Robert Daniello

Biography

Education: B.S Mechanical Engineering University of Massachusetts, Amherst 2006 M.S Mechanical Engineering University of Massachusetts, Amherst 2009 Ph.D. Mechanical Engineering University of Massachusetts, Amherst 2013 I joined WPI in the fall of 2015 to teach thermo-fluid courses in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. The objective of my teaching is to guide students in the application of thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat transfer to solve practical problems in fields such as transportation, energy, and life sciences. I advocate project-based learning and hands-on experience in the laboratory and shop. My research involves experimental studies of fluid behavior. Much of my work centers around how fluids move and interact with surfaces at small lengthscales, including microfluidics and superhydrophobic surfaces. Microfluidic devices are tiny fluid/mechanical systems which can be designed to perform many functions from medical diagnostics to functioning like fluid computer chips. Superhydrophobic surfaces exist in nature, most notably in the self-cleaning leaves of the lotus plant, or can be fabricated in the laboratory. They combine non-wetting material properties with microscale texture, allowing a contacting liquid to touch only at the peaks of the microfeatures. In addition to their usefulness as a water repellant, superhydropobic surfaces provide a means for the experimental study of flow over walls that exhibit a partial-slip boundary condition. My work has demonstrated that superhydrophobic slip will provide significant drag reduction under certain conditions and can also affect separation, vortex shedding, and the near-wall behavior of a turbulent flow. Other interests include microfabrication and advanced, traditional and historical manufacturing processes. I have previously served as a thermodynamic systems engineer for United Technologies Aerospace Systems and research engineer at Alden Research Laboratory.

Research Interest

Microfluidics; Superhydrophobicity, drops, and wetting; Thermo-fluid systems; Microfabrication; Manufacturing processes