Biological and Agricultural Engineering

Specialize in water resources, bioremediation, or bioenergy. Learn to develop methods and tools to improve soil and water conditions. Understand systems for irrigation, runoff, erosion control in watersheds, stream restoration, and to protect or enhance natural and agricultural lands. Gain the skills to design and test new ways to produce biodiesel and other forms of alternative energy from feedstock such as locally grown canola oil or manufacturing waste. Use state-of-the-art software programs, GIS, and image analysis to aid in your research.

Before entering the program, determine the professor whose research interests match your own. Secure a position as an assistant in his or her lab. This professor will chair your graduate committee and guide your independent project.

Choose a program:

Master of Science: Complete a research project, and write a thesis. Coursework and thesis research generally take two years.

Master of Engineering: Complete a practical design project. Coursework and project generally take two years.

Ph.D.: Conduct research in the field of biological and agricultural engineering and produce innovative ways to advance science and engineering. Write a dissertation and publish your work. Coursework and research generally take three to four years.

Conduct an independent research or design project. Receive guidance from a graduate committee comprised of professors with valuable expertise. Present your findings in a seminar to your professors and peers. Demonstrate your work at scientific or professional meetings.

Thesis. Develop a research plan, carry out scientific data collection, and analyze your results. Example topics include studying the use of ion exchange resins to refine biodiesel from mustard and canola oil or creating nutrient loading plans for a dairy operation that reduces environmental impact. A thesis is excellent preparation for work in consulting, state and federal agencies, as well as for a Ph.D. Accomplish the goal of publishing an article of your findings.

Non-thesis project. Analyze a real-world problem and develop solutions. For example, evaluate how a waste treatment plant can produce power from methane gas or conduct a case study of a historical industrial disaster such as the one in 1984 in Bhopal, India. Put together a professional paper of your project. A project is an excellent addition to your career portfolio.

Dissertation: Write a proposal for a significant scientific study. Collect data, and carefully document your results. For example, study how Giardia cysts are transported through groundwater, investigate the relationship between atmospheric heat flux and soil moisture for building global climate models, investigate the exhaust emissions and performance of biofuel produced from genetically optimized soybeans, or calculate the cradle-to-grave energy and pollution costs of biofuels from vegetable oils and food processing wastes.
Achieve independence in your research and accomplish the goal of publishing three articles of your research and findings in academic journals.

Work and learn in departmental laboratories and field studies. For example, you might:

• Evaluate samples from a creek to see how phosphorous contamination is partitioned between sediment and water.
• Learn state-of-the-art hydrologic sampling techniques in a special single-credit lab.
• Create models of waste-to-energy processing circuits in the computing lab.
• Assess the qualities of blends in the biodiesel and biofuel labs.
• Study how microbes break down hazardous waste in the bioremediation lab.

Prepare for Success

Candidates for this program should have:

• An undergraduate degree in civil, chemical, or biological agricultural engineering
• An interest in lab work and research
• A desire to solve problems and think critically about some of society’s most pressing problems

Your First Year

Your first year, you should expect to:

• Take specialized courses in engineering, math, statistics, or related topics
• Conduct preliminary research with your primary advising professor
• Choose professors who will serve on your graduate committee
• Work with your committee to plan the specifics of your coursework and research goals
• Select your research topic

What You Can Do

With this degree, you may become one of the following:

Research engineer/professor: Test and refine new products. Conduct hazardous-waste management studies and design sustainable irrigation, waste-handling, and energy systems. Explore solutions to problems such as contaminant transport in rivers.

Bioremediation engineer: Advise on environmental restoration. Visit sites to observe problems, consult with contractors, and monitor cleanup activities.

Regulatory engineer: Enforce environmental regulations. Advise on pollution treatment and containment.

Design engineer: Design, fabricate, and test agricultural machinery or image analysis components and equipment.

Project engineer: Plan and supervise the building of a biofuel processing plant, irrigation system, manure-to-fertilizer operation, construction of structures for crop storage, or the testing of groundwater wells to determine aquifer recharge.

Consulting engineer: Advise on issues such as pollution management and water use. Conduct technology transfer programs to help farmers plan for ground and surface water interaction.

Opportunities

Work for biotechnology companies, energy providers, or for the food and agricultural industry. Conduct research in university or government laboratories.

