In the late 19th century, steam power was the height of technology, and Purdue University hosted the most advanced steam engine laboratory in the country. Over time, those steam engines became lost to history – until now! Bill Champ (BSME ’90) has found an original 1915 steam engine used in Purdue’s laboratories, and is now restoring it.

Dehydrating is a vital part of many industrial processes, from food to chemicals to pharmaceuticals. Unfortunately, industrial drying processes require huge amounts of heat, which wastes valuable energy. David Warsinger’s team is developing a new system that will reduce 50-80% of that energy usage using vapor-selective membranes.

Started at Purdue ME in 1954, the Co-op program enables students to spend alternating semesters working in industry, and taking classes. In addition to getting paid, students get unmatched opportunities in the working world and a chance to expand their professional network, all while still enrolled as a student at Purdue.

A new tool could help save lives by predicting prostate cancer relapse 14 months earlier than current standard methods. The tool, a computer model developed by Hector Gomez, makes its predictions by using levels of a single biomarker produced by prostate cells to forecast the interplay of biochemical reactions linked to prostate cancer.

Purdue University's College of Engineering recently celebrated its 2022 Staff Awards of Excellence. Mechanical Engineering staff dominated the ceremony, with a finalist or winner in 8 out of the 10 categories. Here's to the dedicated and hard-working staff that keep ME functioning at its best every day!

A team of Purdue mechanical engineering students have developed a glove that pairs with a smartphone's depth-sensing cameras, giving haptic feedback to help people with low vision navigate their environment. The team won the Malott Innovation Awards, given to the best senior design project of the fall 2022 semester.

College can be an overwhelming experience, especially at a large school like Purdue University. Mechanical engineering senior Isaiah Baptiste took it as a challenge: out of the hundreds of clubs, groups, and activities available, how do you choose which are best for you? He decided to engineer a solution – a software platform called Umerge – and is now in process of commercializing it.

The School of Mechanical Engineering just announced recipients for several graduate-level departmental fellowships and scholarships for the 2022-2023 academic year.

Before NASA takes the “giant leap” of sending humans back to the moon, they are first taking the “small step” of launching an uncrewed Orion capsule as part of the Artemis 1 mission. And just like the Apollo missions, the Artemis missions rely heavily on Purdue Boilermakers. Mark Baldwin (BSME ’97) has been testing and refining the Orion capsule since 2009, and also helped design the manikins who are on board Orion’s first flight.

Earth’s atmosphere holds six times more fresh water than all of its rivers combined. So is it possible to harvest that water, in areas where people have no other fresh water source? Purdue University researchers have crunched the numbers, and have the data to show which atmospheric water harvesting methods work best in different regions of the world.