Research

See: Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences | Civil Engineering

Cutting-Edge Research Opportunities for Undergraduate and Graduate Students

At South Dakota Mines, we extend research opportunities to both undergraduate and graduate students. We value the potential and enthusiasm of undergraduate students and offer them the incredible opportunity to engage in cutting-edge research projects alongside our esteemed faculty. Our faculty members are renowned experts in their fields, possessing established reputations for their contributions to research and are eager to mentor and guide students by providing exciting exciting opportunities to contribute to research projects.

Whether you're an undergraduate or graduate student, our collaborative environment offers the chance to work on transformative initiatives such as turning waste into sustainable energy, developing materials for lunar habitats, and improving roadway pavement design. Engaging in these real-world projects provides invaluable hands-on experience, setting you apart and equipping you with the skills necessary for successful careers.

Join our vibrant research community at South Dakota Mines and unleash your potential alongside fellow students and esteemed faculty. By participating in research, you'll make a tangible impact and develop critical thinking, problem-solving, and collaboration skills that will benefit you throughout your academic and professional journey. Ignite your curiosity and contribute to shaping the world around us. Your journey in research starts here, at South Dakota Mines.

Research Facilities:

  • The Renewable Energy Research Laboratory provides students and faculty with a state-of-the-art laboratory for research and design of next-generation solar and wind technology.
  • The Biogeochemistry Core Facility contains cutting-edge instrumentation to support student and faculty ecological and environmental research.
  • The Advanced Materials Processing Center is the lead in a consortium which teams universities with government, national laboratories and industry sponsors for research and development of materials joining, fabrication, and repair technologies.
  • The Geotechnical Laboratory has the state’s most comprehensive set of equipment to support geotechnical research, including a single apparatus for triaxial shear, consolidation/swell, and unconfined compression testing as well as facilities for advanced testing of asphalt and soil.
  • The Rama Materials Laboratory is equipped with instrumentation and data acquisition equipment for testing novel materials, mechanical systems, and structural components. 

Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences

The Department of Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences at South Dakota Mines has a rich history of research going back to 1959, when a special resolution created the Institute of Atmospheric Sciences. At that time, the emphasis was on weather modification and hail damage research. Today, areas of scientific emphasis have broadened to include aspects of atmospheric and environmental studies varying from air quality and convection in the atmosphere to ecosystem structure and the effects of climate on our earth's ecosystems. In addition to creating a research facility, it was also necessary to create a teaching unit that allowed master's degree students to complete the work required by the scientists while they earned their graduate degree in meteorology (now atmospheric and environmental sciences). These students, then and now, work as colleagues of the research scientists.

The expanded mission of the Department of Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences is to study the physical, chemical, and biological processes that affect the composition and dynamics of the earth's atmosphere. Our research and educational programs focus on regionally relevant issues of national concern and global importance. Research conducted at the department is linked to undergraduate, master of science (MS) and doctor of philosophy (PhD) degree curricula that provide a fundamental understanding of the atmosphere, biosphere, and hydrosphere. Together our research and educational programs provide opportunities for students to conduct theoretical and applied research and training related to earth-atmosphere systems and their interactions.

Our vision is to create opportunities for students to become colleagues with the research faculty, conducting leading-edge science to determine how the Continental Earth System functions, and transforming this science into products and services of value to society. Our researchers convert observations made across scales of time and space, from atmosphere to leaf, into fluxes of heat, moisture, material, and momentum. These fluxes are then incorporated into numerical models that describe the behavior of natural systems and that can predict their behavior in the future.

Facilities | Collaborations | Applications | Our Future

Civil Engineering

The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering is actively engaged in research aimed at enhancing society by developing new materials, preserving and protecting the environment, creating sustainable solutions, increasing our understanding of engineering systems and their design, and examining the best approaches for training a new engineering workforce. CEE researchers are highly collaborative and are working with colleagues both on-campus and across the globe on multi-disciplinary projects.

These pages include descriptions of recent and developing CEE research in the following strategic areas:
Leveraging campus resources, faculty in CEE are working with labs and centers on campus including: