Dr Ali El Wahed

Dr El Wahed was awarded the PhD degree in mechanical engineering by the University of Liverpool in 1991. He has been active in several areas of research including smart materials, especially investigating their fundamental properties and engineering applications. He has gained an international recognition for his work in applying electrorheological (ER) and magnetorheological (MR) fluids to a wide range of mechanical devices, as well as in the modelling of their rheological characteristics. His early work on ER fluids in squeeze, which was carried out at the University of Liverpool in collaboration with Nippon Shokubai Co (Japan) and Bayer AG (Germany), has confirmed the existence of an enhanced yield stress over that measured in simple shear mode. He has conducted systematic studies to understand the characteristics of ER and MR fluids in squeeze, influenced by factors such as the shape and frequency of the applied field and the size of the solid phase. In addition, his ER fluid modelling studies have resulted in the development of interactive procedures for designing ER squeeze dampers for different types of engineering applications. Recently, Dr El Wahed completed a research project on the comparative assessment of the performance of ER and MR devices under impulsive loads. In a similar area, work with Ford Motor Company identified the possibility of using an ER fluid-based clutch mechanism instead of a magnetic coupling on a conventional automotive air-conditioning compressor so as to permit a continuously variable torque input to the compressor, which is dependent on the ambient air temperature. His recent work has focused on the application of MR fluids to engine mounts in collaboration with Jaguar, JCB and Lord Corporation.

Dr El Wahed is now utilising the smart fluid technology, in collaboration with researchers at Loughborough University and Kings College, into biomedical applications, particularly in devices for physiotherapy and cancer therapy solutions.

Dr El Wahed has been working closely with industry and managed to find solutions to real engineering problems. For example, he collaborated with Kellogg's and Jacobs Bakery on the optimum design of electrostatic systems for spraying vitamin and marmalade solutions onto their food products. He also helped several UK companies, including Stakehill International, Empire Engineering and Prochem Services with their pressure-relief valves design and testing. In addition, he has carried out computational fluid dynamic simulations and model testing of civil structures, such as the Lowry foot bridge, Salford (Parkman Co) and the King's Waterfront Complex, Liverpool (Bingham Cotterell/Stadium Group Ltd).

• B.Sc.(Hons) (Basra University)
• PhD (University of Liverpool)

• Advanced Mechanics of Solids and Materials (Year 4), Module ME40004
• Computer Aided Engineering, CFD (Year 4), Module ME40001
• Mechanics of Solids (Year 3), Module ME31002
• Advanced Medical & Surgical Technologies (MSc), Module ME52001
• Biomechanics & Biomaterials (MSc), Module ME51005

• Smart materials, including magnetorheological (MR) and electrorheological (ER) fluids
• Electrostatic spraying and deposition
• Computational fluid dynamics and fluid flow metering

• El Wahed, A. K., Stanway, R. and Sproston, J. L., "Electrorheological fluids in dynamic squeeze: an improved modelling technique with experimental validation", SPIE's Annual International Symposium on Smart Structures and Materials, March 17-21, 2002, San Diego, California, USA.
• El Wahed, A. K. and Sproston, J. L., "The rheological properties of electrorheological fluids in squeeze flow under impulsive loading", 1st International Conference on Heat Transfer, Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics, April 8-10, 2002, Kruger Park, South Africa.
• El Wahed, A. K. and Sproston, J. L. and Stanway, R., "The rheology of electrorheological fluids in dynamic squeeze flow", ACTUATOR 2002, Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on New Actuators & the 2nd International Exhibition on Smart Actuators and Drive Systems, Bremen, Germany, June 10-12, 2002.
• Sproston, J. L., Yanyo, L. C., Carlson, J. D. and El Wahed, A. K., "Controllable fluids in 2002 - Status of ER and MR fluid technology", ACTUATOR 2002, Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on New Actuators & the 2nd International Exhibition on Smart Actuators and Drive Systems, Bremen, Germany, June 10-12, 2002.
• El Wahed, A. K., Sproston, J. L. and Schleyer, G. K., "Electrorheological and magnetorheological fluids in blast resistant design applications", Materials and Design, Vol. 23, pp. 391-404, 2002.
• El Wahed, A. K., Sproston, J. L. and R. Stanway, "The rheological characteristics of electrorheological fluids in dynamic squeeze", Journal of Intelligent Material Systems and Structures, Vol. 13, No. 10, pp. 655-660, 2002.
• El Wahed, A. K., Stanway, R. and Sproston, J. L., "The influence of mechanical input amplitude on the dynamic response of an electrorheological fluid in squeeze flow", Int. Journal Vehicle Design, Vol. 33, Nos. 1-3, pp. 153-170, 2003.
• El Wahed, A. K., Sproston, J. L., R. Stanway and Williams, W., "An improved model of ER fluids in squeeze-flow through model updating of the estimated yield stress", Journal of Sound and Vibration, Vol. 268, pp. 581-599, 2003.
• El Wahed, A. K., "The characteristics of a homogeneous electrorheological fluid in dynamic squeeze", ACTUATOR04, 2004, Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on New Actuators & the 3rd International Exhibition on Smart Actuators and Drive Systems, Bremen, Germany, June 14-16, 2004.
• El Wahed, A. K., "The influence of particle concentration on the response of electrorheological fluids in dynamic squeeze flow", ACTUATOR06, 2006, Proceedings of the 10th International Conference on New Actuators & the 4th International Exhibition on Smart Actuators and Drive Systems, Bremen, Germany, June 14-16, 2006.
• El Wahed, A. K., "The effect of volume fraction of solids on the mechanical properties of ER fluids in dynamic squeeze", Proceedings of TMSi 4, 4th International Conference on Technology Meets Surgery, June 5 - 6, 2006, Ninewells Hospital, Dundee, UK.
• El Wahed, A. K., "Homogeneous electrorheological fluids applied to vibration control", Proceedings of ABCM Symposium Series in Bioengineering, Vol.1, Nov. 2006.

Dr Ali El Wahed

Division of Mechanical Engineering and Mechatronics

University of Dundee

Nethergate

Dundee

DD1 4HN