BARBAR AKLE
Office: 310 Durham Hall Mechanical Engineering Department Tel: (540) 231-2910 Virginia Tech Fax: (540) 231-2903 Blacksburg, VA 24061-0261 E-mail: bakle@vt.edu
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Page Last Updated: 5/03/02
I come from Zgharta, a town in north Lebanon where I lived until I moved to Beirut in 1996 to further my education at The American University of Beirut, where I graduated with distinction in 2001. I hold a B.S in Mechanical Engineering and in the summer of 2000 I did an internship at Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, where I designed an industrial Coriolis Effect FlowMeter to be used in hazardous liquids applications. In August of 2001, I moved to Virginia Tech to pursue my Masters Degree. I am currently working in the area of stacking ionic polymer-metal composite actuators with Dr. Don Leo at the Center for Intelligent Material Systems and Structures.
• Characterize the performance and reliability of stacked ionic polymers.
• Integrate ionic polymers as sensors and actuators inside a stack.
• Determine their possible use in MAVs (Micro Air Vehicle) and MUVs (Micro Underwater Vehicle).
• Developed a finite element model of a multi-layer ionic polymer stack.
• Enhanced the stacking process and increased the force while preserving large displacement.
• Packaged stacks that were reliable for up to1 hour of operation.