Research & Development Team

Bill received his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from MIT in the early 80’s and has a track record of designing and developing unique heat transfer devices to solve difficult thermal problems for both ground-based and space applications. Devices range in temperature from cryogenic (20 K Hydrogen LHPs) to temperatures in excess of 2000°C (Lithium Magnetoplasmadynamic Thrusters), with heat fluxes of up to 6,800 W/cm². Bill currently serves as the Chief Engineer for ACT’s R&D program.

Srujan received his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Florida State University, with a concentration in Materials, Mechanics and Computational Science. Srujan has been working in the R&D group at ACT since 2012 where he was first an R&D Engineer.  Over the years, Srujan has developed many physics-based modeling frameworks to provide simulation capabilities for complex phenomena such as thermo-chemical degradation of ablative composites, corrosion damage and crack dynamics, nuclear material microstructure changes, and failure in composite materials. He currently leads a team of 20+ Engineers and Technicians to solve exciting thermal/fluid/materials problems solicited by agencies like NASA/DOE/DOD etc. He has also led two projects beyond Phase II for technology transition. The most recent example, of successful commercialization, is ACT’s HiK™ card for the MIDS terminals cooling. Srujan’s current research interests include Additive Manufacturing, Multiscale Modeling, ML/AI/Data Science, Nuclear Materials and Hypersonic Systems.

Calin has his Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering from the Polytechnic Institute of New York University. Since 2006 most of Calin’s work has been dedicated to the advancement of spacecraft and planetary thermal control applications. His most notable accomplishment is his work on the NASA Europa ice melting project. He is the leading engineer on much of ACT’s work with NASA and has collaborated on 3 patents with many still pending.

Chien-Hua is an R&D Manager at ACT where he has worked since 2011. Chien-Hua has his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Southern California. While he has worked on a variety of projects for ACT, he has a particular interest in applying advanced combustion, plasma, and high-temperature heat exchanger to develop new products or substitute existing techniques for more efficient and cost-effective ways.

Nathan recently completed his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Iowa State University in the summer of 2021. However, he has worked as an R&D Engineer for ACT since 2013, leading a number of programs relating to thermal management, renewable energy, and materials characterization. In addition, he is heavily involved in the company’s CSR committee. Outside of work he enjoys reading, hiking, and exploring new places.

Devon has been with ACT since 2019 working on projects utilizing non-thermal plasmas. Non-thermal plasmas are highly reactive environments without large amounts of thermal energy. Due to this low-temperature characteristic, non-thermal plasmas open the way for many novel material processes in the fields of synthesis, manufacturing, and recycling. Education: Devon has an M.S. and a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering and a B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of Utah.

Yue Xiao joined ACT in 2020 after receiving his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Arizona.  Yue has diverse research interests including heat transfer in nanomaterials and semiconductor devices, low-temperature plasma for disinfection and chemical synthesis, and additive manufacturing for space applications.

Jeff received his PhD in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Illinois in 2016. Since joining ACT in 2019 he has been PI on a variety of SBIR programs for NASA, the DOE, and the DOD. He specializes in passive two-phase thermal management, including heat pipes, variable conductance technology, and pulsating heat pipes. Jeff has developed two-phase thermal management solutions for a variety of applications, including nuclear electric propulsion, lunar landers/rovers, planar magnetic transformers, and electric aircraft.