Academic Credentials
  • Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering, University of New Hampshire, 2021
Professional Honors
  • STAF (Summer TA Fellowship) - University of New Hampshire 2019
  • DYF (Dissertation Year Fellowship) - University of New Hampshire 2015
  • CEPS (College of Eng. and Physic. Sci. Fellowship) - University of New Hampshire 2015
  • IRPS (Int. Postgrad. Research Scholarship) - University of Queensland 2015
  • MGS (Monash Graduate Scholarship) - Monash University 2015
  • IGSES (Int. Grad. Scholarship) - University of Manitoba 2015
Professional Affiliations
  • Postdoctoral Fellow, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Cornell University, 2022-2023
  • Postdoctoral Fellow, Materials Science and Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, 2021-2022
  • Member of the Minerals, Metals & Materials Society (TMS)

Dr. Eghtesad supports clients in litigation and non-litigation (proactive) matters through performance evaluation of mechanical systems, reliability assessment, and root cause analysis of reported failures. Dr. Eghtesad relies upon computer modeling and simulation using finite element analysis (FEA) supported by physical testing, experiments, and field inspections to perform engineering and failure analysis across various industry sectors, including consumer products, manufacturing, medical devices, automotive, and crashworthiness.

Consumer Products

Dr. Eghtesad performs engineering analyses of consumer products, focusing on testing, performance evaluation, engineering assessments, and failure analysis. His work addresses product safety, regulatory compliance, and recall investigations. He has worked on a diverse range of consumer products, including but not limited to blenders, French presses, glass bottles, tumblers, travel mugs, lanyards, pressure vessels, microwave-safe glass and ceramic containers, refrigerator compressors, TV Panels, PVC and industrial piping, bolted flanges, bollards, foam glass, piezo transducers in sonar applications, fuel injectors, and paper shredders..

Medical Devices

Dr. Eghtesad is experienced in assessing the mechanical and fatigue life performance of medical devices. He leverages computer simulations and finite element analysis (FEA) to better understand the mechanical response of medical devices. Dr. Eghtesad's insights have helped clients and start-up medical device companies with cardiovascular devices (CVDs), intrauterine devices (IUDs), and skin allergy test devices during his time at Exponent.

Manufacturing

Dr. Eghtesad has extensive expertise in analyzing premature component failures across various industries, particularly in manufacturing. He has evaluated metal forming processes and assessed the mechanical integrity of metallic and composite components commonly used in the automotive and aerospace sectors. His work helps clients identify the root causes of failures and implement effective corrective actions, while taking into account the limitations of the manufacturing processes.

Automotive and Crashworthiness 

Dr. Eghtesad has more than a decade of experience in understanding the impact and crashworthiness of materials and components under impact/crash loads. He leverages simulation tools and techniques such as LS-DYNA, Abaqus, Autodyne, and ANSYS Explicit Dynamics to understand the deformation patterns and load paths in the vehicles' structures. Dr. Eghtesad has also assisted the clients in reviewing and improving their existing computer models. In addition, Dr. Eghtesad has provided insights into the structural integrity of the components used in the transportation industry, such as SkyTrain, railcar, and engine.

Computer Modeling and Finite Element Analysis (FEA)

Dr. Eghtesad has extensive experience in computer simulations using a wide range of finite element modeling (FEM) tools, including Abaqus, Ansys, and COMSOL, and provides clients with a unique perspective for addressing complex computational projects required in a wide range of industries. In addition to FEA, Dr. Eghtesad has gained skills in computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and fluid-structure-interaction (FSI) modeling and analysis using the Ansys Workbench modules. Additionally, Dr. Eghtesad leverages the cutting-edge machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) tools and data-driven models to help clients detect design defects and offer predictive forecasts towards improving the design process and final products.

Experience Prior to Joining Exponent

Prior to joining Exponent, Dr. Eghtesad served as a postdoctoral fellow in the Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Cornell University and the Materials Science and Engineering department at the Pennsylvania State University. Dr. Eghtesad received his PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of New Hampshire in 2021. Dr. Eghtesad's work was conducted in collaboration with Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). Prior to his PhD, Dr. Eghtesad served as a design engineer in the manufacturing industry. Dr. Eghtesad's work has been used in submitting technical reports to the National Science Foundation (NSF), Department of Energy (DOE), and Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) and has resulted in 20+ peer-reviewed journal publications and 500+ citations. Dr. Eghtesad has demonstrated the impact of his work through professional talks at international conferences, including the Minerals, Metals and Materials Society (TMS).