7/25/2005 - Doctorate Computational Engineering Program Thriving At UTC - Student Scene

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August 8, 2005

Doctorate Computational Engineering Program Thriving At UTC
by Suzanne Walker
posted July 25, 2005

Photo by Suzanne Walker
Dr. W. Roger Briley

Many people believed there would never be another Ph.D. program in the state of Tennessee, but in December 2004, Brian Lambert became the first graduate of UTC’s new PH.D program in Computational Engineering, Dr. W. Roger Briley, professor of Engineering and Computer Science, told the Engineering Club on Monday.

Dr. Briley said the program is “invented” and not as traditional as other programs. The program focuses on computational modeling, simulation, and design transforming, he said. The program also has a multidisciplinary approach requiring students to specialize in areas such as computer science, natural science, and math, he said.

Dr. Briley said the program emphasizes “numerical methods,” “software development for real-world engineering,” “physical modeling,” and “engineering problem solving.”

A “quality PhD program in engineering” can’t exist without a “quality research program” which is why UTC has an innovative program compared with many other schools, Dr. Briley said. Mass research is done in the SimCenter at UTC, he said.

Dr. Briley said one current research project in the SimCenter is focused on the wind resistance of heavy trucks. He noted that 66 percent of fuel consumption of heavy truck is used to “push air out of the way.” Researchers use computational simulations to “reduce drag and improve mileage emissions for heavy trucks,” he said. The simulations take into account specifics such as tire rotations and the geometrics of trucks.

The SimCenter is the “only research group in the country that can do simulations of this complexity,” Dr. Briley said. He said many other projects are taking place here. He said, “It’s amazing what these young people can do. It is truly world class.”

The SimCenter ranks among the Top 500 for Supercomputers, the speaker said. According to these rankings, the SimCenter’s supercomputer was ranked 129th in the world and 10th among university in the United States.

The SimCenter has a multimedia equipped auditorium with 80 seats, 22 faculty offices, and 37 student cubicles, Dr. Briley said. He noted that all the offices within computational engineering are in the same area in order to emphasis the importance of multidisciplinary teamwork.

Dr. Briley has been a professor at UTC since 2002. He graduated from Louisiana Tech University with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He went on to complete M.S. and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering at University of Texas at Austin.

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