Advances in Polymer Composite Research Integrating Experimental and Computational Approaches

Atul Kumar Maurya is currently working as a postdoctoral research associate in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Michigan State University, East Lansing (MSU), USA. He has done his PhD (IIT Roorkee) in polymer composites, MTech (IIT Hyderabad) in material science and metallurgical engineering, and BTech (CIPET Lucknow) in plastics engineering. Prior to joining MSU, he served at UMass Lowell and Pittsburg State University as a postdoc fellow, at Reliance Industries Limited as a research scientist, and in academia (CIPET Ahmedabad) as a faculty. His research area encompasses the processing and optimization of polymer and polymer composites. Dr. Maurya has an impressive publication record, with around 22 research publications in internationally recognized SCI journals, international conferences, and book chapters. He has also published a patent in the field of polymer composites. He has made significant contributions to esteemed peer-reviewed journals in the field of polymer engineering and science, in cellulose polymer composites, in the Journal of Polymers and the Environment, among others.

Gaurav Manik is currently acting as a head (HOD) of the Department of Polymer and Process Engineering at IIT Roorkee. He joined IIT Roorkee in January 2013 as an assistant professor in the same department. Dr. Manik holds a PhD in chemical engineering from IIT Bombay, as well as an MTech from IIT Kanpur and a BTech from HBTI Kanpur. Prior to his tenure at IIT Roorkee, he gained extensive experience in both industry and academia, accumulating over 18 years of professional expertise. He has worked with esteemed organizations, such as 3M, Indo Gulf Fertilizers & Chemicals Ltd., Classic Stripes Pvt. Ltd., BITS Pilani, and BIET Jhansi. Dr. Manik's industry contributions include the development and commercialization of numerous innovative products, as well as the protection of intellectual property through a substantial number of patents and record of inventions.

Sushanta K. Sethi is currently an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical, Materials, and Aerospace Engineering at IIT Dharwad, since July 2023. Prior to this, Dr. Sethi worked as a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Metallurgical Engineering and Materials Science (MEMS) at IIT Bombay. In February 2021, he successfully completed his PhD in the Department of Polymer and Process Engineering at IIT Roorkee. Dr. Sethi holds an MTech from IIT Kharagpur and a BTech in mechanical engineering from BPUT, Odisha. His research interests encompass various areas, such as computational materials science, self-clean coatings, functional nanomaterials/quantum dots and their applications, multiscale molecular modeling and simulations of polymer materials, development of novel and environmentally sustainable polymer composites and nanocomposites, as well as coatings and adhesives. Dr. Sethi has an impressive publication record, with around 35 research publications in internationally recognized SCI journals, international conferences, and book chapters. He has made significant contributions to esteemed peer-reviewed journals in the field of polymer engineering and science, ACS sensors, and polymers, polymer composites, and micromachines, in Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology, among others. His remarkable achievements include receiving the Best Doctoral Thesis Award from the Department of Polymer and Process Engineering from IIT Roorkee and recognition from the science, technology, engineering, and management (STEM) society.