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February 2015

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Department of Energy Approves $1.1 Million for Underground Physics Research

A newly formed physics research group at Mines is poised to make significant contributions to dark matter and neutrino oscillation experiments funded with a $1.1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

The DOE’s Office of High Energy Physics announced the award as part of its Cosmic Frontier and Intensity Frontier research programs. The award will be distributed over a three-year period beginning in April.

SD Mines physicists collaborate with scientists worldwide in several underground research experiments being conducted at the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF) in Lead and are involved in ultra-sensitive experiments at other laboratories in the U.S. and Canada.

“Underground physics experiments promise the possibilities of revealing the behavior of the neutrino and the nature of dark matter that makes up 80 percent of the universe by mass,” said Richard Schnee, Ph.D., one of the lead SD Mines underground researchers.

At SURF, physicists collaborate on the Large Underground Xenon (LUX) experiment, as well as the planned next-generation LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ) experiment, and the Experiment at the Long Baseline Neutrino Facility (ELBNF).

The new Department of Energy award will allow the university to lead work on calibrations, analysis and reducing backgrounds due to radon daughters and dust. Improved calibrations are critical to the success of the experiments.

Research for the experiments is being conducted at the SD Mines campus, and on site at the laboratories.

Specifically, in the Intensity Frontier program, the funding will support the current NOvA

and future ELBNF neutrino oscillation projects. In the Cosmic Frontier area, it will support the current LUX and Super Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS) Soudan dark matter experiments, and especially their next phases, LZ and SuperCDMS SNOLAB.

SD Mines is involved in both of the next-generation underground dark matter experiments the Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation approved in July to move forward.

“Over the past two years, Mines has hired four new faculty members to support our new Ph.D. in physics. We are aligning our research program to take advantage of the tremendous capability the Sanford Underground Research Facility affords South Dakota,” said President Heather Wilson. “We’re very proud of the research team assembled at the university and very excited about the future of physics research here at Mines.”

Along with Schnee, other new faculty researchers are Luke Corwin, Ph.D., Juergen Reichenbacher, Ph.D., and Frank Strieder, Ph.D.

Schnee and Reichenbacher are active members of the LZ experiment team. Mines astrophysicist Xinhua Bai, Ph.D., has been involved in the current LUX project and LZ, including serving on the LUX executive board. Schnee is a member of the SuperCDMS SNOLAB collabora-tion, the other next-generation underground dark matter experiment. Corwin is a member of NOvA, while Bai, Corwin, and Reichenbacher are members of the ELBNF experiment.

Strieder is principle investigator of the Compact Accelerator System Performing Astrophysical Research (CASPAR) project at SURF, which is funded through the South Dakota Science and Technology Authority.

Gadhamshetty Honored with CAREER Award

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded South Dakota School of Mines & Technology Assistant Professor Venkataramana Gadhamshetty, Ph.D., P.E., with the prestigious CAREER award that carries a $500,000 research grant.

Over the next five years, the award will fund Gadhamshetty’s research that could pave the way for the next generation of minimally invasive, corrosion-resistant coatings for infrastructure. The annual cost of microbial corrosion on infrastructure is estimated to reach nearly $1 billion in the United States alone.

The Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program offers the NFS’s most prestigious awards to support junior faculty who exemplify the role of teacher-scholars through outstanding research, excellent education and the integration of education and research.

Gadhamshetty joined SD Mines’ Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering faculty last fall. He previously trained as an Excellence in Civil and Engineering Education Fellow with the American Society of Civil Engineers. He also received the Oakridge Institute of Science & Education Fellowship to conduct research at the Air Force Research Laboratory. He has previously taught at Florida Gulf Coast University and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York.

He began his current research two years ago while collaborating with graphene experts at Rensselaer.

Microbial corrosion accounts for 20-40 percent of total corrosion costs in infrastructure throughout America and reduces the performance of sprinkler systems, water pipelines, oil pipelines, medical appliances and boat hulls, for example.

While there are several commercial protective coatings for metal protection, they tend to fail in the aqueous and microbial environments. Gadhamshetty’s research features graphene as a promising new protectant because it is 300 times stronger than steel, 1,000 times more conductive than silicon and is optically transparent.

“Considering that graphene is the world’s thinnest material – thinner than human hair – it was always fascinating to probe the fundamental details on how such a thin

When complete, this new physics lab space located on the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology campus should have the lowest radon concentration of any cleanroom on the continent.

