Yaw D. Yeboah, EME Department Head

Dear Alumni and Friends,

You will have to excuse us if this newest edition of Connection sometimes reads more like a sports report than a department

newsletter. It simply cannot be helped. You see, over the past year, our students have been very busy trekking all over the globe to compete in a variety of competitions. Sometimes testing their aptitude for critical thinking and other times testing their ability to keep a cool head in high pressure situations, these contests have given our students the opportunity to tackle the real-world issues they will face once they graduate. Participating also gives them a chance to meet with their peers from other institutions and to network with professionals from industry, government, and academia. In many cases, our department is participating in these competitions for the first time. For instance, a group of Energy Business and Finance students traveled to Canada to compete in the first-ever Alberta Energy Challenge (see page 5). Additionally, our mining engineering students formed a mine rescue team and entered two national mine rescue contests this fall (see page 14). In both cases our students were competing against teams with much more competition experience, but still managed to make a good showing for Penn State. I’m proud to report that two of our petroleum and natural gas engineering students placed in the top three of their divisions at the Society of Petroleum Engineers Student Paper/Presentation Contest. Recent alumnus Roy Borkhoche won the undergraduate division, while

From The Department HeadO

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>> Donohues establish trustee’s scholarship in EMShttp://www.eme.psu.edu/News/donohuegift

EME graduate student places second in student competition at the 2010 North American Tunneling Conferencehttp://www.eme.psu.edu/News/natpapercontest

Mining engineering student receives two scholarships from the Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration (SME)http://www.eme.psu.edu/News/ burns-scholarships2010.html

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5th International Industry Summit on Mining

Performance

May 10 - 12, 2011Rapid City, South Dakota

The place for international mining process improvement professionals to gather real-world techniques for implementation in their companies.

Sponsorship opportunities are available! Contact the Summit Executive at 814-863-5100.

www.outreach.psu.edu/programs/bpi/

Connection is a publication of the Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences at Penn State.

Editorial Director: Yaw YeboahEditor: Rachel Altemus Writer/Designer: Anna Morrison

U.Ed. EMS 11-34

This publication is available in alternative media on request. Penn State is committed to affirmative action, equal opportunity, and the diversity of its workforce.

CONTACT:116 Hosler BuildingPenn State UniversityUniversity Park, PA 16802-5000URL: www.eme.psu.eduPhone: 814-865-3437E-mail to: eme@ems.psu.edu

www.eme.psu.edu

IN THIS ISSUE:

New Faces.................................................3

Alumni and Friends..................................4

EME Education.........................................5

Professional Society and Club News.....6

Program Updates.....................................7

Faculty News............................................12

Student Voice...........................................14

Connection 3

New Faces

Russell T. Johns, professor of petroleum and natural gas engineering, joins us from The University of Texas at Austin where he was a professor in the Department of Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering. He served on the faculty at UT since 1995 and held the B.J. Lancaster Professorship in Petroleum Engineering. He has nine years of industrial experience as a petrophysical engineer with Shell Oil and as a consulting engineer for Colenco Power Consulting in Baden, Switzerland. He holds a B.S. degree in electrical engineering from Northwestern University and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in petroleum engineering from Stanford. His research interests include enhanced oil recovery, theory of gas injection processes, multiphase flow in porous media, and well testing. In these areas he has published over 150 technical papers, reports, and books. Dr. Johns received the SPE Ferguson medal in 1993 for his research on the combined condensing/vaporizing gas-drive process. He also received the Faculty Excellence award in 1997, the Young Faculty award from the University of Texas in 2000, and the departmental teaching award in 2004. He served as Co-Executive Editor for the SPE Reservoir Evaluation and Engineering journal from 2002 – 2004. In 2009, he was awarded the SPE Distinguished Member award.

Dr. Johns can be reached at: rtj3@psu.edu.

Meet our new faculty

Anastasia V. Shcherbakova, assistant professor of energy economics, risk and policy, earned her Ph.D. in public policy at the University of Chicago, where her doctoral dissertation explored financial outcomes of energy sector regulation in high risk nations. She also holds a B.A. degree in economics from Knox College. While at the University of Chicago, she conducted lectures in statistics and economics at the Harris School of Public Policy and Booth School of Business, and was involved in the International Collaboration Program on Distributed Energy Resources – a joint research effort on electricity markets between the University of Chicago, Argonne National Laboratory, and government energy agencies of South Korea. Dr. Shcherbakova specializes in energy economics, regulation of oil, gas, and electricity markets, and firm and financial market risk. Her current research interests include changes in the structure of energy markets, financial and economic efficiency of energy policy, influence of politically volatile nations on stability of global energy markets, implications of climate risk for global energy supply, and development of and transition to alternative energy sources.

Dr. Shcherbakova can be reached at: anastasia@eme.psu.edu.

We are pleased to welcome three new faculty members to the Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering. Russell T. Johns, professor of petroleum and natural gas engineering; Samuel A. Oye-wole, assistant professor of environmental health and safety engineer-ing; and Anastasia V. Shcherbakova, assistant professor of energy economics, risk and policy, all joined the department in July. Russell,

who also holds the Victor and Anna Mae Beghini Faculty Fellowship, is teaching courses in reservoir modeling, fluid flow in porous media, and miscible recovery processes. Samuel is teaching courses in safety engineering, fire protection engineering, and process safety. Anastasia is teaching courses in energy economics, earth sciences economics, and corporate finance for the earth, energy, and materials industries.

Russell T.Johns

Samuel A. Oyewole

Anastasia V.Shcherbakova

Samuel A. Oyewole, assistant professor of environmental health and safety engineering, received his Ph.D. in industrial engineering from the Pennsylvania State University in 2009 and worked as an instructor in the EME department in the 2009-2010 academic year. Dr. Oyewole’s research interests include analytical methods in environmental health and safety engineering, human factors and ergonomics engineering, as well as engineering systems design. He is particularly interested in the implementation of quantification techniques in safety and health intervention, and environmental risk/exposure assessment of human health-related hazards. He has taught courses in the areas of safety program management, systems safety, fire protection engineering, risk and reliability engineering, human factors/ergonomics, rock and fluid laboratory, and energy engineering lab. Dr. Oyewole has significant professional and industrial experience (including teaching and research) in industrial engineering, manufacturing systems, and occupational health and safety engineering. He is a member of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society (HFES) and the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE).

Dr. Oyewole can be reached at: sao152@psu.edu.

