Everyone comes to this world with a purpose which even he is unaware of and I believe education is the medium which helps us find that purpose, that plan. Since always I had wanted to do something, the effect of which goes beyond the sphere of my life or those immediately next to mine. I have always wanted to be a part of some kind of eugenic plan, a mission, a challenge, all in the pursuit of bringing some good which could affect generations to come.
Through my school years I realized that developing technology and advancing science could actually endorse my plan. It was when our school organized a river clean up drive that the feeling of doing something for saving our environment came to the fore and made me think a lot. It was about the same time that compressed natural gas was introduced as a fuel in New Delhi and the realization dawned upon me that there are millions of ways in which each of us can contribute to evade the evils of tomorrow, be it recycled paper, wastewater treatment, developing newer automobile technologies or using public transport.
Finally when I had to decide a stream to pursue my graduation in Chemical Engineering at National Institute of Technology, Karnataka(NITK) was my obvious choice because it was one branch which seemed to be offering a plethora of choices for the formulation of my above mentioned plan and I was surely not let down. Every subject we learnt opened a new dimension of science, a new possibility of technology and a new door to another opportunity. Fluid dynamics involved the most basic of concepts and even its applications were very inviting. Therefore, when I got a chance to take up a project at Jawaharlal Nehru Center for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore, my choice was obvious and I studied the rheology of non- Newtonian fluids under Dr. Meheboob Alam. Process modeling and simulation which came later during the course became one of my favorite subjects because of the base that this project had already provided. As we advanced through the course we learnt mass transfer, heat transfer and thermodynamics which form the foundation of chemical engineering. Chemical Reaction Engineering was the essence of the branch and gave structure to any chemical reaction we had ever conceived till then. My winter project at Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee under Dr. Surendra Kumar also dealt with MATLAB simulations of certain chemical reactor designs. Later came along process dynamics and control which gave us a more practical approach towards the chemical processes which are carried out at an industrial level and beautifully brought out the intricacies involved in controlling different process variables and making a process as perfect as it can be. Other mathematics related subjects like linear algebra and numerical methods inspired us to have a very logical and simple approach towards problem solving. Petroleum engineering is by far the most important application of chemical engineering I have come across and my faith in it was reinforced when I did training in one of India's leading chemical consultancies, Engineers India Limited. The project given to me was Sulphur recovery units which introduced me to the fact that petroleum being such an important source of energy cannot be totally eliminated but what can be eliminated are the shortcomings in the technology used all during its processing. Then pollution control and non- conventional sources of energy which we studied this last semester just broadened the horizon which three years of studying in this branch had led me to. My ongoing major project involves synthesizing magnetic core hollow silica nanoparticles which can be used for drug delivery and I am proud that we can affect the life of people positively in so many different ways.
But Graduation was not just about academic qualification; living with people from such different backgrounds brought to us the best of all worlds. I consider myself fortunate because this has made me a citizen of the world making the bounds of my world more flexible and permeable. The broken boundaries and blocks have made me more amenable to everything new and my education has inspired me to look for things which are otherwise unseen and this undoubtedly is the main prerequisite for development in any field.
And today when I look back at my journey through this field of chemical engineering, I have a plan in hand. My goal is to contribute in saving this world from energy crisis and my immediate concern would be efficient use of the energy sources we have today while alternate sources are being developed. Both the options are enticing enough but according to my plan of action, my first aim is to help in developing technologies which can tap the maximum out of the source already in use, say petroleum, while minimizing any kind of drawbacks they have to offer.
A lot of people make a lot of plans but not all of them are successful. But I think UT Austin can provide me what I need to take my plan one step ahead. A post graduation degree from your university will accoutre me with the exact resources in terms of technology and guidance that I have been looking for. I present this statement of purpose with a hope of getting a stairway to the next higher level of accomplishing what I have dreamt of, from where I can soar to higher ambitions. I aim to emulate a river which meanders undeterred on its path, eroding the hardest of obstacles, and meets her destiny no matter what. And I daresay water most certainly is my element.
Through my school years I realized that developing technology and advancing science could actually endorse my plan. It was when our school organized a river clean up drive that the feeling of doing something for saving our environment came to the fore and made me think a lot. It was about the same time that compressed natural gas was introduced as a fuel in New Delhi and the realization dawned upon me that there are millions of ways in which each of us can contribute to evade the evils of tomorrow, be it recycled paper, wastewater treatment, developing newer automobile technologies or using public transport.
Finally when I had to decide a stream to pursue my graduation in Chemical Engineering at National Institute of Technology, Karnataka(NITK) was my obvious choice because it was one branch which seemed to be offering a plethora of choices for the formulation of my above mentioned plan and I was surely not let down. Every subject we learnt opened a new dimension of science, a new possibility of technology and a new door to another opportunity. Fluid dynamics involved the most basic of concepts and even its applications were very inviting. Therefore, when I got a chance to take up a project at Jawaharlal Nehru Center for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore, my choice was obvious and I studied the rheology of non- Newtonian fluids under Dr. Meheboob Alam. Process modeling and simulation which came later during the course became one of my favorite subjects because of the base that this project had already provided. As we advanced through the course we learnt mass transfer, heat transfer and thermodynamics which form the foundation of chemical engineering. Chemical Reaction Engineering was the essence of the branch and gave structure to any chemical reaction we had ever conceived till then. My winter project at Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee under Dr. Surendra Kumar also dealt with MATLAB simulations of certain chemical reactor designs. Later came along process dynamics and control which gave us a more practical approach towards the chemical processes which are carried out at an industrial level and beautifully brought out the intricacies involved in controlling different process variables and making a process as perfect as it can be. Other mathematics related subjects like linear algebra and numerical methods inspired us to have a very logical and simple approach towards problem solving. Petroleum engineering is by far the most important application of chemical engineering I have come across and my faith in it was reinforced when I did training in one of India's leading chemical consultancies, Engineers India Limited. The project given to me was Sulphur recovery units which introduced me to the fact that petroleum being such an important source of energy cannot be totally eliminated but what can be eliminated are the shortcomings in the technology used all during its processing. Then pollution control and non- conventional sources of energy which we studied this last semester just broadened the horizon which three years of studying in this branch had led me to. My ongoing major project involves synthesizing magnetic core hollow silica nanoparticles which can be used for drug delivery and I am proud that we can affect the life of people positively in so many different ways.
But Graduation was not just about academic qualification; living with people from such different backgrounds brought to us the best of all worlds. I consider myself fortunate because this has made me a citizen of the world making the bounds of my world more flexible and permeable. The broken boundaries and blocks have made me more amenable to everything new and my education has inspired me to look for things which are otherwise unseen and this undoubtedly is the main prerequisite for development in any field.
And today when I look back at my journey through this field of chemical engineering, I have a plan in hand. My goal is to contribute in saving this world from energy crisis and my immediate concern would be efficient use of the energy sources we have today while alternate sources are being developed. Both the options are enticing enough but according to my plan of action, my first aim is to help in developing technologies which can tap the maximum out of the source already in use, say petroleum, while minimizing any kind of drawbacks they have to offer.
A lot of people make a lot of plans but not all of them are successful. But I think UT Austin can provide me what I need to take my plan one step ahead. A post graduation degree from your university will accoutre me with the exact resources in terms of technology and guidance that I have been looking for. I present this statement of purpose with a hope of getting a stairway to the next higher level of accomplishing what I have dreamt of, from where I can soar to higher ambitions. I aim to emulate a river which meanders undeterred on its path, eroding the hardest of obstacles, and meets her destiny no matter what. And I daresay water most certainly is my element.
