Student Competitions at IMECE

The ASME Fluids Engineering Division (FED) sponsors the Young Engineer Paper (YEP) Contest. To be eligible for this contest, entries may be received by undergraduate students, recent baccalaureate engineers (i.e., graduation after April 2023), and beginning graduate students (i.e. start of graduate studies after April 2023). Joint authorship with other students or the student's faculty advisor is acceptable. The advisors, however, must provide a statement confirming that the work reported in the paper is solely that of the student (and eligible student co-authors collaborating), and that the paper is strictly drafted by the students (presenting author is first author on the paper).

Young Engineer Paper (YEP) Contest Fluids Engineering Division
Contest participants should submit an abstract (maximum of 400 words) describing their research paper, which should have its major focus on a fluids engineering topic. This paper could be the result of a project completed either at a university or in industry. Based on the abstract, contestants will be invited to submit a full-length (approximately 6,000-word) paper following ASME publication guidelines. These papers will be formally reviewed by the FED Young Engineer Paper Contest Committee, according to criteria including technical merit, paper quality, and adherence to YEP Contest entry requirements. The authors of up to five of the best papers will be selected as finalists. Based on the recommendations of the reviewing committee, selected finalists will have an opportunity to revise their papers prior to final submission; however, finalist selection will be based on the original full paper submission. The revised finalized papers, incorporating reviewers’ comments and recommendations, will then be published in the conference proceedings after the papers have been presented at the conference.

Authors of papers selected as finalists are invited to present their papers at a special session held at IMECE 2024 where final judging and selection will be made for the following awards: First Place: $500, Second Place: $300, Third Place: $200, and Honorable Mentions: $100 for being selected as a finalist and presenting their paper. In addition, conference registration will be waived for ONE presenting student author for each finalist paper, and travel expenses up to $750 will be provided to the presenting author to help defray costs of attending IMECE 2024 in-person. All finalist papers will receive certificates acknowledging the First Place, Second Place, Third Place, and Honorable Mention award winners.

Point of Contact: Dr. Terry Beck, Kansas State University

The ASME AMD Division sponsors the Applied Mechanics Division Student Competition in Track 7 and Track 12, generously funded by the Haythornthwaite Foundation. Full-time students working on a project, thesis, or dissertation that is at a readiness for presentation at IMECE are encouraged to apply.

Participants should submit an abstract (maximum of 500 words, including references and figure captions, and up to 2 images) describing their research to the two points of contact listed below by April 15, 2024, which should have its major focus on an applied mechanics topic. Abstracts should be submitted as a pdf titled “LastName_FirstName.pdf” and include at the top of the document the applicant’s name, institution, and current academic position (not included in the word limit). Finalists will be announced in May.

A $1,000 travel award will be awarded to each finalist to help defray the costs of attending IMECE 2024 in-person. Finalists must present their papers at a special session held at IMECE 2024 where final judging and selection will be made for the following awards: First Place: $500, Second Place: $300, and Third Place: $200.

Points of Contact:
Sam Daly, University of California Santa Barbara
Francesco Pellicano, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia

The Heat Transfer Division sponsors a student competition within the Heat Transfer and Thermal Engineering Track, featuring three award categories:

1. Best Fundamental Knowledge Paper – Track Wide Award
   This award recognizes up to three papers that contribute significantly to the fundamental understanding in the field of Heat Transfer and Thermal Engineering. Up to three awards will be presented, each with $500 and a recognition certificate.


2. Best Applied Research Paper – Track Wide Award
   This award recognizes up to three papers that demonstrate applied research with significant impact to practical applications in the field of Heat Transfer and Thermal Engineering. Up to three awards will be presented, each with $500 and a recognition certificate.


3. In-Session Best Student Presentation Awards
   This category honors outstanding presentation skills and content delivery by students during the conference sessions. Winners in this category will receive a certificate of recognition; however, there is no monetary award associated with this category.

Winners will be announced and awards will be presented at IMECE 2024 (specific timing to be provided in the final program). To be eligible for the Best Paper awards, papers must be primarily authored by a student, with the student being the first author. The evaluation for the paper awards will be based on the full manuscript submitted and accepted for presentation. For the In-Session Best Student Presentation Awards, assessments will be made based on the quality and effectiveness of the presentation during the conference. All submissions to the Heat Transfer and Thermal Engineering Track that meet the eligibility criteria will be automatically considered for these awards.

Annually, Safety Engineering, Risk, and Reliability Analysis Division (SERAD) hosts a challenge to undergraduate and graduate students to submit papers on Safety Engineering, Risk, and Reliability Analysis topics, including papers already submitted to the ASME International Mechanical Engineering Congress & Exposition (IMECE) 2024. The papers are peer-reviewed by experts in these areas. The top winning papers in each of the undergraduate and graduate groups will be presented in a SERAD session co-located with IMECE and honored at a SERAD awards banquet during the conference. Recognitions also include cash honorariums for first-place winning authors, and reimbursement with a limit for the conference-related expense (registration) for all students presenting their paper at the special session.