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Alumni and Friends Mineral Economics alumnus receives GEMS Award

4 www.eme.psu.edu

America, as well as coordinating and managing the global portfolio of exploration opportunities in conjunction with the three Chevron international operating companies and the Vice President of Global Exploration. He is a member of the Explo-ration Leadership Team and the Exploration Man-agers Team, both of which manage the worldwide exploration portfolio and processes. He is also a member of the Chevron North America Explora-tion and Production Leadership Team and an ac-tive participant in the development of the strategy for the operating company. In 2000 he represented Texaco during the merger process with Chevron to consolidate the Exploration efforts of the two companies. He was responsible for the develop-ment and adoption of the Exploration strategy which has been in place since day one and raised the level of performance for Chevron from lower quartile to top quartile.

Mr. Evans serves on the Executive Committee on Exploration Affairs for the American Petro-leum Institute (API) and is a member of the Soci-ety of Petroleum Engineers (SPE).

Steven P. Evans (‘80 B.S. Mineral Economics), general manager of Chevron North America Explora-

tion, is the recipient of the 2010 Graduates of Earth and Min-eral Sciences (GEMS) Alumni

Achievement Award. The award is given by the

Earth and Mineral Sciences Alumni

Society to recog-nize outstanding achievement by EMS alumni.

In his cur-rent position, Mr. Evans is responsible for coordi-nating the exploration budget and ef-forts for North

Mining engineering alumni shine at 2010 PCMIA/SME Annual Joint Meeting

George R. Desko, P.E. (’67 B.S. Mining Engineering) and Jeffrey L. Kohler, Ph.D., C.M.S.P. (’74 B.S. Engineering-Science, ’77 M.S., ‘83 Ph.D. Mining Engineering) both were awarded top honors at the 2010 Pittsburgh Coal Mining Institute of America (PCMIA)/ Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration (SME) Pittsburgh Section Annual Joint Meeting in Canonsburg, PA. Each received the 2010 SME Pittsburgh Section Distinguished Member Award. According to the SME Pittsburgh Section website, this award “is presented to a select few individuals in the section who have distinguished themselves by demonstrating significant and sustained contributions to the minerals industry and SME.”

Desko is Chairman of Desko Enterprises, Inc., a company providing consulting services to the U.S. coal industry. From 1990-1995, he served as founding president of the Graduates of Earth and Mineral Sciences, the alumni society for the Penn State College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. During that time, Desko served as a member of Penn State’s Alumni Council, where he was the recipient of the Philip Mitchell Service Award in 1996. Desko also was honored by the EMS College as an EMS Centennial Fellow in 1996 in

recognition of the achievements of 100 alumni leaders.

Kohler is the Associate Director for Mining, and the Director of the Office of Mine Safety and Health Research at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Prior to joining NIOSH, Kohler was an Associate Professor of Mining Engineering at Penn State.

Also receiving recognition at the event was Edward F. Zeglen, Jr. (’83 B.S. Mining Engineering) of Alpha Natural Resources, who received the 2010 SME Pittsburgh Section President’s Citation. Zeglen is currently serving as the PCMIA President.

George R. Desko

Jeffrey L. Kohler

Pegulas commit historic gift to University

Terrence M. (‘73 B.S. Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering) and Kim Pegula recently committed $88 million to fund a state-of-the-art, multi-purpose arena and help establish an NCAA Division I men’s hockey program at Penn State. It is the largest private gift in the University’s history.

The Pegulas have been leaders in the oil and natural gas industry primarily in the Appalachian Basin. Terry Pegula is the founder and former president, CEO and principal shareholder of East Resources Inc., a privately-held independent exploration and development company based in Warrendale, PA, and acquired in July 2010 by Royal Dutch Shell.

The Pegulas’ gift will launch the construction of a new arena at University Park that will be the only major rink within an 80-mile radius.

Learn more about the Pegula’s historic gift at:

http://live.psu.edu/story/48449

More on the Web

Steven P. Evans with his wife, Kristy.

Connection 5

EBF students win bronze at Alberta Energy ChallengeWritten, in part, by William Atcheson, B.S. student in energy business and finance

Despite missing the first day of competition, a team of four senior Energy Business and Finance students roared to a third place finish in the inaugural Alberta Energy Challenge. Hosted in September by the University of Alberta’s School of Business in Canada, the Alberta Energy Challenge is a case-study competition in which teams of com-merce students are presented with a real-life problem facing an energy company. They then have 36 hours to research and develop a compre-hensive and original solution for presentation to a panel of judges.

A total of ten teams participated in this year’s event, with all but the Nittany Lions hailing from Canada. Each team consisted of four undergraduate students. Under the guidance of Andrew N. Kleit, pro-fessor of energy and environmental economics, members of the Penn State team included team leader William Atcheson, Daniel Druvofka, Lisa Dannewitz, and Lora Hutelmyer.

The real-life problem set before them was to develop a long-term solution that could help Cenovus Energy, a vertically integrated oil company based in Alberta, Canada, counter political opposition to their projects involving the extraction of oil from oil sands. Oil sands are a naturally occurring mixture of sand, clay, water, and bitumen. The bitumen is an extremely dense and viscous form of petroleum. It can be upgraded to crude oil but is very costly to extract and refine, mak-ing its production profitable only when oil prices are high. As the pro-duction of oil from Albertan oil sands has increased with the steady

rise of oil prices over the past few years, so has the resistance mounted from environmental groups who contend that the use of oil sands is destructive to the environment. It was up to each team to devise a fis-cally responsible campaign for Cenovus Energy to use in response to negative publicity garnered by their recovery of oil from oil sands.

After 36 hours of research, the team presented its ideas to a diverse panel of judges from industry and government. Out of the ten partici-pating teams, despite their lack of experience in this type of competi-tion, Penn State earned a third place finish.

A major underdog amongst a group of competitors with notable case competition experience, members of the Penn State team cred-ited the energy business and finance curriculum for their success. “The economic analysis taught to us in school provided a framework that allowed the team to effectively ana-lyze the problem,” Dannewitz explained. “[The results of this competition] prove that what we are learning…is applicable in the real world,” Druvofka added.

New online degree focuses on both energy and sustainability

here is no doubt that interest in renew- able energy technologies continues to

grow, along with demand for new policies

that enable them. In addition, a 2010 report by the President’s Council of Economic Advisers found the clean energy provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act are expected to create more than 700,000 “green jobs” by 2012. These jobs will require a workforce that understands the technologies and can negotiate policies for energy and sus-

tainable practices in the energy field. A new Penn State online bachelor of arts degree in Energy and Sustainability Policy (ESP) aims

to prepare people for a role in policy making and communications.

“Our goal is to develop stu-dents who understand the energy industry and what it will take to transform it into a sustain-able structure,” said Jeffrey R. S. Brownson, program officer for the new degree program and assistant professor of energy and mineral engineering. “Gradu-ates with communication skills, a facility with global business strategies and analysis, and an

understanding of the energy industry and sustainability will be in high demand.”

