About Me

I am a constructivist, not a positivist; an expansionist, not a reductionist. I subscribe to The Economist, the Chronicle of Higher Education, and Mechanical Engineering Magazine. I performed in community theater for 10 years, and claim photography as a practical hobby. I rarely use default fonts. I have been humbled by some of the world’s poorest honoring my teams with what little they have. I have a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering, funded as an NSF Graduate Research Fellow (GRFP), but my committee comprised four departments, including History & Politics (STS). I was a visiting scholar at IIT Mumbai, and am Co-PI on $96K in grants from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and related. I have advised more than two dozen pre-college, undergraduate, and graduate research assistants.

 

In helping to rebuild New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, I realized the power of science and technology to meet true needs and, according to a Ninth Ward resident, restore hope. Since then, I have focused on the use of appropriate technology for sustainable development, particularly to overcome global poverty. Inspired by Papanek, Schumacher, and others, I agree with Nieusma that to be truly effective in improving lives and livelihoods, design must be the point of intervention.

 

A background in engineering and social science has allowed me to pioneer emerging technologies and the methodologies to implement them in El Salvador, Tanzania, Thailand, Bangladesh, and beyond. My research results include the development of a normative framework for technology design and transfer, Technology Seeding, and the practical development of alkali-activated cements (AACs) - with up to 97% less CO2 and energy and 50% less cost than ordinary cement - for slum improvement in Mumbai, India. I recently led a senior design team - 4 out of 5 of whom were women – in the design and field implementation of a mechanical upland rice planter that drastically reduces the chronic pain of hard labor and doubles efficiency. Details are available at DrexelThaiHarvest.org, and the current team will similarly tackle weeding.

 

I have a Bachelor's in Mechanical Engineering (Concentration in Design & Manufacturing), a Master's in Materials Science and Engineering, and an interdisciplinary Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Drexel University in Philadelphia, PA, USA. I am currently an Assistant Teaching Professor at Drexel, contributing to Senior Design, the Freshmen Engineering sequence, and will instruct Thermodynamic Analysis I (MEM 310) in the Spring Term.

 

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Alexander J. Moseson
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Grants

  • Co-P.I. EPA P3: People, Prosperity and the Planet, Phase II: Alkali-Activated Cement (AAC) as a Sustainable Building Material. (EPA SU834350, $75,000, 2010 – 2012)
  • Co-P.I. International Center for Appropriate & Sustainable Technology (iCAST) Triple Bottom-Line Impact Award. ($11,000, 2010 – 2012)
  • Co-P.I. EPA P3: People, Prosperity and the Planet, Phase I: Alkali-Activated Slag Cement (AASC) as a Sustainable Building Material. (EPA SU834350, $10,000, 2009-2010)

Patents

  • Tangorra, J., Moseson, A., et al. Reciprocating Metering Device. USPTO Provisional Application No. 61/496,582 (2011).
  • Moseson, A., Basu, S. & Barsoum, M. W. Novel Method for Zero Point Detection. USPTO Provisional Application No. 60/953,361 (2009).

Select Honors & Awards

  • NSF Graduate Research Fellowship (GRF) (2008-2011)
  • Graduate Assistance In Areas Of National Need (GAANN) Fellowship (2007-2008)
  • Drexel University Provost and Dean’s III Fellowships (2007)
  • Featured in Engineering Go For It (eGFI) magazine for K-12, one of 8 students nationally (2009)

Peer-Reviewed Journal Publications

  • Moseson, A., Slaton A.E. Alkali-Activated Cements For Slum Empowerment In Mumbai, India. In Review. (2011).
  • Moseson, A., Tangorra, J. & Lama, L. Development By Technology Seeding. In Review. (2011).
  • Moseson, A., Sakulich, A., Moseson, D., Mackenzie, K. & Barsoum, M. W. Chemical Pathways And Origins Of Strength In Alkali Activated Fine-Aggregate Concrete. In Review. (2010).
  • Moseson, A., Moseson, D. E. & Barsoum, M. W. High volume limestone alkali-activated cement developed by design of experiment. In Press at Cement & Concrete Composites. (2010). DOI: 10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2011.11.004
  • Moseson, A., Basu, S. & Barsoum, M. W. Determination of the Zero Point of Contact for Spherical Nanoindentation. Journal of Materials Research 23, 204 - 209, (2008).
  • Basu, S., Moseson, A. & Barsoum, M. W. On The Determination Of Spherical Nanoindentation Stress-Strain Curves. Journal of Materials Research 21, 2628-2637, (2006).

