Trine University chemical engineering faculty shine at AIChE Annual Meeting

Faculty from Trine University's McKetta Department of Chemical and Bioprocess Engineering actively contributed to the 2024 American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) Annual Meeting, held Oct. 25–31 in San Diego, California.

Their involvement spanned workshops, technical presentations and outreach efforts, underscoring Trine's dedication to advancing chemical engineering education and professional development.

Matthew Liberatore, Professor and Department Chair

Matthew Liberatore, Ph.D., led multiple events aimed at fostering growth among both students and professionals. He hosted a student workshop titled “How to Build a Great Student Chapter,” where he guided participants through activities to enhance their AIChE student chapters by applying entrepreneurial mindsets and leadership skills. This workshop encouraged students to identify key goals for their student groups and develop actionable plans for success.

Liberatore co-facilitated a faculty workshop called “AIChE Career Discovery,” which focused on career planning for professors at various stages in their careers.

Participants identified attributes of a great professor and of great chemical engineering departments. They wrote short- and long-term goals for different phases of their career, including research, teaching, service and life.

To cap off the busy week, Liberatore also delivered three technical presentations. One explored student engagement with auto-graded homework problems in a Material and Energy Balances course. A second disseminated work on a goal-setting workshop for student chapters and their chapter advisors. A third presentation explored the shear thickening of clay suspensions.

Allen Hersel, Professor

Allen Hersel, Ph.D., a professor and textbook author, presented an invited talk titled “Future Directions in Teaching Transport Phenomena and Applications.”

In his talk, Hersel explored key questions about the future of engineering education, including whether heat transfer courses should integrate design exercises, how computational tools like COMSOL and Wolfram Alpha are reshaping curricula, and the appropriate balance between multi-scale modeling and traditional analytical methods. His insights sparked thoughtful discussions on how to adapt chemical engineering education to better prepare students for modern engineering challenges.

Amanda Malefyt, Professor

Amanda Malefyt, Ph.D., shared updates on her work in engineering education and participated in outreach initiatives during the conference.

She presented on the CACHE-funded project QRProblems.org, an open-source platform providing variable-parameter, auto-graded problems for STEM instructors. Developed in collaboration with Emeritus Professor John Wagner, the platform offers more than 1,000 multistep problems and multiple-choice concept questions. Future plans include streamlining the platform’s design, incorporating cybersecurity measures and enhancing its use in engineering education research.

Malefyt also helped host the 2024 AIChE K-12 STEM Showcase, an interactive event designed to inspire students, parents and teachers. The event featured keynote speakers, hands-on demonstrations, and opportunities to learn about STEM careers from industry professionals.

Her involvement reflects Trine University’s commitment to community engagement and promoting STEM education to younger generations.

Advancing education and outreach

The active participation of Trine University’s chemical engineering faculty in the AIChE Annual Meeting highlights their leadership in teaching, research and student success.

“Our faculty’s contributions enhance the academic experiences of our Trine students and also influence the broader chemical engineering community. I believe our impact on the chemical engineering education community is significant, especially for a relatively small chemical engineering department,” said Liberatore.

For more information about Trine University’s McKetta Department of Chemical and Bioprocess Engineering, visit trine.edu/che.