Graduates with a Ph.D. may design and manage significant research projects, or operate their own labs. Graduates with a master’s degree generally assist in significant research projects, and manage portions of the research. Salaries start as high as 80,000.

Current Research

Participate in department research projects like these:

USDA Research Grant: Design a probe that uses UV light to detect the amount of biodiesel in a blend.

Idaho Dept. of Water Resources: Use satellite-based technologies to map out water consumption patterns for irrigation, used in court to support water rights mitigation and litigation.

National Science Foundation – Idaho EPSCoR: Use a world-class climate tower to collect carbon, air, and water flux data in complex mountain terrain, thus determining if northern forests are helping to stem the tide of global warming.

National Science Foundation – Geotechnical Division: Optimize bacteria to excrete cement-like compounds to make soil stronger, and therefore less susceptible to liquefaction during earthquakes.

Center for Hazardous Waste Remediation Research: Analyze how microbes break apart hazardous compounds in soil and water.

Waters of the West Program: Consult with lawyers and biologists to develop integrated solutions to real-world problems from pollution to drought.

US-AID: Help nations all over the world use satellite imagery to improve irrigation efficiency, in order to balance growing tensions between domestic and agricultural water use.

Biodiesel Education Grant: Analyze how the Washington state ferries are using biodiesel for their fleets. Identify and solve the potential barriers to the growth of the biodiesel industry and educate the public about the environmental benefits of biodiesel use.

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation: Model scenarios for the effects of climate change on groundwater availability in Idaho.

Activities

Attend national and regional meetings of professional organizations such as the American Geophysical Union and the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers. Present your research findings. Meet potential employers and graduate students from other universities.

Other opportunities at UI include:

Graduate and Professional Student Association: Gain leadership experience and represent your department in UI student government.

Annual Student Research Expo: Compete for cash prizes awarded for graduate research presentations.

College of Graduate Studies Awards: Share in the annual recognition of graduate students engaged in outstanding teaching, research, leadership, and mentoring.

Engineers Without Borders: Join the student branch, and use your technical training to serve communities around the world.

Tau Beta Pi: Receive career assistance and leadership opportunities through this national honor society of engineers.

Society of Women Engineers: Network and develop professionally.

Hands-On Experience

Gain hands-on experiences like these:

Research Assistant. Earn money working with faculty on research such as thermal conversion of biomass, vadose zone hydrology, eco-hydrology, climate, and microbe transport in bioremediation. Participate in one of the department’s many grant-funded research projects. Positions are paid.

Teaching Assistant. Help the professor with instruction and evaluating student performance. Work directly with students to demonstrate lab techniques. For example, teach how to measure water quality and use in the water resources lab, or how to use instruments that measure biological functions in the biosensors lab. Positions are paid.

Mentor. Help undergraduates develop their skills. Provide guidance on senior capstone projects. For example, assist with projects like converting used French fry cooking oil into biodiesel for the J. R. Simplot Company, or the construction of a rain chamber to test utility meters for Itron.

International collaboration. Broaden your perspective with work in countries like these:

• Sweden: Help design a sustainable student housing project.
• Mexico: Evaluate the use of microbes to absorb diesel spills.
• India: Study incidence of waterborne diseases in children.

• The Peace Corp: Use your knowledge in environmental and watershed engineering to help populations struggling with water-bourne diseases, or whose soil resources are being worked unsustainably.
• Engineers Without Borders: Work on international projects that influence the well being of others.
• Developing countries: Work on a project such as designing an irrigation system in El Salvador or water purification system in Africa.

Facilities

UI is home to several special centers engaged in grant-funded research. These include:

Idaho Water Resources Research Institute administers over $2,000,000 annually in statewide and regional multidisciplinary research projects.

Center for Hazardous Waste Remediation Research conducts research on the cleanup of contaminated soils, surface waters, and ground waters throughout the United States. Specific aims are to characterize contaminated sites, develop novel technologies for hazardous waste remediation, and apply them in the field.

Environmental Biotechnology Institute supports environmental research both on campus and regionally in the areas of microbiology, molecular biology, biochemistry, and environmental and biomedical biotechnology.

National Center for Advanced Transportation Technology develops engineering solutions (knowledge and technology) to transportation problems for the state of Idaho, the Pacific Northwest, and the United States.