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Mines Ph.D. candidate Anne-Marie Suriano has been selected to receive the 2015 Science Graduate Research Award from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science.

Suriano, who is pursuing her doctorate in the materials engineering and science program, will investigate the electrodeposition of ultra-high purity copper alloys for use in low background experiments such as those at the Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF). This research is an extension of her current work helping to create the purest copper in the world for the Majorana Demonstrator Experiment at SURF’s 4850 level, alongside Cabot-Ann Christofferson, Mines faculty member and liaison and deputy director of the experiment. The Majorana project is searching for evidence of neutrinoless double-beta decay. Its detection could help measure the mass of the neutrino.

“The aim of the grant is to develop a method to create these ultra-radiopure alloys for high-energy physics purposes, but they can also be used as detector parts for nuclear physics projects such as Majorana,” said Suriano.

Suriano’s one-year DOE appointment will begin May 2015 at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Wash., where she will work under Eric Hoppe, a leading expert in the field. Suriano said her grant will allow her access to the necessary equipment and lab space to complete her dissertation.

The goal of the DOE program is to provide graduate thesis research opportunities at DOE laboratories in order to prepare students for critically important science, technology, engineering and math careers by addressing challenges central to the Office of Science’s mission.

Graduate Student Lands Department of Energy

AppointmentEngineers Week Features Mines

Myth Busters Event for PublicThe 2015 Engineers Week will be celebrated at the School of Mines Feb. 17-21 and will feature events for university students, hundreds of area middle school students and the general public.

As many as 600 middle or high school students could converge on campus for tours and demonstrations by academic departments, a visit to the Museum of Geology and a NASA presentation. Additionally, several events are open to the general public, including a Mines Myth Busters experiment, a magic chemistry show and the NASA talk.

The public is invited to Mines Myth Busters from 6-7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 17, in the Surbeck Center Ballroom when Mines professors and students will not just talk about curiosity-driven research, they’ll show it with hands-on demonstrations. The event is free.

The physics, chemistry and civil engineering departments will present myths and attempt to prove or disprove them with Mines’ signature twist of explosive experimentation.

The public is also invited to the Thursday, Feb. 19, magic chemistry shows at 9 a.m., 10 a.m. and 11 a.m. They will be held in the lecture hall of the Chemistry Building, room 2228, and will feature experiments involving chemicals that create colorful smoke and flames.

Tom Durkin, deputy director and outreach coordinator of the South Dakota Space Grant Consortium headquartered at the School of Mines, will lead a presentation, “History of Apollo,” at 1 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 19, in the Surbeck Center ballroom. This event is also free and open to the public.

Tuesday, Feb. 17:

Order of the Engineer Luncheon, 11:30 a.m., Ballroom, Surbeck Center

Mines Myth Busters, 6 to 7 p.m., Ballroom, Surbeck Center

Wednesday, Feb. 18:

South Dakota Engineering Society Luncheon, 11:30 a.m., Christensen Hall of Fame, King Center

Mr. & Miss Mines Pageant, 7 p.m., Ballroom, Surbeck Center

Thursday, Feb. 19:

Engineering & Science Day with between 400-600 middle and high school students visiting the School of Mines for campus tours, 9 a.m. to noon

Chemistry magic shows, open to the public, 9 a.m., 10 a.m., and 11 a.m., room 2228, Chemistry Building

Music in Engineering Concert, noon to 1 p.m., Music Center

History of Apollo NASA Presentation by Tom Durkin, 1 to 2 p.m., Ballroom, Surbeck Center

Museum of Geology Open House, noon to 4 p.m.

Friday, Feb. 20:

Grubby Games, a new event challenging Mines students to complete tasks such as solving a Rubik’s Cube, answering Harry Pottery trivia, creating a balsa wood airplane, launching mini rockets and testing mini-parachutes for proper timing and landing accuracy to earn ice cream from Silver Lining Creamery; sponsored by American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air Conditioning Engineers, 2-4 p.m., Ballroom, Surbeck Center

Free ice skating for the first 150 Mines students, 3-5:30 p.m., Main Street Square

Men’s and women’s basketball vs. Johnson & Wales College, 6 p.m., King Center

Saturday, Feb. 22:

Math Counts Contest for sixth, seventh and eighth grade students, 1 p.m., room 204, Classroom Building

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First-ever Mines Day Hosted at CapitolThe South Dakota School of Mines & Technology hosted the first-ever Mines Day at the South Dakota State Capitol Rotunda Jan. 13, the first day of legislative session. The day-long event featured a variety of interactive demonstrations, hands-on activities and informational booths.

