Extreme weather events including hurricanes, snow storms and ice storms are a growing challenge as one of the many effects of global climate change. Combating this obstacle through resilient technology is one of the engineering challenges of the 21st Century.
Ryan’s research has investigated innovative ways of combining conventional combustion systems with solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). The burners act as a hydrocarbon reformer while generating thermal energy for SOFC operation. This presentations examines fundamentals of SOFCs and fuel-rich combustion and extends the preliminary results to bench-scale systems. Applications of this technology include furnaces, hot water heaters and boilers, among others.
Presenter:
Ryan Milcarek
NSF GRFP Graduate Fellow JSPS International Research Fellow
Ph.D. Candidate Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department Combustion and Energy Research (COMER) Laboratory
Ryan Milcarek obtained his B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. in the Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Department at Syracuse University. He also obtained a M.S. in Energy Systems Engineering, Certificate of Advanced Study in Sustainable Enterprise and Certificate in University Teaching during his graduate studies. After graduation, Ryan will begin a tenure-track Assistant Professor position at Arizona State University in the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering: School for Engineering of Matter, Transport and Energy. His current research is focused on micro-tubular Flame-assisted Fuel Cells (FFCs), system level hybrid combustion/FFC applications including micro cogeneration and two-stage combustors, microcombustion, manufacturing of ceramic materials for solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs), and energy modeling. He also conducts research in engineering education in areas of sustainability, resilience and fuel cell education. Ryan gained his passion for energy research during his undergraduate studies while conducting energy assessments of industrial facilities as part of the Industrial Assessment Center program which was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy. Ryan is an NSF Graduate Research Fellow, JSPS International Research Fellow, ASHRAE Graduate Grant-in-Aid recipient, a recipient of the ASME International Gas Turbine Institute student scholarship, an Astronaut Scholar, and a former Syracuse University Graduate Fellow.
Research & Technology Forum Series
SyracuseCoE offers regularly scheduled forums and networking showcasing innovative research, technologies and other opportunities of interest to stakeholders and community members. Past topics have included groundbreaking industry projects to modernize the HVAC systems at the Sistine Chapel, workshops to help state agencies develop funding priorities, and research on the impact of “green” buildings on cognitive function. To receive notice of these events, sign up for email updates at the “Join our mailing list” tab at the bottom right corner of the website. Visit the Research & Technology Forum page to see the archive.