Gianfranco DiGiuseppe, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering

Mechanical Engineering Department Kettering University 1700 University Avenue Flint, Michigan 48504-4898 Tel. 810-762-9666 gdigiuse@kettering.edu

Kettering University

Biography

Dr. Gianfranco DiGiuseppe is an Associate Professor whose expertise is in fuel cells and energy systems, thermal fluids, materials/ceramics, electrochemical characterization/engineering, and in thin films deposition technologies. He received both his Ph.D. (2000) and M.S. (1997) in Chemical Engineering from Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago IL. He received his B.A. (1994) in Chemistry and Biology from Dominican University, River Forest, IL. Between his undergraduate and graduate studies he worked for Argonne National Laboratory for one year, measuring and analyzing gas evolution form plastic materials exposed to radioactive materials. As a graduate student, he worked as a research assistant on Solid Oxide Fuel Cells, Li ion Batteries, and thin film deposition techniques. After his graduate studies, he joined Siemens Power Generation where he acted as a Principal Engineer. There he worked on tubular Solid Oxide Fuel Cells developing new geometries, new fabrication processes, and advanced materials in order to decrease cost and enhance electrical performance. During this time, he was also an Adjunct Faculty at Point Park University teaching in the Mechanical Engineering Department. Professor DiGiuseppe joined Kettering University in 2005 and now teaches in the Mechanical Engineering Department. His teaching interests are in thermodynamics, fluid dynamics, heat transfer, modeling, and fuel cell courses. His research interests are in fuel cells and batteries with an emphasis on Solid Oxide Fuel Cells with over 15 years of experience. He is responsible for Kettering’s Solid Oxide Fuel Cell research facility and is focused on research related to improved cell durability, improved thermal management, geometric optimization for increased power density, and to develop more robust cell designs that are less sensitive to operating environments. Also of interests is reformation of different fuels such as diesel and JP8 for SOFC power units. In addition, he has extensive experience in electrochemical/material characterization, thin film technologies, and ceramic processes. Dr. DiGiuseppe has been awarded one US patent, and has two US patents applications and two international patent applications, various journal publications, gives regularly technical presentations, and is an active member of the Electrochemical Society (ECS) and ASME. He has received the Kettering Outstanding Teaching Award (2010), the Kettering University Young Researcher Award (2008), multiple internal Siemens awards for innovative ideas (2003 and 2004), and the American Institute of Chemists Foundation Student Award (1994).