Faculty Report 15/16
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contents 2 engineering 10 food & agriculture 20 humanities & education 38 law 52 medical sciences 64 science & technology The St Augustine Campus of The University of the West Indies is 84 social sciences rising to the challenge of leading the Caribbean region towards a more prosperous and sustainable future. The only way to do that is to form strong connections with our stakeholders. This report 94 centres & institutes shows how we’ve begun that process and how we plan to take it further for a brighter future. Engage with us! 142 publications and conferences faculty of engineering Professor Stephan Gift Faculty Dean 2 faculty report 2015-2016 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Academic awards and international re-accreditation were among the highlights of the year under review at the Faculty of Engineering. The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering won the UWI Vice- Chancellor’s Award for Departmental Excellence (2016) and the Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering received the Best Research Award (2015/2016). Meanwhile, a number of programmes were re- accredited by the relevant international professional bodies. Both the BSc and MSc Chemical and Process Engineering programmes were re-accredited for five years by the Institution of Chemical Engineers, as were the BSc Petroleum Geoscience and MSc Petroleum Engineering programmes by the Energy Institute (from 2013 to 2017). The BSc Petroleum Geoscience programme was recognised by the Geological Society of London for an additional six years. Major laboratory upgrades were also completed during the review period. 3 faculty of engineering ENROLMENT These graduates were honoured at the Faculty’s Prizes and Undergraduate Awards function in October 2016 and placed on the Dean’s This year the Faculty’s total intake for all undergraduate and Honour Roll. The following were the top students in the certificate programmes was 372 students: a 10% decrease various programmes for the 2015/2016 academic year: from the 413 students enrolled during the 2014/2015 academic • Yvan Joseph Dass: Mechanical Engineering. He also year. The departments of Geomatics Engineering and Land received the Faculty’s Prize for the Most Outstanding Management, and Chemical Engineering experienced Graduating Student for 2015/2016 enrolment declines of 33% and 19% respectively, in their • Felisa Tracey: Chemical and Process Engineering undergraduate degree and certificate programmes. • Xia Xiang: Civil Engineering • Demi Emeski Claxton: Civil Engineering Postgraduate • Sapphire Deanna Vital: Civil with Environmental The Faculty continued to increase its intake of new students Engineering (279) into its taught postgraduate diploma/master’s • Chris Meetoo: Electrical and Computer Engineering programmes; an 8% increase from the last academic year. • Adam Stefan Thomas: Geomatics Engineering New postgraduate enrolment in the Faculty’s MPhil and PhD • Dana Kimberly Basdeo: Industrial Engineering programmes increased from 10 students in 2014/2015 to 13 • Musa Jawara Abdullah: Land Management (Valuation) students in 2015/2016. • Amrit Cooblal: Petroleum Geoscience GRADUATION Postgraduate Undergraduate In 2015/2016 the Faculty graduated 173 MSc students —22% A total of 21 students graduated with First Class Honours from fewer than the previous year; however 17% of these students the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. This graduated with distinction. represented 6% of the graduating class, which was in keeping with the previous academic year. Eleven students graduated The Faculty graduated 15 students from the Postgraduate with the Certificate in Geomatics and Land Information Diploma and one MPhil student. Four PhD students Systems, which climbed from four in 2013/2014 and six in graduated in the fields of Chemical Engineering, Construction 2014/2015 respectively. Management, Petroleum Geoscience and Mechanical Engineering, two of whom graduated with distinction and one The performance trends have moderately improved during the with high commendation. past three years, particularly in the classification of the degrees awarded, as evidenced by 86% of the graduates obtaining TEACHING AND LEARNING honours degrees, compared to just over 80% in 2013/2014. Department of Chemical Engineering Additionally, 52 of all the Faculty’s graduates (16%) achieved The Department of Chemical Engineering was successful in First Class Honours degrees in 2015/2016, a slight decrease the re-accreditation of a number of programmes. The BSc and from 19% in 2014/2015. MSc Chemical and Process Engineering programmes were re- accredited in 2016 by the Institution of Chemical Engineers for five years; the BSc Petroleum Geoscience programme was re- accredited in 2016 by the Geological Society of London for six years and the BSc Petroleum Geoscience and MSc Petroleum Engineering programmes were re-accredited in 2016 by the Energy Institute for a period of five years, from 2013 to 2017. 