He earned his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Kansas State University in 2005. From 2006-08, he conducted his postdoctoral research at the Urban Operational Laboratory, a United State Marine Corps (USMC) sponsored program, on enhancement of non-lethal capabilities and protective technologies for modernization of the Marine Expeditionary Rifle Squad (MERS). Dr. Zhang's current research includes sediment and oil-spill transport in coastal water systems, hydro turbine optimizations, and chemical reaction in turbulent flows. Dr. Zhang is a senior member of American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), and a member of American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). He is the Vice-Chair of ASME Computational Fluid Dynamics Technical Committee.REGISTRATION INFORMATION