Engineering Researchers to Present Projects at SEC Symposium

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Alan Mantooth and D. Keith Roper

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – University of Arkansas faculty whose research could lead to advancements related to electric power transmission and alternative energies will present their work at the inaugural SEC Symposium, to be held Feb. 10-12 in Atlanta.

Alan Mantooth, Distinguished Professor of electrical engineering, will present his research on the “smart power router” and its relationship to the overall power grid, among other things. D. Keith Roper, an associate professor of chemical engineering, will discuss his research of metamaterials that are engineered to interact with energy waves in new ways.

They will be joined by representatives of the university’s office of sustainability at the symposium, which is intended to address significant scholarly issues across the range of disciplines represented by the Southeastern Conference’s 14 member universities.

Entitled “Impact of the Southeast in the World’s Renewable Energy Future,” the symposium will feature presentations from faculty and administrators from each of the SEC institutions. Presenters were selected for their expertise in the areas of bioenergy, solar energy and wind energy, among others.

According to Mantooth, the day is coming when people will be able to purchase a device that will connect to each of their home appliances, provide detailed information on energy they are using and what it is costing. It will also allow homeowners to control their energy use — remotely.

The smart power router is being developed at the U of A.

“It’s a meter on steroids,” Mantooth said. “It doesn’t just measure the power that you are using, it manages the energy in your home. It does sound a little like science fiction but it’s really not. We are very near to completing a prototype this year.”

Mantooth directs three centers that research power electronics and power systems at the university related to electric power transmission, the grid and energy research. He holds the 21st Century Endowed Chair in Mixed-Signal IC Design and CAD in the College of Engineering.

“We will focus on what we see as the coming technologies and changes that the average individual will see in our power grid over the next five to 10 years,” Mantooth said. “We’re seeing a lot of wonderful technologies built by industry and universities. When you see that happening, you see costs going down, reliability going up and technology beginning to emerge.”

Roper’s research integrates electromagnetics and transport in nano/bio-metamaterials for applications in environment, sustainable energy, national security and health. The improvements related to metamaterials make solar light harvesting and recovery of sustainable biofuels more efficient and economical said Roper, who holds the Charles W. Oxford Chair of Emerging Technologies.

“I am honored to be included among those who have been invited to participate in this unique opportunity, and look forward to a conversation about renewable energy opportunities in the SEC,” said Roper, currently serving as program director in the National Science Foundation’s Engineering and Education and Centers Division in Washington, D.C.

Mantooth and Roper are faculty members of the Honors College at the U of A; they actively mentor honors undergraduate students. One of those students, Supriya Thote, is traveling to the symposium as a designated student ambassador of the university. Thote, an Honors College Fellow from Nagpur, India, works with Jamie Hestekin, associate professor of chemical engineering.

Hestekin, who holds the Jim L. Turpin Professorship in Chemical and Biochemical Separations, is also part of the university’s traveling party to Atlanta. Nicholas Stoddart, an undergraduate in the biological and agricultural engineering department, is a student ambassador. Marty Matlock, executive director of the campus’ office of sustainability, director Carlos Ochoa, and five student interns in the office will also represent the university.

Mantooth directs the National Center for Reliable Electric Power Transmission, the National Science Foundation Center for GRid-connected Advanced Power Electronic Systems, and the National Science Foundation Vertically-Integrated Center for Transformative Energy Research.

The SEC provosts and chancellors formed the SEC Academic Consortium in 2005 as a collaborative endeavor designed to promote research, scholarship and achievement amongst the universities. It was initially housed at the U of A.

In 2011, the consortium was relocated to the SEC headquarters in Birmingham, Ala., and renamed SECU. The SEC Symposium is a showcase for the academic excellence of its member institutions and underscores their educational and economic contributions to the vitality of the region, nation and world.