Research Group Members

          Near-field Radiative Heat Exchange in Nanospheres

LAURIE CARRILLO, PhD – Her research was related to near field radiative heat transfer.  Since 1994, Carrillo has worked for NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC) and currently is a Spacecraft Thermal Design Engineer for the Engineering Directorate’s Thermal Design Branch.  In 2009, she received NASA-JSC’s Group Achievement Award for exemplary teamwork and outstanding technical contribution to the Orion vehicle design. Carrillo received her BA in Mathematics/Computational and Applied Mathematics and BS in Materials Science Engineering from Rice University.  She received her Masters Degree in Aerospace Engineering with emphasis in Space Operations from University of Colorado.  Laurie is a licensed Texas professional engineer.  She actively speaks at numerous educational outreach programs promoting engineering education.  Hispanic Business Magazine chose her as one of the top 25 Women of Vision for 2009.  Carrillo has received PhD support from HENAAC, Society of Women Engineers, Zonta International, and NASA JSC. 

          Nanoshell Heat Transfer to water using Molecular Dynamics

JERRY VERA , PhD – Vera’s area of expertise was in nanoscale heat transfer, and his thesis project involved modeling via molecular dynamics the surface to liquid heat transfer of gold nanoparticles in an aqueous solution.  His areas of interest included photothermal cancer therapy, solar radiation absorption for energy production, radiation shielding for long-duration space flight, and the generation of nanofluids for enhanced heat transfer.  He obtained his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Rice University in 2004 and he has written two publications in the International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer.  Jerry was a part of Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP).

PEDRO LOPEZ, PhD –  Lopez’s thesis project involved modeling via the Lattice Boltzmann method the flow dynamics through micro- and nano-channels.  He obtained his B.S. and M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from The University of Texas – Pan American in 2000 and 2003, respectively.  Pedro has been working as an engineer since 2003, and currently works for NASA JSC as the Technical Manager for the Space Shuttle Program Integrated Aerodynamics and Thermal Disciplines.

              Thermal conductances of aligned structures and thin films with embedded carbon                                                   nanotubes

“SUKESH SHENOY, PhD –   Shenoy was a doctoral student in the Mechanical Engineering Department at Rice University. His research interests included the application of 3 omega thermal conductivity measurement method to thin films and biological tissues, and experimental work for CNT arrays for enhanced heat transfer for electronics applications. Sukesh has obtained his Bachelor of Engineering degree in Industrial Production from Manipal Institute of Technology in India and his Master of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Texas A&M University at college station. “

               Improved Small Scale Cooling of Mini-Channels using Added Surface Defects

JAMI TULLIUS, PhD – Tullius was PhD candidate in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Material Science at Rice University. She worked on a review of the enhancement of microchannels in a single phase, laminar flow system. She also investigated the affects of microstructures made of carbon nanotubes as they are coated on the walls of microchannels using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) based on the Navier Stokes Equations. In 2008, Jami received her Bachelor’s of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Texas at El Paso. Tullius received such honors as the GEM Fellowship, the Texas Space Grant Fellowship, NASA’s Harriett G. Jenkins Pre-Doctoral Fellowship Project (JPFP), and HENAAC’s Graduate Student Leadership Award and is a part of Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP).

               Thermal Conductivity of Carbon Nanotubes using Molecular Dynamics

KASIM TOPRAK, PhD –  Toprak was MS and PhD student in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science at Rice University. Toprak’s area of expertise was in nanoscale heat transfer and his thesis project involves modeling carbon nanotube via molecular dynamics simulation package GROMACS. He is focusing on the thermal conductivity of carbon nanotubes as it varies with dimensions. He obtained his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Zonguldak Karaelmas University in Turkey in 2006.He was awarded The Republic of Turkey Ministry of National Education scholarship in 2006.

                 Numerical investigation of medical applications of nanoparticles for tumor/cancer diagnosis

Xiao Xu  worked toward her PH.D degree in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Material Science, Rice University. Her research work was about numerical modeling nanoparticle assisted photo-thermal therapy for purpose of better experiment designs and treatment plans. Before joined Rice University in 2006, she obtained a master degree from engineering thermal physics department in the university of science and technology of china.

Spence L. Chanthavane, 1st Lt,  USAF

Space Radiation Interactions in Earth’s Atmosphere, Low Earth Orbit, and Deep Space