A research team led by John Edison, lecturer in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, was awarded an Instructional Enhancement Grant from the Center for Teaching Excellence & Innovation. The team, comprising undergraduates Panwa Promtep and Kellen Roddy, was awarded the grant for their project titled “Building a Python based demonstration for designing distillation columns for ternary mixtures.” The aim of the project is to build a tool based on the general purpose computer programming language Python to aid in the design of distillation columns—pieces of equipment that separate chemical mixtures into individual components. The tool would be used in conjunction with the chemical process simulator software Aspen and would aid other students in distillation column design.
The Instructional Enhancement Grant Program is a mini-grant initiative that enables faculty to partner with technology savvy students to develop resources that enhance pedagogy, increase or facilitate access to course content, encourage active learning, promote critical thinking, or support student collaboration. Each faculty member receives $1,000 for project leadership and oversight; student fellows receive $4,000 for resource development and implementation.