August 19, 2022 Qian secures NSF award for 3D design of thermal energy storage devices Written By: Caitlin Scott Departments: Mechanical Engineering Categories: Awards|Faculty|Research Mechanical Engineering faculty Xiaoping Qian recently received an NSF award for his project, ‘On-the-Fly Dual Reduction for Optimal Design of Transient Responses in Thermal Energy Storage.’ Qian is the Associate Chair for Research and the Elmer R. and Janet Ambach Kaiser Professor of Mechanical Engineering. The goal of this project is to develop a new design method for transient physical processes such as charging and discharging energy storage devices. The new method is referred to as on-the-fly dual reduction-based topology optimization. The targeted applications are topological design of latent heat-based thermal energy storage devices. Beside Ph.D. students, this project will also involve undergraduates from diverse disciplines to conduct research in deep learning-based design. The project period is September 2022 – August 2025 and the award amount is $490,224.000. Image from the Qian group by PhD student Tianye Wang.