David DiBiase, director of the John A. Dutton e-Education Institute at Penn State, said, “Many adult learners around the country aspire to careers that will help achieve a more sustainable energy future. We’re proud to make a quality Penn State education available to them wherever they live and work.”

Students can develop energy industry knowledge, a sustainability ethic, analyti-cal and communication skills, and a global

perspective. The program focuses on client-stakeholder relations, integrative design, and decision making for energy solutions, market and nonmarket business strategies in the en-ergy field, and data visualization techniques.

“Concerns about global climate change, environmental and economic stability, and energy resource security are driving the need for sustainable planning and policy making in the energy industry as well as in government,” Brownson said. “Our alumni in the energy industry are telling us ‘Washington [D.C.] is waiting for graduates of this program.”

Michael J. Orlando, principal of Eco-nomic Advisors Inc. and adjunct professor of finance at Tulane University, is one of these Penn State alums. A 1988 bachelor of sci-ence graduate in petroleum and natural gas engineering, Orlando said federal agencies “need people who know the nuts and bolts of energy markets and environmental issues, but also understand how these pieces fit together -- how the various interests involved in global energy markets intersect.”

The ESP program is offered by the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, Dutton e-Education Institute, and Department of En-ergy and Mineral Engineering and delivered online by Penn State’s World Campus.

by Deborah Benedetti and Dave Aneckstein, Penn State Live

EME Education

Oil sands from Alberta, Canada

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Professional Society and Club News

On October 21, 2010, ten students from the Penn State student chapters of the International Society of Explosives Engineers (ISEE) and the Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration (SME) traveled to the Chambersburg Quarry of Valley Quarries, Inc. During the visit, students were given a complete look at every aspect of the mining operations. To begin with, they received informational briefings on the quarry layout and blasting procedures. Andy Barnes, superintendent of the Chambersburg Quarry, discussed the mining process being employed at the mine, while Mike Clark, plant engineer, provided insight on the plant processing equipment. Before leaving the site outlook, students were shown the bed of a pickup truck to help them visualize what a ton of rock actually looks like.

Next, the students were brought to the face of the mine to witness first-hand the mining operations in progress. They watched as a loader dumped up to four loads of bulk aggregate into trucks. The loaded trucks, in turn, began a quarter mile haul to the crusher station where the bulk aggregate is crushed to smaller sizes and transitioned to other parts of the processing plant to meet sizes and grades required to fulfill customer needs. Students then were allowed to ride along

with the group since its inception in the spring of 2009. He regularly meets with Penn State students multiple times a year to speak on matters pertaining to proper blast designs and how to run efficient project layouts.

with the trucks and loader as they were being operated.

In the afternoon, Keith Pucalik, vice president and central regional manager of Vibra-Tech Engineers, gave the students an overview of public relations related to mining operations. He explained how companies set-up seismic monitoring systems at households within the neighborhood of the mine to monitor ground vibration resulting from blasts. The companies then also forewarn residents of blast plans.

At the end of the site visit, students were taken to observe a live blast of 20,000 tons of rock from one of the working faces. The Chambersburg Quarry produces up to 2 million tons of bulk aggregate product per year and operates 3,777 haul trucks with a maximum payload of 100 tons.

This field trip was led by ISEE industry mentor Dale Ramsey, general manager of Senex Explosives. Ramsey has been involved

by Robert Burns, B.S. student in mining engineering

New society focuses on solar power

This fall, a group of EME students spearheaded the creation of a new Penn State student chapter of the American Solar Energy Society (ASES). Established in 1954, the society’s main mission is to “inspire an era of energy innovation and speed the transition to a sustainable energy economy.” Lucas Witmer, M.S. student in energy and mineral engineering, was elected as the student chapter’s first president. Jeffrey Brownson, assistant professor of energy and mineral engineering, is serving as faculty adviser.

In October, the new chapter sponsored the State College Solar Tour, part of the ASES 15th annual National Solar Tour. The tour highlighted more than ten energy efficient homes and businesses in State College. Next up is a photovoltaics project at University Park, PA, along with plans to attend the 2011 ASES Annual Conference.

SPE members take first and second place at international student paper contest

Christopher Landry, M.S. student in energy and mineral engineering, won second place in the master’s division of the international student paper/presentation contest at the 2010 Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition in Florence, Italy. Christopher’s paper, “Pore-Scale Experimental Analysis of Interfacial Areas in Oil-Wet and Water-Wet Media,” previously was awarded first place in the master’s division at the 2010 Eastern Regional SPE Student Paper/Presentation Contest in March.

In the undergraduate division of the competition, Roy Borkhoche, a 2010 graduate from the B.S. program in petroleum and natural gas engineering, won first place

Penn State ISEE student chapter tours Chambersburg Quarry

Check out more photos from the ISEE field trip at:

www.flickr.com/photos/emedept

Online Exclusive

for his paper entitled, “Reactivation Project.” Roy’s paper also received first place in the undergraduate division at the 2010 Eastern Regional SPE Student Paper/Presentation Contest.

The purpose of the SPE student paper contests is to give students at the undergraduate, master’s, and doctorate level the opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge and research in the field of petroleum engineering. Students compete with their peers from other universities within the same region in one of the nine SPE regional contests held each year. The winners from each division in each region then are invited to participate in the International Student Paper/Presentation competition.

Christopher Landry Roy Borkhoche

We are coming off another highly success-ful year for the EBF program. Our current enrollment in the undergraduate major is 417, making it the largest in the college. We have improved our curriculum by requiring a second semester of calculus. Seth Blumsack will be teaching a class on electricity econom-ics for both undergraduates and graduate students. This will help our students both gain employment in the electricity sector and conduct research in that area. Dr. Anastasia Shcherbakova has joined our faculty from the University of Chicago, adding to our exper-tise in electricity economics. Our EBF team did a marvelous job at the Alberta Energy Challenge, beating teams with far more experience.

Our researchers have gained funding from a number of sources. All of our faculty are working on projects funded by the Penn State Electricity Markets Initiative, a consortium of six electricity companies directed by Andrew

EBF students get first-hand look at the energy industry in action

Kleit. Our researchers are key investigators on the Greater Philadelphia Innovation Clus-ter grant, the $163 million dol-lar grant from the Department of Energy to Penn State and other institutions. Zhen Lei leads the way on a seed grant from the Penn State Institutes of Energy and the Environ-ment to study issues around rare earth elements. Rare earths are crucial to a sustainable society, and China currently has a near-monopoly on their supply. On many of these projects, we work on an interdisciplin-ary basis with our science and engineering colleagues.