Conference Publications

  • Moseson, A. & Barsoum, M. W. Alkali-Activated Cement for Equitable Slum Improvement in Mumbai, India - A Low-CO2, Low-Cost, and Equitable Alternative in IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference (GHTC) (Seattle, WA, 2011).

Invited Talks

  • Moseson, A. Rapid Development of Alkali-Activated Cement Using Design of Experiment at Princeton University Department of Civil Engineering. (Princeton, NJ, 2011). Departmental Seminar.
  • Moseson, A. Development by Technology Seeding at Center for Technology Advancement in Rural Areas (CTARA), Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay. (Mumbai, India, 2010). Departmental Seminar.
  • Moseson, A. Engineering For The Whole World at River Valley H.S. (Madison, WI, 2009). Lecture.

Conference Presentations

  • Moseson, A., Lama, L. & Tangorra, J. Sustainable Development By Technology Seeding in IEEE Global Humanitarian Technology Conference (GHTC) (Seattle, WA, 2011). Poster Presentation.
  • Moseson, A. & Barsoum, M. W. Alkali-Activated Cement As An Appropriate And Sustainable Building Material in 17th Int. Sust. Dev. Res. Conf. (Columbia U., NYC, 2011). Oral Presentation.
  • Moseson, A., Lama, L. & Tangorra, J. Sustainable Development By Technology Seeding in 17th Int. Sust. Dev. Res. Conf. (Columbia U., NYC, 2011). Poster Presentation.
  • Moseson, A. , Sakulich, A. R., Radlinska, A. & Barsoum, M. W. Cement From Trash: Alkali-Activated Cements That Cut CO2 by 95% in 6th Annual EPA National Sustainable Design Expo - Green Public Forum. (National Mall, Washington, DC, 2010). Oral Presentation.
  • Moseson, A. , Lama, L. & Tangorra, J. Appropriate Technology for the World: Small, Simple, Cheap, and Non-Violent in 6th Annual EPA National Sustainable Design Expo - Green Public Forum. (National Mall, Washington, DC, 2010). Oral Presentation.
  • Moseson, A., Sakulich, A. R., Moseson, D., MacKenzie, K. & Barsoum, M. W. Mechanical and Chemical Development of Alkali Activated Slag Fine Aggregate Concrete by Design Of Experiment (DOE) in TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition (Seattle, WA, 2010). Oral Presentation.
  • (Invited) Moseson, A., Sakulich, A., Moseson, D., MacKenzie, K. & Barsoum, M. W. Design Of Experiment (DOE) Investigation of the Mechanical and Chemical Properties of Alkali Activated Slag Fine Aggregate in 34th International Conference and Exposition on Advanced Ceramics and Composites (ICACC) (Daytona Beach, FL, 2010). Oral Presentation.
  • Moseson, A. & Barsoum, M. W. Application of ASTM Standard Test Methods to Competing Cementitious Materials in 34th International Conference and Exposition on Advanced Ceramics and Composites (ICACC) (Daytona Beach, FL, 2010). Oral Presentation.
  • Moseson, A., Sakulich, A., Curtin, A., Sierra, E. J. & Barsoum, M. W. Slag-based geopolymer cements as a sustainable building material; case study using design of experiment in 2nd International Conference On Ceramics (ICC2) (Verona, Italy, 2008). Poster Presentation.
  • Sierra, E. J., Miller, S., Narang, P. & Moseson, A. Alkali-activated Cements based on Diatomaceous Earth in Materials Science & Technology (MS&T) (Pittsburgh, PA, 2008). Oral Presentation.
  • Moseson, A., Sierra, E. J., Narang, P., Sakulich, A. & Barsoum, M. W. Alkali-Activated Cements as a Sustainable Building Material; Case Study of Slag Cement Using Design of Experiment in Materials Science & Technology (MS&T) (Pittsburgh, PA, 2008). Oral Presentation.
  • Moseson, A., Basu, S. & Barsoum, M. W. A Novel Method To Determine The Effective Zero Point Of Contact For Spherical Nanoindentation in Materials Science & Technology (MS&T) (Pittsburgh, PA, 2008). Oral Presentation.
  • Barsoum, M. W., Sierra, E.J., Sakulich, A., Moseson, A., MacKenzie, K.J., Vogel S.C., and Daemen, L.L. Silica-based Nanostructures and the Pyramids of Egypt in Materials Science & Technology (MS&T) (Pittsburgh, PA, 2008). Oral Presentation.
Last Updated on Sunday, 29 January 2012 11:20