Ashish Kasar, a Ph.D. candidate in Mechanical Engineering, has received the Sam Lieberman Regents’ Award for Student Scholarship. The award, announced earlier this month by the Nevada Board of Regents, honors nine students for their academic achievements, leadership ability and service contributions throughout the state.

“These nine students represent some of our best and brightest students in Nevada public higher education and I’m proud of their accomplishments,” Regents Chair Cathy McAdoo said.

Kasar’s research focuses on self-lubricating composite materials, as well as wear and tribo-corrosion of additively manufactured alloys. Kasar puts it simply: “it’s a combination of materials and mechanics.”

His work on self-lubricating composite materials is connected to research he and his graduate adviser, Mechanical Engineering Associate Professor Pradeep Menezes, conducted for NASA. They investigated solid lubricants added into a ceramic composite material used in devices that come into contact with each other. The benefits of self-lubricating composites can include reduced damage to materials due to friction.

Kasar also studies tribo-corrosion, which is when a material fails due to wear and tear, along with corrosion caused by the environment. Some of his research — including a project done with a local company — involves reviewing different manufacturing coating techniques to see how they might affect tribo-corrosion in a product.

Real-world applications drive the research.

“Everything we are doing has a direct practical application,” Kasar said.

Kasar expects to graduate this spring.

But, already, he has made a mark.

“Ashish has made a significant scientific contribution in the areas of surface engineering and tribology,” Menezes said. “He has published several research articles in prestigious journals on self-lubricating composites, nanocomposite coatings and tribo-corrosion. It gives me great pride and pleasure to be his graduate adviser in his successful Ph.D. journey at UNR.”

Prior to the University, Kasar completed his master’s degree in materials science and engineering from Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, and a bachelor’s degree in metallurgical engineering from National Institute of Technology, Raipur. He has published 28 papers in peer-reviewed journals and has given 10 conference presentations. He is currently editing a book on multiphase bio-based lubricants. He is a member of the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers (STLE), and served as a vice-chair to conduct a session in the STLE 2021 conference.