| Arcak Receives NSF
CAREER Award
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| Thomas Griffin |
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Murat Arcak, assistant professor of electrical,
computer, and systems engineering at Rensselaer, was awarded
a Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award from the
National Science Foundation.
The CAREER Award, which carries with it
a $400,000 grant, is the most prestigious award given to
young faculty members. Arcak will use the grant to advance
his study of nonlinear control systems, and to apply them
to fuel cells. His research could bridge the gap to affordable
fuel cell technologies for a range of applications. Flexible
control systems that can react to the variables in the environment
or differing operating conditions are key to fuel cells
systems.
Nonlinear control systems are critical to
engineers who seek to design multipurpose, multifunction
systems that can operate flawlessly in a variety of conditions.
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Nonlinear control systems are
critical to engineers who seek to design multipurpose,
multifunction systems that can operate flawlessly in
a variety of conditions.
Cruise controls that keep your car under the radar,
traffic light turn signals that flash at the appropriate
time, and even a toaster that repeatedly browns your
bread are all examples of control systems.
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Cruise controls that keep your car under
the radar, traffic light turn signals that flash at the
appropriate time, and even a toaster that repeatedly browns
your bread are all examples of control systems.
“For instance, say I am in my car
that is powered by a fuel cell and I’m stopped at
a red light,” says Arcak, who joined Rensselaer in
2001. “My car must be able to easily accelerate from
zero to 60 mph. To accomplish this, the control systems
and sensors must accommodate the changing needs of the engine
throughout every phase of that car’s acceleration.”
Arcak is developing the mathematical foundations
that can describe and model such a system. The challenges,
he says, are that the models cannot be too precise, as they
must be robust for multiple applications, and they must
be easily implemented in a real system.
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