Mechanical Engineering

Rice Robo-Rumble features epic competition between battlebots

Campus buzzed with excitement March 9 as Rice hosted its inaugural battlebots competition, the Rice Robo-Rumble.

Rice researchers harness gravity to create low-cost device for rapid cell analysis

A team of researchers at Rice has developed an innovative AI-enabled, low-cost device that will make flow cytometry ⎯ a technique used to analyze cells or particles in a fluid using a laser beam ⎯ affordable and accessible.

Rice and UTHealth Houston advancing innovation in translational science

As a partner institution of the Center for Clinical and Translational Sciences at UTHealth Houston, Rice has received approximately $1.69 million in grant funding to support pilot projects, student training and collaborative research in bioengineering, informatics, team science and related areas.

Rice senior Cat Tran to intern at SpaceX through Brooke Owens Fellowship

Rice senior Cat-Linh Tran has been selected as a 2025 Brooke Owens Fellow, a prestigious honor recognizing exceptional undergraduates pursuing careers in aerospace.

Harnessing failure as an asset: How Rice researchers are innovating smarter wearable tech

A new study by mechanical engineers at Rice’s George R. Brown School of Engineering and Computing explores how programmed failure in heat-sealable, sheet-based systems can be used to protect devices, enable complex sequencing of actions and even streamline control mechanisms.

Rice Wind Energy advances to final phase of Collegiate Wind Competition

The U.S. Department of Energy has selected Rice Wind Energy as one of 12 teams advancing to the final phase of the 2025 Collegiate Wind Competition.

Rice-BCM research achieves gene-editing breakthrough that could improve treatment for liver disease, other disorders

The Rice lab of bioengineer Gang Bao and collaborators at Baylor College of Medicine have developed a new gene-editing strategy that dramatically boosts the effectiveness of gene therapies in the liver, a breakthrough that could lead to new treatments for about 700 genetic disorders in this vital organ as well as in other organs and tissues.

Rice’s Lydia Kavraki elected to National Academy of Engineering

Rice computer scientist Lydia Kavraki has been elected to the National Academy of Engineering, one of the highest professional honors accorded to an engineer, for her work on “developing randomized motion-planning algorithms for robotics and robotics-inspired methods in biomedicine.”

Engineers develop breakthrough method for aluminum surfaces, enabling advancements in cooling, self-cleaning and anti-icing technologies

An international team of engineers has developed an innovative, scalable method for creating topography-patterned aluminum surfaces, enhancing liquid transport properties critical for applications in electronics cooling, self-cleaning technologies and anti-icing systems.

New Rice-TMC research projects drive advances in health and medicine

Seven research partnerships involving Rice, the Baker Institute for Public Policy and various institutions within the Texas Medical Center (TMC) received seed grants in 2024 through the Provost’s TMC Collaborator Fund. These grants were facilitated by Rice’s office for Educational and Research Initiatives for Collaborative Health (ENRICH).

Rice alum Rasheed named to Forbes 30 Under 30 list for energy and green tech

Rawand Rasheed ’23, a Rice University alumnus and trailblazer in sustainable technology, has been named to Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list in the “Energy and Green Tech” category for 2025.

Rice graduate student advocates for diverse and inclusive spaces with intentionality in Science Robotics

Marquise Bell, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, has published an article in Science Robotics that underscores the critical need for fostering diverse and inclusive spaces within the robotics community.

Ultimate Owl: Christian Francisco soars at the highest level, uses Rice experience to empower others

Christian Francisco, recently named a semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy, has made the most of his experiences at Rice as a student and as an athlete, despite numerous challenges and bouts with adversity along the way.

Foam fluidics showcase Rice lab’s creative approach to circuit design

Rice engineers have shown that something as simple as the flow of air through open-cell foam can be used to perform digital computation, analog sensing and combined digital-analog control in soft textile-based wearable systems.

RSI awards seed funding grants to propel ‘pioneering’ space exploration research at Rice

The Rice Space Institute has awarded $150,000 in seed funding to Rice researchers to further our understanding of the universe and humanity’s place in it.