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NEW JERSEY INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH LINKING LABORATORIES TO LIVES 100yearsy NEWARK COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING NEW JERSEY INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Photo: Oscar Masciandaro Front Cover Photos (left to right): Courtesy of istock/cerber82 Courtesy of istock/Suebsiri Courtesy of istock/dvoevnore Courtesy of istock/enot-poloskun Table of Contents From the Senior Vice Provost for Research 2 Frontiers in Sustainability 4 Engineering Sustainability: Water 6 Engineering Sustainability: Data 8 Engineering Sustainability: Infrastructure 10 Engineering Sustainability: Health and Medicine 12 Voice Technology / Engineering and Art 14 Intelligent Infrastructure 16 NJIT Research Magazine 2019 A Century of Newark College of Engineering 18 Senior Vice Provost for Research Atam P. Dhawan NCE 100: A Timeline 20 Undergraduate Research 26 Office of Strategic Communications Reflections 28 Associate Vice President Denise Anderson Accessibility and Technology 30 Editor Tracey Regan Deep Reinforcement Learning 32 Managing Editor Julie Jacobs Innovative Materials 34 Contributing Writer Jesse Jenkins Data for Decision-Making 36 Art Director/Designer Diane Cuddy NCE 100: Did You Know? 38 Production Manager Babette Hoyle New Faculty 42 Staff Photographer Oscar Masciandaro Faculty Accomplishments 44 From the Senior Vice Provost for Research s we celebrate the 100th anniversary life, to optimize power distribution and create resilient building materials; of Newark College of Engineering this new materials to save teeth, restore heart tissue and develop biosensors that A year, it’s exciting to see how engineers fine-tune selectivity and sensitivity in diagnostic devices; new means to make are now engines of advancement in so many telecommunications networks more energy efficient, to optimize collaboration important endeavors in modern life. With between machines and people and to bring diverse talent into STEM fields. research that is both fundamental and applied, Elsewhere in this issue, we include snapshots of our current research in they are developing efficient diagnostic devices, many other areas: in transportation infrastructure, in computer accessibility for next-generation battery technologies, smart the disabled, in brain-inspired computing, and in enhancements to data and transportation infrastructure and ingenious information security that inspire the trust of users’ personal, corporate ways to send information around the globe. and defense communications. But it is in the arena of sustainability that Just as we did 100 years ago at the founding of our engineering college, engineers, working on multidisciplinary teams we take our mission seriously to train students to be the highly skilled with computer scientists, data analytics experts workers society needs. But more than that, we also want them to be dreamers, and life scientists, among others, are making visionaries and inventers — to not just make things well, but to make them new. some of their most critical contributions. And what exactly does sustainability That’s why 350 undergraduate students a year spend significant time working mean in 2019? It has certainly evolved since the 1980s, when it referred largely to closely with our researchers in the campus’s more than 93 research institutes, economic growth and development that did not tax resources or harm the planet. centers and laboratories. Soon enough, we may be asking them to once again I would suggest a much broader definition, one that encompasses multiple sectors. redefine sustainability — to not just moderate the damages of industrial In health care, for example, technologists working together are not just devising society, but to reverse them. devices to treat patients, but to help them maintain their health. These measures By forming larger research clusters focused on complex problems, such also represent huge cost savings to society that will allow us to invest in crucial as our new Institute for Space Weather Sciences, we are able to harness the needs in other arenas. By developing predictive and proactive data analytics talents of researchers and their students from across the campus. Linking our technologies, we can help businesses — and indeed, entire sectors — better solar scientists with powerful computing and mathematical capabilities, we manage risks in the long and short term to avoid potentially massive economic will deepen our knowledge of the bursts of solar electromagnetic radiation, dislocations that throw us off course. There are truly urgent matters on the energetic charged particles and magnetized plasma known as space weather, horizon, such as climate change, that require our full attention. while protecting our