Engineering and Technology Assistant Professor, Dr. Amir Elzawawy received the Spotlight Award for conducting engineering research after spending the summer of 2015 at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Dr. Elzawawy was accepted as an ORNL educational program participant and conducted nuclear research in hopes of understanding the mechanical interaction of high-speed coolant flow nuclear research reactor fuel plates. This specific research conducted was important because it highlights safety risks that can occur when in contact with high or low risk uranium reactors.

According to Dr. Elzawawy, he learned how to use software that can be used for researching nuclear reactors as well as common functions of the human body. In his amazement, he brought what he learned throughout the summer working inside the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) and applied it to his curriculum. His students now use Multiphysics to understand heat transfer and fluid mechanics.