We now have 18 students in our graduate option in Energy Management and Policy (EMP). These students come from around the world. They are working on a variety of re-search, both in electricity and the newly criti-

A panel of Mineral Economics alumni offered career building advice to EBF

students in the department’s first “Looking to the Future” Networking

Workshop in May.

Program Updates

by Seth Blumsack, Assistant Professor of Energy Policy and Economics

Kennett Square, Pennsylvania has long been known as a sleepy Philadelphia suburb dotted with horse farms and a pastoral coun-tryside. The town is experiencing a resurgence, however, as energy companies see Southeastern Pennsylvania as an increasingly strategic location, with easy access to markets along the Philadelphia-DC corridor and proximity to the Norristown headquarters of PJM In-terconnection, the independent electric transmission system operator for the Mid-Atlantic region. On October 11, a group of students from the Energy Business and Finance (EBF) program spent a day in Kennett Square talking with Exelon Power Team and Tangent

Energy, two companies active in Pennsylvania’s newly-deregulated electricity market. The trip was sponsored by the EBF Society, and led by Society President Rob Yokel and Vice President Lora Hutelmyer. Fourteen EBF students participated along with Seth Blumsack, assis-tant professor of energy policy and economics.

Exelon Power Team’s headquarters in Kennett Square was the first stop of the day. Students had discussions with energy traders to learn more about the markets in which Exelon Power Team is active, and got a crash course in the transition from school to work from one of Exelon’s newer employees. Students also got some welcome and frank advice on the interview and hiring process from Exelon’s HR depart-ment. The tour of Exelon Power Team ended with a visit to the trading floor, where traders and schedulers were actively watching enough monitors, tickers, and television screens to cover three walls.

The trip then turned to Tangent Energy. There, students got a good sense of how demand-response and energy efficiency can play a vital role in the functioning of deregulated electricity markets, and a useful lesson in how energy efficiency and renewable generation can be “sold” to even skeptical customers. The students were also given a tour of Tan-gent’s on-site array of solar photovoltaic panels.

Finally, the group was treated to a tour of the Eddystone Generation Station, owned by Exelon. Eddystone runs on coal and natural gas, and students got a close-up view of the turbines, control room, and twelve-story boiler that run the power plant. While EBF students become experts at analyzing the financing of power plants, this was the first time most of the students had been inside a functioning plant.

The students had a great real-world experience on this trip, and in-creased their excitement of studying the energy industries.

cal area of rare earth elements. Even though the EMP option is only 2 years old, we have a strong and deep pool of applicants.

We are very excited about the endowment of our department by the Leone family. The endowment is designed to encourage inter-disciplinary studies between engineering and economics in the EME department. This will give us even further opportunities to work with our colleagues on the interdisciplinary energy challenges facing society.

by Andrew N. Kleit, Professor of Energy and Environmental EconomicsEnergy Business and Finance (EBF)

EBF students toured the Exelon Power Team headquarters, the facilites of Tangent Energy, and Eddystone Generation Station

Connection 7

8 www.eme.psu.edu

Program Updates

It is indeed a great pleasure to update you about a program that is doing well. In spite of the global economic lull, commitment and dedication of young students in developing sustainable energy solutions is not showing any signs of slowing down. The Energy Engineering program continues to grow by leaps and bounds. The enrollment has reached an all time high of about 200 students this fall.

The first batch of graduates proudly walked the commencement stage in spring of this year. Preparations for ABET accreditation are in full swing for an ABET visit in the fall of 2011. The Industrial and Professional Advisory Committee (IPAC), consisting of Jim Dickinson (Retired Manager, Babcock and Wilcox), David Liscinsky (Combustion Group, United Technologies Research Center), Madhava Acharya (Section Head, Hydro Processing, ExxonMobil), David Heskin (Supervisor Projects and Compliance, Conoco- Phillips), Dusty Davis (United Technologies Research Corporation), and Rashid Khan (Saudi Aramco), have reviewed the program and given a very positive report with some great suggestions to make it even better. Thanks to all of them for their hard work and time commitment.

The executive board of the Society for Energy Engineers (SEE) has started programming on “all cylinders” and is planning activities for this academic year. SEE members have actively participated in various regional and national competitions, along with other events. In September, a group of students attended the PA Energy Festival in Kempton, PA, a three day event aimed at educating the public about renewable energy, sustainable living, and energy efficiency through workshops and product demonstrations. There, our SEE members were able to learn about new technologies, meet with potential employers, and set up a display area to promote the Penn State energy engineering program. SEE members have

also sent out surveys and questionnaires to alumni to regularly gather information about possible internship and employment opportunities. Other SEE activities this year have included the creation of a new society website (http://php.scripts.psu.edu/clubs/up/energy/index.php), a tour of the Breazeale Nuclear Reactor on the University Park campus, and participation in the NREL National Geothermal Student Competition.

The program curriculum is continuously improved to train and produce “world class” energy engineers. The “Sustainable Energy Options” course (EGEE 438) is going to concentrate on hydro and wind energy. Also, this year we began offering the “Green Engineering and Environmental Compliance” course (EGEE 412) for the first time. Due to large enrollments in required classes and scheduling conflicts, some classes now need to be offered every semester instead of every year.

The “Energy Science and Engineering Laboratory” course (EGEE 411) is still partly being taught at the EMS Energy Institute facilities. Efforts are underway to develop a dedicated Energy Engineering laboratory in the Hosler building. Basic fuel characterization equipment has been procured and installed for the upcoming spring semester. We are still seeking funds to develop other state-of-the-art renewable energy laboratory facilities for the energy engineering students.

The energy engineering capstone design course is offered in cooperation with the Learning Factory in the Penn State College of Engineering. Through the Learning Factory, industrial groups sponsor small projects that can be completed by a group of students in a semester. Students from various disciplines (usually 4 to 5, depending on the project) work collaboratively, in consultation with the sponsor, complete the project, and “showcase” the outcome at the end of the semester. As always, the program is looking for these industry-driven projects. If you would like to sponsor a project, or know someone who can, please pass this information or contact me.

If you have any comments or suggestions about the program, please do not hesitate to email sxp17@psu.edu or call me at 814-865-0874.

by Sarma Pisupati, Associate Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering and John T. Ryan Faculty FellowEnergy Engineering (ENENG)

Energy Engineering students attended the 2010 PA Energy Festival.

Left: Evan Cook gets ready to hear about solar power.

Middle: Natalie Keener rides a human powered grinder apparatus. As Natalie turns the pedals the wheat that has been placed in the small box at the front of the equipment is ground into a powder.

Dr. Sarma Pisupati speaks to a high school student about the energy engineering program at the 2010 Earth and Mineral Sciences Exposition in University Park, PA.

