AUGUST 28, 2008 —The Transportation Research Board has named three students working with PARTNER researchers as recipients of its Graduate Research Award.
Hernando Jimenez, a Ph.D, student in the Georgia Institute of Technology School of Aerospace Engineering’s Aerospace Systems Design Laboratory, received the award in recognition of his paper, “Strategic Development of Airport Systems for Capacity Enhancement and Environmental Impact Reduction.” He is working with PARTNER investigator Michelle Kirby. the lead investigator on Project 14, Environmental Design Space.
Ioannis Simaiakis, a Master’s candidate in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Aeronautics and Astronautics Department and Technology and Policy Program, received the award for his research paper “Airport Ground Operations Planning for Surface Emissions Reduction.” He is assisting lead investigator Hamsa Balakrishnan with Project 21, Airport Surface Movement Optimization.
Elizabeth Black, a doctoral student at the Missouri University of Science and Technology, received the award for her research topic, “Lung Deposition of Jet Engine Exhaust Particulates.” Elizabeth is working with lead investigator Philip Whitefield on Project 9, Measurement of Emissions.
The Graduate Research Award consists of a $10,000 per recipient research stipend. The award’s purpose is “to encourage applied research on airport and related aviation system issues and to foster the next generation of aviation community leaders.” It is presented to students enrolled in a U.S. graduate degree program for the successful completion of a research paper on public-sector airport-related aviation issues.
PARTNER director Ian A. Waitz congratulated the three students, saying, ““The contribution these graduate students make to our research into aviation’s environmental impact is significant. It’s rewarding to see the high caliber of our students and their work recognized by the Transportation Research Board.
The award is sponsored by the Federal Aviation Administration and administered by the Transportation Research Board of the National Academies’ Airport Cooperative Research Program.