Nazanin Pournoori : What happens to composite materials during high-speed loading?

Nazanin Pournoori posing in front of red flowers.

Photo: Negin Pournoori

In her doctoral dissertation, MSc Nazanin Pournoori investigates damage evolution and adiabatic heating in advanced fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composites under high strain rate loading. Her research combines high-speed experiments and finite element (FE) simulations to improve the understanding and prediction of dynamic failure in GFRP and CFRP laminates, that are used in demanding engineering applications. In her research, she used a synchronized high-speed optical and infrared (IR) imaging to measure deformation and temperature changes during high rate loading. She also used in-situ ultra-high speed synchrotron X-ray imaging (XPCI) to track internal crack initiation and growth in real time. To support failure prediction, she combined experimental observations with finite element (FE) simulations, implementing appropriate failure criteria and fracture mechanics tools to analyze failure onset, crack propagation, and energy dissipation at high strain rates.

“This work helps to improve the understanding of dynamic failure in composite structures and supports safer and more reliable design of lightweight composite materials used in high-performance engineering applications,” Nazanin Pournoori says.

Nazanin Pournoori is currently working as an Application Development Engineer at Exel Composites Oy, a leader in continuous composite solutions, where she continues applying her expertise in mechanics of composite materials to support design and manufacturing development.

The doctoral dissertation of MSc Nazanin Pournoori in the field of Mechanical Engineering and Material Sciences, titled Characterization of Damage and Adiabatic Heating in Advanced Fiber-Reinforced Polymers Under High Strain Rate Loading, will be publicly examined at the Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences at Tampere University.

The Opponents will be Doctor Antonio Pellegrino from University of Bath, United Kingdom, and Doctor Stefania Fortino from VTT Technical Research Centre, Finland. The Custos will be Professor Mikko Kanerva from Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, Tampere University.