The Environmental Systems Engineering (ENVSE) program continues to have a steady enrollment of around 100 students. At this point, the majority of the students are pursu-ing the environmental systems engineering option, though we are planning an advertis-ing campaign to increase the number of students in the environmental health and safety engineering (EHSE) option. As part of the integration of the ENVSE and IHS programs, we are preparing proposals to change the designations of the GEOEE and IHS courses to ENVSE. This will provide the students with courses that can be readily identified as belong-ing to the major. It also eliminates designations for programs that no longer exist. We are pleased to welcome Dr. Samuel A. Oyewole who accepted a tenure track faculty position in the program. His teaching responsibilities will be mainly in the EHSE option.

The student Society of Environmental Systems Engineers (SESE) continues to organize activities for the ENVSE students. During the spring semester, the Society coordinated EN-VSE activities for the College’s annual open house (EMEX). Sixteen students volunteered for the event, and as usual, they did a great job promoting the major to potential students. They were involved in demonstrating a number of experiments to the many families who visited the displays. For this year, the ENVSE displays were moved from the high-bay area to the environmental suite of labs located on the first floor of Hosler building. This provided easier access for the visitors and provided for a better flow of foot traffic. Also new for this year, posters, depicting some of the capstone design projects that had been done by ENVSE students, were prepared by the Society.

The SESE meets on a monthly basis, providing an opportunity for the students to interact with speakers from industry and to discuss program-related issues. During the spring, the Society invited speakers from Blazosky Associates and Cherokee Pharmaceuticals. Both were graduates of the program. The speakers discussed several projects and provided the students with pointers on career choices. The spring semester culminated with the annual SESE picnic, which has become the senior send-off event for ENVSE graduates.

The fall kick-off meeting was attended by over 40 ENVSE students. As has become a tradition at this meeting, the returning students discussed their summer internships, research projects, and study-abroad activities. This provided a great venue for incoming students to hear the range of opportunities available to them during their time at Penn State. It also gave current students ideas on possible internships and areas to consider for full-time employment or graduate school. At a later meeting, another program graduate, who works at Nittany Engineering & Associates, discussed his involvement in designing a treatment process for waste water from Marcellus shale fracturing operations. The next meeting’s speaker will be discussing his work in air pollution control. We are grateful to Chevron for their continued support of the ENVSE program through their generous donations.

On November 5, 2010, Samuel Oye-wole, assistant professor of environmen-tal health and safety engineering, led a group of 28 engineering students cur-rently enrolled in his Safety Engineering undergraduate course on a field trip to the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC)/National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) facility in Pitts-burgh, PA. The visit was hosted by Joel M. Haight, CDC/NIOSH Human Factors Branch Chief. Haight was a former As-sociate Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering at Penn State.

As part of the field trip, students were given a qualitative tour of the facility, including stops at the underground coal mine, VR Laboratory, and Motion Analy-sis Laboratory. In addition, students were shown the latest research on roof bolters, the subject of one of their most recent re-search projects. Dempsey Peters, research associate with the CDC/NIOSH Hu-man Factors Branch, gave an informative presentation outlining current research on how to enhance the safety of mining operations. Oyewole also gave a presenta-tion entitled, “Statistical and Forecasting Techniques in the Assessment of Safety Intervention Effectiveness and Optimiza-tion of Resource Allocation.”

The field trip was roundly praised by participating students. In particular, many noted that the opportunity to visit the on-site research facilities gave them better insight into the latest mine safety and health research.

Connection 9

by Thaddeus Ityokumbul, Associate Professor of Mineral Processing and Geo-Environmental Engineering

Environmental Systems Engineering (ENVSE)

Safety engineering students take field trip to CDC/NIOSH facility to learn about mine safety and health

Left: The Society of Environmental Systems Engineers held its annual picnic at the end of the spring semester. Members pictured include (left to right): Ruben Alonso, Mengye Chen, Jason Haney, Marie Gildow, Ben Tutolo, and Doug Buehring.

Mining Engineering (MNGE)

The GEMS-related event had minerals kits and associated handouts contributed by the SME-Pittsburgh Section.

The official enrollment for mining engineering has risen from 16 in Fall Semester 2006 to 45 in Fall Semester 2010. A full-page ad, paid for by industry supporters, was featured in the Daily Collegian on Friday, October 15 and in the Weekly Collegian on Friday, October 20.

The Industrial and Professional Advisory Committee for the Mining Engineering program was revitalized at a meeting on April 29, 2010. Members include the following mining professionals: Joe Gallo, consultant; Mark Hrutkay, CONSOL Energy; Mark Kendrick, Hanson Aggregates; Pete Merritts, Alpha Natural Resources; Dale Ramsey, Senex Explosives; Steve Richards, Carlson Software; Junior Russell, Graymont; Jeff Schwoebel, REI; Stan Suboleski, consultant; and Brian Witmer, G.O. Hawbaker.

Our mining engineering students continue to participate in a whole host of extracurricular activities, competitions and events. The mine design team competed for the first time in the SME/NSSGA Student Design Competition at the SME Annual Meeting in Phoenix AZ, in February 2010. Although it was their first time competing, they placed among the top six teams. The team is currently working on their second competition with the final phase set to take place in February 2011 in Denver, CO. The Mining Engineering Mucking Team placed 9th overall in the 32nd Annual International

Collegiate Mining (Mucking) Competition in Kalgoorlie, Australia, on April 15-16, 2010. They also took third place in the gold panning event.

The Penn State University student mine rescue team competed for the first time at the 28th annual Southeast Missouri Mine Rescue Competition, Sept. 21 to 23, at the Missouri University of Science & Technology’s (Missouri S&T) Experimental Mine in Rolla, MO. They competed a second time on October 19 at the Mine Technology and Training Center, Ruff Creek, PA, Mine Emergency Response Development (MERD) contest. You can read about how they did on page 14.

The newly formed student chapter of the International Society of Explosives Engineers had an excellent field trip to Valley Quarries’ Chambersburg quarry on October 21, 2010. Details about the site visit can be found in an article on page 6.

Finally, the Penn State Mining Society (SME student chapter) hosted the National Science Teachers’ Association in Baltimore, MD, on November 11-13, 2010. A total of 1,500 teachers were expected to take minerals kits and associated literature back to class with them. This effort is associated with SME national while the SME-Pittsburgh Section, led by Susan Bealko, and the SME-Penn Anthracite Region, led by Hank Zielinski, participated as well.

