Md. Arifur Rahman, Ph.D.
14 Brandywine, Apt (#7), Amherst, MA 01002. Tel: 216-317-0457/E-mail: mdarifurrahm@umass.edu
Skill Highlights
– Expert in polymer engineering, physics and chemistry related to the processing-structure-property relationship of multiphase polymeric systems.
– Strong leadership skills and excellent team player with profound interpersonal and management skills.
– Experienced in polymer co/extrusion, reaction injection molding, casting and also post-processing techniques.
– Experienced in characterizing polymers by DMA, DSC, TGA, TMA, X-ray, AFM, SEM, TEM, FTIR, BET, and mechanical testing.
– Experienced in technical presentations, reports, scholarly publications (30 peer-reviewed papers) and familiar with patent writing.
Education
01/2010 – 03/2013: Ph.D. in Materials Engineering – University of Brescia (Italy)
01/2005 – 12/2006: M.Sc. in Environmental Sciences – Jahangirnagar University (Bangladesh)
Research & Professional Experiences
Postdoctoral Research Associate April, 2016 – Present
Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA.
a. Leadership & Managerial Roles:
1. Point person for leading the following research projects:
i. Mitigation of cure shrinkage in anionically polymerized Polyamide 6.
ii. Processing of Highly Intractable polymers with superheated liquids.
2. Leading the setup and operation of the processing lab equipped with capillary rheometer and twin-screw extruders with high pressure setups.
3. Responsible for the maintenance of thermal lab (equipped with TGA, TMA, DSC, DMA), processing lab and train students on instruments.
b. Research Accomplishments:
1. Successfully reduced mold shrinkage (~90%) in anionically polymerized polyamide 6 by using reaction induced phase separation principle.
2. Successfully processed (extruded) highly intractable polymers e.g. Polyphenyleneoxide, Polyetherimide, and Polyethersulfones, in superheated liquids (water and ethanol) at lower temperature than the conventional processing temperature.
3. Discovered highly crystalline (~60%) porous polyamide with unique spherulitic morphology. Invention disclosure has been submitted.
Postdoctoral Research Associate April, 2013 – Mar, 2016
Department of Macromolecular Science and Engineering, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio. USA.
a. Leadership & Managerial Roles:
1. Led the following four research projects and advised 5 graduate and 2 masters’ students:
i. Multilayer Film/foams for high gas barrier and packaging applications
ii. Programmable 1D photonic films for information security applications
iii. Nonwoven electrostatic fibrous filters for air and water filtration
iv. Multilayer photonic particles
2. Led the purchasing and setup of several instruments such as glitter cutting machine, DSC, vacuum forming machine, and corona treater.
3. Monitored thermal analysis (DSC, DMA), microscopy (Stereo and Scanning electron microscopes), mechanical testing laboratory (Instron) and trained students.
b. Research Accomplishments:
1. Utilized viscosity mismatch to develop solid/porous alternating uniform layered structures (multilayer film/foams) of low density polyethylene with improved tensile properties. Understanding of the confinement and orientation of cells in layers also led to the development of multicomponent micro/nano-porous membranes (100 to 800 nm pore size and ~70% porosity).
2. Developed light weight but strong (7x increase in modulus) layered composite by fine tuning the strain induced crystallization in and cell expansion (low density, 0.3 g/cm3) in polypropylene.
3. Led a team of graduate students to develop polyurethane and polyvinyl acetate based programmable multilayer photonic crystals (1D) by deeply understanding the correlation between tunable surface topography of polymers and diffraction of lights from the interface.
4. Developed antibacterial membranes with polyolefin micro/nanofibers (2 to 0.3 μm) by forced assembly coextrusion and multiplication technology. Surface functionalization of fiber by corona discharge further improved the antibacterial efficiency of the membrane.
5. Collaborated with PolymerPlus LLC. to scale up the production of fibrous membranes for water, fuel, air filtration application and surface patterned multilayer films for information security application.
Graduate Research Assistant Jan, 2010 – March, 2013
Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering. University of Brescia. Italy.
a. Leadership & Managerial Roles:
1. Co-advised the thesis of three master students on the following topics:
i. Thermal aging of poly(lactic acid) for packaging applications
ii. Wood powder/protein hydrolyzate green composites for mulching application
iii. Properties of plasticized poly(lactic acid) for flexible packaging.
2. Maintained the chemical synthesis laboratory, extrusion laboratory and trained students.
3. Mentored 3 undergrad students.
b. Research accomplishments:
1. Discovered damage initiated self-healing (autonomous healing of damage) behavior of epoxidized natural rubbers and its blends with ionomers. Received the “Best young scientist” award for presenting this work in a prestigious conference held in Italy.
2. Developed a novel process for energy efficient fabrication of green composites containing protein hydrolysate, functionalized PEG and wood fiber. The composites exhibit outstanding mechanical behavior and degradation properties. The final formulation of the composites has been applied as the mulching film for agricultural application.
3. Collaborated with PintInox company to develop light weight and strong composites of unsaturated polyester resin by free radical crosslinking to food tray application.
4. Collaborated with the Aerospace Engineering department of Polytechnic of Milan to perform hyper-speed ballistic test on self-healing blends and composites.
Research Associate Nov, 2009 – Jan, 2012
Department of Chemical Engineering, Industrial Chemistry & Materials Science, University of Pisa, Italy.
1. Developed methods for chemical modification of kraft lignin to Improve Compatibility in Wood Based Composites. Kraft lignin was functionalized with diisocyanate and epoxy functionalized PEG in order to enhance the compatibility between PLA and lignin filler. The brittleness of the composite was further reduced by reactive plasticizing of PLA.
2. Developed high performance co-continuous blends of PMMA and Polycarbonates with cellulose fibers for automotive applications. This work was published as a featured article in ‘Bioplastic’ magazine.
Research Chemist Aug, 2008 – Oct, 2009
Radiation & Polymer Technology Laboratory, Bangladesh Atomic Energy Research Establishment, Bangladesh.
a. Leadership & Managerial Roles
1. Led a research team comprising four master students to develop artificial blood plasma expander based on radiation crosslinked gelatin.
2. Led the purchasing and setup of several instruments such as autoclave, laminar airflow and rheometer.
3. Maintained the extrusion laboratory.
b. Research accomplishments
1. Developed an artificial blood plasma expander using radiation treated gelatin with the similar viscosity of blood.
2. Developed gamma radiation treated PEO and gelatin blend with interpenetrating network with outstanding mechanical property and high thermal stability.
3. Developed a cost effective approach to extract chitosan from prawn shells.
4. Modified chitosan and starch with functional monomers and photocured the matrix with UV radiation and improved thermal stability and resistance to hydrolytic degradation as well.
Key Technical Skills
– Processing: Multilayer film co-extrusion, twin screw compounding, compression molding, cone-plate and parallel-plate rheometry, Extensional rheometry
– Microscopy: SEM, OM, AFM, TEM
– Thermal Analysis: DSC, DMA, TGA, TMA
– Spectroscopy: XRD, WAXS, SAXS, XPS, FTIR, UV-VIS spectroscopy
– Mechanical: uniaxial and biaxial mechanical testing, Izod Impact Testing
– Surface Analysis: Porometer, BET, EDS, microtome
– Computational: All Microsoft office products, Origin, Sigma
References
1. Prof. Alan J Lesser, PSE, UMAS, MA -01003, E-mail: ajl@polysci.umass.edu
2. Prof. Eric Baer, MSE, CWRU, OH -44106, E-mail: exb6@case.edu
3. Prof. Andrew Olah, MSE, CWRU, OH -44106, E-mail: amo5@case.edu