4 faculty report 2015-2016 Department of Electrical and Total sum to the Faculty of Engineering was TT$2,431,175; Methanol Trinidad Holdings Limited Chair - US$150,000 per Computer Engineering annum and BPTT for PGSC recurrent expenses - TT$1,300,00 for The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering won 2015. the UWI Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Departmental Excellence in 2016. Scholarships and Prizes A Memorandum of Understanding was signed with SHELL Department of Mechanical and on June 3, 2016 resulting in SHELL’s agreement to provide a scholarship worth US$30,000 per year for three years for PhD Manufacturing Engineering research on Gas Hydrates. Meanwhile, in January 2016, BHP The Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Billiton began providing the field data for research on Reservoir Engineering submitted documentation to the Institution of Characterization of a Trinidad Oil/Gas Reservoir. This is part of Mechanical Engineers of the UK (IMechE) in December 2015 an MOU signed with that company in December 2014 where for re-accreditation of three BSc and five MSc programmes. BHP agreed to provide a scholarship worth TT$245,000 per The Accreditation Panel visited the Department in March 2016 year, for three years, to an MPhil/PhD student to conduct the and the decision is expected before the end of the 2016/2017 said research. academic year. The National Energy Corporation (NEC) provided two prizes RESEARCH AND INNOVATION of TT$5,000 each to two deserving students graduating with Petroleum Studies Unit (PSU) the MSc Petroleum Engineering, and bpTT also committed Funding to award a prize worth TT$5,000 to the best all round student A funding agreement was signed between The UWI and the graduating with the MSc Reservoir Engineering. Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries for the following projects: • A New Technique in Sequence Stratigraphy for Deep Food Science and Technology Unit (FSTU) A joint project between the Food and Agriculture Organization Water Successions in Non-Glacial Times (TT$463,000) (FAO) and the Department of Food Production, titled • Laboratory Equipment for Heavy Oil and Oil “Integrated Development of Value-added Cassava Products in Recovery from Trinidad Tar Sands by Radio the Caribbean” received funding in the amount of US$149,138 Frequency Heating (RFH) (TT$543,000) (TT$1,005,190). • Training: TT$1 million • BSc Petroleum Geoscience programme and the Postgraduate Diploma in Petroleum Engineering and Management (TT$3 million) Other projects approved during the period will look at the Effects of Fracture Damage and Anisotropy on Static and Dynamic Elastic Properties of Rocks (TT$650,000); Coastal Erosion Flooding, Coastal Structure Response to Various Loads, Coastal/Offshore Vulnerability, Probabilistic Design Development and Offshore Hydrodynamics (TT$785,815); and Supercritical Fluid Extraction Work in the Department of Chemical Engineering (TT$995,360). 5 faculty of engineering Department of Chemical Engineering: Department of Electrical Research collaboration with the Inter-American Institute for and Computer Engineering Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), the Caribbean Agricultural The Department continued to publish scholarly research in Research and Development Institute (CARDI), the Trinidad and international refereed journals and to deliver presentations at Tobago Ministry of Food Production, the Ministry of Trade, national, regional and international seminars and conferences. Industry Investment and Communication, the Cocoa Research Research was conducted in image processing, biomedical Centre and certain food processing industries, is ongoing. engineering applications, mobile applications for small-scale Research continued in the different disciplines within the fisheries, multi-processor systems, linear circuit applications, Department, resulting in several publications and conference Steelpan technology, energy efficiency and renewable energy. presentations from staff members. The Department also The mFisheries Project, the Phi pan and the commercialization continued to collaborate with local, regional and international of the Brushless DC Motor patent are innovations that institutions and agencies. Research continues in the areas continued to be actively pursued. The Department also of Reservoir Characterization, Heavy Oil and Oil Recovery formed the Sport Engineering Group (SportENG) with the from Trinidad Tar Sand, EOR and CO2 Sequestration and Gas aim of leveraging its core competencies in signal processing, Hydrates —all funded by industry and the Ministry of Energy biotechnology, ICT