Celebrating Student Excellence at the CenTiRe Fall IAB Conference

The Center for Tire Research (CenTiRe) is proud to announce the winners of the Student Presentation Awards from our recently completed Fall Industry Advisory Board (IAB) Conference, hosted by the University of Akron.

This biannual event brings together leading researchers, faculty, and industry professionals from Virginia Tech and the University of Akron to review ongoing research, explore new proposals, and strengthen academic–industry collaboration across the tire and polymer science fields.

First Place: Lucas Ying Ho Yeh, Virginia Tech

Project: Coal-Derived Biocompatible Graphene as an Effective and Safer Alternative to 6PPD in Tires Lucas impressed the IAB and attendees with his clear presentation, strong command of technical content, and the potential real-world impact of his research. This achievement is especially notable as it was his first time presenting at a CenTiRe conference - an outstanding debut that sets a high bar for future participants.

Runner-Up: Brennan Crawford, University of Akron

Project: Carbon Negative Butadiene CO₂ Polymers: Material Synthesis and Property Evaluation Brennan’s presentation showcased innovative thinking and rigorous experimental work aimed at advancing sustainable polymer solutions—an effort that strongly aligns with CenTiRe’s mission to drive responsible innovation within the tire and materials industries.

We congratulate both Lucas and Brennan for their exceptional presentations and research contributions. Their work exemplifies the depth of talent and creativity emerging from CenTiRe’s academic partners and highlights the bright future of tire materials research.

A sincere thank you to all our student presenters, faculty advisors, and industry board members for making this conference another great success.