The Ohio State University

Professor


BS 1979, University of Michigan
PhD 1983, University of California

Room E329
201 W. 19th Ave.
Columbus, OH 43210

614-292-6570

Email: bechtel.3

Web site: https://www.mecheng.osu.edu/caml/overview
Thrust Area(s): Applied Mechanics

Research

Professor Bechtel’s research focuses on fundamental modeling and computational issues in mechanics, and their application for the modeling of industrial manufacturing processes and the characterization of industrial and agricultural materials. He has created computer-based models of polymer and polymer nanocomposite processing which replace physical prototyping for the purposes of product design and process optimization. He has developed and experimentally implemented techniques to obtain the viscoelastic properties of polymer and polymer/nanoparticle composite melt and suspension systems, and dynamic surface tension and elongational viscosity of agricultural pesticide sprays. In addition, he conducts research in the underlying mechanics of non-isothermal processes, free-surface flows and instability mechanisms, and belt/pulley systems.

Professor Bechtel is a Fellow of ASME. He has been supported by the National Science Foundation, Air Force Office of Scientific Research, US Department of Commerce, IBM Corporation, Hoechst Celanese Corporation, and OSU Center for Advanced Materials and Automotive Manufacturing.

Selected Publications

1. S.E. Bechtel, “The Oscillation of Slender Elliptical Inviscid and Newtonian Jets: Effects of Surface Tension, Inertia, Viscosity, and Gravity,” (recipient of the 1990 American Society of Mechanical Engineers Henry Hess Award for young authors of outstanding technical papers) ASME Journal of Applied Mechanics, Vol. 56, December 1989, pp. 968-974.
2. S.E. Bechtel, J.Z. Cao, and M.G. Forest, “Practical Application of a Higher Order Perturbation Theory for Slender Viscoelastic Jets and Fibers,” Journal of Non-Newtonian Fluid Mechanics, Vol. 41, 1992, pp. 201-273.
3. S.E. Bechtel, J.A. Cooper, M.G. Forest, N.A. Petersson, D.L. Reichard, A. Saleh, and V. Venkataramanan,” A New Model to Determine Dynamic Surface Tension and Elongational Viscosity Using Oscillating Jet Measurements,” Journal of Fluid Mechanics, Vol. 293, June 1995, pp. 379-403.
4. G.M. Henson, D. Cao, S.E. Bechtel, and M.G. Forest, “A Thin-Filament Melt Spinning Model with Radial Resolution of Temperature and Stress,” Journal of Rheology, Vol. 42, Issue 2, March/April 1998, pp. 329-360.
5. S. Naboulsi and S.E. Bechtel, “Bi-Component Filaments,” Physics of Fluids, Vol. 11, No. 4, April 1999, pp. 807-820.
6. S.E. Bechtel, S. Vohra, K.I. Jacob, and C.D. Carlson, “The Stretching and Slipping of Belts and Fibers on Pulleys,” ASME Journal of Applied Mechanics, Vol. 67, No. 1, March 2000, pp. 197-206.
7. S.E. Bechtel, S.Vohra, and K.I. Jacob, “Modeling of a Two-Stage Draw Process,” Polymer, Vol. 42, January 2001, pp. 2045-2059.
8. S.E. Bechtel, M.G. Forest, F.J. Rooney, and Q. Wang, “Thermal Expansion Models of Viscous Fluids Based on Limits of Free Energy,” Physics of Fluids, Vol. 15, September 2003, pp. 2681-2693.
9. S.E. Bechtel, F.J. Rooney, and M.G. Forest “Internal Constraint Theories for the Thermal Expansion of Viscous Fluids,” International Journal of Engineering Science, Vol. 42, 2004, pp. 43-64.
10. S.E. Bechtel, S. Vohra, and K.I. Jacob, “Fiber Draw Using Draw Pins Under Isothermal Conditions,” Polymer Engineering and Science, Vol. 44, No. 2, 2004, pp. 312-330.