The Saurvi initiative – A new wave for women empowerment
Upliftment of women is the chief requisite that leads the way to empowerment of a community as well as the nation. The representation of womankind on multitude spheres is imperative for a progressive society to advance into a fair and just future.
Saurvi, the woman leadership and entrepreneurship student community under the Home of Leaders, has become a torch-bearer in creating a novel path for women empowerment by encouraging women into the field of entrepreneurship. The student initiative has recently conducted a bootcamp at Maris Stella Women’s College, Vijayawada AP, to help them create a startup and leadership ecosystem. The interaction between the budding entrepreneurs and students has fostered a positive outlook towards entrepreneurship, leadership and engaging in creative business ventures.
The Saurvi initiative aims at empowering women by cultivating livelihood skills among the women communities and promoting leadership opportunities and business propositions among women from all walks of life. They collaborate with numerous NGOs to generate awareness as well as to nurture impactful women leaders in the field of entrepreneurship.
The initiative has begun to gather momentum and recognition, for their vision, mission and commitment for the cause. Smt KGV Saritha, Superintendent of Police, Andhra Pradesh, offered her words of appreciation for the ingenuity of the initiative to promote women empowerment. The Saurvi enterprise has in view to create 10 women entrepreneurs by the end of 2023, 15 by 2024 and aims to double the number for every consecutive year.
SRM University- AP announces Elon Fellowship for budding entrepreneurs
SRM University- AP inaugurated Elon Fellowship on September 30, 2022. It is a novel cohort that aspires to create a startup ecosystem. The Fellowship launched will onboard 60+ venture teams and provide extensive training for four months to facilitate the development of their idea to the prototype stage and beyond. Selected venture groups would receive internal funding up to INR 50 lakhs and external funding upto INR 1 crore for their project development.
The Elon Fellowship poster was launched by the Vice Chancellor of SRM University- AP, Prof Manoj K Arora; Registrar, Dr R Premkumar; and other dignitaries. “The Fellowship opens up new avenues in the domain of entrepreneurship and innovation. It provides students with a well-funded scheme that facilitates fruitful development of their creative ventures”, asserted Prof Arora.
Mr Udayan Bakshi, the Associate Director of Entrepreneurship, SRM AP commented that more than seven portfolio startups of the university have crossed a total revenue of 25 crores annually, making our institution a formidable pioneer in the field of entrepreneurship.
The Andhra Pradesh Innovation Society, Government of Andhra Pradesh, congratulated this innovative scheme. Mr Anil T, the CEO of APIS, extended his support in furthering the cause in promoting young entrepreneurs. The Elon Fellowship grants students a supportive cohort for their journey to entrepreneurship.
In-situ Al–5ZrB2 composite foams : Comparable alternative for conventional Al foams
Closed-cell metal foams are crucial to heavy industry machinery as they primarily function as impact-absorbing materials. Stabilizing closed-cell metal foams is a pivotal element in the process of manufacturing closed-cell metal foams. On this note, Prof GS Vinod Kumar from The Department of Mechanical Engineering has published a paper entitled Production, stability, and properties of in-situ Al–5ZrB2 composite foams in the journal Materials Science and Engineering: A with an impact factor of 6.044.
Abstract
Stabilization is an essential requirement to produce closed-cell metal foams. In the melt route of foaming, usually ceramic particles are used as foam stabilizers. For the first time, the present study introduces ZrB2 particles as foam stabilizers. We demonstrate the foaming of in-situ based Al composite containing submicron ZrB2 particles. The effect of foaming temperature and holding time on the structural and mechanical properties of the foams was studied. The composites and foams were characterized using XRD, SEM/EDS, and optical scanning techniques. The mechanical properties of the foams were determined by subjecting the foams to a quasi-static compression test. Submicron ZrB2 particles present in the cell wall and at the gas-solid interface promoted foam stability. All the foams exhibited a good cellular structure with high expansion. Among the foams, the foams prepared at 680 ºC with a holding time of 120 s exhibited the smallest cell size and the best mechanical properties. The structural and mechanical properties of the Al–5ZrB2 foams were found to be comparable to conventional foams.