Exhibits featured 3D printing technology, a chemistry magic show, unmanned aerial vehicles, a physics light display and information on economic development, entrepreneurs-in-residence, Women in Science and Engineering, athletics, mining and the Career & Professional Development Center. Grubby also made a special appearance, posing for photos with lawmakers and visitors.

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Mines Assistant Professor Sadegh Safarzadeh, Ph.D., has received the prestigious Rong Yu Wan award from the Society of Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration (SME).

Safarzadeh won the award, presented annually to a recent Ph.D. recipient, for his dissertation research on extracting copper from ores containing high levels of arsenic with far less harmful environmental impacts and at lower costs than current industry practice. He is now a faculty member in the Department of Materials & Metallurgical Engineering.

Over the past few years, copper-arsenic feedstocks have been avoided by industry due to their high-arsenic content and refractory nature. Several processes have been examined for the treatment of enargite concentrates, frequently encountered in the most economically valuable copper deposits, but no commercial operation currently exists. Through his recent dissertation research, Safarzadeh developed an environmentally benign processing option for the enargite concentrates, which transforms enargite into water-soluble phases without releasing the toxic arsenic-bearing gases into the atmosphere.

The results of this research indicate that both high-arsenic copper and gold concentrates could be processed more inexpensively and with less deleterious environmental impacts. Safarzadeh’s work also offers new options for the metallurgical industry to utilize copper ores that were not considered economically feasible for processing in the past.

“Copper is one of the most important non-ferrous metals, without which modern-day life would be impossible. Without copper, there would be no running water, no phone, no computer and no electricity. About 65 percent of copper is used in electrical applications because of its excellent electrical conductivity. It is also used in construction, hygienic services (because of its antimicrobial properties), transport, coins and cookware,” said Safarzadeh.

The results of Safarzadeh’s research were recently published in international journals including Hydrometallurgy, International Journal

Assistant Professor Receives National Award for Innovative Copper Extraction

of Mineral Processing, and Minerals and Metallurgical Processing. Safarzadeh will receive the award from SME at the annual foundation gala dinner Feb. 15 in Denver. He will also receive a $1,000 prize, a certificate and an invitation to deliver a paper on the topic at SME’s annual meeting.

Safarzadeh’s research was sponsored by one of the world’s largest gold companies, Newmont Mining Corporation, while he was a doctoral candidate, and is just one example of the university’s frequent collaboration with industry. Mines is one of only five universities nationwide offering the combination of degrees in metallurgical engineering, mining engineering, geology and geological engineering, making its graduates a valuable resource for mineral industries.

Mines hosted its second annual Professional Development Institute Mines Advantage Conference Jan. 24 as part of ongoing leadership training for students.

About 100 SD Mines student leaders attended the conference. Alumnus and author Paul Axtell spoke with participants in the Surbeck Center ballroom. The conference included an etiquette luncheon, sponsored by Ring Container Technologies, and nine breakout sessions on topics such as work/life balance, entrepreneurship, diversity in the workplace, career fair preparation and social media.

100 Student Leaders Attend Professional Development Conference

Mines Mobilizes Residents to Serve on Martin Luther King Holiday

Seventeen student groups from the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology stepped up to serve as volunteers on the annual Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. Volunteers collected food and cash donations at local grocery stores Jan. 19, joining hundreds of thousands of Americans nationwide for the National Day of Service. Combined with food collected during a campus-wide drive Jan. 12-16, students collected more than 3,000 pounds of food for Feeding South Dakota and the Mines student food pantry.

“Mines planned a day of service that leveraged the strength of local citizens to help tackle local problems and advance King’s dream of opportunity for all,” said Cory Headley, assistant director, Student & Activities Leadership Center. “The annual event honors King’s legacy and was a chance for Rapid City residents to renew their own personal vows of citizenship through service to others.”

Student organizations participating were: Rotaract, Residence Life, Circle K, American Society of Civil Engineers, Delta Sigma Phi, Student Senate, National Society of Black Engineers, American Indian Science and Engineering Society, Professional Development Institute, Weather Club, Film Rockers, Future Health Professionals, Triangle, Society of Manufacturing Engineers, Lambda Chi Alpha, Campus Ministries and the Center for Advanced Manufacturing & Production.

