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Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Illinois

ASABE Award Winners: Providence, Rhode Island

Published Jul 14, 2008

Many of the faculty, students, and alumni in Agricultural and Biological Engineering attended the annual ASABE conference in Providence, Rhode Island. Several awards were given at the conference. Among the award recipients were: Dr. K.C. Ting, Professor and Head; Dr. Yuanhui Zhang, Professor; Dr Phil Buriak, Emeriti; Jason Buss, Curtis Zurliene, Elizabeth Brooks, current students; and Dr. Amy Kaleita, Chad Yagow and Saied Mostaghimi, ABE Alumni. The following provides a brief summary of their achievements.

Kishida International Award
The Kishida International Award serves to "recognize outstanding contributions to engineering mechanization-technological related programs of education, research, developments, consultation or technology transfer outside the United States."
Initiated in 1978, the award is endowed by Shin-Norinsha Co., Ltd. of Japan - publisher of Agricultural Mechanization in Asia, Africa and Latin America magazine and other publications - in honor of Yoshikuni Kishida, founder of the firm. Kishida, whose signature appears in the upper right corner of the plaque, earned worldwide recognition as a result of his pioneering agricultural mechanization developments.

K.C. Ting, P.E., ASABE Fellow, is the recipient of the 2008 Kishida International Award in recognition of his outstanding global accomplishments in administration, teaching, research, public service and economic development. For more than thirty years, Ting has devoted himself to the advancement of agricultural and biological engineering education and research on automation, systems analysis, alternative energy and thermal control, computerized simulation, optimization and decision support for bio-production and bio-processing systems. He is currently leading a BP Energy Biosciences Institute program on Engineering Solutions for Biomass Feedstock Production.

 

Henry Giese Structures and Environment Award
Recipients of the Henry Giese Structures and Environment Award are presented with a plaque that portrays Henry Giese and reads, "For distinguished service in advancing the knowledge and science of agricultural structures and environment." The plaque, which is mounted on a wooden base, depicts a stylized barn that evokes the relationship between farming and agricultural engineering. Established in 1988 by the family of Genry Giese, the award commemorates Giese's lifelong accomplishment in farm building design, research, and teaching.

Yuanhui Zhang, P.E., is the recipient of the 2008 Henry Giese Structures and Environment Award in honor of his outstanding contributions as a teacher and researcher in bioenvironmental engineering. Zhang, Professor and Section Leader, Agricultural and Biological Engineering Department at the University of Illinois, is recognized as one of the top international scientists in the bioenvironmental engineering area of structures and environment. He pioneered research of a non-intrusive, full-scale, and instantaneous measurement of airflow in full-scale room airspaces using his unique Volumetric Particle Tracking Velocimetry (VPTV). The impact of the VPTV technology has provided a powerful tool for scientist and engineers to study various fluid mechanics problems such as contaminant transportation in an indoor environment or platelet flow in arterial vessels.

He was the first researcher to develop a batch and then continuous thermochemical conversion (TCC) reactor and convert 70% of swine manure into crude oil. TCC oil may be used as fuel or for making plastics and inks. His technology has been licensed to industry and a pilot plant has been developed. The potential of TCC technology in converting other biowaste materials, such as human waste, crop residues, and algae, can greatly impact our nation's ability to use renewable energy in a sustainable agricultural system while improving the environment.

His research in the development of aerodynamic deduster, a theory to redefine particle separation aerodynamically without filter media using low pressure and low turbulent intensity instead of the conventional theory that uses high pressure and high turbulence, has had a significant impact on numerous industrial applications. Several industries are working with Zhang to develop deduster air cleaning systems in an effort to save energy and fuel for off-road machinery, road-cleaning, and military vessels.

His unique research programs have successfully attracted millions of dollars in external funding, along with competitive research grants and contracts.

