Dr. Rachel Zhao Email & Phone Number

Delighted to serve as a CNSV at-Large Director within IEEE-CNSV, building upon my longstanding membership with the organization. In this role, I collaborate closely with diverse groups of consultants, leveraging their expertise across various fields to drive impactful contributions to industry applications and scientific advancements. Excited to continue.

San Jose, CA, US

📌 Our mission is to provide exceptional engineering analysis, research, and education, empowering future STEM scholars, while delivering unparalleled solutions and support to revolutionize the field of engineering.➡️Engineering Analysis, Research & Guidance: We deliver exceptional finite element analyses for optimized structure/device designs, covering.

Justin, Texas, US

• Formulated and refined CAE methodologies, leading projects focused on vehicle durability, invloved vibration, and crashworthiness, which encompassed a spectrum of nonlinear static and dynamic analyses. such as
• Executed complex nonlinear static and dynamic analyses for various vehicle components, including door trims, aerodynamic panels, and cooling systems.
• Innovated analysis methods for closure systems, addressing challenges such as door slam and sag.
• Pioneered dynamic fatigue analysis techniques for entire vehicles, with a particular focus on welding points.
• Established a blast analysis protocol for batteries and advanced the methodology for battery random vibration fatigue and shock analysis.
• Developed a novel approach for full vehicle rollover simulations involving soil interaction, utilizing Smooth Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH).

Newark, California, US

• Leadership & Project Management: Directed and executed comprehensive vehicle durability projects, encompassing fatigue, impact, and vibration analyses using advanced nonlinear static and dynamic methodologies
• CAE Methodology Development & Team Guidance: Formulated CAE analysis guidelines and methods, established critical loading cases for components such as doors, hoods, and battery brackets. Provided expert solutions for.
• Design Analysis & Optimization: Conducted in-depth analysis of diverse design elements for fatigue and dynamic performance, including subframes integrated with Body in White (BIW), door slam dynamics, and aerodynamic.
• Manufacturing & Testing Support: Offered analytical insights to bolster manufacturing processes, focusing on BIW and battery systems. Aided in the development of test fixtures and conducted vibration analysis for.

San Jose, California, US

• Conceptualization to Production: Spearheaded the transformation of design concepts into market-ready products, leveraging mechanical principles and detailed Finite Element Analysis (FEA) simulations, which were.
• Project Leadership & Customer Acquisition: Orchestrated the creation, strategic planning, and execution of projects, tailoring proposals to customer needs and securing project wins.
• Specialized Design & Analysis Expertise: o Ensured structural integrity and safety margins of print-circuit boards for satellite applications at Space System Loral through random vibration fatigue analysis.o Advanced.

• 2012/4-2014/4. 2017/3-2017/6
• Comprehensive Spacecraft Analysis: Executed static, vibration, and thermal distortion analyses for entire spacecraft systems, ensuring structural integrity and mission success.
• Innovative Design Leadership: Pioneered structural and composite material designs, including composite layups, struts, and brackets. Notably contributed to the Laser Communication Relay Demonstration for NASA and the.
• Advanced Vibration Analysis & Testing: Guided the random vibration analysis of power processing units, correlating test verifications with design choices. This included the assessment of chassis, printed-circuit.
• Root Cause Analysis: Identified and resolved critical issues such as thermal stresses in thin wires and the impact of vibrations on electronic components, informed by shock response spectrum test results.
• Design Innovation for Spacecraft: Investigated and conceptualized future spacecraft designs, focusing on key components like satellite cylinder separation joints.

• Product Reliability & Analysis: Championed product reliability enhancements through meticulous nonlinear static and thermal stress analyses.
• Innovative Solutions for Display Modules: Successfully mitigated sagging in large Touch Display Modules by optimizing components and assembly techniques, utilizing materials such as glass, thin plastic films, and.
• Material Modification: Engineered modifications to pressure-sensitive adhesives, significantly reducing stress concentrations and enhancing product durability.
• Design Optimization for Manufacturing: Redesigned modules to minimize thermal stress, streamlining the manufacturing process and improving product quality.