The Penn State Mine Rescue Team competed in the 28th annual Southeast Missouri Mine Rescue Competition

by R. Larry Grayson, Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering and George H., Jr., and Anne B. Deike Chair in Mining Engineering

Mining engineering undergraduate Frank Wallace competes in the jackleg contest at the 32nd Annual International Collegiate Mining (Mucking) Competition.

Mining engineering undergraduate Angela Moyer rides along in a loader truck on an ISEE field trip to Chambersburg Quarry.

Program Updates

10 www.eme.psu.edu

Mining Engineering undergraduate Mike Sloan describes the minerals kit to an interested teacher at the 2010 National Science Teachers’ Association Conference.

Connection 11

Although it feels like yesterday since I wrote to you last fall, another year has passed. Mother Nature has been extremely generous this year in providing a gorgeous autumn in Happy Valley.

The 2009-10 academic year was full of success for our students. We graduated 20 students with B.S. degrees, 12 students with M.S. degrees, and 3 students with Ph.D. degrees. The placement rate of our graduates is around 90%. Our SPE student chapter sponsored this year’s SPE Regional Student Paper Contest. Penn State participated in this competition in B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. divisions and our students won the first place honors in each category. In September, in Florence, Italy, where the 2010 SPE ATCE was held, Penn State participated at the SPE International Student Paper Contest in all three categories. I am delighted to report to you that Roy Borkhoche won the first place award in the B.S. category and Chris Landry won second place in the M.S. category. We are very proud of all of our students’ wonderful achievements as they represented the program admirably. I should also add that our SPE Student Chapter sponsored the travel expenses of almost 15 students to Italy. We are very grateful for all the dynamism our SPE Student Chapter brings to their peers’ educational experience at Penn State.

As the fall semester nears to an end, enrollment continues to grow in both our Continued on page 13

undergraduate and graduate programs. There are more than 220 students in the undergraduate program and close to 60 students in the graduate program. We expect our undergraduate enrollment to stabilize between 200 and 250 students. Our graduate enrollment is the largest since the inception of the graduate program in petroleum and natural gas engineering. The increased rate of exploration, drilling, and development activities taking place more or less in our backyard has been an important contributing factor in the increases in enrollment. Obviously, the increased activities in the Northeast also bring significant responsibilities, challenges, and opportunities to the faculty in terms of pursuing their research interests.

Last year, I indicated we were in the process of rebuilding our faculty in concert with our goal of maintaining the academic excellence of the program. As a continuation of our efforts, Dr. Russell Johns joined the program this fall as a tenured professor of petroleum and natural gas engineering. Dr. Johns brings significant experience from both industrial and academic perspectives as he has spent 15 years of his professional career at the University Texas at Austin. More exciting news about PNGE faculty is Dr. Luis Ayala’s successful bid in receiving tenure and promotion to associate professor. We are very proud of Dr. Ayala’s wonderful achievements

and we thank him for his stellar performance with instruction and research over the years.

For a number of years, the PNGE program was functioning with a number of open faculty positions, but with the start of this year we have all petroleum engineering positions filled. This is, indeed, very good news for our students and faculty. Now, as our students and faculty are in place, it is time for us to focus on the other urgent needs of the program. At the top of our agenda are the instructional laboratories. The reservoir rock and fluid properties laboratory, drilling mud and cement laboratory, drilling rig floor simulator laboratory, and production laboratory constitute our instructional laboratories. Last summer, under the guidance of Dr. John Yilin Wang, our drilling rig floor simulator was updated. This year, we would like to focus on the production engineering laboratory. Our ultimate goal is to create individual endowments for each of these laboratories so that we can ensure the sustainability of educational qualities in them.

If you recall from last year’s letter, our senior students were working on a capstone design project sponsored by National Fuel. I am pleased to share with you that the design and development of an extension plan for an underground gas storage field was successfully completed at the end of the 2010 spring semester. This was a great experience for

Penn State alumnus Paul Dudenas (‘73 B.S., ‘84 M.S. Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering) talks with students on their

field trip to East Resources Inc.

by Turgay Ertekin, Professor of Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering and George E. Trimble Chair in Earth and Mineral SciencesPetroleum and Natural Gas Engineering (PNGE)

Jeffrey Brownson, as-sistant professor of energy and mineral engineering, and Allen Kimel, assistant professor and associate head for undergraduate studies in materials science and engi-

neering, have received a 2010-2011 Gladys Snyder Education Grant from the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. The purpose of Gladys Snyder Grants is to promote under-graduate instruction and student learning

A recent article by Seth Blumsack, assistant profes-sor of energy policy and economics, entitled, “Do topological models provide good information about electricity infrastructure

vulnerability?” is generating online buzz. The article, co-authored with faculty at the University of Vermont and published in the American Institute of Physics journal, Chaos, is largely a response to several recent papers on the vulnerability of the electric power grid.

“These other papers use very simple models to conclude that it is relatively easy for a rogue terrorist or other malicious person to cause a large blackout. The problem with these papers is that they use a terrible model of the physics of the power grid. Our paper uses a correct physical model and concludes that the power grid is a lot more robust, and it is much more difficult to cause a large blackout,” says Blumsack.

A number of online science news outlets, including ScienceDaily.com, Science 2.0, and

12 www.eme.psu.edu

Faculty NewsLuis Ayala was awarded

tenure and promotion to Associate Professor of Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering. André Boehman, professor

of fuel science and materials science and engineering, has joined the editorial board of Combustion & Flame. An original research paper from Yu Zhang was chosen by

Combustion & Flame as the feature article for the October 2010 issue. Zhang recently finished a Ph.D. in Energy and Mineral En-gineering in the spring under the guidance of André. In addition, André had a total of four doctoral students complete their Ph.D. de-grees in 2010. Those students are Yu Zhang, Hee Je Seong, Kuen Yehliu, and Peter Perez.

Subsequent to the Upper Big Branch-South mine disaster in which 29 miners died, Larry Grayson, pro-fessor of energy and mineral engineering, made several significant invited presenta-

tions to inform industry and policy-makers on mine safety and health monitoring and management, as follows:

• Invited presentation on Effective Mine Safety and Health Management Systems at the Mine Safety and Health Administration Hearing on Effective Safety and Health Pro-grams, Arlington, VA, October 8, 2010.

• Invited presentation on Preventing Major-Hazard Events: Building a Culture of Prevention at the Bluefield Coal Symposium, Bluefield, WV, September 21, 2010.

• Invited testimony on Mine Safety and Health Reform Legislation (H.R. 5663) be-fore the U.S. House of Representatives, Com-mittee on Education and Labor, Washington, DC, July 13, 2010.