2008 ASABE Fellows
Elected During 2007-2008 Society Year

The ASABE Constitution establishes that "A Fellow shall be a member of unusual professional distinction, with outstanding and extraordinary qualifications and experience in, or related to, the field of agricultural, food, or biological systems engineering. A Fellow shall have had 20 years of active practice in, or related to, the profession of engineering; the teaching of engineering; or the teaching of an engineering-related curriculum. Graduation form a professional agricultural engineering curriculum (or its engineering equivalent) shall be considered equal to four years of active practice. The designation Fellow shall have honorary status, to which members of distinction may be elected, but for which they may not apply. Admission shall be only after a minimum of 20 years as a Member-Engineer or Member." The number of candidates elected to the Grade of Fellow each year shall not exceed 0.2 percent (2/10 of 1.0 percent) of total ASABE membership in the grade of Member-Engineer or Member at the end of the immediate preceding calendar year.

 

Philip Buriak, Professor Emeritus, Agricultural and Biological Engineering Department, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois was named as an ASABE Fellow at the 2008 ASABE Conference.

 

 

 

Outstanding Reviewers Recognition
The high quality of ASABE'S peer-reviewed journals could not be maintained without reviewers willing to spend hours evaluating author manuscripts and making suggestions for improvemements.  The Reviewer Recognition program developed by the Refereed Publications Committee honors up to 10 outstanding reviewers each year.  For the 2007 publication year, more than 800 reviewers participated in the review process.  During the year, associate editors ranked reviewer timeliness and review quality.  Each division then selected an allotted number of reviewers based on the number of manuscripts reviewed.

Ruth Book was recognized as one of two Outstanding Reviwers for 2007 in the Structures and Environment Division.

Massey-Ferguson Educational Award
The stated purpose of the Massey-Ferguson Educational Award is "To honor those whose dedication to the spirit of learning and teaching in the field of agricultural engineering had advanced our agricultural knowledge and practice, and whose efforts serve as an inspiration to others."  Established in 1965, the endowed award is named for Daniel Massey, pioneer Inventor and agricultural machinery manufacturer, and Harry Ferguson, Inventor and ardent exponent of agricultural mechanization.

Larry F. Huggins, P.E., ASABE Fellow, is the recipient of the 2008 Massey-Ferguson Educational Award in recognition of his dedication and outstanding contributions to agricultural and biological engineering through teaching, mentoring, administration, extension, and research.  He has provided academic leadership to the agricultural and biological engineering department at Purdue University and its college of engineering, as well as national leadership to the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers and to its Foundation.

Huggins retired in 2005 as associate dean in the college of engineering at Purdue and is currently participating in their voluntary partial retirement program as advisor to the dean of engineering.  As a faculty member, Huggins developed leading programs in research and teaching.  He excelled as a teacher and championed more effective teaching techniques and incorporated the latest in new technology into the curricula.  He led the nation in the introduction and use of emerging computer technologies for use as data acquisition and control devices.

As administrator, Huggins provided leadership in finding outstanding faculty replacements for a large number of retirements, increased the size and quality of the graduate programs, provided input in the renovation of existing facilities and development of new facilities, expanded computer resources, and co-led development of the first-ever cooperative extension service computer network.  His research work included creating a new hydrologic modeling approach that introduced distributed parameters to accurately predict surface runoff, erosion and nonpoint source pollution from agricultural lands.

A 51-year member of ASABE, Huggins served two terms on the Board of Directors, as treasurer, and as president in 1999-2000.  He has also served as president of the Foundation Board of Trustees and continues to serve as trustee.  He has provided leadership to ABET accreditation, Nominating and Award committees and led the team that acquired and installed the Society's first computer systems.  Through his various executive roles within the Society, Huggins helped strengthen its programs in food and in biological engineering, which eventually led to its name change. 

He has authored or coauthored more than 70 refereed journal articles, conference proceeding, book chapters, and technical publications.  Huggins' award and honors include the Purdue University College of Engineering, Spirit of Schenectady award; Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization Fulbright Hayes Senior Fellow; and Purdue's Department of Agricultural Engineering Best Teacher award.  ASABE awards include two Paper awards, and he was elected a Fellow in 1986.

