CME students to display capstone projects at Engineering Expo
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A team of civil, materials, and environmental engineering students is proposing a solution to help remediate pollution and reestablish biodiversity and habitat for ecosystems on a section of the south branch of the Chicago River.
The section known as Bubbly Creek earned its name from gases bubbling out of the riverbed from the decomposition of blood and entrails dumped into the river in the early 20th century by the local meatpacking businesses surrounding the stockyards.
The team of Melanie Diaz, Janet Lozoya, Sriya Gendiko, Parthenia Gharavi, Hasan Soniwalla, and Ina Torres have worked two semesters on “Capping Bubbly Creek: A Template for Other Capping Projects in the Chicago River” for their capstone project.
The students propose adding floating treatment wetlands to mitigate pollution from sewer overflow. It will be tethered and secured by anchors placed on top of a substrate cap the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plans to install for Bubbly Creek restoration. The student project is intended to be a supplemental design to help ensure the success of the USACE’s substrate cap design.
“It is complimenting it, not replacing it,” said Lozoya. “This project is important because it is a direct result of improper waste disposal of animal byproducts. My group members and I decided to choose this project because we believed it to be a great opportunity to work on a water restoration project with the USACE. This project also introduced the issues of Bubbly Creek to a couple of group members, including myself, despite its issues being reoccurring due to combined sewer overflow events.”
The capstone class challenges students to solve real-world engineering issues using research, creativity, and the skills they developed at UIC and hone their skills as they prepare for the professional world.
“I strongly believe that it has made me grow as a person. I learned what it means to work as a team, whether that be discussing ideas and working together, or disagreeing with one another and taking on extra responsibilities, it presented me with situations that will likely occur in the future. The class taught me hard lessons that will stick with me throughout my engineering career,” Lozoya said.
In addition to working as a team, the students found support from professional advisors Michael Burke and Emma Dahl, both of Christopher B. Burke Engineering, Ltd.
“They helped and guided us throughout this spring semester by providing any resources we needed, suggestions on the project design, feedback on submissions, and professional advice whenever we had any questions. It was easy to get in contact with them because we met weekly as a team for the majority of the semester,” Lozoya said.
The team will present their project at this year’s Engineering Expo, which will be held on Friday, April 25, from noon to 3 p.m. at the Credit Union 1 Arena, 525 S. Racine Ave, Chicago. The event is free and open to the public and tickets are not necessary to attend. The expo will feature more than 700 students who make up approximately 200 teams from every department of the College of Engineering.