ME PhD Students
Current PhD Students
Advisor: Dr. Sam Park
Research Interests:
- Lithium-ion battery research,
- Thermomechanical modelling,
- System optimization, CFD.
Bio: Ayodeji Adeniran is a Ph.D. student at the University of Louisville. His current research focuses on developing advanced cooling system for EV batteries. His prior work focused on numerical simulations for neutron diffusion in nuclear reactors.
Education:
- MS in Mechanical Engineering, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, 2019
- B.Eng in Mechanical Engineering, University of Ilorin, 2012
Advisor: Dr. Kunal Kate
Research Interests:
- Extrusion based 3D Printing
- Metal and Ceramic Additive Manufacturing
- Powder-Polymer Feedstock Development
- Microstructure Engineering and Characterization
Bio: Pavan Kumar Ajjarapu is a PhD. Student at the University of Louisville and a member of the Materials Innovation Guild. His current research focusses on designing and processing multi-layer filament structures to improve print speed and filament properties in powder fused filament fabrication (PF3) 3D printing. In the past, he worked on 3D printing Ni-TiC cermet scaffolds and vacuum arc melting Ni-Ti shape memory alloys.
Education:
- MS in Materials Science Engineering, University of Cincinnati, 2019
- B.Tech in Metallurgy and Materials Engineering, Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology, 2017
Advisor: Dr. Hui Wang
Research Interests:
- Electrochemical energy storage,
- Materials synthesis,
- Solid state Na-/Li-ion batteries,
- Solid Na-/Li-ion conductors,
- Solid state electrolyte material synthesis
Bio: Sharmin Akter has completed her MS in Physics and Astronomy at the University of Louisville and is currently a Ph.D. student in the Mechanical Engineering department. She has been working in the Conn Center for energy storage systems under Dr. Hui Wang since 2021. Her current research focuses on developing the solid-state Na-/Li- ion battery, solid electrolyte, and materials synthesis. Her prior experience deals with Molecular Spectroscopy and Non-linear optics.
Education:
- MS in Physics and Astronomy, University of Louisville, 2021
- MS in Physics, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Bangladesh, 2018
- BS in Physics, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology, Bangladesh, 2016
Advisor: Dr. Christopher Richards
Research Interests:
- Mechatronics
- Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)
- Industrial Drives
- Robotics
- Artificial Intelligence
- Control System
Bio: Arjun Vallyath Anil is a PhD student at the University of Louisville . His current research focuses on autonomous navigation of UAVs for the remote sensing at the Arctic. He is also the Entrepreneurial Lead for the ‘UAV Arctic Research’ team participating in the NSF Innovation Corps Program. He previously worked as a Junior Research Fellow in the field of Mechatronics at the National Institute of Technology Durgapur.
Education:
- M.S. in Industrial Drives and Control, Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Technology, Kottayam, India, 2020
- B.S. in Electrical Electronics Engineering, Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam, India, 2018
Advisor: Dr. Kunal Kate
Research Interests:
- Additive manufacturing of metals and polymers
- Material science
- Environmental sustainability /li>
- Nanomaterials
Bio: Munjuluri Krishna Sai Aparna is a master’s student in mechanical engineering at the University of Louisville and a member of Materials Innovation Guild.
Education:
- B.S. in Mechanical Engineering at Mahindra University, Hyderabad, 2023
Advisor: Dr. Stuart Williams
Research Interests:
- Microfabrication
- Microfluidics
- Sensors
Bio: Aaditya Venkatesha Babu Bangaru is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Louisville with the Integrated Microfluidic Systems Laboratory, where he will design and test microfluidic devices to measure the electrical properties of nanoparticles for their analysis and selective trapping. His current research also deals with design and fabrication of interdigitated electrodes. His prior research work dealt with microfluidics integrated surface acoustic wave sensors.
Education:
- M.S. in Physics (Nanotechnology), Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, 2020
- B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Visvesvaraya Technological University, India, 2016
Advisor: Dr. Badri Narayanan
Research Interests: Atomic-scale simulations, density functional theory, defect dynamics in quantum perovskites, machine learning in materials modeling.
Bio: Devang Bhagat is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Louisville with Predictive Materials Modeling lab, where he is working on fundamental understanding of defect dynamics in quantum perovskites, with applications in emerging neuromorphic computing architectures. He employs a combination of electronic structure calculations, machine learning, and molecular dynamics simulations to understand defect-induced phase transitions in strongly-correlated perovskite nickelates.