increasingly complex engineered systems, both on land And do these devices meet the 1980s definition of sustainability? Elegantly and in space, from harm. and inexpensively designed in ways that consume the fewest resources, I would say they do! In this issue of the New Jersey Institute of Technology Research Magazine, we focus first on the important work that our researchers across disciplines are doing to improve the sustainability of our water, infrastructure, health and Atam P. Dhawan medicine, and data analytics and information systems. They include methods to Senior Vice Provost for Research capture emerging contaminants in our water supply, pollutants at their point-of- Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering use and oil that has been spilled in our waterways; technology to extend battery Photo: Oscar Masciandaro 2 2019 NJIT Research Magazine Photo: Courtesy of NJIT Archives njit.edu/research 3 Frontiers in Sustainability elieving Planetary Stress With Sustainable Technologies TheThe 21st 21st century century is rapidlyis rapidly resetting resetting the the goalposts goalposts for for sustainable sustainable life life on on Earth. Earth. WithinWithin five five years, years, the the world world population population is isprojected projected to toreach reach 9 billion;9 billion; by by2050, 2050, nearlynearly 70 70 percent percent of ofpeople people will will live live in inurban urban areas. areas. All All the the while, while, climate climate change change is addingis adding stress stress on on both both natural natural ecosystems ecosystems and and built built environments. environments. WATER Increasingly,Increasingly, technologists technologists see see their their mission mission as astwofold: twofold: to tocontinue continue advancing advancing Researchers in this cluster use sensors, nanotechnology- enhanced filters and chemical, biological and physical processes to protect and remediate water at several points livingliving standards, standards, while while ensuring ensuring their their innovations innovations do do not not harm harm the the planet. planet. Designing Designing of contact: from oceans and inland waterways, to industrial R and municipal water systems, to pipelines. A primary goal devicesdevices that that are are inexpensive, inexpensive, simple simple to touse use and and widely widely applicable applicable is ais guidinga guiding is to better understand the behavior of water pollutants, including interactions among chemicals and natural materials. principle.principle. Sustainability Sustainability from from creation, creation, to touse, use, to toend-of-life end-of-life is theis the gold gold standard. standard. Modelers track the path of pollution as it disperses. Among a variety of remediation methods is the use of reactive WithWith these these criteria criteria firmly firmly in inmind, mind, work work on onsustainable sustainable systems systems at atNJIT NJIT focuses focuses membrane filtration devices to degrade contaminants of emerging concern, pathogens and viruses at the onon four four main main facets facets of ofmodern modern life: life: water, water, health health and care, medicine, infrastructure infrastructure and data. and data. point of use. 4 2019 NJIT Research Magazine WHILE TECHNOLOGISTS increasingly focus on preserving the planet and its people, they also bring their talents for planning, designing, SUKLA CHANDRA ROBERT COHEN SOHAIL MOHAMMED ELLEN M. measuring and organizing to diverse M.S. ’96 ’83, ’84, ’87 ’88 PAWLIKOWSKI ’78 As managing director ROBERT COHEN, an NJIT When he was appointed In 2016, ELLEN M. of GE Ventures India, trustee, is the vice president to the bench of the PAWLIKOWSKI was fields. NJIT alumni reflect this range: SUKLA CHANDRA and general manager of Superior Court of Passaic promoted to the rank is responsible for the global research and County in 2011, SOHAIL of four-star general in a chemist who brought electricity to technology transfer and development business unit MOHAMMED, a former the U.S. Air Force. She licensing collaborations in the Joint Replacement electrical engineer, was just the third for GE Technologies Division at Stryker became the first Indian- woman in the history remote parts of the world; a biomedical in India. In a prior Orthopaedics. He leads all American judge in the of the Air Force to position, she developed joint replacement division state of New Jersey. Prior receive a fourth star. and executed product implant and robotics to his appointment, She went on to direct engineer and entrepreneur who and commercialization product development, Mohammed was an the 80,000-person Air strategies for GE’s Rural research and development immigration lawyer Force Materiel Command developed new methods for joint Electrification Platform, operations, regulatory who won the respect for the