SALAM IBRAHIM, PH.D.
Department of Family and Consumer Sciences
Won the university’s Senior Researcher Award. Ibrahim conducts extensive research on yogurt and , the role of prebiotics in disease prevention and health promotion, and ways to make culturing media from agricultural waste, among other areas of study. He was recently honored by the CAES for having a number of publications in high-impact journals.
ABOLGHASEM SHAHBAZI, PH.D.
Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Design
Won an Interdisciplinary Team Award as part of the Sustainable Materials Research Team. Shahbazi and Wang, in the biological engineering program, are exploring the use of a new, sustainable material of iron oxide on surface of silicalite-1, with the ability to efficiently convert biomass into hydrogen and carbon monoxide to make commodity fuels and chemicals as well as conducting research on industrial hemp. Shahbazi was also recently recognized by the CAES for earning a $1 million grant from the National Science Foundation for developing a distributed, remote sensing and control system for smart agriculture.
LIJUN WANG, PH.D.
Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Design
Won an Interdisciplinary Team Award as part of the Sustainable Materials Research Team. Shahbazi and Wang, in the biological engineering program, are exploring the use of a new, sustainable material of iron oxide on surface of silicalite-1, with the ability to efficiently convert biomass into hydrogen and carbon monoxide to make commodity fuels and chemicals as well as conducting research on industrial hemp. Shahbazi was also recently recognized by the CAES for earning a $1 million grant from the National Science Foundation for developing a distributed, remote sensing and control system for smart agriculture.
CHYI LYI "KATHLEEN" LIANG, PH.D.
Kellog Distinguished Professor in the Department of Agribusiness, Agricultural Economics and Agriscience Education
Was recognized as part of the Food Energy-Water Interdisciplinary Team. This project is funded by NSF to find solutions to alleviate food desert challenges by looking the issue from both the human and natural sides. This new approach links land development options, ecosystem, farming characteristics, consumer demand and financial incentives to achieve long- term sustainability for urban and rural communities.
Si Zhu, Ph.D.
Si Zhu, Ph.D., a post-doctoral researcher in the lab of professor Guibing Chen, Ph.D. at the Center for Excellence in Post-Harvest Technologies in Kannapolis, has been selected as the recipient of the 2021 N.C. A&T Outstanding Dissertation Award.
In her dissertation, Zhu developed a mathematical procedure that significantly improved the accuracy of the microbial modeling, which is currently the common way of eliminating pathogens from food, and developed a universal model to make that process more efficient. She then developed a cloud-based platform to make that approach more user-friendly for food scientists and engineers in the food industry.
“Dr. Zhu’s dissertation creatively addressed three major shortcomings of the current microbial modeling approach to destroying foodborne pathogens,” said Chen.
Six publications have resulted from her dissertation, including one published in the Journal of Food Engineering.
Zhu’s article on the thermal processing of canned foods won second place in 2021 Charles R. Stumbo Student Paper Competition, organized by the Institute for Thermal Processing Specialists (IFTPS).
She also won the Energy and Environmental Systems Department’s Outstanding Seminar Presentation Award.