Education:
- MS in Mechanical Engineering, University of Louisville, 2019
- B.E in Automobile Engineering, University of Mumbai, 2016
Advisor: Dr. Yanyu Chen
Research Interests:
- Architected materials
- Mechanical metamaterials
- Additive manufacturing
Bio: Man Chen is a PhD student at University of Louisville, and she is working on designing, fabricating, testing, and analyzing mechanical metamaterials. Her prior research is about lattice-reinforced cementitious materials.
Education:
- M.S. in Civil Engineering, South China University of Technology, 2023
- B.S. in Civil Engineering, Chongqing Jiaotong University, 2019
Advisor: Dr. Peter Quesada
Research Interests:
- Sports Biomechanics
- Performance Enhancement
- Injury Risk Management
- Experimental Methods
Bio: Matt is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Louisville. His research interests involve evaluating use of acute-to-chronic workload ratio (ACWR) as a tool in sports performance enhancement and injury risk management. His objectives include identifying ACWR algorithms that can better discriminate between athletes, and that be applied with data from less costly wearable sensors. He has previously earned one earned master’s in mechanical engineering and another in exercise physiology.
Education:
- B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, University of Louisville, 2013
- B.S. in Health and Human Performance, University of Louisville, 2015
- MEng. in Mechanical Engineering, University of Louisville, 2015
- B.S. in Exercise Physiology, University of Louisville, 2018
Advisor: Dr. Hui Wang
Research Interests:
- Renewable energy storage
- Lithium batteries
- Solid state electrolytes,
- Materials science fundamentals behind the functioning of these materials
Bio: Rachel DeWees earned her B.S. in Materials Engineering from University of Kentucky. After some experience in industry, she earned her M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Louisville and is currently a Ph.D. student in the program, working in the Conn Center for Renewable Energy under Prof. Hui Wang. Her research interests include the fundamental material science principles at play in solid state electrolytes and overall performance of lithium ion batteries.
Education:
- M.S. in Mechanical Engineering, University of Louisville, 2018
- B.S. in Materials Engineering, University of Kentucky, 2011
Advisor: Dr. Bikram Bhatia
Research Interests:
- Pyroelectric energy conversion
- Thin films
- Composite materials
- Atomistic simulation
- Computational mechanics
Bio: Dip Dutta has started his Ph.D. in the fall semester of 2019 at the University of Louisville and a member of the Pyro Energy Research Lab, where he is working with the microfabrication of Polymer films as well as the exploration of their suitability in the effective Pyroelectric energy conversion. His previous research works dealt with the Bio-composites and the Computational mechanics.
Education:
- Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), 2012-2017
Advisor: Dr. Badri Narayanan
Research interests:
- Computational Material Science
- Molecular Dynamics
- Atomistic Simulations
- Machine Learning
Bio: Saransh is a doctoral researcher in the Predictive Materials Modeling Laboratory, University of Louisville. The focus of his current research is investigating structure-property relationships, chemical reactions, and phase transitions in electrochemical interfaces for applications in batteries and nano-electronics.
Education:
- M.Eng. Industrial Materials and Metallurgy, PEC University of Technology, Chandigarh (2015)
- B.E. Mechanical Engineering, Panjab University, Chandigarh (2012)
Advisor: Dr Hui Wang
Research Interests:
- Electrochemical Energy Storage
- Solid-State Na/Li Batteries
- Solid Li-/Na-ion Conductors
- Hybrid Electric Vehicles & Battery Electric Vehicles
Bio: Selim Halacoglu is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Louisville, where he has been working in the Conn Center for Renewable Energy under Prof. Hui Wang since 2019. His current studies focus on the development of solid-state electrolytes and lithium ion batteries.
Education:
- B.S. in Automotive Engineering, Cukurova University, 2013
- B.S. in Automotive Engineering, University of Hertfordshire, 2018
Advisor: Dr. Cindy Harnett
Research Interests:
- Control
- Robotics
- Soft robotics
- Soft actuator
- Optic fiber Sensor
- Robot manipulation
Bio: Seokyoung Han is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Louisville with Dr. Harnett’s group, where she is working towards development of soft robotic platform by using advanced materials and control methods. Her current research focuses on creating locomotion or rolling motion using soft actuators and optic fiber sensors.
.Education:
- M.S. in Mechatronics Engineering, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, Gwangju Korea, 2015
- B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Kookmin University, Seoul Korea, 2013
Advisor: Dr. Christopher Richards
Research Interests:
- Robust Control
- Linear and Nonlinear Control
- Anti-Windup Control
- Robotics
- Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)
Bio: Khaled Issa is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Louisville, specializing in the design of advanced control systems for aerospace and unmanned vehicles. His research blends non-linear control strategies, Robust controls, anti-windup compensation, and control allocation techniques for UAV.