Submitting Papers to the Contest
Participants
Undergraduate and graduate students.
An academic sponsor/advisor is required.

Important Dates
Student paper submission by July 30, 2024.

SERAD announces 1st and 2nd place winners in the respective undergraduate and graduate groups on August 30, 2024.

SERAD special session for student contest, and awards banquet in November 17–21 2024, during IMECE 2024.

Submittals
Initial submittals must be previously unpublished work but can be papers used for academic credits.

Submittals are not required to follow ASME’s conference paper format, although it is encouraged. The suggested paper size is 4-6 pages including figures.

Recommendation and statement of student status from the academic sponsor is required with submission.

Submittals and questions regarding the 2024 student contest: Prof. Stephen Ekwaro- Osire at stephen.ekwaro-osire@ttu.edu.

Engineering design is a fundamental and crucial aspect of the engineering profession. It is a creative, iterative, and often open-ended process that involves the application of scientific and mathematical principles for practical targets such as the design, manufacture, and operation of efficient and economical structures, machines, processes, and systems, subjected to a broad range of constraints. The engineering design process typically involves defining a problem, researching and brainstorming possible solutions, developing and testing prototypes, and finally implementing and evaluating the solution. This process is not linear but cyclical, with each step potentially informing and refining the others. In the context of manufacturing, it is in the design phase that the specifications, materials, and parameters of the product are determined. A well-designed product not only meets the desired functionality and performance but also considers aspects like manufacturability, cost-effectiveness, sustainability, and ultimately user experience.

Senior capstone as well as internship/co-op projects typically culminate experiences in undergraduate education, where students apply the knowledge and skills gained throughout their studies to solve real-world problems. Such projects provide students with valuable opportunities to integrate theoretical knowledge with practical experience, develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills, and demonstrate their readiness for the workforce or further academic pursuits.

Undergraduate students (including recent graduates) are invited to present their senior capstone design projects and/or their internship/co-op projects (including relevant summer experiences with a focus on manufacturing design) at IMECE 2024. The ASME Manufacturing Engineering Division (MED) sponsors the Design for Manufacturing Competition. The aim of this competition is: (i) to provide a forum for students to share the design ideas that were used in their capstone projects and/or as part of their internship/co-op projects, and (ii) to learn about various engineering design perspectives that can be potentially used to tackle complex engineering problems in an innovative way.

Submission Process: In order to enter the competition and present, undergraduate students (including recent graduates) must submit an abstract to Topic 03-21: Undergraduate Capstone Presentations & Competition under Track 3 (Advanced Manufacturing) as a "Technical Presentation". Please note that your work must be presented by you or one of your group members at IMECE 2024.

Deadline: Please submit a title as well as an abstract (400-600 words) based on your undergraduate capstone and/or internship/co-op projects by July 16, 2024 (11:59 Eastern Time). Your abstract should have the following sections: (i) introduction including a background/problem statement, (ii) the design and manufacturing approaches (methods) that were learned, observed, or utilized, (iii) main results/project outcomes, and (iv) broader/societal impacts. In addition, please list all your group members, your faculty advisor(s), and your supervisor(s) from industry (if any) as "authors" during the abstract submission process.

Awards: All presentations will be evaluated by a committee (from academia and industry), and up to three finalists will be chosen. All finalists will receive a certificate of award from the ASME Manufacturing Engineering Division (MED). The date and time of the reception will be announced as part of the final IMECE program.

Point of Contact: Ross Salary, Marshall University

1. Statement of Purpose
   The Graduate Student Paper Competition will be organized within Track 6 Biomedical & Biotechnology. Its primary objective is to encourage graduate students to participate actively in the event and promote collaboration and knowledge sharing among students and professionals in this field. The competition committee, chaired by Dr. X. Gary Tan, will be responsible for reviewing the submitted papers, evaluating the oral presentations, and determining the winners. The awards will be announced during the closing ceremony of the conference.


2. Rules of the Student Paper Competition
   1. The student, listed as the first and presenting author, is the primary researcher on the project. The paper must have at least one co-author, generally the student’s research advisor, who consents to the submission of the paper into the student paper competition.
   2. The work is conducted while the student is enrolled as a graduate student or within one year following their graduation.
   3. Student author should email their current contact information and final paper to participate in the competition.
   4. The student commits to presenting the paper. If the student is unable to present, this will disqualify him or her from the competition.
   5. The student will submit only one paper as the presenting author to the Graduate Student Paper Competition. Teams of students are not allowed.
   6. Work submitted and planned for presentation is not published in a peer-reviewed format.


3. Graduate Student Paper Competition Procedure
   Finalists Selection: All received papers will be reviewed and scored based on the paper’s merit, novelty, and organization. Finalists (8-10 papers) will then be selected and will be informed via email by the committee on October 27th.
   Oral Competition: Judges will score finalists' oral presentations.
   Final score and award selection: The committee will meet to consider the regular paper review scores and the final presentation scores to rank all finalist papers and make the award selections.