Steven D. Beyea

Current Research Interests

    My current interest is in nuclear magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of heterogeneous materials which are difficult to study with “conventional” techniques.  This research attempts to exploit the sensitivity of magnetic resonance to the physical and chemical characteristics of materials, and expand it to systems for which one could not normally use MRI.  Rather than trying to force materials of interest to fit MRI, I try to develop new MR methods which are suited to these materials.

            Examples of physical systems which I am studying range from flow properties of  multiphase materials, gas/liquid phase equilibria in mesoporous solids, in vivo imaging of short relaxation time biological materials, semi-rigid polymeric solids, and fluids in naturally occuring porous materials.

Education:

1995-2000       University of New Brunswick, Ph.D. (Physics)

Thesis: “Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and Relaxation Time

  Mapping of Concrete”

                        Supervisors:  Dr. Bruce Balcom & Dr. Ted Bremner

1991-1995      University of New Brunswick, B.Sc.  (1^st Class Honours, Physics)

Employment Experience:

 Research:

            April 2000 -              Postdoctoral Research Fellow

                                              New Mexico Resonance

                                              Supervisor:  Dr. Eiichi Fukushima

                                              Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA

            1995                          Research Assistant

                                              Materials Group, Dept. of Civil Engineering

                                              University of New Brunswick

                                              Supervisor:  Dr. Ted. Bremner

                                              Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada

            1993                          Research Assistant

                                              MRI Research Centre, Dept. of Physics

                                              University of New Brunswick

                                              Supervisor:  Dr. Bruce Balcom

                                              Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada

Teaching:

            1998 & 2000             Tutorial Leader: Physics 1040/1940
                                              UNB Residence System

            1998                          Instructor: "MCAT Review Course (Physics)"
                                              Dept. of Extension & Summer Services
                                              University of New Brunswick

           1999-2000                 Teaching Assistant
          & 1993-1997               Department of Physics
                                               University of New Brunswick

 Refereed Publications:

• Beyea S.D. Balcom B.J., Bremner T.W. and Armstrong R.L.  “Detection of Microcracking in Drying Cementious Materials with Space Resolved 1H Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Relaxometry” J. Am. Ceram. Soc., submitted April 2, 2001.
• Choi C., Balcom B.J., Beyea S.D., and Bremner T.W. "Spatially Resolved Pore-Size Distribution in Partially-Dried Concrete Measured by Magnetic Resonance Imaging" J. Appl. Phys., 88, 3578-3581 (2000).
• Beyea S.D., Balcom B.J., Mastikhin I.V., Bremner T.W., Armstrong R.L. and Grattan- Bellew P.E. "Imaging of Heterogeneous Materials with Turbo Spin-Echo Single-Point Imaging (turboSPI) Technique" J. Magn. Reson., 144, 255-262 (2000).
• Beyea S.D., Balcom B.J., Mastikhin I.V., Bremner T.W., Armstrong R.L. and Grattan-Bellew P.E.  “The Development of a New MRI Technique for Imaging Heterogeneous Materials: turboSPI” Physics in Canada, 55, 363-366 (1999).
• Beyea S.D., Balcom B.J., Bremner T.W., Prado P.J., Cross A.R., Armstrong R.L. and Grattan-Bellew P.E. "The Influence of Shrinkage Cracking on the Drying Behaviour of White Portland Cement using SPI" Solid State NMR, 13, 93-100 (1998).
• Beyea S.D., Balcom B.J., Prado P.J., Cross A.R., Kennedy C.B., Armstrong R.L. and Bremner T.W. "Relaxation Time Mapping of Short T2* Nuclei with Single- Point Imaging (SPI) Methods" J. Magn. Reson. 135, 156-164 (1998).
• Prado P.J., Balcom B.J., Beyea S.D., Bremner T.W., Armstrong R.L., Pishe R. and Grattan-Bellew P.E. "Spatially Resolved Relaxometry and Pore Size Distribution by Single-Point MRI Methods. Porous Media Calorimetry" J. Phys. D. 31, 2040-2050 (1998).
• Prado P.J., Balcom B.J., Beyea S.D., Armstrong R.L., Bremner T.W. and Grattan- Bellew P.E. "Concrete/Mortar Water Phase Transition Studied by Single-Point MRI Methods" Mag. Res. Imaging 16, 521-523 (1998).
• Beyea S.D., Balcom B.J., Bremner T.W., Prado P.J., Green D.P., Armstrong R.L. and Grattan-Bellew P.E. "Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Moisture Content Profiles of Drying Concrete" Cem. Conc. Res. 28, 453-463 (1998).
• Prado P.J., Balcom B.J.. Beyea S.D., Bremner T.W., Armstrong R.L. and Grattan- Bellew P.E. "Concrete Freeze-Thaw as Studied by Magnetic Resonance Imaging" Cem. Conc. Res. 28, 261-270 (1998).
• Prado P.J., Balcom B.J., Beyea S.D., R.L. Armstrong and Bremner T.W. "Concrete Thawing Studied by Single-Point Ramped Imaging" Solid State NMR, 10, 1-8 (1997).
• Balcom B.J., MacGregor R.P., Beyea S.D., Green D.P., Armstrong R.L. and Bremner T.W. "Single-Point Ramped Imaging with T1 Enhancement (SPRITE)" J. Magn. Reson. A 123, 131-134 (1996).

