The University of Dayton Research Institute (UDRI) Internship Program provides students with direct experience at a national leader in research innovation. Interns collaborate with industry professionals to solve real world challenges, gaining the technical expertise and professional readiness required to enter the workforce. Through expert mentorship and mission driven collaboration, UDRI empowers School of Engineering students to transform their academic foundation into a professional career and bring coursework to life.
Ty Flannagan– Industrial Engineering Technology
Ty Flannagan, a senior industrial engineering technology student, participated in the UDRI summer internship focused on manufacturing processes and process improvement. Flannagan worked primarily with the reinfiltration process, helping run carbon panels through repeated manufacturing cycles to increase density and improve material properties.
“The experience was very hands-on,” Flannagan said. “I was trusted to participate in the actual processing work rather than just observing, so it felt like I was contributing to the project and learning how the lab operated in a real setting.”
Flannagan mastered the importance of manufacturing consistency by engaging in hands-on production rather than simply observing his mentors.
“What made the internship unique was that interns were actually part of the project,” said Flannagan. “I followed materials through different stages and saw how the processing decisions affected the results instead of just observing,”
This internship experience empowered Flannagan to undertake advanced coursework with greater confidence and enhanced his ability to communicate effectively within a professional team.
“It made the class much easier to understand because I had seen it applied in a real setting,” Flannagan said.
Taylor Nicely– Chemical Engineering
Taylor Nicely, a senior chemical engineering student, began her UDRI internship in May 2023, working with the Fuel Science team under Group Leader Zach West. From her initial summer internship through the following academic year, Nicely contributed to jet fuel research initiatives. Her work involved performing solid phase extraction to isolate trace-level polar compounds and analyze them by comprehensive multidimensional gas chromatography with electron ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometer and flame ionization detection (GCxGC-EITOFMS/FID). Technical leads on the project included Willie Steinecker for gas chromatography and Shane Kosir for fuel property modeling.
“This internship has greatly strengthened my engineering skills by allowing me to directly apply concepts from my coursework in a professional setting,” said Nicely. “It has helped me grow as a problem-solver, improve my technical communication, and gain valuable experience contributing to real research projects.”
Through UDRI, Nicely had the opportunity to share her research findings and current projects at the Ohio ChemE Research Day. Nicely presented on how the dielectric constant of jet fuel changes in response to additives– specifically FSII (Fuel System Icing Inhibitor), used to prevent icing in aircraft fuel systems. Aircraft gauge fuel levels through a complicated process that includes determining the dielectric constant of the fuel. The finding that additives can affect the fuel dielectric constant is quite significant.
“Beyond the technical skills, this opportunity has also given me confidence in my abilities and a clearer sense of what I enjoy in the field of engineering,” said Nicely.
Building on this ongoing research, Nicely and her colleagues with UDRI are currently coauthoring a formal publication to share their findings and technical insights.
“I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to work at UDRI with such an inspiring and supportive team. Being part of projects that have real-world impact has shown me how much potential there is in this field–and how excited I am to continue growing within it,” Nicely said.