Dallas, Texas, US

• Senior Structure Analyst Leadership in Civil Structure Analysis: Led the analysis and design of civil structures subjected to impact and blast loadings, enhancing project accuracy and integrity.
• Methodology Innovation: Developed new blast analysis methods that account for the complex interactions between explosives, soil, and structural elements, while also improving engineering modeling practices.
• Expert Review & Evaluation: Conducted peer reviews of comprehensive vehicle impact and blast models, providing critical evaluations to ensure project excellence.
• Safety Assessment: Assessed the structural safety of significant constructions, such as the new World Trade Center, under various loading conditions to certify their resilience.
• Protective Design Solutions: Engineered advanced protective structures, including ductile carbon fiber-reinforced composites, to shield critical targets from potential threats.
• Security & Threat Analysis: Analyzed and evaluated security surveillance systems and assessed blast threats in high-importance facilities, contributing to enhanced safety measures.

Dearborn, Michigan, US

• 2010, 2007-2008, 2002-2005Vehicle safety and durability improvement with FEA and tests
• Engine Durability Verification: Conducted comprehensive evaluations of engine durability, focusing on thermal stress in critical components such as blocks, heads, gasket sealing, and bulkheads.
• Vehicle Impact Safety Assessment: Performed safety analyses for full vehicle impacts, including models like the F150, Super Duty 250, and Jaguar cars, ensuring compliance with safety standards.
• Design Enhancement of Vehicle Components: Led the redesign of various vehicle components, including hoods, doors, frames, and armrests, to improve functionality and the capability of crashworthiness.
• Methodology Development: Innovated methodologies for mechanical connections, exemplified by self-pierced rivet models in aluminum cars, and pioneered the use of fluid-solid interaction Arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian.
• Vibration and Noise Analysis: Executed detailed vibration and noise analyses for vehicle components, notably the steering system, to enhance ride quality and comfort.

London, GB

• Worked on projects in vehicle structure analysis and human injury analysis under Anti-Personnel and Anti-Tank mine blast loading for Army’s Future Combat Systems (FCS)
• Pioneered the establishment of a new Finite Element Analysis (FEA) methodology to evaluate crew member injuries from mine blasts, elevating military vehicle safety standards.
• Directed the evolution of seat design featuring an Energy Attenuation Device, significantly bolstering defense against mine blast injuries.
• Devised a strategic approach for full vehicle design through meticulous Shock Response Spectrum analysis, effectively fortifying vehicle resilience and crew protection against mine blasts.

Washington, D.C., US

• Supervised vehicle and human impact injury analysis for NHTSA, Ford, Hyundai-Kia, etc
• Collaborated with government agencies to bolster vehicle and occupant safety regulations, focusing on side impact and aorta injury analysis.
• Steered the aortic rupture analysis in comparison with physical tests to advance vehicle design for superior occupant safety.
• Originated a layer-specific aortic model that simulates blood interaction using the Arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian (ALE) method.
• Took the helm in refining the design of child restraint systems and vehicle components, targeting enhanced safety for children.
• Oversaw the development of a comprehensive human body Finite Element Analysis (FEA) model to predict vehicle safety outcomes.

Ann Arbor, Michigan, US

• Advancements in Thermal Fatigue Theory and FEA Applications
• Formulated and integrated a novel numerical method for thermo-damage-coupled fatigue theory into ABAQUS, enhancing predictive modeling for automotive engines at Ford Motor Company.
• Established a robust thermo-damage-coupled viscoplastic fatigue model, successfully implemented within ABAQUS for the analysis of solder joints, contributing to research initiatives at Sandia National Laboratories.

北京, Beijing, CN

• Applied Mechanics Research and Education
• Devised a methodology for analyzing creep and fatigue in cooled turbine blades of aircraft engines, significantly improving performance and knowledge.
• Undertook comprehensive research on material wear fatigue and the degradation of inhomogeneous materials, advancing the field’s understanding.

Post Doctoral Research, Mechanical Engineering

Engineering Mechanics Ph.D, Effective Properties And Damage Of Inhomogeneous Materials

Ms., Aerospace, Aeronautical And Astronautical Engineering