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$3.6M Grant Helps Jump Start American Indian, Low-income Students to College Success

Women students at the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology heard from industry leaders on succeeding in traditionally male-dominated fields at the second-annual Women in Science and Engineering (WiSE) Forum. The panel featured women from Joy Global, Kiewit, Sequoia Engineering, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Sanford Underground Research Facility. Topics ranged from navigating the workplace culture of women in science, technology, engineering and math to advancing in a chosen field.

Lisa Carlson, WiSE director, hoped seeing professional women flourish in industry better enabled students to envision themselves in those roles. “It definitely filled the role of encouraging and supporting women in the field by showcasing other, successful women who’ve been there, done that.”

The forum was sponsored by Joy Global and organized by Mines and Rapid City’s professional WiSE groups.

Industry Leaders Reach Out to Fill the Gap of Women in STEM

In partnership with six other universities statewide as well as one tribal institution, the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology has received a $3.6 million federal grant to encourage American Indian and low-income students to enroll in college and help ensure their success.

The program, called South Dakota Jump Start, will usher 900 students through immersive summer camps at universities across South Dakota prior to their freshman, sophomore and junior years, offering them the opportunity to live on campus, earn college credit and hold part-time employment to help pay for their education through on-campus jobs or undergraduate research.

“We face a continuing challenge to help more minority and low-income students succeed in college. Many of these students come unprepared for higher education or without adequate resources to succeed in college,” said Jack Warner, executive director and CEO for the South Dakota Board of Regents (BOR).

SD Mines is located in a state that is home to both the third highest American Indian population and the three of the top 10 poorest counties nationwide, meaning minority students face significant challenges in pursuing a college degree.

The unique nature of the problem has spurred an equally unique solution. “Each college will hire retention specialists for students involved in this program … and two additional BOR liaisons, for a total of three, will be hired as college access advisors. There are a lot of different entities collaborating to encourage more kids to go to school,” Director of Multicultural Affairs Jesse Herrera said. “Even

The 2015 legislative crackerbarrels will be Saturdays, Feb. 21, Feb. 28 and March 7 on the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology campus. Each event will run from 9-11 a.m. in room 204 of the Classroom Building and will feature five-minute presentations by area legislators, followed by a 75 to 90 minute question-and-answer period. The Feb. 28 crackerbarrel is strictly on the Civic Center expansion. Crackerbarrels were also held Jan. 24 and Jan. 31.

The following is a list of legislators scheduled to present at each event:

Jan. 24 Sen. Craig Tieszen

Rep. Brian Gosch

Rep. Jacqueline Sly

Jan. 31Sen. Terri Haverly

Rep. Kristen Conzet

Rep. Lance Russell

Rep. Chip Campbell

Feb. 21Sen. Alan Solano

Rep. Mike Verchio

Rep. Lynne DiSanto

Rep. Scott Craig

Feb. 28

Civic Center Expansion

March 7Sen. Bruce Rampelberg

Sen. Phil Jensen

Rep. Jeff Partridge

Rep. Dan Dryden

Legislative Crackerbarrels on Campus through March 7

if a student chooses not to stay at Mines, he or she has a safety net to go to other universities.” That type of statewide effort encompassing several different schools differentiates it from other Jump Start programs across the United States.

The idea for South Dakota Jump Start is based off of a momentum study that shows students who are more invested in an institution are more likely to stay, increasing retention rates and the likelihood of a successful outcome, Herrera explained. A program like this that prepares incoming freshmen for the rigors of higher education and helps them transition into their sophomore and junior years is far more likely to secure a student’s success.

While South Dakota Jump Start may be similarly executed at universities around the state, there is one area where SD Mines stands apart. Not only does the university have the second highest percentage of American Indian students among BOR institutions, last year alone, 76 percent of SD Mines students landed co-ops and internships. Herrera said that means SD Mines is well-positioned to find students employment opportunities. “Other schools might have a harder time getting students into research and internships.”

The effort joins other programs aimed at recruiting and retaining American Indian students at SD Mines, including SD GEARUP, a campus-based, summer experience for high school students, and the Tiospaye Scholar program, a competitive NSF-funded program for current students majoring in the sciences and engineering.

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About Legacy NewsLegacy News is produced by the Office of University Relations the first Wednesday of each month. The newsletter is a compilation of news releases, photos and Web articles.

To submit news or story ideas or to subscribe to the email distribution list, please contact Fran LeFort, communications manager, at 605.394.6082 or at fran.lefort@sdsmt.edu. For more Mines news, visit news.sdsmt.edu

Interactive Exhibit Beckons Viewers to Read the ‘Handwriting on the Wall’

“Handwriting on the Wall,” by artist R.T. Livingston is being exhibited through Feb. 20 at the Apex Gallery.

