North Carolina State University - Agromeck Yearbook (Raleigh, NC)

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wmm •« f, ' - ' m% railroad tracks when the ricketty Pullen Road bridge yielded to progress and the wrecking ball. It is difficult to characterize what was to happen to State in the next five years. Enrollment shat- tered records, increasing by six percent annually. At last, the nunnber of total students at State exceeded that of UMC-Chapel hill. But adnninistration insiders point out that enrollment breakdowns better tell this story of growth. Although male students still out- numbered females, the males share dropped from 69 to 64 percent of total enrollment, follow- ing the national trend, (lumbering only a mere 500 in 1962, women accounted for 7000 of the student body by 1982. Former Chancellor John Caldwell called this one of the most profound events in State ' s recent history. Even more telling is the 58 percent increase in special, or non-degree, students, indicating improved accessability of State ' s facilities to the non-traditional student. Working women in 10 Opening » Registration was always a confusing time, as was change day. The only thing that was sure, was that you had to be in this line or that (right). At Carolina (fop) they seem to have trouble knowing not only how to form lines, but where to form them. Maybe they just don ' t read well. These Syme Dorm residents (above) took time out to enjoy a carnival on campus. The time was right to break from regular dorm activities. •

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B - . ■ Lj f Graduate student Robert Ma compares gauge readings on the gasif ier with computer readings. Coal conversion helps reduce air pollution Behind the storefront windows of nddicH tiaii looms a mysterious collection of pipes and wires. To the right, computer terminals display a stream of readings from 96 sensors. Since 1978 the facility — called the Pilot Coal Qasifier I Gas Cleaning Facility — has been helping scientists find more efficient ways to convert coal into commercially useful gases and other compounds. Converting coal Into methane or hydrogen gas before burning is a more controlled chemical process than current coal-burning practices, said Dr. J.K. Ferrell, State professor of chemical engineering and head of the pilot plant. Mhough hydrogen yields only 75-80 percent of the original energy content of the coal, the gasification process allows certain by-products to be removed before combustion, resulting in systematic reduction of atmospheric pollution and possible income from the sale of the by-products. Water Is added to the finely ground coal, and the mixture is raised to high temperature and pressure, where It reacts to form carbon monoxide, hydrogen, methane and numerous other compounds. While the processes of gasification are fairly well known, the technology of gas cleanup is not as well developed. Commercial Installations across the country have begun to conven many organic (carbon-containing) compounds into gases. The Tennessee Valley fituthority is converting coal to ammonia for fertilizer, methane Is produced by a plant in north Dakota, carbon monoxide and hydrogen are burned in a gas turbine to produce electricity in Southern California and peat Is being gasified in a Washington Co.,n.C., facility. Under grants from the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Energy, Ferrell and his team of faculty and graduate assistants have sought the best ways to extract sulfur and metallic compounds from the gas. hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide are major pollutants from coal-fired power generating stations and remain major headaches for utilities trying to comply with federal emission guidelines (See feature on add raln| The gasifier is not run continuously but operates In a series of day-long runs with different mixtures and conditions. An analysis team studies the reaction products for various compound contents, then the cycle is started again with a different recipe. Only preliminary results have been published, but this project could become a model for commercially practical gasification plants on a large scale. Almost limitless coal supplies in the U.S. will be use ess unless ways are found to control the associated harmful sulfur and metal emissions Into the atmosphere. -W.J.W. Opening 9

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Graduate student Neal Page inspects the gripping device designed by Jacl Kite and Henry Cone. ntelligent robot sees as it performs its cliores Another example of state ' s leadership in teac i ng and research is being tested in a Department of Eiectricai and Computer Engineering laboratory on campus. $100,000, 5,000-pound robot is performing simulated manufacturing tashs through linl ages between a computer and a laser ' ' seeing eye ' ' system. The powerful Cincinnati Milacron robot, which was donated by the Turbine Components Division of the Westinghouse Corp., can pick up parts weighing up to 250 pounds, has a reach of eight to 10 feet and can move its arm at a speed of 50 inches per second. The assembly will give faculty and students an opportunity to use an industrial robot in a laboratory environment for continued studies in the area in image-processing systems. We use computers, cameras and light sources to help a robot ' see ' as it performs its function on the production line, said Dr. Wesley E. Snyder, professor of computer engineering, he has studied robotics for more than a decade, particularly the development of vision for robots to increase manufacturing productivity. The specific problem is to have the robot pick up turbine blades of varying sizes from a rack, put them through finishing processes and return them to a finished-product point. The goal is to use a broad, thin band of laser light and perception by a small 11 camera to create a seeing eye system to tell the robot what to do. computer will process data the TV camera sees and feed it in milliseconds to the robot control computer The newly-acquired robotic assembly will help further these and other studies in applications such as metalworking, arc welding, spray painting and various pick and place functions in manufacturing. Our ultimate aim is to develop cost-efficient,, reliable robots with vision for the industrial environment, said Snyder. Dr. hino Masnari, head of the department, said: Robot cs has become an extremely important and exciting area of research and development It is having a revolutionary impact on modern manufacturing systems, and we are pleased that companies such as Westinghouse are providing support for our robotics effort. — MaryM. Ylonoulis Opening 11