Professor Filippo Mangolini, assistant professor in the Texas Materials Institute and Walker Department of Mechanical Engineering, has been selected to receive a Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award from the National Science Foundation (NSF).This award is the most prestigious honor offered by NSF’s CAREER Program and provides up to five years of funding to junior faculty members who exemplify the role of teacher-scholar through outstanding research, excellent education, and the integration of education and research within the context of their organizations’ missions.
Mangolini’s project, entitled “Linking Molecular Structure and Lubrication Mechanism in Halogen-Free, Boron-Based Ionic Liquids”, focuses on ionic liquids (ILs), which are salts with tunable composition and melting point below 100ºC. Owing to their unique properties and good lubrication performance, ILs are promising additives for cutting fluids used in green manufacturing approaches and engine oils, as well as lubricants for application-critical components exposed to extreme environments, such as moving components in satellites. A critical challenge in the use of ILs for lubrication purposes is the lack of understanding of the relationship between IL molecular structure and lubrication performance. The proposed research aims to identify the lubrication mechanism of ILs and establish links between their molecular architecture and friction-reducing properties. The research can enable the rational design of ILs with enhanced lubrication performance, thus contributing to increasing the U.S. industrial productivity and competitiveness by improving the sustainability and efficiency of machining processes. Complementary to the research goal of this project are the educational programs which will increase the inclusion of veterans in STEM programs and collaborate with elementary school teachers to increase the exposure of K-5 students to science and engineering.
Filippo Mangolini received his M.Sc in Materials Engineering from Polytechnic University of Milan (Italy). After obtaining his Ph.D. in Materials Science at ETH Zurich (Switzerland), he moved to the University of Pennsylvania as a Swiss National Science Foundation Fellow. He was then awarded a Marie Curie Fellowship, which continued supporting his work at the University of Pennsylvania and allowed him to subsequently move to Ecole Centrale de Lyon (France). Between 2015 and 2017, Filippo was a University Academic Fellow and a Marie Curie Fellow at the University of Leeds (UK). In January 2018 Filippo joined the University of Texas at Austin as Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. He has received notable awards, including the Ralph E. Powe Jr. Faculty Award, the Mazzucotelli Award from the Italian Chemical Society, the Teaching award from the Walker Department of Mechanical Engineering, and the Dean’s Award for Outstanding Engineering Teaching. He is serving as Associate Editor of Tribology Transactions.
The overarching goal of Prof. Mangolini’s group is to develop a physically-based understanding of the chemical reactions and structural transformations occurring on material surfaces under extreme environments and far-from-equilibrium conditions. The broader impact of this research will be to aid in the rational design and synthesis of new, modified, and improved functional materials able to withstand harsh conditions (e.g., high temperatures, oxidizing environments, mechanical loading), and suitable for a wide range of technological applications (e.g., engines, aerospace components, hard disks, machining tools, microprobes, electromechanical systems). The research outcomes can contribute to the development of advanced (nano-)manufacturing technologies, and enhance sustainable development through the reduction of the economic and environmental impact of corrosion and tribology, while being a key factor in the attempt of achieving the challenging environmental objective of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
