Environment

Index

Environment

Department of Civil Engineering

When considering building civil engineering in the future, addressing the fundamental issue of ‘environmental symbiosis’, such as how to reduce the burden on the environment, or whether to plan on harmonizing with the local environment, is one of the primary tasks of the Department of Civil Engineering. Some examples of the wide range of topics that civil engineering deals with that incorporate themes related to so-called infrastructure improvements are a familiarity with nature and constructing a safe and secure society that can flexibly deal with wonderful external natural forces; proposing the utilization of effective natural resource technologies and approaches such as wind power generation and recycling; harmonizing with the landscape and culture and the like for beautiful town planning; and many other themes such as regenerating and creating mountainous districts, rivers, coasts, and the like that are the foundation of a bountiful ecosystem; building consensus and carrying out economic evaluations related to the natural environment and natural disasters; and further reducing domestic and foreign water-related issues and energy issues and the like.

 

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Department of Architecture

‘Architectural Environment’
Architecture can be defined as ‘compartmentalizing space and creating a new environment’, and it is no exaggeration to say that architecture in its entirety is related to the environment. Education in the Department of Architecture primarily deals with acquiring skills to create an environment that makes people feel comfortable using the five senses, with a good command of design, planning, structure and installation engineering.

 

‘Environmentally Symbiotic Architecture’
Historically, constructing large buildings was admirable and awe-inspiring. Now however, large buildings may be criticized for ‘worsening the surrounding environment’ or ‘destroying the global environment’. How to protect the surrounding environment and reduce the burden on the environment are the most important issues dealt with in the architectural fields of construction, planning, and installation, and much will be learned in classes.

 

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Department of Urban Engineering

In the Department of Urban Engineering, the ‘environment’ has consistently been directly addressed as one of the central issues since the department was establishment in 1962.

 

Many urban activities, from environment-related water supply and sewage/waste management infrastructure to transportation, dwellings, the heat island phenomenon, and global environmental issues, are closely related to the environment, and they influence one another in a complex manner. Without erroneously oversimplifying these matters, the overall mechanisms of these issues must be recognized and understood, and urban and environmental issues must be dealt with based upon that comprehension and practical training and lectures provide a systematic acquisition.

 

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Department of Mechanical Engineering

In the Department of Mechanical Engineering, we are engaged in the research and development of generic technologies to realize an eco-friendly and low carbon society and manufacturing technologies to achieve that goal. High-efficiency technology for vehicles, railways and the like; energy-saving technologies such as heat pumps, heat exchangers and air flow control for air conditioning in residential environments; promoting basic research on low in energy consumption water purification technologies to ensure future water resources throughout the world during shortages; optimizing systems to enhance the feasibility of these technologies; as well as evaluating the environmental burden and economic efficiency throughout the lifecycle. We also promote research on environmental power generation technology that retrieves electric power from energy sources such as exhaust heat, indoor lighting and vibrations. As far as the curriculum is concerned, from second year introductory content to fourth year advanced content, extensive knowledge can be acquired in our classes.

 

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Department of Mechano-Informatics

In the Department of Mechano-Informatics, from the standpoint of supporting human livelihood, sophisticated machine technology and information technology are the cornerstones of our contributions to the environmental field. In particular, as regards the constitution method concerning the ideal form for an intelligent system service that offers support depending upon human activity, we promote research from the level of human living environments and infrastructure. While innovative technology provides security, safety, and comfort to people’s daily life, the rapidly aging population in Japan is what makes it essential. In order to nurture talented individuals capable of designing such a system, the curriculum in this department is based on mechanical engineering and information engineering and allows for the systematic study of intelligent mechanisms that have intertwined functions working together with mankind and the environment.

 

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Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics

The volume of air traffic is steadily increasing all around the world, and aircraft are indispensable vehicles as a means of mobility in everyday life. Thus, environmental standards such as CO2 emission reduction, harmful emission reduction and noise reduction must be cleared.

In this department, while we aim to transverse technological innovation and its integration to contribute to improved aircraft environmental compatibility, such as improved aerodynamic performance, structure and material weight reduction, optimum flight control, active engine noise control, we also undertake the systematic study of fundamental knowledge and methodologies.

