Dr. Siddiq Qidwai, a mechanical engineer at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), has been elected a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). He is one of only 3,298 Fellows out of 90,972 ASME members. ASME promotes the art, science, and practice of mechanical and multidisciplinary engineering and allied sciences.
Dr. Qidwai joined NRL's Multifunctional Materials Branch of the Materials Science and Technology Division in August 2011. In May 2013, he was appointed the Head (Acting) of the System Design and Integration Section in the same branch.
Dr. Qidwai is recognized as an expert in the area of computational mechanics and materials science with strong focus in constitutive modeling and multiphysics phenomena. His current research topics are biomechanical modeling of the human head under high-rate impacts, microstructure-sensitive modeling of corrosion, and electrically assisted deformation of metals.
In his work modeling the human head, he strives to understand the mechanics associated with traumatic brain injury (TBI) to the warfighter under blast impacts and to mitigate and prevent it through protective equipment. His research in the modeling of corrosion relates to the growth of performance degrading corrosion pits in relevant naval alloys as a function of the material morphology at small length scale. In his work with electrically assisted deformation of metals, he seeks to understand the role of electric current on the deformation mechanisms in metals for complex net shape part production.
His recent and past contributions in the research arena include the design of multifunctional structure-power material systems, microstructure-property correlations in metals, and computational modeling of smart materials, specifically piezoelectric materials and shape memory alloys (SMAs), for which he is widely acknowledged.
Dr. Qidwai first joined NRL as a contractor in the Multifunctional Materials Branch right out of school in 1999. His initial employer was Geo-Centers, Inc. from 1999 to 2005, followed by Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) from 2005 to 2011. Both at Geo-Centers and SAIC he held the dual role of manager and researcher.
Dr. Qidwai is an author or co-author of 105 publications, including 22 journal papers, 64 conference proceedings papers, three book chapters, 16 other publications, and one patent, with over 925 citations and an H-factor of 12. He is on the editorial board of the Journal of Multifunctional Composites and is an associate editor for the Biomedical & Nanomedical Technology: Concise Monograph Series (B&NT) published by ASME.
Dr. Qidwai received the 2009 SAIC Publications Award in the Engineering & Systems Integration category. He is also cited as the coauthor for the paper awarded an NRL 2010 Alan Berman Research Publication Award. In 2003, he received Geo-Center's Technology Transfer Royalty Award for the DARPA-funded program on multifunctional structure-battery materials.
Dr. Qidwai recently completed his two-year term as the Chair of the Washington DC Section of the ASME, one of the largest sections of the society with 2000 plus members. He takes active interest in promoting STEM activities in the local community. He chaired the K-12 & College Relations Committee of ASME-DC section from 2008 to 2012, leading and managing ASME sponsorship and participation in five regional science and engineering fairs for middle- and high-school students. He is currently serving on the advisory board of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of the District of Columbia.
Dr. Qidwai received his doctorate and master's degree in Aerospace Engineering from Texas A&M University (TAMU) in 1999 and 1995, respectively, under Dr. Dimitris C. Lagoudas, currently the Senior Associate Dean for Research and Associate Vice Chancellor for Engineering Research at TAMU. He obtained his bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from Middle East Technical University (Ankara, Turkey) in 1993.