Professional and Technical Meeting Presentations:

• Beyea S.D.  “Applications of NMR Imaging to Material Science”  Centre for Advanced Studies, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA, 2001.
• Beyea S.D. and Altobelli S.A.   “NMR Imaging of Noncolloidal Solid Particulates in a 3-Phase Sedimenting System using SPRITE”  42^nd Experimental NMR Conference, Orlando, FL, USA, 2001.
• Beyea S.D., Balcom B.J. and Bremner T.W.  “Detection of a Penetrating Microcracking Phenomenon in Drying Cementious Materials with Space Resolved NMR Relaxometry”  42^nd Experimental NMR Conference, Orlando, FL, USA, 2001.
• Beyea S.D., Balcom B.J., Mastikhin I.V., Bremner T.W., Armstrong R.L. and Grattan- Bellew P.E. "turboSPI: A New MRI Technique for Imaging of Heterogeneous Materials" 5th International Conference on Magnetic Resonance Microscopy, Heidelberg, Germany, 1999.
• Beyea S.D., Balcom B.J. Mastikhin I.V., Bremner T.W., Armstrong R.L. and Grattan- Bellew P.E. "The Development of a New MRI Technique for Imaging of Heterogeneous Materials: turboSPI" 54th Annual Canadian Association of Physicists Congress, Fredericton NB, Canada, 1999.
• Goodyear D.J., Balcom B.J., Shea M. and Beyea S.D. "Single-Point Measurement of Gradient Waveforms" 54th Annual Canadian Association of Physicists Congress, Fredericton NB, Canada, 1999.
• Beyea S.D., Balcom B.J., Prado P.J., Mastikhin I.V., Bremner T.W. and Grattan-Bellew P.E. "Fast Single-Point Imaging of Porous Materials" Ampere Workshop on Porous Systems and Systems with Restricted Geometries, Delphi, Greece, 1998.
• Beyea S.D., Balcom B.J., Prado P.J., Armstrong R.L., Bremner T.W. and Grattan- Bellew P.E. "3D Microscopy of Moisture at the Paste/Aggregate Transition Zone in Hardened Concrete using SPRITE" 4th International Conference on Magnetic Resonance Microscopy, Albuquerque NM, USA, 1997.
• Beyea S.D., Balcom B.J., Prado P.J., Armstrong R.L. and Bremner T.W. "Moisture Profiles of Drying Concrete using Single-Point Imaging (SPI)" 4th International Conference on Magnetic Resonance Microscopy, Albuquerque NM, USA, 1997.
• Prado P.J., Balcom B.J., Beyea S.D., Armstrong R.L., Bremner T.W. and Gratten- Bellew P.E. "Concrete Freeze/Thaw Studied by Single-Point Ramped Imaging with T1 Enhancement" Recent Advances in MR Applications to Porous Media, Trondheim, Norway, 1997.
• Balcom B.J., Prado P.J., Beyea S.D., Armstrong R.L., Bremner T.W., Rack F. and Mayer L. "SPRITE - NMR Imaging of Short Relaxation Time Nuclei" Canadian Society for Chemistry Conference, Windsor ON, Canada, 1997.
• Beyea S.D., Bremner T.W., Prado P.J., Balcom B.J., Grattn-Bellew P.E. and Armstrong R.L. "Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) of Moisture Distribution in Concrete" Canadian Society for Civil Engineering Conference, Sherbrooke QC, Canada, 1997.
• Prado P.J., Balcom B.J., Beyea S.D., Armstrong R.L. and Bremner T.W. "MRI Study of Water in Porous Media - Freeze/Thaw Characterization" Chemical Institute of Canada, Annual General Meeting Workshop, Halifax NS, Canada, 1997.
• Balcom B.J., Beyea S.D. and Shaj N.J. "Single-Point Magnetic Resonance Measurements of Pulsed Magnetic Field Gradients" 5th Scientific Meeting of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, Vancouver BC, Canada, 1997.
• Beyea S.D., Bremner T.W., Balcom B.J. and Armstrong R.L. "MRI of Moisture Distribution in Concrete" Concrete Canada Conference, Moncton NB, Canada, 1996.

Invited Lectures:

• Beyea S.D.  “Detection of Microstructural Changes in Mesoporous Solids with NMR Imaging” Particulate Science and Technology Group, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO, USA, 2001.
• Beyea S.D.  “MRI of Short Lifetime Nuclei is Porous Solids using SPRITE” New Mexico Regional NMR Conference, Socorro NM, USA, 2000.