Biography summary
Research:
Ali Zolfagharian is an Alfred Deakin Medallist for Best Doctoral Thesis and Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Fellowship Awardee, at Deakin University, Australia. He is a Mechanical Engineering lecturer in the School of Engineering, Deakin University, Australia. Dr. Zolfagharian is one of the foremost researchers in Australia in the 3D/4D printing of soft robots and soft actuators. He has thus far received $179k research support funds from 3DEC (Deakin Digital Design and Engineering Centre), IISRI (Institute for Intelligent Systems Research and Innovation), and industrial firms. His recent research outputs in the field of 3D and 4D printing include 60 articles, the guest editing of special issues, and four edited books.
External Funding:
- 2019 CAT3-1 Australian for-profit organisations, $45k
Research Support Incomes:
- 2021 Mini ARC Analog Programme (MAAP), Deakin University, $25k
- 2021 Peer-Review Early Career Research Support Scheme (PRESS), Deakin University, $5k+ $8k External
- 2019 IISRI (Institute for Intelligent Systems Research and Innovation), Deakin University, $22k
- 2018 3DEC (Deakin Digital Design and Engineering Centre), Deakin University, $44k
- 2018 Research Support Start Up Package, Deakin University, 30k
Teaching:
Ali has been involved in teaching 10 units in the Mechanical and Mechatronics, at undergraduate and graduate levels in the School of Engineering, Deakin University, since joining in 2016. He has supervised 59 postgraduate and undergraduate students on multidisciplinary projects within the school. He encourages and directs students to participate in interdisciplinary research in a project-based teaching and learning environment based on computational thinking approaches.
Research interests
Ali Zolfagharian has started the incorporation of 3D/4D/bio printing into soft robots and auxetic materials as the pioneer research group in Australia in the 4D Printing Lab, located in KC1.018, in joint projects with 3DEC (Deakin Digital Design and Engineering Centre), IISRI (Institute for Intelligent Systems Research and Innovation), Institute for Frontier Materials (IFM), and industrial firms. His research addresses the challenges associated with 3D/4D printing technology and soft robotics with a wide range of applications in various sectors. His focus on 3D/4D printing projects is on the fabrication of soft robots and vibration analysis of smart materials and structures, including shape memory materials, for safe human machine interactions, wearable electronics, sports, agricultural and medical devices.
Affiliations
School of Engineering, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC, 3216, Australia
Teaching interests
- Dynamics of Machines
- Machine Design
- Additive Manufacturing
- Smart Materials
- Vibration
- Modeling and Control
Units taught
Undergraduate:
- Dynamics of Machines (SEM327)
- Machine Design (SEM200)
- Engineering Project A (SEJ441)
- Engineering Project B (SEJ446)
Postgraduate:
- Project Initiation (SEN719/SEN710)
- Project Implementation And Evaluation (SEN720)
Knowledge areas
- 3D/4D printing
- Soft Robotics
- Smart Materials and Structures
- Medical Device Design
- Robotic Materials
Conferences
- 2021 4D Printing Classroom in Modern Interactive Learning Environments, The Research in Engineering Education Symposium and Australasian Association for Engineering Education Annual Conference (REES AAEE 2021), Perth, Australia
- 2021 Non-assembly 3D-printed Spherical Joints for Soft Robotic Applications, IEEE RASSE 2021, Shanghai, China
- 2020 Closed-loop Control of 4D-printed Soft Robots, Online 4D Printing & Metamaterials
- 2019 Next Generation of 4D Printing, ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterial Science, Australia
- 2018 Control-oriented Modelling in 4D printing, Advanced Manufacturing & Materials, Tokyo, Japan
