Mechanical Engineering Department celebrates 2024-25 achievements
As 嫩田研究院官网 prepares for the fall semester, the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the Thomas J. Watson College of Engineering and Applied Science is looking back on a productive 2024-25 academic year.
Research news
The Integrated Electronics Engineering Center has been re-designated by New York state as a Center for Advanced Technology with $1 million in annual funding for the next decade. Distinguished Professor S.B. Park serves as the director of the IEEC, which is part of the S3IP Center of Excellence at 嫩田研究院官网 founded by Distinguished Professor and 嫩田研究院官网 Vice President for Research Bahgat Sammakia.
Assistant Professor Jifu Tan joined the department in fall 2024 with a prestigious National Science Foundation CAREER Award. Tan鈥檚 project is to model the formation and rupture of blood clots within the bloodstream 鈥 part of a larger effort to tackle cardiovascular disease.
Assistant Professor Yuyang Gu collaborated with North Carolina State University, Harvard Medical School and Duke University to investigate a phenomenon that allows them to create spin in liquid droplets using ultrasound waves, which manipulates solid particles suspended in the liquid. The discovery will allow researchers to engineer technologies that make use of the technique in fields such as biomedical testing and drug development.
PhD student Mohamed Khalil Elhachimi, MS 鈥24, and Assistant Professor Mir Jalil Razavi studied the cell structure of fungi to learn how it determines their mechanical properties and what science can learn from that to create better materials. Their research was published in the journal Advanced Engineering Materials. Elhachimi , a news service that asks experts to weigh in on current events and scientific breakthroughs.
Razavi also led research on the first dynamic model predicting the complicated mechanics of connectivity development and folding in the cerebral cortex 鈥 the outermost layer of the brain where memory and reasoning occur. Collaborators included PhD students Akbar Solhtalab and Ali H. Foroughi as well as Dr. Lana Pierotich from Harvard Medical School and Boston Children鈥檚 Hospital.
In addition, Razavi and Assistant Professor Dehao Liu won a $313,087 NSF grant to develop of a deep-learning model informed by the principles of physical laws that can customize the microarchitecture of composite materials. They want to use artificial intelligence and machine learning to suggest unique types of composite materials that meet specific mechanical behavior requirements.
Assistant Professor Jian Zhou, PhD 鈥18, collaborated with researchers from Argonne National Laboratory, Harvard University, Princeton University and Penn State University for a paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences validating theoretical models about how the elasticity of materials is scale-dependent.
A $517,969 NSF grant will continue Professor and ME Chair Paul R. Chiarot鈥檚 research into electrospray deposition to make microscopically thin polymer films. The funding will integrate experiments, computational modeling and artificial intelligence/machine learning methods to develop a comprehensive framework for the process. Co-investigators are Associate Professor Daehan Won and Professor Sangwon Yoon from Watson College鈥檚 School of Systems Science and Industrial Engineering; and Buffalo Associate Professor Xin Yong and Assistant Professor Yu 鈥淐helsea鈥 Jin, both former Watson faculty members.
Professor Shahrzad 鈥淪herry鈥 Towfighian received a $550,000 NSF grant to develop tunable high-speed scanners using microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) actuators. The devices would be used to get a better view of those hard-to-reach places during endoscopies.
Faculty news
Distinguished Professor Guangwen Zhou was appointed a fellow of the Microscopy Society of America. The organization hailed his research using in-situ environmental transmission electron microscopy that advances the understanding of surface and interface reactions in harsh conditions.
The 2024鈥25 Watson College Recognition Awards were announced at a staff luncheon in April. Winners from the Mechanical Engineering Department were Professor Changhong Ke (Outstanding Research Achievement) and Associate Professor Kaiyan Yu (Distinguished Educator).
Student news
In a feature about undergraduate research for the Watson Review magazine, John Mehalak 鈥26 discussed his work with Assistant Professor Robert Wagner to develop more effective ways to manufacture products made of multiple materials.
Also in the Watson Review, National Society of Black Engineers President Natalia Budhoo 鈥25 discusses NSBE鈥檚 role in volunteering for STEM-related activities with schoolchildren in the 嫩田研究院官网 area for a story about student volunteers.
Ray Inoa 鈥25, Danielle Johns 鈥25 and Christian Martinez 鈥25, all members of the first cohort of the Watson College Scholars Program, graduate this spring. In this piece, they reflected on their experiences and offer advice to future scholars.
Ofelia Huerta 鈥27 鈥 who is also part of the Watson Scholars 鈥 spent the spring 2025 semester studying in Madrid, Spain. This summer, she is doing research through 嫩田研究院官网 Projects for New Undergraduate Researchers (BUPNUR) with Assistant Professor Anwar Elhadad.
Robel Kebede 鈥25 discussed his journey at 嫩田研究院官网 navigating the demands of rigorous coursework while balancing campus involvement and part-time work. He credits these experiences with shaping his resilience and adaptability.
Mechanical engineering students Nicholas Sprague 鈥25 and Emily Xu 鈥25 represented 嫩田研究院官网 at this year鈥檚 Ethics in Engineering Competition, accompanied by Associate Professor Peter Huang. The event asks participants to find solutions to complex engineering, business and ethical challenges.
The new Watson Graduate Research Outcomes Workshop Series (Watson GROWS) held its first poster/demo competition where 45 entries showcased graduate students鈥 spirit of innovation and discovery. First-place winners were Harish Kumar Lattupalli, Sidharth Rajeev, Emily M. Stallbaumer-Cyr and Md Asif Iqbal (students of Assistant Professor Srikanth Rangarajan and Associate Professor Scott Schiffres).
Alumni news
Jacob Kumpon 鈥22 co-founded KLAW Industries while an undergraduate at 嫩田研究院官网. Now its chief operating officer, he oversees the processing of recycled glass into a very fine powder called Pantheon. Unlike sand, it doesn鈥檛 just sit in the concrete 鈥 it reacts with cement to make it stronger.
Katherine Frey 鈥20 received a BOLD (Bearcats of the Last Decade) 10 Under 10 Award, which honors alumni who have graduated within the last 10 years, demonstrated a very high level of career achievement since leaving campus, and show great potential for future leadership. She is a systems engineer on the Habitation and Logistics Outpost (HALO) program at Northrop Grumman (NG) Space Systems.