• Invited presentation on Prevention of Major-Hazard Events at the Mine Safety

Three EME faculty members are co-authors of the largest research grant ever awarded to Penn State. Andrew Kleit, professor of energy and environmental eco-nomics, Seth Blumsack, assistant professor of energy policy and economics, and Jeffrey Brownson, assistant professor of energy and mineral engineering, will be contributing to the five-year U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Energy Innovation Hub, dubbed the Greater Philadelphia Innovation Cluster (GPIC) for Energy Efficient Buildings. This is a $122 million grant from the U.S. DOE with an additional $7 million of funding coming from other federal agencies, and a $30 million contribution being provided by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Led by Penn State, the new Energy In-novation Hub is a consortium of industry, academia, and government. One of three awarded across the nation, the Energy Inno-vation Hub will be based at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, a site with 282 existing build-

ings, its own microgrid, and diverse power demands from commercial and industrial occupants. The goals of the GPIC for Energy Efficient Buildings are “to improve energy efficiency and operability and reduce carbon emissions of new and existing buildings, and to stimulate private investment and qual-ity job creation in the Greater Philadelphia region, the larger Mid Atlantic region, and beyond.” The project is targeted at retrofitting existing buildings as well as innovative new buildings.

“We have always looked for an opportunity to see how electricity consumers respond to different pricing across the day,” Blumsack explained. “GPIC is a great opportunity to test all our ideas for reforming the consump-tion of electricity,” Kleit added.

GPIC is subdivided into six Task Groups: Hub Management; Tools for Integrated Design & Modeling; Technologies for Inte-grated Building Systems; Policy, Markets & Behavior; Education & Workforce Develop-

By Jeffrey Brownson, Assistant Professor of Energy and Mineral Engineering

EME faculty part of energy team to receive $129 million grant

ment; and Deployment & Commercializa-tion. Kleit and Blumsack are both contribut-ing to the Task Group in Policy, Markets & Behavior. Brownson will be contributing to two Task Groups (Tools for Integrated Design, and Technologies) with his research focus in solar energy and systems integrative photovoltaics (SIPV).

“GPIC will allow us to confirm the impact of distributed power production in an urban setting of the Mid-Atlantic region,” Brown-son said. “We expect it will demonstrate the significant impact that distributed photo-voltaic power will have when tied to energy efficient buildings.”

Learn more about the Greater Philadel-phia Innovation Cluster (GPIC) at:

www.gpichub.org

Online Exclusive

in the College. Their grant titled “Materials Sustainability and the Environment: Deliv-ering the Tool of Life Cycle Assessment to Undergraduate Students” will teach students the process of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA).

the “Headlines Around The Web” section of the online New York Times, have cited the article since its publication in September.

Connection 13

A paper co-authored by William Groves, associate professor of industrial health and safety, was one of nine articles to be nominated by researchers from the National Institute for Oc-

cupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) for the 2010 Charles C. Shepard Science Award. The paper, entitled, “A Novel Physiologic Sampling Pump Capable of Rapid Response to Breathing,” was nominated in the “Labora-tory and Methods” category. It was originally published in the Journal of Environmental Monitoring in 2009.

The 2010 Charles C. Shepard Science Award is sponsored by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). NIOSH is a part of CDC. The award honors excellence in science at CDC as represented in peer-reviewed articles published in 2009.

Harold Schobert, profes-sor of fuel science, and Chunshan Song, distin-guished professor of fuel science and direc-tor of the

EMS Energy Institute, were elected to the 2010 class of Fellows of the American Chemical Society (ACS). The ACS Fellows Program was created in 2008 to “recognize members for their contributions to the chemical sci-ences and outstanding service to ACS.”

Zuleima Karpyn, assis-tant professor of petroleum and natural gas engineering, was selected as the Quentin E. and Louise L. Wood University Endowed Fellow in Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering. The pur-

pose of the fellowship is to provide additional funding to an outstanding member of the petroleum and natural gas engineering faculty in order to further his or her contributions to teaching, research, and public service.

In addition, Zuleima participated as a faculty coordinator at the 2010 Summer Experience in the Earth and Mineral Sci-ences (SEEMS) program. In collaboration with the Penn State Upward Bound Math and Science (UBMS) Summer Academy, this program provides the opportunity for UBMS scholars to work with EMS faculty, graduate students, and undergraduates on conducting hands-on research projects. The team of high school students supervised by Zuleima won first place in the research presentation contest for their presentation entitled, “Research Ex-perience in Petroleum Geology.” Christopher Landry, M.S. student in energy and mineral engineering, served as a graduate student mentor while Altan Aydin, B.S. student in petroleum and natural gas engineering, served as an undergraduate student assistant.

Randy Vander Wal, as-sociate professor of energy and mineral engineering, was part of the Alterna-tive Aviation Fuel Experi-ment (AAFEX) team that recently won a NASA

Group Achievement Award “for outstanding achievement in establishing the impact of synthetic fuels on commercial aircraft engine and auxiliary power unit performance and pollutant emissions.” Randy presented a por-tion of their work at the Fall 2010 American Chemical Society (ACS) National Meeting and Exposition, where his presentation, en-titled “Airport Air: What are we Breathing,” was recorded for the ACS website.

and Health Administration public meet-ing on Mine Emergency Preparedness and Response, MSHA Academy, Beckley, WV, May 11, 2010.

Additionally he discussed various mine safety and health issues with congressio-nal staff (House and Senate), the National Mining Association, the West Virginia Coal Association, and various safety executive with major coal companies.

our students to work together with geoscientists and engineers from National Fuel. We thank our alumnus Ray Harris (‘86 B.S. Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering) for being instrumental in making this project a reality for our students. This year’s capstone design project is sponsored by East Resources and involves development of an Oriskany gas field. Again, three Penn State alumni, Paul Dudenas (‘73 B.S., ‘84 M.S. Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering), Bill Fustos (‘79 B.S. Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering), and Terry Pegula (‘73 B.S. Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering), have played pivotal roles in bringing this design project to our students. We thank East Resources for enhancing our students educational experiences in a most effective way.

As the first decade of the new millennium draws to a close, I would like to reiterate that we will continue the work that makes this program one of the leading petroleum engineering programs of the world. Your success in your professional careers is a source of inspiration to all of us at Penn State and we thank you for that. We are anticipating another great year, and hope it will be a happy and rewarding one for you as well. I would like to take this opportunity to wish you and your family a wonderful holiday season and a happy new year!

PNGE Program Update... Continued from page 11

Assistant Professor Zuleima Karpyn with Xinqian Li and Dennis Arun Alexis, both Ph.D. candidates in

petroleum and natural gas engineering, in the lab.