Education:
- M.S. in Electrical Engineering, Islamic University of Gaza, 2022
- B.S. in Electrical Engineering, Islamic University of Gaza, 2013
Advisor: Dr. Bikram Bhatia & Dr. Sundar Atre
Research Interests:
- Piezoelectric Sensor Design (PVDF-Cu),
- Metal-Polymer Additive Manufacturing
- Mechanical design of heat exchangers
Bio:
Julio J. Izquierdo is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Louisville. He is a member of the Materials Innovation Guild and member of the Pyro Energy Research Lab, where he is working on fabricating through AM a novel high-temperature heat exchanger. His previous research focused on designing, fabricating and characterizing AM-based piezoelectric sensors (PVDF-Cu) for the United States Air Force.
Education:
- M.S. in Mechanical Engineering, University of Louisville, 2020
- B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, University of Louisville, 2019
- B.E. in English as a Foreign Language, District University of Colombia, 2011
Advisor: Dr. Yanyu Chen
Research interests:
- Additive Manufacturing
- Solid Mechanics
- Structure design
Bio: Huan Jiang is a Ph.D. student at the University of Louisville. His current research involves 3D printing and numerical simulation of mechanical behavior.
Education:
- M.S. in Civil Engineeering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 2016
- Tech in Civil Engineering, Changsha university of Science and Technology, China, 2013
Advisor: Dr. Yash Chitalia
Research Interests:
- Surgical Robotics
- Continuum Robots
- Medical robots
- Mechatronics
Bio: Pejman Kheradmand is a Ph.D. student at the University of Louisville and a member of the Healthcare Robotics and Telesurgery (HeaRT) Lab. His current research focuses on continuum robots in surgical applications. During his master’s studies, he researched social robotics and later worked at a surgical robot startup, specializing in the development of robotic surgical systems, particularly in software, GUI design, and mechatronic integration
Education:
- M.S. in Mechanical Engineering, University of Tehran, 2017
- B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Razi University, 2014
Advisor: Dr. Christopher Richards
Research Interests:
- Linear and Nonlinear Control Systems
- Robotics
- Space Vehicles
- Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)
- Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML)
Bio: Shruti Kumar is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Louisville where she is working on constrained rigid body control of aerospace/space vehicles. Her current research specifically deals with the application of AI & ML to reconfigurable attitude controls with anti-windup compensation. In her prior work, she was engaged in applied robotics and control research, particularly the development of a bionic hand and implementation of AI capabilities in humanoid robots.
Education:
- M. Tech. in Robotics and Automation (Mechanical Engineering), Indira Gandhi Delhi Technical University for Women, India, 2017
- B. Tech. in Mechanical Engineering, Gautam Buddha Technical University, India, 2010
Advisor: Dr. Stuart J. Williams
Research Interests:
- Microfluidics,
- Lab on a Chip,
- Microfabrication,
- Dielectrophoresis,
- Fluid Dynamics
Bio: Tonoy K. Mondal is a Ph.D. student at the University of Louisville with the Integrated Microfluidics Systems Laboratory, where he is working with electro kinetic manipulation of particles and droplets . His current research also deals with microfabrication of microfluidic devices. His prior research work dealt with simulation of Heat Transfer in laminar flows.
Education:
- B.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering, Khulna University of Engineering & Technology, Bangladesh, 2019
Advisor: Dr. Yash Chitalia
Research Interests:
- Soft and Continuum Robots
- Surgical Robotics, Control Systems
Bio: Behnam Moradkhani is a Ph.D. student at the University of Louisville and a member of the Healthcare Robotics and Telesurgery (HeaRT) Lab. His research focuses on soft and continuum robots, surgical robotics, control systems, and artificial intelligence. His previous research works dealt with the control of manipulators and using intelligent modern control methods for robotic systems.
Education:
- B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering, University of Tehran, 2022.
Advisor: Dr. Thomas Berfield
Research Interests:
- Additive Manufacturing of Metals and Materials
Bio: Suyash Niraula is a Ph.D. student at the University of Louisville with Berfield Research Group, where he does his research on applied mechanics of materials and studies the residual stress of additively manufactured metals and materials. His current research also deals with the characterization of these materials. His prior research work deals with the study of the Electrolytic in-process dressing (ELID) grinding process.
Education:
- MS in Mechanical Engineering, The University of Toledo, 2020
- BE in Mechanical Engineering, Kathmandu University, 2016
Advisor: Dr. Christopher Richards
Research Interests:
- Linear and Nonlinear Control Systems
- Linear Matrix Inequality (LMI)
- Constrained Control
- Anti-windup Compensation
Bio: Homa Salehifar is a Ph.D. student at the University of Louisville, where she is working on anti-windup compensator design for rigid body dynamics. Her prior research work dealt with control design for nonlinear systems under input saturation.
