A message from the Department Head
Hua Zhao
Spring is the season of celebration. We celebrate the success of 40 BBE and 26 SSM students for completing their bachelor’s degrees, along with two MS students and one Ph.D. student for receiving their graduate degrees (four more MS and two more Ph.D. students are expected to complete their degrees this summer). Congratulations to all for your accomplishments! Our department held a graduation celebration on May 12th to recognize our graduates. Continue reading Dr. Zhao's message.
Hua Zhao,
Professor and Department Head
Student Voices
SSM students win DOE Solar Decathlon
The Northstar Building Science Club created a deep-energy retrofit for a three-story housing structure in Minneapolis, receiving the grand prize for the Residential Retrofit Housing category at the 2023 Department of Energy Solar Decathlon.
The winning project titled Phillips ReGen, is a deep-energy retrofit that aims to preserve the original character of a century-old masonry building while meeting current global environmental demands and the local need for affordable, durable, and resilient housing.
Originally built in 1904 and vacant since the 1990’s, the existing building is a deteriorated three-story brick structure located in the Phillips Neighborhood of Minneapolis. In collaboration with the City of Lakes Community Land Trust and Hope Community, the University of Minnesota NorthStar Retrofit Team has developed a strategy to “ReGenerate” this neglected property into a lasting community asset.
The overarching goal of this project was to develop a solid Net Zero Energy retrofit solution based on a systems-guided approach and sound building science principles in a way that can be replicated for other buildings of this iconic archetype in cold climates.
Watch the team speaking about the project on KSTP channel 5 news tonight at 5:00 and 6:30 PM CST.
BBE Discovery
Solving food security issues using AI
Feeding a growing planet is one of humanity's biggest challenges. Ironically, another huge problem is poverty among some of the very people who are growing the world's food. Added to the problems of food security and income inequality is the urgent problem of the climate crisis.
How did this situation come about? During the 20th century, agricultural production exploded due to advances like mechanization, hybridization, fertilizers and pesticides. Transportation allowed staple foods such as corn, wheat and rice to be traded globally. These innovations fed many more people, but also created new challenges for the 21st century.
Today, small farmers with few resources compete with big producers in rich countries. "Small farmers never win by growing staple crops, because of the international commodity market," said Professor Zhenong Jin of BBE.
Drawing on his background in mathematics, earth science and machine learning, Jin has developed ways for farmers to get accurate information about their fields, plan ahead and make good decisions. By using AI and remote sensing, Jin and his team can create precision maps that humans cannot. He provides them to government partners, as as well as development nonprofits that fund agricultural projects.
Jin's process uses Google Earth Engine together with artificial intelligence to answer questions that can't be answered by people. Google Earth Engine is a cloud computing platform for processing publicly available satellite imagery and other geospatial and observation data. It is basically a database of images from NASA and European Space Agency satellites from which people like Jin can extract data. Satellite imaging contains resolution to down to about one meter. But there is too much data for humans to sift through. That's where AI comes in.
BBE tribal study will look at farming's impact on water in Pineland Sands
A research study is taking a closer look at how intensive farming and irrigation in the Pineland Sands region of north-central Minnesota is affecting natural resources in tribal treaty territories.
The Pineland Sands region covers parts of Becker, Cass, Hubbard and Wadena counties. In the past few decades, the region has seen widespread land use changes, including the clear cutting of forests for potato farms.
The region’s sandy soils cause water to drain quickly, so growing potatoes or other crops requires a lot of irrigation. That’s raised concerns about the impact of over-pumping on the groundwater supply, as well as nitrate contamination from fertilizer.
“There's concerns about the effect of heavy water use as well as the chemistry that is affected by agricultural operations, and the changing of the landscape from a forest and grassland to do row crops,” said John Nieber, a Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering professor who is helping lead the study.
Alumni Spotlight
Chandra Her
Bachelor of Science, Sustainable Systems Engineering
Awards & Honors
Distinguished Alumni Award given to Leo Holm
The annual BBE Distinguished Alumni Award recognizes an alumnus or alumna who has achieved professional distinction in various industries, academic and research institutions, government agencies, or non-profit organizations as evidenced by outstanding professional achievement. The candidate should have received their baccalaureate or graduate degree through the Department of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering or its predecessor departments before merging in 2006.
Leo Holm - 2023 Recipient
Mr. Holm has a distinguished record of achievements during his career as a professional engineer working at MN Department of Transportation (MnDOT). He performed engineering analyses and designs to reduce the sediment in runoff from multi-million dollar transportation projects. As part of his responsibilities, Mr. Holm also developed MnDOT’s standard and specifications for stormwater and sediment control plans. These specifications are used by government agencies and consultants for construction projects of MnDOT and of municipalities, counties, and other organizations.
The vision and leadership that Mr. Holm provided in the establishment of the Erosion and Stormwater Management Certification Program is his greatest legacy.
Early Career Alumni Award given to Sarah Whiteside
BBSEM grad student group, LCTEAM, wins UMN Systemwide Sustainability Collaborative Team Impact Award
Life Cycle, Thinking, Engagement, Assessment, and Modeling (LCTEAM) received the 2023 University of Minnesota Systemwide Sustainability Collaborative Team Impact Award! This award recognizes student collaborations from all campuses who have made significant contributions to the University of Minnesota and local communities in helping create a more sustainable and just future. Read more about LCTEAM's nomination.
Upcoming Events & Announcements
Join us for our annual Lakes States TAPPI Golf Outing June 8, 2023
This year's event will be hybrid, allowing participants to play at the University of Minnesota Les Bolstad Golf Course, or an 18-hole golf course of your choice!
Register online by May 25, 2023!
Congratulations 2023 Graduates!
Click here to read capstone project summaries and view photos from the day!
Three BBE Faculty Retire
BBE celebrates the accomplishments of three faculty members:
Chuck Clanton , Pat Huelman and Kevin Janni
Thank you all for your years of service and dedication to the Department of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering!
Make a contribution to BBE scholarships in their name.
Thank You Gala Attendees!
On April 13, 2023 BBE hosted a fundraising gala in support of BBE undergraduate scholarships. The event raised $18,775, with $11,225 going to scholarship funding.
Browse photos from the event!
Thank you to our donors for providing continued support to our department. Student scholarships would not be possible without the generosity of all our donors, and we are deeply grateful for the continued support. Thank you, all!
Interested in supporting BBE?
Give to our BBE student scholarships today
Planned giving with the University
Planned gifts enable donors to accomplish their charitable and other goals by using estate or tax planning techniques to provide for charity and heirs in a way that maximizes the gift and minimizes taxes. Donors can make a planned gift by including the University in their will or trust, or by designating the U as a beneficiary of their retirement plan, life insurance policy, or other account. Some planned gifts can provide income to the donors or to others. Planned gifts can also be outright — when a donor makes a gift of real estate, tangible personal property, or other non-cash assets.