My research expertise and interests include (but not limited to) nanomanufacturing, nanomaterial-enabled energy systems, surface engineering, biological and bio-inspired systems and devices, biomaterials, nano/biomechanics, and mechanics and tribology in nuclear and/or turbine energy systems. My stature in the field of my expertise includes (1) over 200 peer-reviewed journal articles in prestigious journals such as Science, Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group), Nano Letters, Advanced Materials, Physical Review Letters, Advanced Functional Materials, Advanced Energy Materials, Small, Applied Physics Letters, Acta Materialia, Physical Review B, Experimental Mechanics, and Philosophical Magazine, (2) over 7,700 citations with H-index of 43, (3) TMS MPMD Distinguished Scientist/Engineer Award (2015), Professional Engineering Publisher´s PE Prize (2008), University of South Carolina CEC Research Progress Award (2008) and CEC Research Achievement Award (2011), (4) over 60 invited talks at international conferences/workshops, (5) Campus Director of the South Carolina Space Grant Consortium (2007-2012), (6) Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), (7) University of South Carolina CEC Distinguished Professor in Mechanical Engineering (10/2009-9/2012), and (8) Rolls-Royce Commonwealth Professor at the University of Virginia (8/2013-present). My breakthrough work has been featured by over 1,000 media outlets worldwide including BBC, Discovery News, Science Daily, MSNBC, and Nature China. My innovation on cotton textile based green manufacturing of composites was recently selected by New York Times – Year in Ideas for Year 2010. I currently serve as an Associate Editor for Transactions of the ASME - Applied Mechanics Reviews, and am on the editorial board for ten journals. I review papers for over 120 journals including Science and Nature series, and I was the elected chair for the TMS nanomechanical materials behavior committee.

nanomanufacturing, nanomaterial-enabled energy systems, nano surface engineering, nanomechanics, nano/biomechanics, and nano tribology