- 2017 Photo-thermal 3D-printed Soft Actuators, Design and Technology, Geelong, Australia
- 2016 3D-printed Soft Hydrogel Actuators, IEEE Region 10 International Conference, Singapore
Professional activities
- Member of the IEEE Robotics and Intelligent Sensing Technical Committee
- Scientific committee of Additive Fabrication of Composites
- Modeling, Simulation and Optimization of Functional Materials and Advanced Manufacturing minisymposia organiser in 15th World Congress on Computational Mechanics & 8th Asian Pacific Congress on Computational Mechanics (WCCM-APCOM 2022), Yokohama, Japan
- Topic Board Editor of the Actuators (ISSN 2076-0825, IF: 1:96)
- 2021 Topic Editor of the Frontiers in Materials (ISSN 2296-8016, IF: 3.3) 'Shape-Changing Polymers for Actively Moving Structures'
- 2021 Topic Editor of the Frontiers in Mechanical Engineering (ISSN 2297-3079, IF: 1:39) ‘4D printing: Digital manufacturing of smart materials and structures’
- 2021 Topic Editor of the Frontiers in Robotics and AI (ISSN 2296-9144, IF: 3:31) ‘4D Printing and 3D Printing in Robotics, Sensors, and Actuators Manufacturing’
- 2021 Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360, IF: 3.43) ‘Functional Polymers in Sensors and Actuators: Fabrication and Analysis II’
- 2021 Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944, IF: 3.06) ‘Conducting Polymers and Fibres’
- 2020 Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417, IF: 2.22) ‘3D-printed Soft Robots and 4D printing: Modeling, Fabrication, and Control’
- 2020 Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360, IF: 3.43) ‘Functional Polymers in Sensors and Actuators: Fabrication and Analysis’
- 2020 Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360, IF: 3.43) ‘Finite Element Methods in Smart Materials and Polymers’
- 2020 Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Materials (ISSN 2073-4360, IF: 3.05) ‘Stimuli-Responsive Polymer Systems—Recent Manufacturing Techniques and Applications'
- Reviewer for 24 International Journals verified by Publons
Media appearances
- 4D printing soft robots guided by machine learning and finite element models
- Robotics Manufacturing at the Next Level with 4D Printed Soft Robotics
- International Research Yields New Concepts for Control-Based 4D Printing in Adaptive Systems
- Closed-loop Control of 4D-printed Soft Robots
- How Does Thermal Aging Impact 3D Printed Carbon Fiber Parts?
- Testing Fracture Resistance in FDM and MJF 3D Printing of Polymers
- FDM 4D Printing: Energy Absorbing Tunable Meta-Sandwiches Created
- Customized FDM 4D Printing for Metastructures with Variable Bandgap Regions
- 3D Printed Surfboard: Researchers Test Different Bio-Inspired Core Structures
- FDM 3D Printing & PLA: Fabrication of a Splint for Mallet Finger
- 3D Bioprinting Soft Actuators: Multiple Materials & Topology Optimization
Awards
- 2020 RWTH Aachen University Advanced Research Opportunities Program
- 2019 Alfred Deakin Medal for Doctoral Thesis
- 2018 Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellowship
- 2018 Higher degree research publication incentive, Deakin University, 2016, 2017, and 2018.
- 2016 PhD scholarships awarded from Australian universities, University Technology Sydney, Curtin University, Griffith University, Victoria University and Deakin University.
- 2011 PhD scholarship awarded from Kyungpook National University, South Korea.
- 2011 PhD scholarship awarded from University Technology Petronas, Malaysia.
Projects
Some of the supervised projects are:
- Custom shoe sole design and modeling towards 3D printing
- Safe human-robot touch communication module for IoT
- 3D-printed vibration isolator for dynamic performance improvement of heavy vehicle seats
- 4D printing soft robots guided by machine learning and finite element models
- Patient-specific 3D-printed splint for mallet finger injury
- Fruit harvesting with a bio-inspired 3D-printed compliant gripper.