Education:
- M.S. in Applied Mathematics, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, 2018
- B.S. in Applied Mathematics, Khayyam University, 2014
Advisor: Dr. Sam Park
Research Interests:
- Aqueous lithium, sodium and potassium ion batteries with a focus on interfacial degradation
Bio: Nicholas David Schuppert is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Louisville with the Department of Mechanical Engineering and the Conn Center for Renewable Energy Research, where his work focuses on the development of stable lithium, potassium and sodium ion batteries in aqueous environments. He has prior research experience as an undergraduate student in the fabrication of high surface area mesoporous metal oxides.
Education:
- M.Eng. in Mechanical Engineering, University of Louisville, 2013
- Certificate of Environmental Engineering, University of Louisville, 2013
- B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, University of Louisville, 2012
Advisor: Dr. Thomas Berfield
Research Interests:
- Shape Memory Alloys
- Biomaterials
- Coating of Biomaterials
- Materials Characterization
- Mechanical Properties
- Additive Manufacturing
- 3D Printing of Body Implants & Hard Tissues
Bio: Rosa Shokri is a Ph.D. fellow at the University of Louisville with Berfield Research Group at the AMIST lab, where she studies the mechanical properties and characterization of additively manufactured NiTi implants. Her prior research work deals with the enhanced corrosion protection of NiTi orthopedic implants by highly crystalline hydroxyapatite deposited by spin coating.
Education:
- M.Sc. in Materials Science & Engineering – Metallic Materials Selection & Characterization, Sahand University of Technology, 2019.
- B.Sc. in Materials Engineering – Extractive Metallurgy, Sahand University of Technology, 2016.
Advisor: Dr. Christopher Richards
Research Interests:
- Control Systems Theory
- Linear Matrix Inequalities
- Robust Control
- State Estimation
- Anti-windup Compensator Design
Bio: Majid Shahbazzadeh is currently a Ph.D. student at the University of Louisville. He previously obtained a Ph.D. degree in Electrical Engineering (Control) in 2022 from Babol Noshirvani University of Technology. His current research focuses on the anti-windup compensator design problem for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). His previous research work dealt with the robust control design and state estimation for nonlinear systems using linear matrix inequalities
Education:
- Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering (Control), Babol Noshirvani University of Technology, 2022
- M.S. in Electrical Engineering (Control), Babol Noshirvani University of Technology, 2017
- B.S. in Electrical Engineering (Communication), Babol Noshirvani University of Technology, 2015
Advisor: Dr. Kevin Chou
Research Interests:
- Additive Manufacturing
- Computational Fluid Dynamics
- Laser Powder Bed Fusion Process
- Numerical Modeling
Bio: Subin Shrestha is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Louisville. His PhD research is focused on the study of process parameter effect on part quality and porosity during laser powder bed fusion (L-PBF) process. He is currently working on using discrete element method to analyze the effect of powder surface energy on its flowability. His current research also deals with using thermo-fluid simulation to predict the melt pool and study the influence of keyhole shape on the pore formation. His prior research was focused on characterization of pores formed during L-PBF process using micro-CT.
Education:
- M.Eng. in Mechanical Engineering, University of Louisville, 2017
- B.E. in Mechanical Engineering, Pulchowk Campus, Tribhuvan University, 2013
Advisor: Dr. Badri Narayanan
Research Interests:
- Computational Materials Science
- Energy Storage
- Superhydrophobic Surfaces
Bio: Varun Shreyas joined the University of Louisville as a Ph.D. student in August 2019, where he is working with the Predictive Materials Modeling Laboratory (PMML). He is passionate in working towards the development of energy storage technologies, 2D materials and super hydrophobic surfaces. His current research deals with the accurate molecular-level understanding of structure-property-processing relationships in functional materials, and reactive interfaces relevant for energy applications by using molecular dynamics and density functional theory.
Education:
- B.Tech in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, National Institute of Technology Karnataka, Surathkal, 2019
Advisor: Dr. Kunal Kate
- Research Interests:
- Ceramic and Metal Fused Filament Fabrication
- Debinding and Sintering
- Continuous fiber 3D printing
- Corrosion Studies of L-PBF fabricated parts
Bio: Kavish Sudan is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Louisville with the Materials Innovation Guild, where he is working on 3D printing of ceramic and preceramic polymers composites combined with debinding and sintering. Additionally, he is developing a 3D printing process for co-extrusion of continuous fiber composites.
