Environmental research in the Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering Department ranges from the development of robotic methods for remediation of hazardous solid wastes to improving manufacturing processes to reduce hazardous air pollutants.   The research is interdisciplinary in nature including collaborations with researchers in other disciplines and the active participation of industry partners. In the field of manufacturing, researchers are working together with industry to:

• Reduce VOC emissions from green sand foundries
• Improve machining processes so that cutting fluids can be eliminated
• Develop beneficial re-use applications for non-hazardous solid wastes
• Metal Powder Recycling

In other areas researchers are working to:

• Develop virtual control environments to permit robotic handling of hazardous wastes in challenging environments
• Develop improved environmental risk management strategies