- 3D printing on-water sports boards with bio-inspired core designs
- Electrothermal modeling and analysis of polypyrrole-coated wearable e-textiles
- Structural performance of 3D-printed composites under various loads and environmental conditions
- Topology optimization of 4D-printed soft actuators
- Biomaterials and scaffolds 3D printing
Publications
M Baniasadi, E Yarali, M Bodaghi, A Zolfagharian, M Baghani
(2021), Vol. 192, International Journal of Mechanical Sciences, C1
Electrothermal modeling and analysis of polypyrrole-coated wearable e-textiles
A Kaynak, A Zolfagharian, T Featherby, M Bodaghi, M Mahmud, A Kouzani
(2021), Vol. 14, pp. 1-16, Materials, Basel, Switzerland, C1
3D‐Printed Triboelectric Nanogenerators: State of the Art, Applications, and Challenges
M Mahmud, Ali Zolfagharian, Saleh Gharaie, Akif Kaynak, Shahjadi Farjana, Amanda Ellis, Jun Chen, Abbas Kouzani
(2021), pp. 1-25, Advanced Energy and Sustainability Research, London, Eng., C1
Hamid Jarrah, Ali Zolfagharian, Reza Hedayati, Ahmad Serjouei, Mahdi Bodaghi
(2021), Vol. 10, Actuators, Basel, Switzerland, C1
Energy absorption and mechanical performance of functionally graded soft-hard lattice structures
Hafizur Rahman, Ebrahim Yarali, Ali Zolfagharian, Ahmad Serjouei, Mahdi Bodaghi
(2021), Vol. 14, pp. 1-16, Materials, Basel, Switzerland, C1
4D Printing Soft Robots Guided by Machine Learning and Finite Element Models
Ali Zolfagharian, Lorena Durran, Saleh Gharaie, Bernard Rolfe, Akif Kaynak, Mahdi Bodaghi
(2021), pp. 1-24, Sensors and Actuators A: Physical, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1
Design, evaluation, and optimization of 3D printed truss scaffolds for bone tissue engineering
M Shirzad, A Zolfagharian, A Matbouei, M Bodaghi
(2021), Vol. 120, pp. 1-13, Journal of the mechanical behavior of biomedical materials, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1
Dynamic nanocellulose hydrogels: recent advancements and future outlook
Pejman Heidarian, Akif Kaynak, Mariana Paulino, Ali Zolfagharian, Russell Varley, Abbas Kouzani
(2021), Vol. 270, pp. 1-14, Carbohydrate polymers, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1
A Bioinspired Compliant 3D-Printed Soft Gripper
Ali Zolfagharian, Saleh Gharaie, Jack Gregory, Mahdi Bodaghi, Akif Kaynak, Saeid Nahavandi
(2021), pp. 1-10, Soft Robotics, New Rochelle, NY, C1
Mohammadreza Lalegani Dezaki, Mohd Ariffin, Ahmad Serjouei, Ali Zolfagharian, Saghi Hatami, Mahdi Bodaghi
(2021), Vol. 11, pp. 1-17, Applied Sciences, Basel, Switzerland, C1
Topology-optimized 4D printing of a soft actuator
A Zolfagharian, M Denk, M Bodaghi, A Kouzani, A Kaynak
(2020), Vol. 33, pp. 418-430, Acta mechanica solida sinica, Singapore, C1
Dynamic plant-derived polysaccharide-based hydrogels
P Heidarian, A Kouzani, A Kaynak, M Paulino, B Nasri-Nasrabadi, A Zolfagharian, R Varley
(2020), Vol. 231, pp. 1-17, Carbohydrate Polymers, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1
Closed-loop 4D-printed soft robots
A Zolfagharian, A Kaynak, A Kouzani
(2020), Vol. 188, pp. 1-16, Materials and design, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1
Reversible energy absorbing meta-sandwiches by FDM 4D printing
M Bodaghi, A Serjouei, A Zolfagharian, M Fotouhi, H Rahman, D Durand
(2020), Vol. 173, pp. 1-11, International journal of mechanical sciences, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1
3D printing on-water sports boards with bio-inspired core designs
A Soltani, R Noroozi, M Bodaghi, A Zolfagharian, R Hedayati
(2020), Vol. 12, pp. 1-18, Polymers, Basel, Switzerland, C1
Fracture resistance analysis of 3D-printed polymers
Ali Zolfagharian, Mohammad Khosravani, Akif Kaynak
(2020), Vol. 12, pp. 1-18, Polymers, Basel, Switzerland, C1
Shape-Adaptive Metastructures with Variable Bandgap Regions by 4D Printing
Reza Noroozi, Mahdi Bodaghi, Hamid Jafari, Ali Zolfagharian, Mohammad Fotouhi
(2020), Vol. 12, pp. 1-19, Polymers, Basel, Switzerland, C1