Education:
- E. in Mechanical Engineering, University of Jammu, 2017
Advisor: Dr. Bikram Bhatia
Research Interests:
- Energy Harvesting Materials
- Pyro Electrocatalysis
- Advanced Materials
- Thermomechanical Characterization
Bio: Manish Sudan joined University of Louisville in Fall 2022 as a member of the Pyro Energy Research Lab. His research focuses on identification, characterization and processing of advanced materials for energy harvesting and storage applications. Currently he is working on utilization of pyroelectric energy for electrocatalysis which could eventually be applied as a sustainable method for hydrogen generation.
Education:
- B.E. in Mechanical Engineering, University of Jammu, 2020.
Advisor: Dr. Kunal Kate
Research Interests:
- Polymer Additive Manufacturing
- Activated Carbon
- Biofuels
- Energy Storage
- Renewable and Alternate Energy Systems
Bio: Athira Nair Surendran is a PhD student at the University of Louisville and a member of the Materials Innovation Guild. Her current research focuses on designing and developing activated carbon-based filaments for additive manufacturing to be applied in energy storage and gas adsorption. She previously worked on the development of fabrication platform for microfluidic devices and experimental study of magnetic mixing and separation of magnetic and nonmagnetic particles.
Education:
- M.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Purdue University Northwest, 2020
- B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Purdue University Northwest, 2019
Advisor: Dr. Badri Narayanan
Research Interests:
- Atomic-scale simulations
- Density functional theory
- Materials Informatics
- Energy storage materials
Bio: Katpady Akhil Tantry is a Ph.D. candidate at University of Louisville with Predictive Materials Modeling Lab. His current research is on ionic materials for solid-state electrolyte application. The research deals with atomistic simulations to study and understand the properties of these materials and establish a relation between the structure and property. He also works on the application of Machine Learning to develop predictive models and interatomic potentials.
Education:
- B.E. Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Surathkal, Karnataka, 2021.
Advisor: Dr. Badri Narayanan
Research Interests:
- Defect dynamics in strongly correlated oxides
- Machine learning interatomic potentials for MD simulations
Bio: Ranga Teja Pidathala is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Louisville with the predictive materials modeling laboratory (PMML), where he is working with simulations of strongly correlated oxide materials and the role of oxygen vacancies that effects electronic properties of this materials. His current research also deals with using Machine Learning to generate interatomic potentials which can be used to simulate strongly correlated oxides over nano length and timescales.
Education:
- M.Tech. in Materials Science and Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar, 2020
- B.Tech. in Mechanical Engineering, VFSTR University, 2016
Advisor: Dr. Bikram Bhatia
Research Interests: Solid State Refrigeration, Micro-Electromechanical Systems (MEMS), Advanced Materials, Micro-scale Cooling, Energy systems, Solar Energy
Bio: Naveen Weerasekera started his PhD on Fall 2020 under Pyro Energy Research Laboratory at the University of Louisville. His current research focused on developing solid state micro cooling systems using advanced materials for ultra-sensitive thermal noise reduction applications. His current work also deals with analysis of smart material behavior by in-situ neutron diffraction. He was a former researcher at the multiscale joining and interconnect laboratory of the Portland State University.
Education:
- M.S. in Mechanical Engineering. Portland State University, 2019
- B.S. Tech in Mechanical Engineering, National Institute of Technology Silchar, 2016
Advisor: Dr. Keng HsuResearch Interests:
- Additive Manufacturing
- Electroless Copper Deposition
- Piezoelectric Polymers
- Ultrasonic Wire Embedding
Bio: Sihan Zhang is a Ph.D. candidate at University of Louisville in Dr. Keng Hsu’s lab, where he is currently working at developing hybrid additive manufacturing process of metal-polymer composite devices. His current research also deals with piezoelectric polymers and ultrasonic wire embedding. His prior research work deals with electroless copper deposition and supercapacitors.
Education:
- B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering, Arizona State University, 2017
- M.Eng. in Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, 2012
Advisor: Dr. Yanyu Chen
Research Interests:
- Mechanics of 3D/4D printed metamaterials
- Multimaterial lattice building blocks design
- Multi-scale modeling framework for mechanical properties
- Energy absorption, impact resistance, failure modes
Bio: Zhennan Zhang joined the University of Louisville as a Ph.D. student in January 2020, where he is working with the Materials and Structures in Extreme Environments Laboratory (MSEEL). His current research focus on using additive manufacturing method to print 3D/4D mechanical metamaterials. His research interests also include energy absorption, impact resistance, failure modes and fracture toughness of hierarchical lattice materials.
Education:
- M.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Wuhan University, 2016
- B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Northeast Forestry University, 2012