{ "153960-21916843": { "datetime_modified":"20261022T100939", "datetime_start":"20261105T133000", "datetime_end":"20261105T143000", "has_end_time":1, "date_start":"2026-11-05", "date_end":"2026-11-05", "time_start":"13:30:00", "time_end":"14:30:00", "time_zone":"America\/Detroit", "event_title":"ChE SEMINAR: Alexander Dowling, Notre Dame University", "occurrence_title":"", "combined_title":"ChE SEMINAR: Alexander Dowling, Notre Dame University: Maximizing the Value of Experiments: From Dynamic Optimization to Agentic Workflow", "event_subtitle":"Maximizing the Value of Experiments: From Dynamic Optimization to Agentic Workflow", "event_type":"Workshop \/ Seminar", "event_type_id":"21", "description":"Abstract: \n\nLaboratory and computational experiments are often time- and resource-intensive; thus, maximizing their value and information gain is essential. This seminar explores several paradigms for optimal experiment design. We will start by reviewing classical design of experiments methods and modern approaches such as Bayesian optimization. These approaches do not require mechanistic models and can be effective for relatively few experimental decisions, but high-dimensional decision spaces (e.g., time-varying experimental conditions) pose significant challenges.\nThe seminar focuses on methods that exploit mathematical models grounded in engineering science to formulate experiment design as a dynamic optimization problem that maximizes expected information. Using membrane separations for critical minerals and materials recovery as a central application, I will show how mechanistic models, parameter estimation, and uncertainty quantification connect laboratory measurements to predictive models and process design. I will highlight recent advances in Pyomo.DoE, an open-source package for model-based design of experiments (MBDoE), developed by my group in collaboration with Sandia National Laboratories and others. Finally, I will introduce DoE-GPT, our emerging collection of agentic workflows that augment large language models to guide scientists and engineers through statistical analysis and experimental planning. Throughout the seminar, I will discuss practical lessons for choosing informative experiments, validating assumptions, and translating data into defensible engineering decisions. I will conclude with opportunities for experiment automation, e.g., self-driving labs, grounded in engineering science and mechanistic models.\nSelect References\nWang and Dowling. \u201cBayesian optimization for chemical products and functional materials.\u201d Current Opinion in Chemical Engineering, 2022, 36, 100728. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.coche.2021.100728\nWang and Dowling. \u201cPyomo.DoE: An Open-Source Package for Model-Based Design of Experiments in Python.\u201d AIChE Journal, 2022, 68(12), e17813. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1002\/aic.17813\nLaky et al. \u201cOptimal Experimental Design Using Eigenvalue-Based Criteria with Pyomo.DoE.\u201d Digital Discovery, 2026. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1039\/D6DD00160B\nWamble et al. \u201cOptimal Diafiltration Membrane Cascades Enable Green Recycling of Spent Lithium-Ion Batteries.\u201d ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering, 2022, 10, 12207\u201312225. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1021\/acssuschemeng.2c02862\nLiu et al. \u201cCharacterizing Transport Properties of Surface Charged Nanofiltration Membranes via Model-Based Data Analytics.\u201d Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, 2025, 64, 12111\u201312130. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1021\/acs.iecr.4c04763\nLiu et al. \u201cOptimization of Reactive Ink Formulation for Controlled Additive Manufacturing of Copolymer Membrane Functionalization.\u201d ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2024, 16, 59216\u201359233. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1021\/acsami.4c11749\nYao et al. \u201cRobust Optimization of Flexible Diafiltration Systems for Critical Mineral Separations.\u201d Chemical Engineering Journal Advances, 2026, 27, 101282. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1016\/j.ceja.2026.101282\n\n\nBio: \n\nAlexander (Alex) Dowling is the Tony and Sarah Earley Collegiate Associate Professor of Energy and the Environment at the University of Notre Dame (Indiana, USA). His research combines chemical engineering, computational optimization, machine learning, and data science, organized in three research themes: (1) molecular-to-systems (multiscale) modeling and optimization, (2) optimal design of experiments and statistical inference, and (3) machine learning for bridging timescales.\nApplication domains span sustainable energy, environmental management, and systems biology. Prof. Dowling has been recognized with several awards, including the NSF CAREER award, the CAST Outstanding Young Researcher Award, the Junior Sargent Medal, and the James A. Burns, C.S.C., Award. He holds a B.S.E. from the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor and a Ph.D. from Carnegie Mellon University, all in chemical engineering.", "occurrence_notes":null, "guid":"153960-21916843@events.umich.edu", "permalink":"http:\/\/events.umich.edu\/event\/153960", "building_id":"null", "building_name":"North Campus Research Complex Building 10", "campus_maps_id":"615", "room":"B10 Auditorium", "location_name":"North Campus Research Complex Building 10", "has_livestream":0, "cost":"", "tags":["Free","chemical engineering","Alumni"], "website":"http:\/\/che.engin.umich.edu\/", "sponsors":[ { "group_name":"Chemical Engineering", "group_id":"3218", "website":"http:\/\/che.engin.umich.edu\/" } ], "image_url":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/attachments\/2026\/10\/event_153960_original-1.png", "styled_images":{ "event_thumb":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_thumb\/media\/attachments\/2026\/10\/event_153960_original-1.png", "event_large":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_large\/media\/attachments\/2026\/10\/event_153960_original-1.png", "event_large_2x":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_large_2x\/media\/attachments\/2026\/10\/event_153960_original-1.png", "event_large_lightbox":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_large_lightbox\/media\/attachments\/2026\/10\/event_153960_original-1.png", "group_thumb":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/group_thumb\/media\/attachments\/2026\/10\/event_153960_original-1.png", "group_thumb_square":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/group_thumb_square\/media\/attachments\/2026\/10\/event_153960_original-1.png", "group_large":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/group_large\/media\/attachments\/2026\/10\/event_153960_original-1.png", "group_large_lightbox":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/group_large_lightbox\/media\/attachments\/2026\/10\/event_153960_original-1.png", "event_large_crop":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_large_crop\/media\/attachments\/2026\/10\/event_153960_original-1.png", "event_list":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_list\/media\/attachments\/2026\/10\/event_153960_original-1.png", "event_list_2x":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_list_2x\/media\/attachments\/2026\/10\/event_153960_original-1.png", "event_grid":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_grid\/media\/attachments\/2026\/10\/event_153960_original-1.png", "event_grid_2x":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_grid_2x\/media\/attachments\/2026\/10\/event_153960_original-1.png", "event_feature_large":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_feature_large\/media\/attachments\/2026\/10\/event_153960_original-1.png", "event_feature_thumb":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_feature_thumb\/media\/attachments\/2026\/10\/event_153960_original-1.png" }, "occurrence_count":1, "first_occurrence":21916843 } , "152663-21914353": { "datetime_modified":"20260922T160442", "datetime_start":"20261105T140000", "datetime_end":"20261105T153000", "has_end_time":1, "date_start":"2026-11-05", "date_end":"2026-11-05", "time_start":"14:00:00", "time_end":"15:30:00", "time_zone":"America\/Detroit", "event_title":"Affirmative Action and Racial Integration", "occurrence_title":"", "combined_title":"Affirmative Action and Racial Integration: Zachary Bleemer, Princeton University", "event_subtitle":"Zachary Bleemer, Princeton University", "event_type":"Workshop \/ Seminar", "event_type_id":"21", "description":"CID Speaker Series\n\nJoin the Stone Center for Inequality Dynamics as we host Zachary Bleemer, assistant professor of economics in Princeton University\u2019s Industrial Relations Section. This event is jointly presented with U-M Economics \u2013 Labor Economics Seminar.\n\nAbstract: Does exposure to diverse college peers cause long-run racial integration? The study examines California Proposition 209, which halved Black and Hispanic enrollment at many undergraduate and graduate University of California schools and improved cross-race academic match at others. Combining time-series and difference-in-differences designs with linked administrative data, survey responses, and complementary evidence from the UC Berkeley freshman housing lottery, it assesses how affirmative action and interracial contact affect later-life social, political, and economic integration.\n\nZach Bleemer is an assistant professor of economics at Princeton University in the Industrial Relations Section and a faculty research fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research. He is a labor economist who studies American higher education.\n\nPlease RSVP via the event page to save your seat.", "occurrence_notes":null, "guid":"152663-21914353@events.umich.edu", "permalink":"http:\/\/events.umich.edu\/event\/152663", "building_id":"1000145", "building_name":"Institute For Social Research", "campus_maps_id":"76", "room":"6050 Large Conference Room", "location_name":"Institute For Social Research", "has_livestream":0, "cost":"", "tags":["Education","Social Sciences","Research","Race","Labor","Inequality","Economics"], "website":"https:\/\/inequality.umich.edu\/zachary-bleemer-110526\/", "sponsors":[ { "group_name":"Stone Center for Inequality Dynamics (CID)", "group_id":"4866", "website":"" }, { "group_name":"Institute for Social Research", "group_id":"3285", "website":"http:\/\/isr.umich.edu" }, { "group_name":"Department of Economics", "group_id":"3302", "website":"http:\/\/www.lsa.umich.edu\/econ" }, { "group_name":"ISR-Zwerdling Seminar in Labor Economics", "group_id":"3551", "website":"" } ], "image_url":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/attachments\/2026\/09\/event_152663_original-1.png", "styled_images":{ "event_thumb":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_thumb\/media\/attachments\/2026\/09\/event_152663_original-1.png", "event_large":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_large\/media\/attachments\/2026\/09\/event_152663_original-1.png", "event_large_2x":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_large_2x\/media\/attachments\/2026\/09\/event_152663_original-1.png", "event_large_lightbox":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_large_lightbox\/media\/attachments\/2026\/09\/event_152663_original-1.png", "group_thumb":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/group_thumb\/media\/attachments\/2026\/09\/event_152663_original-1.png", "group_thumb_square":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/group_thumb_square\/media\/attachments\/2026\/09\/event_152663_original-1.png", "group_large":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/group_large\/media\/attachments\/2026\/09\/event_152663_original-1.png", "group_large_lightbox":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/group_large_lightbox\/media\/attachments\/2026\/09\/event_152663_original-1.png", "event_large_crop":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_large_crop\/media\/attachments\/2026\/09\/event_152663_original-1.png", "event_list":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_list\/media\/attachments\/2026\/09\/event_152663_original-1.png", "event_list_2x":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_list_2x\/media\/attachments\/2026\/09\/event_152663_original-1.png", "event_grid":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_grid\/media\/attachments\/2026\/09\/event_152663_original-1.png", "event_grid_2x":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_grid_2x\/media\/attachments\/2026\/09\/event_152663_original-1.png", "event_feature_large":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_feature_large\/media\/attachments\/2026\/09\/event_152663_original-1.png", "event_feature_thumb":"https:\/\/events.umich.edu\/media\/cache\/event_feature_thumb\/media\/attachments\/2026\/09\/event_152663_original-1.png" }, "occurrence_count":1, "first_occurrence":21914353 } }