Influence of hybridization on tensile behaviors of non-absorbable braided polymeric sutures
Moqaddaseh Afzali Naniz, Mahdi Bodaghi, Majid Safar Johari, Ali Zolfagharian
(2020), Vol. 12, pp. 1-13, Polymers, Basel, Switzerland, C1
Patient-specific 3D-printed splint for mallet finger injury
Ali Zolfagharian, Timothy Gregory, Mahdi Bodaghi, Saleh Gharaie, Pearse Fay
(2020), Vol. 6, pp. 16-28, International journal of bioprinting, Singapore, C1
Fracture and load-carrying capacity of 3D-printed cracked components
M Khosravani, A Zolfagharian
(2020), Vol. 37, pp. 1-11, Extreme Mechanics Letters, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1
Effects of Topology Optimization in Multimaterial 3D Bioprinting of Soft Actuators
Ali Zolfagharian, Martin Denk, Abbas Kouzani, Bodaghi Bodaghi, Saeid Nahavandi, Akif Kaynak
(2020), Vol. 6, pp. 50-60, International Journal of Bioprinting, Singapore, C1
Control-Based 4D Printing: Adaptive 4D-Printed Systems
Ali Zolfagharian, Akif Kaynak, Mahdi Bodaghi, Abbas Kouzani, Saleh Gharaie, Saeid Nahavandi
(2020), Vol. 10, pp. 1-19, Applied Sciences, Basel, Switzerland, C1
Dynamic mussel-inspired chitin nanocomposite hydrogels for wearable strain sensors
Pejman Heidarian, Abbas Kouzani, Akif Kaynak, Ali Zolfagharian, Hossein Yousefi
(2020), Vol. 12, pp. 1-15, Polymers, Basel, Switzerland, C1
A Al-Qatatsheh, Y Morsi, A Zavabeti, A Zolfagharian, N Salim, A Kouzani, B Mosadegh, S Gharaie
(2020), Vol. 20, pp. 1-75, Sensors, Basel, Switzerland, C1
3D/4D-printed bending-type soft pneumatic actuators: fabrication, modelling, and control
A Zolfagharian, M Mahmud, S Gharaie, M Bodaghi, A Kouzani, A Kaynak
(2020), Vol. 15, pp. 373-402, Virtual and physical prototyping, Abingdon, Eng., C1
Structural performance of 3D-printed composites under various loads and environmental conditions
M Khosravani, A Zolfagharian, M Jennings, T Reinicke
(2020), Vol. 91, pp. 1-9, Polymer Testing, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1
Mohsen Askari, Moqaddaseh Afzali Naniz, Monireh Kouhi, Azadeh Saberi, Ali Zolfagharian, Mahdi Bodaghi
(2020), pp. 1-39, Biomaterials Science, London, Eng., C1
Functional Polymers in Sensors and Actuators: Fabrication and Analysis
Akif Kaynak, Ali Zolfagharian
(2020), Basel, Switzerland, A7
Finite Element Methods in Smart Materials and Polymers
Akif Kaynak, Ali Zolfagharian, Saeid Nahavandi
(2020), Basel, Switzerland, A7
Control-oriented modelling of a 3D-printed soft actuator
Ali Zolfagharian, Akif Kaynak, Sui Yang Khoo, Jun Zhang, Saeid Nahavandi, Abbas Kouzani
(2019), Vol. 12, pp. 1-13, Materials, Lausanne, Switzerland, C1
Rigid elements dynamics modeling of a 3D printed soft actuator
A Zolfagharian, A Kouzani, A Moghadam, S Khoo, S Nahavandi, A Kaynak
(2019), Vol. 28, pp. 1-13, Smart materials and structures, Bristol, Eng., C1
Bending control of a 3D printed polyelectrolyte soft actuator with uncertain model
A Zolfagharian, A Kouzani, M Maheepala, S Khoo, A Kaynak
(2019), Vol. 288, pp. 134-143, Sensors and actuators, A: physical, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1
4D printing self-morphing structures
Mahdi Bodaghi, Reza Noroozi, Ali Zolfagharian, Mohamad Fotouhi, Saeed Norouzi
(2019), Vol. 12, Materials, Basel, Switzerland, C1
Unbalance and Harmonic disturbance attenuation of a flexible shaft with active magnetic bearings
A Noshadi, A Zolfagharian
(2019), Vol. 129, pp. 614-628, Mechanical Systems and Signal Processing, C1
System identification and robust tracking of a 3D printed soft actuator
Ali Zolfagharian, Akif Kaynak, Amin Noshadi, Abbas Kouzani
(2019), Vol. 28, pp. 1-11, Smart materials and structures, Bristol, Eng., C1
B Nasri-Nasrabadi, A Kaynak, Z Komeily Nia, J Li, A Zolfagharian, S Adams, A Kouzani
(2018), Vol. 334, pp. 1775-1780, Chemical engineering journal, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1
3D printed soft parallel actuator
A Zolfagharian, A Kouzani, S Khoo, A Noshadi, A Kaynak
