Engineering, Materials, Mechanical, Manufacturing

NIHAL ACHARYA

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EDUCATION

Master of Science, Materials Science & Engineering August 2013 – May 2016

Missouri University of Science & Technology, Rolla, MO

Thesis: Phase Field Modeling of Electrodeposition Process in Lithium Metal Batteries (Funded by NASA, Published in June 2016)

GPA: 3.71/4.0

Coursework: Properties of Engineering Materials, Fracture Mechanics, Thermodynamics & Phase Equilibria, Mathematical Physics, Integrated Computational Materials Engineering (ICME), Advanced Finite Element Analysis, Statistical Data Analysis

Bachelor of Engineering, Mechanical Engineering August 2009 – June 2013

M S Ramaiah Institute of Technology, Bangalore, India

Senior Year Project: Development of Evaporative Cooling Technology for Solar Photovoltaic Panels

GPA: 4.0/4.0

Coursework: CAD/CAM, Thermodynamics, Mechanics of Materials, Metallurgy, Manufacturing Processes, CFD, FEA, TQM, Machine Design, Fracture Mechanics, Non-Traditional Machining, Heat & Mass Transfer, Theory of Elasticity

COMPUTER SKILLS

CAD: Autodesk Inventor, SolidWorks, SolidEdge, Esprit Data Analysis: SAS, JMP, MS Excel

Finite Element Analysis (FEA): COMSOL Multiphysics, ABAQUS, Nastran/Patran Programming: MATLAB, Mathcad

HANDS-ON MATERIALS TESTING SKILLS

Machining equipment, Casting, Welding, Forging, Mechanical Testing Equipment (Destructive and Non-Destructive), Hardness Testers (Rockwell, Brinell, Vickers), Universal Testing Machine, Impact Testers (Charpy & Izod), CNC, SEM

WORK HISTORY

Graduate Research Assistant August 2013 – January 2016

Missouri University of Science & Technology (funded by NASA) Rolla, MO

Modeled and simulated electrochemistry in lithium metal batteries to predict failures and control the mechanism of microstructure growth from the electrode, to improve their operational safety levels.

Devised multiphysics (mathematical) models for electrodeposition in lithium metal batteries using the finite element analysis (FEA) method.

Formulated new equations and thermodynamic free energy equilibrium curves using the derived equations in MATLAB.

Working knowledge of material characterization techniques used to observe these microstructures (SEM, TEM, NMR, XRD, etc.).

Graduate Teaching Assistant January 2015 – February 2015

Missouri University of Science & Technology Rolla, MO

Taught undergrad students, the liquid metal manufacturing processes of green sand casting and full mold casting of aluminum (hands-on).

Taught surface finishing processes of grinding and polishing using sand blasters to finish the cast aluminum products (hands-on).

Taught three welding techniques - Oxyacetylene Welding, Shielded Metal Arc Welding, and Metal Inert Gas (MIG) Welding (hands-on).

Intern January 2013 – May 2013

Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited – BHEL (Ceramics Division) Bangalore, India

Designed a novel evaporative cooling technology for solar photovoltaic (PV) panels using a ceramic material – cordierite (2MgO.2Al2O3.5SiO2) – as a cooling module, which resulted in a 3.48% increase in PV panel efficiency.

Prepared 2D and 3D CAD models of cordierite honeycomb cooling modules and solar panel arrangement with the cooling system.

Improved electrical efficiency of polycrystalline silicon (semiconductors) in the solar PV panel with cooling module by conducting experiments and analyzing the data collected.

Intern July 2012 – August 2012

Powerica Limited Bangalore, India

Re-programmed the CNC machine to reduce the time consumed to punch patterns on 13 metal sheets by nearly 4%.

Reduced the amount of scrap metal produced per sheet for a generator, thereby reducing cost and optimizing the production process.

The total estimated cost savings due to both reduction in weight and cycle time (over the course of a year) amounted to INR 340,200.

Intern May 2011 – July 2011

Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore, India

Fabricated Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) laminates at different pressures, using vacuum bag molding technique.

Compared the properties of the different fabricated laminates by conducting both Non-Destructive Testing (Ultrasonic A-scan) and Destructive Testing (3-point bend test, burn off test).

Identified the optimum curing parameters for fabrication and evaluation of composite GFRP laminates as a result of the above tests (least void volume – 5.6%, and highest mechanical strength – 335.6 MPa).

Assisted in the fabrication of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) pre-pregs in an autoclave.

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