Student Success Story: Sathvika Kottapalli

Sathvika Kottapalli graduated with her MSME in Spring of 2025 and successfully defended her thesis “Impact of Oxygen Injection Parameters on Refining in Industry-scale EAF using CFD”. She started working in CIVS as a Graduate Research Assistant in 2023 under the supervision of Professor Chenn Zhou.

Her technical work focused on applying advanced CFD techniques to electric arc furnaces (EAF). In particular, she determined the impact of oxygen injection during the refining stage on the decarburization process and FeO generation. Her work has been presented in conference venues and discussed in conference and journal publications.

After graduating, she now works as a Design Release Engineer (DRE). She works on releasing and validating production-ready components of interesting automobiles like Dodge, Ram, Jeep, etc. The role is a mix of design, problem-solving, and real-world engineering, and discovering how concepts turn into vehicles on the road.

CIVS played a huge role in shaping how I think as an engineer. The industry-focused research, and constant problem-solving really prepared me for working in a fast-paced automotive environment. The collaborative environment, access to advanced tools, and constant interaction with industry partners in CIVS, helped me understand how engineering decisions are actually made in practice. Most importantly, it gave me the technical confidence and practical mindset I use every day at work.

Sathvika Kottapalli