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Michela Geri

Geri

Assistant Professor in the Thomas Lord Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science

We are an interdisciplinary research group motivated by industrial and fundamental problems related to energy and environmental issues. Many industrial processes that are relevant to the production or transport of energy are governed by the flow and deformation of structured-fluids, where solid and fluid constituents coexist. Extreme environmental events involving soil, mud and snow also feature multi-phase materials of similar nature.

Our goal is to understand multi-phase materials, from particles/droplets suspension to solid solutions, using tailored experimental and theoretical tools. Our work is highly interdisciplinary, spanning the fields of solid&fluid mechanics, rheology and materials science. We focus specifically on developing: (i) novel experimental techniques/setups and signals that push the boundaries of current established techniques; (ii) tailored materials and processes that achieve the required mechanical and physico-chemical properties; and (iii) theoretical continuum models that can describe the observed material behavior while accounting for coupled effects.

Examples of research interests: suspensions of gas hydrates for hydrogen transport and carbon dioxide sequestration, non-equilibrium manufacturing approaches via slurries or suspensions, fluidization of earth materials, new signals and setups for mechanical measurements, theoretical continuum mechanics modeling.

Appointments and Affiliations

  • Assistant Professor in the Thomas Lord Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science

Contact Information

Education

  • Ph.D. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2019
  • M.S. University of Bologna (Italy), 2011
  • B.S. University of Bologna (Italy), 2009

Research Interests

Mechanics of multi-phase materials - Soft and hard matter - Coupling of mechanics with thermodynamic, kinematic and chemical conditions - Particulate materials/structured fluids - Novel experimental methods - Theoretical Modeling

Awards, Honors, and Distinctions

  • Journal of Rheology Publication Award. Society of Rheology. 2022
  • Gallery of Rheology. Society of Rheology. 2021
  • Rising Stars in Mechanical Engineering. Stanford University. 2019
  • Wunsch Foundation Silent Hoist and Crane Award for Outstanding TA. MIT, MechE Department. 2018
  • APS/DFD Milton van Dyke Award - Posters. APS/DFD. 2018
  • Gallery of Rheology. Society of Rheology. 2017
  • Chevron-MIT Energy Fellow. MIT Energy Initiative. 2017
  • Chevron-MIT Energy Fellow. MIT Energy Initiative. 2016
  • MIT-France ENS Lyon Exchange. MISTI Program at MIT. 2015
  • Rohsenow Fellowship. MIT, MechE Department. 2012
  • The Best Graduate Women 2011. University of Bologna. 2011

Courses Taught

  • EGR 201L: Mechanics of Solids

In the News

Representative Publications

  • Lennon, KR; Geri, M; McKinley, GH; Swan, JW, Medium amplitude parallel superposition (MAPS) rheology. Part 2: Experimental protocols and data analysis, Journal of Rheology, vol 64 no. 5 (2020), pp. 1263-1293 [10.1122/8.0000104] [abs].
  • Geri, M; Keshavarz, B; Divoux, T; Clasen, C; Curtis, DJ; McKinley, GH, Time-Resolved Mechanical Spectroscopy of Soft Materials via Optimally Windowed Chirps, Physical Review X, vol 8 no. 4 (2018) [10.1103/PhysRevX.8.041042] [abs].
  • Geri, M; Keshavarz, B; McKinley, GH; Bush, JWM, Thermal delay of drop coalescence, Journal of Fluid Mechanics, vol 833 (2017) [10.1017/jfm.2017.686] [abs].
  • Geri, M; Venkatesan, R; Sambath, K; McKinley, GH, Thermokinematic memory and the thixotropic elasto-viscoplasticity of waxy crude oils, Journal of Rheology, vol 61 no. 3 (2017), pp. 427-454 [10.1122/1.4978259] [abs].