Huggins in a member of the American Society for Engineering Education and the National Society of Professional Engineers.  As a student, Huggins was a founding member and national leader in the establishment of Alpha Epsilon, the honorary society of agricultural engineering

2008 A.W. Farrall Young Educator Award

Amy Kaleita is the recipient of the A.W. Farrall Young Educator Award for her enthusiastic contributions to the lives of engineering and technology students and to the development of the profession. Kaleita, an Assistant Professor in the Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Department at Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, is recognized and respected for her unique ability to stimulate students' critical thinking skills. She exemplifies her teaching goals of providing agricultural engineering and technology students with a solid foundation in fundamental principles, while allowing them to be creative problem-solvers with the confidence to tackle new and emerging issues. Kaleita has demonstrated the ability to promote contagious excitement for learning by cultivating an atmosphere of fun and interaction while guiding students to search for knowledge and to apply that knowledge to the solution of real problems. Always accessible to her students, Kaleita seeks to know each student and to help develop the mutual respect required to be able to connect on a level that meets everyone's needs.

2008 Sunkist Young Designer Award

Nathan A. Mariman is the recipient of the 2008 Sunkist Young Designer Award for his exceptional innovative design, development, and application of seed delivery systems.

Mariman is a product design engineer at John Deere Seeding Group and is responsible for the design and technical development of future products for row-crop planter metering systems, row units, and seeding equipment.  He is recognized as one of the leaders in applying advanced virtual modeling techniques and statistical analysis tools for solving engineering challenges for discrete element modeling highly engineered plastic components.

Mariman has contributed to the develo9pment and implementation of air system and metering design for the 1900 Commodity Cart.  He was a member of a team of lead design engineers that developed the 1790 Planter, Pro-Series Row Unit, and Central Commodity System (CCS) seed delivery for planters.  These projects have resulted in improved efficiency of planter production, seeding performance, customer productivity, increasing Deere's market share and profitability.  Both the CCS seed delivery and the Pro-Series Row Unit have improved the productivity of the farmer by providing bulk tanks for quicker fill times and open access of the meter for quicker clean-out.

Mariman has been a member of ASABE for 9 years.  While a student at the University of Illinois, he held the office of second vice president in the ASABE Student Engineering Branch council.  He has authored an article entitled "Total Engine Performance Monitor" for the University of Illinois and an article for Applied Engineering in Agriculture. He is currently serving as John Deere Seeding Group's project coordinator and mentor for the University of Illinois' ABE 469 Senior Design course, where he coordinates the gathering ideas from seeding product development to challenge student design teams.

Mariman's awards include a John Deere Special Recognition and Quality Award for Problem Solving and an Engineering Managers Innovation award from John Deere Agricultural Division.  His engineering contributions on John Deere products have won for him five AE50 award for innovation technology, along with 12 patents. 

 

Hancor Soil and Water Engineering Award
In 1966 the Hancock Brick& Tile Co. (now Hancor, Inc.) decided to sponsor an award recognizing noteworthy contributions to the advancement of soil and water engineering. Those contributions may be in teaching, research, planning, design, construction, managemnt or materials development. For the first two years, the award was presented to recognize outstanding work in drainage engineering, but in 1968 the scope expanded to include all engineering aspects of soil and water control for agriculture.

Saied Mostaghimi, ASABE Fellow, is the recipient of the 2008 Hancor Soil and Water Engineering Award for outstanding contributions in teaching, reserach, and service activities in the technical area of soil and water.

Mostaghimi, H.E. and Elizabeth F. Alphin professor and head, biological systems engineering department at Virginia Tech, is widely recognized for his outstanding research, outreach, and educational programs in hydrology, and in particular soil erosion and nonpoint source (NPS) pollution assessment and control. His research programs have focused on developing systematic monitoring strategies, inegrating modeling and monitoring for assessing the impact of agriculture and urban activities on water quality, and developing and/or validating computer simulation models for use by agencies involved in water resources and land-use planning.

The methodology he developed for data collection at the watershed scale has been widely adopted for water quality management by researchers and practitioners in the U.S. and worldwide. His research results, databases and water quality models are adopted for a variety of applications, such as development of water quality planning tools, management and policy-making decisions, and development and/or validation of new or existing water quality models. He has traveled to several countries to conduct U.S. Agency for International development-sponsored projects on watershed management and provided consulting srvices on NPS pollution control.

Mostaghimi has demonstrated visionary and motivational leadership since assuming the role of department head.

Presidential Citations - 2008
By President Don Erbach

Allen R. Rider - for his outstanding dedication to the ASABE Foundation, most recently demonstrated by his stepping into the breach as President and the many hours he has devoted to its reorganization and financial management improvements.

