Reza Hedayati received his BSc and MSc degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Isfahan University of Technology and completed his Ph.D. in 2016 at Amirkabir University of Technology (Tehran Polytechnic). In 2016-2017, Reza was a post-doc researcher in Department of Biomechanical Engineering of TU Delft. In 2017, Reza joined Novel Aerospace Materials group of the Faculty of Aerospace Engineering at TU Delft.
During his MSc program, his research focused on better techniques for modeling and analyzing bird impact on different components of aircraft such as tailplane, windshield, and fuselage. He proposed two novel bird models which explained many discrepancies between the existing numerical, experimental, and theories of bird strike. He wrote a book about the topic in 2015 (Bird strike: An experimental, theoretical and numerical investigation published by Woodhead publishing, Elsevier.
During his PhD program, Reza designed novel porous structures and manufactured them using multiple additive manufacturing (AM) techniques such as selective laser melting, fused deposition modeling, and stereolithography. He developed theoretical solutions for the mechanical response of AM porous structures with different structural topologies. The main goal in his research was to obtain the best micro-structural designs for having porous materials which can provide the required static mechanical properties, high fatigue durability, and sufficient permeability required for tissue regeneration and vascularization. Reza also gained experience in the field of co-continuous hybrid porous materials, fracture toughness and damage resistance analysis of AM porous materials, and multi-scale modeling of fatigue damage propagation in porous materials.
His post-doc research at the Department of Biomechanical Engineering of TU Delft focused on designing and manufacturing different types of hard and soft mechanical metamaterials. For instance, he developed of a novel approach to extend the available printing strategies of a SLM 3D-printer which made it possible to create Pentamode mechanical meta-materials with optimal energy distribution. The paper was published in Applied Physics Letters and an interview was published in Materials Research Society (MRS) Magazine. He also developed soft mechanical meta-materials with random/gradient distribution of auxetic and conventional cells. Patterned randomness and gradient allowed for independent tailoring of the elastic properties and covering a broad area of the elastic modulus-Poisson's ratio plane. Furthermore, he used different arrangements of bi- and multi-layers of shape memory (SMP) and hyperelastic polymers to program four basic modes of shape-shifting including self-rolling, self-twisting (self-helixing), combined self-rolling and self-wrinkling, and wave-like strips. Additionally, Reza worked on the thermomechanical characterization of different polymers such as natural rubbers, PVC, natural rubber/styrene-butadiene rubber, etc. to obtain their stress-strain curves under different conditions. He also developed shape-shifting origami structures with pre-described in-plane and out-of-plane deformations.
Reza is a member of American Society of Mechanical Engineering (ASME), European Society of Biomechanics (ESB), and American Society of Biomechanics (ASB). As of Mid-2017, he has served as reviewer for more than 15 journals and has published more than 34 articles in international peer-reviewed journals.