Brennan Tymrak
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About
- B.S. Mechanical Engineering from Michigan Tech with Minor in Electrical Engineering, 2012
- M.S. Mechanical Engineering at Michigan Tech, Peace Corps Master's International, 2016 expected graduation
- National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow
I am a Master's student in Mechanical Engineering at Michigan Technological University in the Peace Corps Master's International Program (PCMI) currently serving in Senegal, West Africa as an Agroforestry Extension Agent. My academic and professional interests are in international development, specifically the development of appropriate technology for poverty reduction. I perform research as part of the Michigan Tech Open Sustainability Technology Research Group.
Research
My current research is in participatory design of appropriate technology in Africa with the goal of poverty reduction.
To add to the knowledge base of open source 3-D printing, I have done materials testing to characterize the the mechanical properties of printed parts under realistic environmental conditions and compared them to the properties of commercially printed components. My research has shown that open source 3-D printed parts can have similar tensile strengths and elastic moduli as commercial parts.
I have also researched fabrication methods using open-source laser welding of polymers for designing expanded microchannel heat exchangers.
Publications
- B.M. Tymrak, M. Kreiger, J. M. Pearce, Mechanical properties of components fabricated with open-source 3-D printers under realistic environmental conditions, Materials & Design, 58, pp. 242-246 (2014). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.matdes.2014.02.038. open access
Experience
- Agroforestry Extension Agent - United States Peace Corps, Senegal, West Africa
- Product Engineering Intern - John Deere, Construction and Forestry Division - Tracked Feller Buncher Engineering
- Product Engineering Intern - John Deere, Agriculture Division - Instrumentation Engineering
- Michigan Tech Alternative Fuels Group Enterprise - Solar Car Team - Founder and Project Leader
- United States Forest Service - Timber Stand Improvement and Wildland Firefighting
Interests
International development
Appropriate technology for developing countries
Agriculture and forestry
Renewable energy - Solar, Wind, Human power
Thermal Sciences
Programming
Poverty reduction
Participatory Co-Design
Links
- MOST: Michigan Tech Open Sustainability Technology Research Group
- Michigan Tech PCMI program in Mechanical Engineering
- Engineering For Change