William W. Casady - For his outstanding leadership and service to the Society in the coordination of renewable energy activities throughout the Society.  His leadership has led to an Energy Day at the Annual Meeting and the development of a white paper on renewable energy, all with the involvement and cooperation of all divisions.

Gale A. Holloway Professional Development Award
The Gale A. Holloway Professional Development Award is a new award being presented for the first time in 2008. This annual award seeks to encourage and recognize outstanding leadership and active involvement in ASABE for early career members.

Chad Yagow is the first recipient of the Gale A. Holloway Professional Development Award in recognition of his numerous contributions to the International Preprofessional Council, Young professionals Community, and the Society as a whole. An engineer at John Deere Harvester Works in East Moline, Illinois, Yagow epitomizes the intent of the award, which is to recognize early-professional-career individuals that are dedicated to assuring that the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) provides a fulfilling technical and professional home.

Yagow began his active involvement as a preprofessional, serving as both President and Vice President of the International Preprofessional Council, an organization of elected officers that represents the authorized student branches of ASABE at colleges and universities in the U.S. and Canada.

Following his graduation from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2001, Yagow joined Deere and Company, where he has demonstrated energy and a strong product knowledge that has allowed him to make significant contributions to both header- and combine-development programs. His professional travels worldwide have enabled him to build a large contact list as well as a deeper understanding of global farm cropping practices and needs.

A 12-year member of ASABE, Yagow led in the establishment of the Young Professionals Community, which offers opportunities for leadership to young engineers transitioning from student to professional membership. A member of the 2003-2004 Dues committee, Yagow played an integral part in determining and instituting the graduate student and Young Professionals discounted membership dues rate categories. As chair of ED-416 Continuing Professional Development committee, he helped to increase professional development through pertinent and timely changes to program training. As Quad City Section chair, Yagow provided leadership to improving member participation through increased programming. The section also increased its community service through participation in the local children's museum, exposing parents and future engineers to the agricultural and biological engineering profession.

In the few short years he has been a member, Yagow has received four ASABE Presidential Distinguished Service citations and two Quad City section Young Engineer honors. Other professional memberships and activities include the Henry County Farm Bureau Young Leaders, Galva FFA Alumni Chapter, University of Illinois John Deere Foundation representative and ABE Department Advisory Board member.

Standards Developers Award
The following individuals are being recognized in 2008 for major contributions in the development of Standards during 2007.  Award nominations were submitted by a standards development committee or sub-committee and approved by the Committee on Standards, T-1.

Gene Yagow
ASAE S526.3, Soil and Water Terminology

Gene accepted the reponsibility of revising this comprehensive document in 2006.  With assistance from a drafting sub-committee, solications were made for proposed new definitions and revisions to existing definitions.  Gene collected the proposals and was able to craft a consensus document that was accepted by the committee members.  Considering the size of this standard and the fact that it is a terminology/definition standard, the completion of this revision was accompished in a very short time due to the effort exerted.  Gene is a Research Scientist, in the Biological Systems Engineering Department at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia.  He has been a member of ASABE for 23 years. 

K.K. Barnes Student Paper Awards
The objective of the K.K. Barnes Student Paper Awards competition is to encourage undergraduate students to improve preparation of papers on agricultural and biological engineering subjects. It is intended to be a special inducement to supplement training provided in undergraduate agricultural and biological engineering curriculums by providing early practice in the performance required of engineers. The awards are divided into two competitions - written and oral. Authors of the three top papers are invited to the annual meeting to participate in the oral competition. While at the meeting the top three participants, or their alternate, compete in the oral portion of the competition

Elizabeth A. Brooks was named a 2008 K.K. Barnes Finalist for her paper "An Innovative System for Bioremediation of Agricultural Chemicals for Environmental Sustainability."

ASABE Scholarship Grants
Preprofessional Recipients for 2008 Scholarships included Jason C. Buss receiving the Student Engineer of the Year Scholarship.

Student Honors Awards
These awards recognize outstanding scholarship attainments and general participation in student activities. Recipients are elected by their respective ASABE Student Branches. Award recognition consists of a certificate and engraved portfolio which is presented at their respective university during a branch spring function.

Curtis G. Zurliene was one of the 2008 recipients of this award.

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