(2018), Vol. 27, Smart materials and structures, Bristol, Eng., C1
A Zolfagharian, A Kaynak, S Khoo, A Kouzani
(2018), Vol. 274, pp. 231-243, Sensors and actuators, A: physical, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1
Polyelectrolyte soft actuators: 3D printed chitosan and cast gelatin
A Zolfagharian, A Kaynak, S Khoo, A Kouzani
(2018), Vol. 5, pp. 138-150, 3D printing and additive manufacturing, New Rochelle, N.Y., C1
Development and analysis of a 3D printed hydrogel soft actuator
A Zolfagharian, A Kouzani, S Khoo, B Nasri-Nasrabadi, A Kaynak
(2017), Vol. 265, pp. 94-101, Sensors and actuators, A: physical, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1
P Valipour, H Zaersabet, M Hatami, A Zolfagharian, S Ghasemi
(2017), Vol. 24, pp. 2275-2280, Journal of Central South University, Berlin, Germany, C1
Analysis of nano droplet dynamics with various sphericities using efficient computational techniques
A Zolfagharian, M Darzi, S Ghasemi
(2017), Vol. 24, pp. 2353-2359, Journal of Central South University, Changsha, China, C1
3D printed hydrogel soft actuators
A Zolfagharian, A Kouzani, S Khoo, I Gibson, A Kaynak
(2017), pp. 2272-2277, TENCON 2016 : Technologies for smart nation : Proceedings of the 2016 IEEE Region 10 Conference, Marina Bay Sands, Singapore, E1
3D printing of a photo-thermal self-folding actuator
A Zolfagharian, A Kouzani, B Nasri-Nasrabadi, S Adams, S Khoo, M Norton, I Gibson, A Kaynak
(2017), pp. 15-22, DesTech 2016: Proceedings of the International Conference on Design and Technology, Geelong, Victoria, E1
S Ghasemi, A Zolfagharian, M Hatami, D Ganji
(2016), Vol. 98, pp. 88-97, Applied thermal engineering, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1
Evolution of 3D printed soft actuators
A Zolfagharian, A Kouzani, S Khoo, A Moghadam, I Gibson, A Kaynak
(2016), Vol. 250, pp. 258-272, Sensors and actuators A: physical, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1
Fuzzy force learning controller of flexible wiper system
A Zolfagharian, P Valipour, S Ghasemi
(2016), Vol. 27, pp. 483-493, Neural computing and applications, London, Eng., C1-1
A multi-objective, active fuzzy force controller in control of flexible wiper system
A Zolfagharian, S Ghasemi, M Imani
(2014), Vol. 11, pp. 1490-1514, Latin American journal of solids and structures, São Paulo, Brazil, C1-1
A Zolfagharian, A Noshadi, S Ghasemi, M Zain
(2014), Vol. 228, pp. 1329-1347, Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, part C: journal of mechanical engineering science, London, Eng., C1-1
Unwanted noise and vibration control using finite element analysis and artificial intelligence
A Zolfagharian, A Noshadi, M Khosravani, M Zain
(2014), Vol. 38, pp. 2435-2453, Applied mathematical modelling, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1-1
Study on motion of rigid rod on a circular surface using MHPM
S Ghasemi, A Zolfagharian, D Ganji
(2014), Vol. 3, pp. 159-164, Propulsion and power research, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1-1
Bi-level fuzzy force shaping controller of a flexible wiper system
A Zolfagharian, A Noshadi, M Zain
(2014), Vol. 21, pp. 2153-2164, Scientia Iranica D, Tehran, Iran, C1-1
A Zolfagharian, A Noshadi, M Zain, A Bakar
(2013), Vol. 8, pp. 54-68, Swarm and evolutionary computation, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1-1
A Noshadi, M Mailah, A Zolfagharian
(2012), Vol. 36, pp. 2370-2383, Applied mathematical modelling, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1-1
A Noshadi, A Zolfagharian, M Mailah
(2012), Vol. 110-116, pp. 4932-4940, Applied Mechanics and Materials, Bangkok, THAILAND, E1-1
Particle swarm optimization approach on flexible structure at wiper blade system
A Zolfagharian, M Zain, A AbuBakar, M Hussein
(2011), Vol. 5, pp. 962-967, International journal of aerospace and mechanical engineering, [Turkey], C1-1
Funded Projects at Deakin
No Funded Projects at Deakin found
Supervisions
No completed student supervisions to report