Michela Geri

Research Themes

Computation & Artificial Intelligence, Energy Systems & Materials, Soft Matter & Nanoscale Materials

Research Interests

Mechanics of multi-phase materials - Soft and hard matter - Coupling of mechanics with thermodynamic, kinematic and chemical conditions - Particulate materials/structured fluids - Novel experimental methods - Theoretical Modeling

Bio

We are an interdisciplinary research group motivated by industrial and fundamental problems related to energy and environmental issues. Many industrial processes that are relevant to the production or transport of energy are governed by the flow and deformation of structured-fluids, where solid and fluid constituents coexist. Extreme environmental events involving soil, mud and snow also feature multi-phase materials of similar nature.

Our goal is to understand multi-phase materials, from particles/droplets suspension to solid solutions, using tailored experimental and theoretical tools. Our work is highly interdisciplinary, spanning the fields of solid&fluid mechanics, rheology and materials science. We focus specifically on developing: (i) novel experimental techniques/setups and signals that push the boundaries of current established techniques; (ii) tailored materials and processes that achieve the required mechanical and physico-chemical properties; and (iii) theoretical continuum models that can describe the observed material behavior while accounting for coupled effects.

Examples of research interests: suspensions of gas hydrates for hydrogen transport and carbon dioxide sequestration, non-equilibrium manufacturing approaches via slurries or suspensions, fluidization of earth materials, new signals and setups for mechanical measurements, theoretical continuum mechanics modeling.

Education

• B.S. University of Bologna (Italy), 2009
• M.S. University of Bologna (Italy), 2011
• Ph.D. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2019

Positions

• Assistant Professor in the Thomas Lord Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science

Awards, Honors, and Distinctions

• Journal of Rheology Publication Award. Society of Rheology. 2022
• Gallery of Rheology. Society of Rheology. 2021
• Rising Stars in Mechanical Engineering. Stanford University. 2019
• Wunsch Foundation Silent Hoist and Crane Award for Outstanding TA. MIT, MechE Department. 2018
• APS/DFD Milton van Dyke Award - Posters. APS/DFD. 2018
• Chevron-MIT Energy Fellow. MIT Energy Initiative. 2017
• Gallery of Rheology. Society of Rheology. 2017
• Chevron-MIT Energy Fellow. MIT Energy Initiative. 2016
• MIT-France ENS Lyon Exchange. MISTI Program at MIT. 2015
• Rohsenow Fellowship. MIT, MechE Department. 2012
• The Best Graduate Women 2011. University of Bologna. 2011

Courses Taught

• EGR 201L: Mechanics of Solids

Publications

• Geri M, Saint-Michel B, Divoux T, McKinley GH, Manneville S. Interplay between wall slip and shear banding in a thixotropic yield stress fluid. Soft matter. 2024 Jul;20(29):5769u201380.
• Athanasiou T, Geri M, Roose P, McKinley GH, Petekidis G. High-frequency optimally windowed chirp rheometry for rapidly evolving viscoelastic materials: Application to a crosslinking thermoset. Journal of Rheology. 2024 May 1;68(3):445u201362.
• Keshavarz B, Geri M. Mandelbrot granular raft. Physical Review Fluids. 2023 Nov 1;8(11).
• Bantawa M, Keshavarz B, Geri M, Bouzid M, Divoux T, McKinley GH, et al. The hidden hierarchical nature of soft particulate gels. Nature Physics. 2023 Aug 1;19(8):1178u201384.
• Wang FW, Geri M, Chen YJ, Huang JR, McKinley GH, Chen YL. Rheo-chemistry of gelation in aiyu (fig) jelly. Food Hydrocolloids. 2022 Feb 1;123.
• Keshavarz B, Rodrigues DG, Champenois J-B, Frith MG, Ilavsky J, Geri M, et al. Time-connectivity superposition and the gel/glass duality of weak colloidal gels. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 2021 Apr;118(15):e2022339118.
• Christoff-Tempesta T, Cho Y, Kim D-Y, Geri M, Lamour G, Lew AJ, et al. Self-assembly of aramid amphiphiles into ultra-stable nanoribbons and aligned nanoribbon threads. Nature nanotechnology. 2021 Apr;16(4):447u201354.
• Lennon KR, Geri M, McKinley GH, Swan JW. Medium amplitude parallel superposition (MAPS) rheology. Part 2: Experimental protocols and data analysis. Journal of Rheology. 2020 Sep 1;64(5):1263u201393.
• Keshavarz B, Geri M, McKinley GH. Viscoelastic fishbones. Physical Review Fluids. 2019 Oct 24;4(10).
• Geri M, Keshavarz B, Divoux T, Clasen C, Curtis DJ, McKinley GH. Time-Resolved Mechanical Spectroscopy of Soft Materials via Optimally Windowed Chirps. Physical Review X. 2018 Dec 6;8(4).
• Bouzid M, Keshavarz B, Geri M, Divoux T, Del Gado E, McKinley GH. Computing the linear viscoelastic properties of soft gels using an optimally windowed chirp protocol. Journal of Rheology. 2018 Jul 1;62(4):1037u201350.
• Geri M, Keshavarz B, McKinley GH, Bush JWM. Thermal delay of drop coalescence. Journal of Fluid Mechanics. 2017 Dec 25;833.
• Geri M, Venkatesan R, Sambath K, McKinley GH. Thermokinematic memory and the thixotropic elasto-viscoplasticity of waxy crude oils. Journal of Rheology. 2017 May 1;61(3):427u201354.
• Ding X, Peng Z, Lin S-CS, Geri M, Li S, Li P, et al. Cell separation using tilted-angle standing surface acoustic waves. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 2014 Sep;111(36):12992u20137.

In The News

• Three Engineering Projects to Build Greener Materials (Feb 25, 2025 | Pratt School of Engineering)
• Michela Geri: Developing Particulate Systems for Environmental and Sustainability Endeavors (Oct 25, 2023 | )
• Technique inspired by dolphin chirps could improve tests of soft materials (Dec 6, 2018 | MIT News)
• New model explains coffee creameru2019s levitating act (Apr 12, 2018 | JFM sponsored video abstract)
• How to float your coffee creamer (Nov 14, 2017 | MIT News)