Faculty
Prof. Matthew J. Rau is an Assistant Professor in the Mechanical Engineering Department at Penn State University. He joined the department after completing a National Research Council Postdoctoral Fellowship with the U.S. Naval Research Lab and previously received his doctoral degree from Purdue University working with the Cooling Technologies Research Center. Dr. Rau’s research interests revolve around the experimental study of turbulent multiphase flows for heat and mass transfer applications relevant to the environment and energy sustainability. Contact at matthew.rau (at) psu.edu.
PhD Students
Dohwan Kim is a second-year Ph.D. student in Mechanical Engineering at Penn State. Originally from South Korea, he has graduated from University of California, San Diego with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and a minor in Economics. During his undergraduate program, he focused on thermal science, humanitarian engineering, and economic policy. Throughout his junior and senior year at UC San Diego, Dohwan investigated the use of a pyrgeometer sensor to detect cloud base height with atmospheric radiation models. He also worked with La Mission Children’s Fund and Global TIES at UC San Diego to provide sustainable and alternative energy solutions at numerous orphanages in Tijuana, Mexico. His industrial experience includes working with the process engineering group at Bloom Energy for improving the manufacturing process of solid-oxide fuel cells. Currently, Dohwan is working with Dr. Matthew Rau with research interests in two-phase heat transfer augmentation and application of PIV (Particle Image Velocimetry) in boiling. Visit his personal website: https://sites.psu.edu/dohwankim/
Yixuan (ee-shuan) Song is a first-year PhD student in Dr. Matthew Rau’s lab. He spent his undergraduate days at University of Michigan-Shanghai Jiao Tong University Joint Institute, major in Mechanical Engineering. After that, he received his master degree from University of Southern California, working with Dr. Mitul Luhar on heat transfer and simulations in porous structure. In the industrial field, Yixuan once worked in the Research & Development Department of Fiat Chrysler Automobile. Currently, Yixuan is working with Dr. Matthew Rau with research interest in marine aggregates and turbulence and applications of PIV. Beyond that, Yixuan also works as a volunteer for Shanghai Spurs. Contact at yzs220@psu.edu.
Nicholas Cross is a third year PhD student in Chemical Engineering co-advised by Dr. Bruce Logan. He is from just outside Portland, Oregon, and graduated from Oregon State University with a H.B.S. in Chemical Engineering and an H.B.A. in International Studies with minors in Physics and Spanish. He spent three months studying in the summer of 2015 at the Universidad Autónoma de Querétaro. Nicholas had two six-month internships during his undergrad program working heavily in the semiconductor industry, interning in the deposition sections of the wafer fab in Siltronic’s Portland office, and the silanes area at Linde’s Medford plant. He also was a member and leader of the Oregon State University Solar Vehicle Team for multiple years, leading the team in areas such as fundraising, education, and outreach. During undergrad, he did research with eChemion working on surface stability and degradation in graphitic carbon electrodes for vanadium redox flow batteries. Currently, Nicholas is working on improving Thermally Regenerative Batteries through both experimental and numerical techniques to help the technology become economically competitive. You can contact him through LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/ncro3/ or email at nrc83@psu.edu.
Undergraduate Students
Nicholas Evich is a senior pursuing his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering at Penn State. He is from Manchester, Maryland, and is currently working with Dr. Rau and Dr. Frecker in developing modern design tools for two-phase thermal fluid systems. Outside of his research, Nicholas is working toward becoming a licensed reactor operator at the Penn State Breazeale Nuclear Reactor and enjoys playing ice hockey and tennis. He will graduate in December 2020 and is considering attending graduate school soon after.
Alumni
MS Students
Brandon Angle is a second-year M.S. student in Mechanical Engineering at Penn State University. He also received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and a minor in Engineering Mechanics from Penn State. During his undergraduate years, his interest was thermal science and more specifically fluid dynamics. As a senior, Brandon worked with Dr. Tak-Sing Wong’s research team focusing on the study of nature inspired engineering. He specifically focused on developing a design principle for slippery surfaces through tuning the mechanical property of the pitcher plant’s substrate. Currently, Brandon is working with Dr. Matthew Rau and Dr. Margaret Byron with a focus on the buoyancy of particles in turbulent flow conditions. He has spent the past four years interning at Volvo Construction Equipment as a Manufacturing Engineer. Outside of work and school, he is a sports fanatic and enjoys spending his weekends at sprint car races.
Undergraduate Students
Aditya Akole is a senior pursuing his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering at Penn State. He is also minoring in Engineering Leadership Development. He is originally from Mumbai, India. He is currently working with Dr. Rau to study trends in marine particle breakup. Aditya likes to play sports in his free time. He is involved in THON and is also the THON chair of his fraternity. Besides that, Aditya works for Penn State Global programs as an Orientation Student Coordinator for International Student Orientation.
Mathew Kurian is a junior pursuing his B.S. in Mechanical engineering. Mathew had previously worked with Dr. Rui Ni, and Dr. Brian Maicke from Penn State Harrisburg over the summer of 2018 as part of a ‘research for undergraduates’ program, which helped him develop an interest in experimental and computational fluid dynamics. He is currently working with Dr. Rau to study two-phase flow over bluff bodies. Mathew is originally from Kerala, India, however, he had lived in Abu Dhabi, UAE for most of his life before starting college in the US. Outside of research, Mathew enjoys doing karate, attending social dances such as salsa and swing, cooking, and going on long walks and runs.
