Fang Presents Research Paper and Hosts Education Workshop

GIS Spatial Analysis of Hydrogen Station Layout

Clara Fang, associate professor of civil, environmental, and biomedical engineering, CETA, recently presented a research paper titled "Analysis of Hydrogen Station Network Using Geographic Information Systems (GIS)" at the 14th International IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) Conference on Intelligent Transportation Systems held in Washington, D.C.

The paper is co-authored with Fang's former undergraduate student, Neftali Torres, who currently works as an engineer in the Metropolitan District, Hartford.  The research developed a GIS-based model to relate the number of future hydrogen stations and their placement on a regional scale in Connecticut. The model takes into account a wide range of spatially-referenced factors, such as population distribution, existing infrastructure (e.g., road network, gasoline stations, and traffic flow), and driver refueling travel time, and considers different types of hydrogen stations and their capacities. The research work was sponsored by a NASA CT Space Grant.

Fang also organized and hosted a Transportation Engineering Education Workshop during the 11th International Conference of Chinese Transportation Professionals (ICCTP) held on August 14, 2011, in Nanjing, China. The workshop brought together five guest speakers and more than 50 attendees. The workshop shared best practices and innovations in transportation engineering curricula and student advising at both undergraduate and graduate levels in U.S. and China universities.  Ideas of bilateral collaboration on student competition and E-learning projects were well received.