Muhammad Ahsan Pasha

Presentations measure progress of engineering student projects

The west African state of Ghana has a booming lumber industry that produces a troublesome waste product – sawdust.

“They have to burn it just to get rid of it all,” says Muhammad Ahsan Pasha. “But what if it could be turned into fuel?”

Pasha leads a group of fourth-year mechanical engineering students working to make that dream come true. His team – Emma Ayieko, Vipandeep Benipal and Sukhjit Sandhu – presented the progress on their capstone project, designing a generator powered by biogas from sawdust, as part of a daylong series Friday.