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Senior Scientist Provides Unique Support for Center Research
By Diane Kukich

He is not an engineer like most of the research staff at CCM, but Senior Scientist Sergey Lopatnikov has found a home for his talents as a physicist and mathematician.  His primary role is to develop his own independent research programs, but he also supports the various CCM research teams in providing physical justification for models developed in the Center’s various programs.

Lopatnikov earned his Ph.D. in physics and math at the Academy of Sciences in Moscow. He headed the Laboratory of Mathematical Modeling for the Institute of Nuclear Geophysics in Russia and also was the Leading Research Scientist for the Moscow State University.

Lopatnikov originally came to the University of Delaware as Distinguished Visiting Professor at the invitation of former Prof. Alex Cheng in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.  He then met CCM Director Jack Gillespie and discovered that they had mutual research interests.  He has now been in the United States for six years, the past five with CCM. 


Sergei Lopatnikov
CCM Senior Scientist,
Research Professor,
Civil and Environmental
Engineering

“CCM has established a unique interdisciplinary research environment,” says Gillespie, “and no one plays a more important role than Sergey.  His physics-based approach to research highly complements our engineering approach.  When the two are combined in a project, the synergy is high, resulting in fundamental physics-based models that yield useful engineering solutions.” 

Lopatnikov’s current work covers a number of areas. One focuses on the use of liquid crystalline materials to manipulate nanoparticles.  “The unique interactions that occur between the liquid crystals and the materials in which they are embedded result in characteristics that open up lots of opportunities for applications such as chemical sensing,” he says.

“Recently,” he continues, “we discovered a new effect, which we refer to as ‘shear acoustic wind.’ When a shear wave is created in the liquid crystal, the embedded particles experience a force that can be up to two orders of magnitude greater than gravity. The force effect can be used, for example, to separate particles based on shape and size or to control their orientation in 3-D during self-assembly.”  

Another area of interest is the acoustics of porous materials filled with fluids.  “Fluids can be active,” Lopatnikov explains. “For example, soft porous materials filled with magnetic fluids can change their shape and their acoustic properties, lending themselves to smart materials applications. Other types of penetrable materials can mitigate blast effects or serve as good acoustic insulators.”

This versatile Senior Scientist not only contributes broadly to CCM’s research programs but also co-advises students in areas ranging from VARTM processing to the use of Split-Hopkinson Bar techniques for measurement of high-strain-rate properties in advanced materials.

“CCM is an amazingly good place,” says Lopatnikov.  “The Center has an extensive suite of good experimental equipment.  It is also a very friendly environment and is very well managed.  Most importantly, the Center provides a very creative atmosphere in which to do research.”

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UD Engineers Receive Major Grant for Energy Research

Researchers at the University of Delaware have received a $960,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to identify low-cost, nano-sized catalysts—tiny amounts of metal compounds—that can spur the chemical conversion of liquid fuels into hydrogen for powering cars to heating homes.

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CONSORTIUM

CCM would like to thank Alliant Techsystems, Rocket Center, WV, and ArmorWorks, LLC, Chandler, AZ, for the recent renewal of their University-Industry Consortium membership. We also wish to thankour many other members for continuing to participate in consortium activities. To learn more about our Consortium, please visit

To learn more about our Consortium, please visit http://www.ccm.udel.edu/Consortium/members.html .

PUBLICATIONS

Conference Proceedings

Federici et al., “Catalytic Microcombustors with Integration of Thermoelectric Elements for Portable Power Production,” AIChE Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA, 2006.

Federici et. al., “Enhancing Microburner Stability for Portable Power Through Heat Recuperation,” AIChE Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA, 2006.

Journals

Alms, J., F. Zhou, C. Corlay, and S. G. Advani, "Thermal Detection of Air Leakage in Vacuum Infusion Processes", SAMPE Journal, 43 (1), pp. 56-59, Jan/Feb, 2007.

Decker, M. J, C. J. Halbach, C. H. Nam, N. J. Wagner, and E. D. Wetzel.  "Stab Resistance of Shear Thickening Fluid (STF)-Treated Fabrics," Composites Science and Technol,  67, pp. 565-578, 2007.

Federici, J. A., D. G. Norton, E. D. Wetzel, and D. G. Vlachos,”Catalytic Microcombustors with Integration of Thermoelectric Elements for Portable Power Production,” Journal of Power Sources, 161 (2), pp. 1469-1478, 2006.

Heider, D., P. Simacek, A. Dominauskas, H. Deffor, S. Advani, and J. W. Gillespie, Jr., “Infusion Design Methodology for Thick-Section, Low-Permeability Preforms using Inter-Laminar Flow Media,”, Composites: Part A, 38, pp. 525-534, 2007.

Young, S. L. and N. J. Wagner, “Rheological Properties and Small Angle Neutron Scattering of a Shear Thickening, Nanoparticle Dispersion at High Shear Rate”, I&EC Research, 45(21), pp.7015-2024, 2006.

Awards:
AIChE - Catalysis and Reaction Engineering Travel Award (2006) - Justin A. Federici

 

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