Students from the Stony Brook chapter of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) participated in the 2024 AIChE Annual Student Conference in San Diego. The event provided an opportunity for chemical engineering students to meet and compete with peers from over 200 schools, while Stony Brook faculty served as judges.
AIChE aims to broaden students' understanding of opportunities in chemical engineering and foster interest among those in the program. William Chen, president of AIChE, emphasized the importance of these conferences: “I think these conferences are important because they offer opportunities for students to sort of learn on their own. It’s really great for people who really want to learn about chemical engineering.”
The conference took place from October 25 to 28 and included social events and competitions designed to unite students and industry professionals. Steve Nitodas, assistant professor of practice in Materials Science and Chemical Engineering at Stony Brook, noted that such events allow students to gain practical experience: “The students get to work towards a project... They acquire experience in the field including how the reactions are run, how to set up the battery and how to learn about safety.”
Participants engaged in various activities such as ChemE Car, ChemE Sports, and research presentations. In ChemE Car competitions, teams design cars powered by chemical reactions. ChemE Sports involved a gas treating plant simulation where competitors acted as engineers managing system states.
Julia Randazzo, treasurer of AIChE, found value in participating: “I thought ChemE Sports would be really cool... It’s also a great problem-solving activity.” Students also presented independent research; Mary Calandra secured second place within the Catalysis category.
Calandra appreciated AIChE's role: “AIChE provides me with the opportunity to present my research at national and regional conferences... it was very nice for me to come back with an award for second place.” The conference offered networking opportunities with industry leaders.
Randazzo highlighted personal growth benefits: “You need to be able... do things that are hard or scary,” she said regarding attending conferences.
Looking forward, AIChE members aim to secure funding for new competition car mechanisms. They are preparing for a regional competition at Lehigh University this spring.
— Angelina Livigni