Research Areas

Peridynamics is an integral reformulation of the continuum equations of motion. Due to its inherent ability to handle discontinuities in displacement and stress fields, it is a highly useful method for studying dynamic fracture, impact-damage, and explosion. The aim of this research is to understand crack propagation and failure in materials subjected to extreme loading — bullet impact or explosion — and to use this knowledge to design novel impact-resistant materials.

Nanomaterials such as carbon nanotubes and graphene have recently been found to exist in disordered forms as well. The aim is to understand the fundamental state of these disordered nanomaterials and assess their mechanical properties, potentially opening a new field of 2D glassy nanomaterials.

Mechanical properties of silicate glasses — such as Corning Gorilla Glass — strongly depend on atomic composition in a highly non-linear way. The aim is to understand how composition affects fracture toughness, hardness, and scratch resistance, coupling atomic-level study with continuum analysis to design compositions resistant to scratching and indentation.

Understanding and predicting composition–structure–property relationships is the key to developing novel materials. Such predictions are hindered by complex multi-scale physics and the vast number of structural and compositional arrangements possible. As an alternative, data-driven ML approaches can leverage existing experimental and simulation databases to design and test new compositions for targeted applications — including the PyGGi platform for glass property prediction.

Cement hydrate exhibits a unique structure at the mesoscale that holds the key to understanding and improving cementitious materials — important given that cement manufacturing contributes more than 8% of global CO₂ production. The research aims to understand how mesoscale structure affects mechanical and kinetic properties ranging from plastic yielding to viscosity, using Grand Canonical Monte Carlo (GCMC) and other simulation methods.

Nuclear wastes from spent fuels of nuclear power plants are typically immobilized in borosilicate and phosphosilicate glasses. The aim is to develop a compositional map of borosilicate glasses suitable for nuclear waste immobilization in terms of processability, chemical durability, and long-term stability.

High-energy radiation causes significant atomic-scale disordering in materials, degrading physical properties including stiffness, strength, and chemical durability. The research develops a fundamental understanding of neutron irradiation effects across inorganic materials — from aggregate minerals to glasses — to aid the design of radiation-resistant materials.