UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Two Penn State College of Engineering faculty members were named to the most recent class of fellows for the American Society of Mechanical Engineers: Jingjing Li, William and Wendy Korb Early Career Associate Professor of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering, and Elia Merzari, associate professor of nuclear engineering.
The ASME Committee of Past Presidents confers the honor in recognition of “significant engineering achievements” advanced by ASME members with at least 10 years of active practice and at least 10 years of active corporate membership in the organization. Only 3% of ASME’s members receive the honor.
“Dr. Li and Dr. Merzari’s research programs are each rooted in different engineering disciplines, yet both researchers have made significant contributions to the professional society for mechanical engineers,” said Justin Schwartz, Harold and Inge Marcus Dean in the College of Engineering. “From solving manufacturing challenges to designing safer nuclear reactors, their work is benefiting society. They are highly deserving of this recognition from ASME, and we are eager to see what they accomplish next.”
Li, who is also affiliated with the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, the Materials Research Institute and CIMP-3D, directs the Materials Processing and Characterization Laboratory in the Harold and Inge Marcus Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering.
“My lab’s research focus lies at the intersection of experimental mechanics and materials science with an emphasis on using novel experimental methods coupled closely with theoretical modeling to address the material challenges in manufacturing processes,” Li said. She also noted that she also prioritizes training opportunities for students at all levels who are interested in understanding the behavior, characteristics and performance of various materials in manufacturing and application environments.
Li joined ASME in 2011. In 2019, she received the ASME Chao and Trigger Young Manufacturing Engineer Award for her research contributions to the science and technology of manufacturing processes. Her specific research focused on the forming and joining of lightweight materials through thermomechanical processing relationships. She currently serves as the vice chair of the Manufacturing Processes Technical Committee in the Manufacturing Engineering Division of ASME.
Merzari, who is also an associate in the Institute for Computational and Data Sciences, researches predictive large-scale simulations of turbulence to improve physical understanding of complex flows and ultimately design safer and more efficient nuclear energy systems. His group develops numerical methods and tools to translate simulation into application, Merzari said. The students in his research group are working on several applications, including small modular reactors, liquid metal reactors, molten salt reactors, heat pipe micro-reactors and high-temperature gas reactors.
“I strive to bridge the gap between the theory of supercomputer-based simulation and engineering practice to deliver a wide array of innovative energy system solutions to help mitigate climate change,” Merzari said. “My research is at the nexus of physics, computer science and engineering. We need to train future nuclear engineers to have the flexibility and knowledge — and the ability to connect and collaborate — to innovate the next generation of advanced reactors.”
In 2020, he received the ASME Lewis F. Moody Award from the society’s fluid engineering division in recognition of a paper on the modeling of novel heat exchangers for potential use in nuclear reactors. He also received the 2016 George Westinghouse Silver medal. Since joining ASME in 2011, Merzari has served as both chair and vice chair of the Computational Fluid Dynamics Technical Committee for the Fluids Engineering Division and has organized several conference sessions for the society. He is a regular contributor and track chair for the International Conference on Nuclear Engineering, for which several of his students have received best paper awards.