Livingston, an internationally renowned conceptual artist, said the work pays homage to the idiom both by illustrating the act itself as well as hinting at its sense of foreboding through phrases invoking diverse issues ranging from climate change to the survival of the written word. Prompted by simples phrases scrawled across the gallery space, she suggests participants contemplate their own interpretations.

“If art is about nothing else, it’s about communication. The four painted/drawn wall installations are open to interpretation depending on you, the viewer’s point of view. Three of the gallery walls have a series of painted grey squares placed horizontally across each wall. In rote fashion, each of three phrases is repeated over and over again providing a pathway to the brain where the concept takes hold,” Livingston explained.

The exhibit includes an interactive participatory drawing where viewers are invited to write their signatures on the wall to create the interconnecting structure of the piece. “The first conscious drawing each of us creates is our signature. We perfect it until it becomes a personal logo,” Livingston said.

Nearly 400 South Dakota School of Mines & Technology students were named to the Dean’s List for the 2014 fall semester. In order to merit a spot on the Dean’s List, students must earn a grade point average of 3.5 or higher for the semester. Full-time students must have earned a minimum of 12 credit hours that term, while part-time students must have earned between three and 11 credit hours that term.

Nearly 400 Mines Students Named to Fall Dean’s List

Alumnus Discusses Book with Community

School of Mines alumnus and author Paul Axtell spoke to the campus community Jan. 23. Axtell, who graduated from SD Mines in 1968 with a d e g r e e i n c h e m i c a l engineering, is author of three books, including his latest, “Meetings Matter: 8 Powerful Strategies for Remarkable Conversations.”

He was on campus to meet the public in a free, informal question-and-answer setting.

The author was featured in a “Forbes” Q&A on leadership this January. The full transcript of the interview may be read here: http://www.forbes.com/sites/rodgerdeanduncan/2015/01/18/boring-meetings-try-these-simple-steps-to-go-from-dull-to-dazzling/

Axtell’s newest book, which offers strategies on leading and participating in effective meetings, has received positive reviews. “Success” magazine called it “a well-organized, thorough and sensible approach to the art of communication,” complete with questionnaires, assessments and useful checkboxes.

“Meetings Matters” is available in the Rocker Shop campus bookstore, located in the Surbeck Center.

Assistant Professor Venkataramana Gadhamshetty, Ph.D., P.E., and doctoral student Namita Shrestha, of Nepal, discuss research on the use of graphene as a next generation coating to protect infrastructure.

material can solve the multibillion dollar corrosion problem. There are several other reasons why graphene can be considered a natural wonder of the materials world,” Gadhamshetty said, referring to its strength and conductivity.

“This is a great start to Dr. Gadhamshetty’s research career at Mines in an area of great importance to the nation. The development of coatings that help metal resist rust can save billions of dollars,” said President Heather Wilson. “We look forward to the results of his work.”

Besides integrating graphene research into the curriculum through innovative educational modules, Gadhamshetty’s goals include identifying undergraduates and summer interns from the Native American population to assist in his research efforts.

“We hope this experience will help more students feel the joy of research and discovery and build their motivation to seek advanced degrees in science, technology, engineering and math disciplines,” Gadhamshetty said. “The National Science Foundation provides boundless opportunities for students and young investigators to pursue research of their interest. The undergraduate students should take advantage of resources provided by NSF. I hope this project will help me develop exciting opportunities for undergraduates to learn about the emerging applications of nanotechnology, and at the same time increase the awareness of the environmental challenges posed by the modern world.”

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JOIN US AS OUR TEAM OF Mines Myth Busters DEBUNKS OR PROVES SOME OF

HISTORY’S MOST POPULAR URBAN LEGENDS.

THIS FREE EVENT IS OPEN TO ALL:

THE CURIOUS SPECTATOR, THE SERIOUS SCIENTIST,

AND EVERYONE IN BETWEEN.

FIND OUT WHICH MYTHS MAKE THE CUT AND WHICH GET BUSTED

WITH MINES’ SIGNATURE TWIST OF EXPLOSIVE EXPERIMENTATION.

Mines Myth

Busters 6-7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2015

Surbeck Center, Ballroom

CAN YOU TELL A TALL TALE FROM THE TRUTH?

This is a non-school material that is neither endorsed nor necessarily reflective of the views of Rapid City Area Schools.