Novel in-situ ZrB2 particles were produced to form Al-5ZrB2 composites. ZrB2 particles present in the melt tend to stabilize the H2 gas bubbles produced from the decomposition of TiH2. The macrostructure was best observed when foamed at 680 ºC and held for 120 sec. Because of its finer pores ( ̴ 3mm ), excellent compressive strength and energy absorption capacity was exhibited comparable to conventional Al foams.
The paper observes a wide-range of possibilities for the application of in-situ Al–5ZrB2 composite foams to modify bullet proof vests, car body parts, sound and heat proof walls in theatres, naval ship bodies, etc.
Prof Vinod Kumar also discusses the future application of this technique in use of metallic powders as blending agent for effective dispersion of blowing agent in the melt and in the field of compressive and energy absorption studies for Al composite foams.
- Published in Departmental News, Mechanical Engineering NEWS, News, Research News
2nd Convocation ceremony: Proudly honouring the graduates of 2022
SRM University- AP conducted its 2nd convocation ceremony for the Class of 2022 on Saturday, October 08, 2022, at 3 pm. A total of 1149 students were awarded their graduate degrees at the glorious event held at the APJ Abdul Kalam Auditorium. “As you look forward to the future, I wish you taking action on the key technical, social, and environmental issues that our world is facing today,” said the chief guest of the day, Dr K Radhakrishnan, former ISRO Chairman, in his address.
The ceremony commenced with the welcome address and annual report by Vice-Chancellor Prof Manoj K Arora. “In our objective of being a globally connected, nationally relevant, and regionally transformative university, we are on the path of excellence in knowledge creation and dissemination,” commended him while highlighting the university’s performance and achievements in the academic milieu.
The event continued with the convocation address of Founder Chancellor Dr T R Paarivendhar and Pro-Chancellor, Dr P Satyanarayanan. They enunciated how SRM sets out on its journey with an unflinching vision to grow into a trailblazer in higher education, offering learning par excellence and keeping in line with global academic standards.
“We have always envisioned being a changemaker in the areas of research, placement, entrepreneurship, and higher studies, and we are immensely proud of the profuse accomplishments of our students in these fields, be it the inspiring research endeavours, enviable placement offers, innovative startup plans and exciting opportunities for higher learning,” said Dr P Satyanarayanan.
Pro Vice-chancellor of SRM AP, Prof D Narayana Rao, read out the Citation and Chancellor, Dr T R Paarivendhar conferred the honorary doctorate on Dr S Chandrasekhar, Chairperson, TDB, and Secretary, DST. In his acceptance speech, Dr S Chandrasekhar congratulated the graduands and talked about his vision of a sustainable planet where India becomes an innovation-driven country in the next 20 years. He further called upon the girl students of SRM AP to be the next generation leaders of tomorrow.
The ceremony proceeded to hand the degrees of merit to the deserving students. Over the years, SRM University- AP has carved a niche for itself in the realm of higher education. The learning destination has achieved numerous milestones for its phenomenal academic performance and purpose-driven endeavours in the Indian educational scenario. SRM AP has earned an enviable reputation of being one of the finest emerging universities in the country within a short span of time. “The university campus has become a breeding ground for excellence and is becoming a revolution in the academic landscape of the country,” remarked the students when asked about their feelings after graduating from SRM University- AP.
Awards, degrees, and medals were presented for BTech, BBA, BA, BSc, MBA and PhD programmes, and the pledge was administered. Members of the Board of Management and Academic Council, Pro Vice-Chancellor Prof D Narayana Rao, Registrar Dr R Premkumar, Former Vice-Chancellor and Advisor of the university Prof V S Rao, Deans, Directors, Heads of the departments, faculty and staff members, alums, parents of graduands were present on the occasion.
The ceremony culminated with the National anthem, and all the graduates dispersed in exuberant joy!
- Published in News