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Elham Rahimi, a graduate student in the John and Willie Leone Family Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering, will receive the Raja V. and Geetha V. Ramani Graduate Students Award from the Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration (SME) at the society’s gala dinner during their annual conference, MINEXCHANGE, in Denver, Colorado on Sunday. February 23. 

Russell Johns is one of three faculty from Penn State’s College of Earth and Mineral Sciences (EMS) have been elected to the National Academy of Engineering (NAE).

Three Penn State energy and mineral engineering doctoral students traveled 8,176 miles from University Park to South Africa to attend the Mintek@90 Conference last fall. Hosted by Mintek, one of South Africa's leading mineral research organizations, the group presented research and introduced Penn State as a strategic research partner to South African academic and industrial leaders.

With an electric current and hydrogen peroxide, researchers at Penn State have developed a more efficient way to extract lithium, a key component in the batteries used in electric vehicles and portable electric devices, directly from ore found in the common mineral spodumene. The process could facilitate a 35.6% reduction in cost and a 75.3% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to traditional, less sustainable extraction methods, according to the team, led by Feifei Shi, assistant professor of energy engineering at Penn State. 

Penn State’s College of Earth and Mineral Sciences and Shandong University of Science and Technology in China have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to pursue collaborative research, teaching and educational opportunities. The goal of the MOU is to strengthen and disseminate research outcomes in environmental and safety sciences and mining engineering.

Maruf Morshed, assistant teaching professor in energy business and finance at Penn State, will give the talk, "Are Biofuels More Environmentally Friendly? The GHG Emissions Impacts of Increased Biofuel Production,” at noon on Wednesday, Jan. 29, in 157 Hosler Building on the University Park campus. His talk is part of the spring Initiative for Energy and Environmental Economics and Policy (EEEPI) seminar series.

Tsunami Sharmba, who’s completing an integrated graduate and undergraduate degree with majors in environmental systems engineering and philosophy, is one of three Schreyer Scholars who have volunteered for State College’s Alpha Fire Company.

Sekhar Bhattacharyya, associate teaching professor, Energy and Mineral Engineering, College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, is 1 of 51 teaching and clinical non-tenure-line faculty to receive the new Opportunity Grant Professional Development Program award.

Isam Al-Zadjali, who majored in petroleum and natural gas engineering, was recently named a 2024 Alumni Fellow and returned to the University Park campus from his home country of Oman to accept his fellowship from President Neeli Bendapudi.

Penn State’s Local Climate Action Program (LCAP) is making a valuable impact beyond Pennsylvania’s borders, thanks in part to recent World Campus Energy and Sustainability Policy graduate, Joe Thompson.