Student Voice

he newly formed Penn State student mine rescue team competed for the first time this

fall with showings at two separate profession-al mine rescue competitions. They made their debut appearance at the 28th annual South-east Missouri Mine Rescue Competition in late September. Team Penn State consisted of seven mining engineering undergraduate students including, Robert Burns, Thomas Cook, Patrick D’Elia, Evan Garfield, Ben Klein, Drew Mason (team captain), and Ryan Mauser. A total of 13 teams from six differ-ent states participated in the competition, including ten professional and three collegiate teams. The nationally recognized Doe Run Company’s Maroon Mine Rescue Team took home first place.

Held at the Missouri University of Sci-ence and Technology’s Experimental Mine in Rolla, MO, the Southeast Missouri competition is sponsored by the U.S. Mine Safety & Health Administration (MSHA), the Missouri Mine Rescue Association, and Missouri S&T. It is the only mine rescue contest to take place in a real-life mine environment. There, each team must put their emergency response preparedness skills to the test in three separate challenges: the first aid

Representing the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences at the fall 2010 commencement ceremony will be Michael John Shreve, who earned a B.S. in Environmental Systems Engineering with high-est distinction and a perfect 4.0 cumulative GPA. Michael is also a Schreyer Scholar. An Adult Learner, Michael began his bachelor’s de-gree at Penn State’s New Kensington campus where he was active as a mathematics tutor for students in algebra, trigonometry, and calculus.

Michael’s accomplishments include designing and installing a bio-gas generator as part of an international studies experience in Nyeri, Kenya, where he educated local youth about bio-gas as a clean, renew-able energy source. Currently a member of the (Dr. Rachel) Brennan Research Group at Penn State, Michael’s work involves the study of

sustainable waste-water treatment systems. He plans to continue his work at Penn State to earn a Master of Science in Environmental Engineering, with an outlook toward a professional career as an environmental consultant.

In the audience at the Bryce Jordan Center commencement ceremony on December 18, 2010 will be Michael’s father and stepmother, Bruce and Becky Shreve of Warren, Pennsylvania, and his fac-ulty marshal escort, Mark Klima, associate profes-sor of mineral processing and geo-environmental engineering.

Michael Shreve: student marshal at fall 2010 commencement

14 www.eme.psu.edu

The Penn State mine rescue team competing in the 28th annual Southeast Missouri Mine Rescue Competition

At the helm of the command center, team members had to coordinate with the under-ground working team and map their progress through the mine. Just like a real mine rescue operation, team members also had to meet with “family members” of the missing miners. During the second challenge, the team had to go into an underground mine to locate and rescue four missing miners. “We had to ex-plore the mine, put out fires, rescue survivors, and ventilate poisonous and explosive gases,” explained Drew Mason. “We managed to rescue two of the four miners and successfully barricade them from toxic gas levels, before time constraints and the unprecedented haz-ardous gas conditions forced us to leave the mine,” added Robert Burns.

The Penn State team now is preparing for future competitions.

competition, the technician’s competition, and the mine field test. For the first time this year, the competition included a segment in which the teams had to rescue live ‘victims’ from the mine as opposed to the dummies used in past years.

Overall, Penn State finished in 11th place. Their best showing was their 10th place finish in the mine field test, in which they beat out two professional mine rescue teams.

The team competed for a second time on October 19, 2010 at the annual Mine Emer-gency Response Development (MERD) con-test. Held at the Mine Technology Training Center in Ruff Creek, PA, the competition was divided into different divisions based on team experience. Pitted against 12 profes-sional teams from the state of Pennsylvania, Penn State earned a 10th place finish overall in the Division 1 contest for teams with minimal experience.

The day’s events centered on two separate challenges: managing a communications/command center above ground, and rescuing miners trapped underground in fiery, hazard-ous conditions. In the first part, the team had to help guide another team through a simulated underground mine rescue mission.

Penn State mine rescue team makes its debut

T

Check out more photos of the Penn State Mine Rescue Team at:

www.flickr.com/photos/emedept

Online Exclusive

Connection 15

his summer, the Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering held its second annual student photo competition. Students were challenged to capture original photographs that either showcased energy and minerals in the world or demonstrated their Penn State T

pride. Over 71 photos were submitted by graduate and undergraduate students, with three being awarded top placements and another ten receiving honorable mentions. Judging was open to all EME faculty and staff, who awarded points based on each photograph’s technical quality, expression of a theme, and creativity/originality. The entries with the highest number of points were declared the winners. Here are the first, second, and third place winning entries. View all entries online at: http://www.eme.psu.edu/photocontest.

Windmills of Bear CreekBear Creek, PA, United States, July 25, 2009

Photo by: Stephanie Giza, B.S. student in Energy Engineering

This picture was taken on a walk along with my parents, uncle, and myself to see these windmills that were constructed within the last year or two of the photo’s date. These structures are enormous! You don’t realize how large they are until you are next to one of them.

Rich Solution 1Sultana del Condor Gold Mine, Ecuador, July 2009

Photo by: Christopher Brown, B.S. student in Mining Engineering

The following picture depicts the smelting of gold. This picture takes place at the gold mine “Sultana del Condor,” located in Ecuador. The process in sultana’s plant was through the use of

conventional cyanide, besides the use of zinc which precipitates the gold. The result from this smelting is parts of gold covered with the slag of zinc. Consequently, the final step is to gather the

gold parts, melt them, and mold them into a gold bar.

Fishing for CapstringBritt Ranch, Wheeler, TX, June 2, 2010

Photo by: Bethany Johns, B.S. student in Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering

This photo is taken of several field hands cutting off the coiled capstring wound around a fishing tool pulled out of the wellbore. The capstring (used to inject foamer to lift fluids) became damaged and caught in annular space down hole. A fishhook is sent down-hole to retrieve all the capstring which is then cut from the tool at surface, shown here. This photo captures the true teamwork it takes to produce a well and also shows obstacles and setbacks you will face in the industry.

1st Place

2nd Place

3rd Place

16 www.eme.psu.edu

Newsletter

Department of Energy and Mineral EngineeringCollege of Earth and Mineral SciencesThe Pennsylvania State University110 Hosler BuildingUniversity Park, PA 16802Phone: (814) 865-3437

An Opportunity To Give

The Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering EME Undergraduate Education Funds

To make a gift, please complete and return this form with a check made payable to:

The Pennsylvania State UniversityEME Undergraduate Education Funds116 Hosler BuildingUniversity Park, PA 16802

Name: ______________________________________

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I would like to support EME with my gift of:

□ $50.00□ $100.00□ $250.00□ Other: _____________

Please use my gift for the following area of need:

□ Incoming Student Incentive Scholarship Fund □ Departmental Undergraduate Scholarship Fund□ Undergraduate Travel Fund□ Teaching Laboratories Upgrade Fund