Philadelphia STLE Section Awards Scholarship to Villanova Student
Villanova graduate student Zenghao Zhu is a recipient of a $2,000 scholarship from the Philadelphia STLE. Zhu is a graduate student in the Department of Mechanical Engineering studying under the direction of Dr. Qianhong Wu. Dr. Wu describes Zhu as a motivated researcher focusing on results. He is hands-on and has a strong background in designing and machining in addition to mentoring younger students.
Zhu’s research focuses on developing a systematic approach to examine the lift generation in a highly compressible porous medium. The model system examines the flow of red blood cells of ~8 µm in diameter passing through a capillary of 5 µm diameter. Using experimental data in addition to theoretical modeling, Zhu has shown that lift generation is a key factor in leading to a reduction in the coefficient of friction. This model system also provides applications in understanding the tribology of skiing and snowboarding and the passage of a railroad car over a next-generation track made of soft, porous material.
Zhu authored and co-authored four manuscripts on his research topic in less than two years. He was also featured as one of the speakers during our technical sessions in the 2016-1017 season.
For more information on the Philadelphia STLE Scholarship program, click HERE