 

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Department of Information and Communication Engineering

Making ‘towns’, where life takes place, sustainable creates ‘smart cities’. That is one of the themes of the Department of Information and Communication Engineering. As for smartification, such as implementing safety and security including disaster prevention and healthcare, and creating communities and regional culture, information cannot be isolated. Taking information collected from sensors embedded in towns as an example, the question of how to make the best use of that collected information in designing cities is one issue within the Big Data Era theme in the Department of Information and Communication Engineering.  We foster talented individuals who can take on the resolution of social issues including sustainable nation building and urban development, urban and social design, and society from the stance of big data.

 

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Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering

In the Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering we promote research to stimulate green innovation and to realize an environmentally conscious society. To that end, we study a wide range of environmental engineering which plays a central green innovation role taking full advantage of solar cells and information and communications technology including smart grids, LED, and electric vehicles.

 

In this department for example, research is progressing on the world’s most advanced solar cells which have a higher than 40% conversion efficiency, and study ranges from fundamental semiconductor properties to the production process. Study covers electric vehicle power conversion circuits that are the core electric motor part and its control technology, and state-of-the-art smart grid technology that enhances electric power system stability when a large amount of renewable energy is fed into the grid. Many of the fundamental and specialized subjects required for such research and design can only be studied in this department.

 

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Department of Mathematical Engineering and Information Physics

Pursue ‘universal principles and methodology’! These are the basis of science and technology. This is the goal of the Department of Mathematical Engineering and Information Physics. Researching this ‘universal principles and methodology’ is indivisible from research in individual fields, and in the Department of Mathematical Engineering and Information Physics research in various fields is conducted along with researching the ‘universal principles and methodology’.

 

In the ‘environment’ field for example, the studies we conduct include research using the time series model and the spatiotemporal statistical model in weather prediction and geostatistics; research on optimum design methods for efficiently configuring structural elements of buildings; development and research of environmental measurement technology, prediction technology, and control technology; and research environmental systems modeling. In the department curriculum, students acquire ‘universal principles and methodology’ basics in lectures, develop principles and methodologies through research for graduation, and engage in resolving practical issues.

 

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Department of Materials Engineering

The most important issues to keep in mind in the 21st century are the environment and energy, and students study base materials, which are the foundation of engineering, in the Materials B (Environment, Base Materials) Course. The diverse materials studied range from iron and steel, which have been continuously used in technological innovations, through to metals, ceramics, semiconductors, and organic materials which are essential for objects ranging from vehicles, airplanes, and large structures to fuel cells and high strength materials.

 

The field of materials engineering, in which all materials used in material civilization are the subject of research, is the foundation of all engineering. Our aim is to foster talented individuals who from a broad interdisciplinary stance have the capacity to contribute to the happiness of human society as a whole. In collaboration with the other two courses in the Department of Materials Engineering, we conduct education to cultivate extensive insight and we promote cutting-edge research.

 

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Department of Chemical System Engineering

In the Department of Chemical System Engineering it is possible to analyze and control chemical phenomena with scales ranging from molecular to global in size, and with a focus on the systemization and design of these components, a chemical system engineering methodology can be acquired.

 

The approach to the ‘environment’ in this department is multifaceted, ranging from global scale issues such as global warming, desertification, life cycle assessment, technology for the removal of substances causing environmental pollution and the like, to problems at the atomic and molecular level. Chemical system engineering and advanced expertise and technology support that. The department curriculum allows for the acquisition of chemical system engineering and advanced expertise, and one can develop as a ‘specialist and generalist’ who has a well-balanced view of the parts and the whole.

 

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Department of Systems Innovation

Science courses disciplines have traditionally developed around specialized differentiations, and although the pursuit of optimization brought about a mass consumption society in the late 20th century, such specialization and optimization also caused environmental issues. In order to resolve environmental issues and realize a sustainable social system, we need to train minds to come up with a comprehensive system for diverse basic technologies, and even if they are basically the same, thinking from a different angle and conceiving engineering uses for these technologies is critical.

 

In the Department of Systems Innovation, first is the acquisition of an extensive knowledge in the fields of environment and energy, and then adopt a method for studying the field that the student is interested in. To resolve issues, not only develop component technology but also design a total system, and furthermore train talented individuals who will develop policies based on environmental-economic and environmental risk assessments.

 

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