The Clean Fuels Alliance Foundation has announced the recipient of this year’s Beth Calabotta Sustainable Education Grant is Courtney Videchak, a Mechanical Engineering PhD candidate at the University of Michigan. Videchak’s research inspired her to enroll in sustainability courses offered by the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department and the School of Environment and Sustainability.

Videchak’s dissertation is focused on creating fuel-specific engine calibrations optimized for biodiesel, renewable diesel, and a 50% (by volume) blend of the two fuels to decrease CO2 emissions and increase engine efficiency.

Videchak will attend Clean Fuels Alliance America’s 2025 Sustainability Workshop in Kansas City, Missouri, in April, where she will share her research and collaborate with industry and scientific leaders in the field. “Ultimately, the results of my work will hopefully encourage engine manufacturers to make these alternative fuels a primary consideration rather than an afterthought,” Videchak wrote in her application. “I am eager to attend the workshop to deepen my understanding of alternative fuel sustainability, a critical area for my future career. This opportunity would allow me to apply what I learn to my professional aspirations in renewable energy and low-carbon alternatives to fossil fuels.”

The Beth Calabotta Grant was established in 2018 to support deserving students interested in clean fuels, science and research. The grant honors scientist and past Foundation director Beth Calabotta, whose legacy and dedication to biodiesel and sustainability tremendously impacted the industry.