Aastha Dutta Editor

Prof. Sabu Thomas, an outstanding Alumnus of IIT, Kharagpur, is one of India’s most renowned scientists in the area of Polymers. After completing his Ph.D. from IIT Kharagpur (1984-1987), he joined MG University as a Lecturer in 1997 and later became its Vice Chancellor. He has taken up a large number of visiting assignments abroad. Under his leadership, the University has been ranked 713th by TIMES, 30th in NIRF and the best University inKerala. He has supervised 120 Ph.D. students, authored 1,300 publications and edited 150 books earning him a H-index of 112 and 60,000 citations. He has received Honoris Causa degrees from Russia and France and obtained grants amounting to Rs. 30 crores for research funding from India and abroad. He has been ranked 114th in the list of the world’s best scientists and 2nd in India by the Stanford University Ranking in Polymers. He was elected as a Fellow of the European Academy of Sciences. Considering his excellent contributions in teaching, research and administration, Prof. Thomas is the best candidate for the outstanding Alumnus award of IIT KGP. Ajay Vasudeo Rane (Dr.) is currently a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Durban University of Technology. His areas of research include structural, mechanical, and morphological properties of materials (specially polymer composite materials). Dr. Ajay Vasudeo Rane is a member of the Royal Society of South Africa, the South African Institution of Mechanical Engineering, affiliate member of the South African Institution of Chemical Engineers and, a member of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers. He has edited five books and has contributed book chapters and technical manuscripts in peer reviewed journals and presented research works at national and international conferences. Abitha V.K. is a Senior Research Fellow at the School of Chemical Sciences, Mahatma Gandhi University, India. Her areas of research include rubber, polymer blends, fibre filled polymer composites, particulate filled polymer composites and their morphological and structural characterization. Dr. Abitha has written several book chapters, and has co-edited three books with Elsevier. Krishnan Kanny (Dr./Prof.) is currently Director and Full Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Durban University of Technology, South Africa. He is also the Director of the Composites Research Group. Professor Kanny holds a PhD in Materials Science and Engineering from Tuskegee University, Alabama, USA. Prof Kanny is a registered Professional Technologist (Pr. Tech. Eng) with The Engineering Council of South Africa and holds professional memberships with: the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA), the South African Institute of Mechanical Engineers (SaiMech.E), the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronomics (AIAA) and is an NRF rated scientist category C1. Krishnan Kanny is a professional engineer and scientist with over thirty years’ experience in management, leadership, and human resources development. Additionally, he has over twenty-five years of research experience in manufacturing, robotics, and advanced engineering materials as well as extensive experience in mechanical engineering product, process and system design including development, implementation, and commissioning. Krishnan Kanny’s professional interests include designing, processing, and testing of composite materials systems, reinforced thermosets/ thermoplastics, and nano-infused structures for aerospace, naval and automotive applications. He also has extensive experience on failure analyses including computational and analytical modeling and characterization & Morphological analysis including Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), and Xray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS). Aastha Dutta (M.E Chemical) is working as an Assistant Professor in Maharashtra Institute of Technology, Aurangabad. She pursued ME (Chemical Engineering) from Jawahar Lal Nehru Engineering College, Aurangabad. She has teaching experience of 14 years and has been teaching subjects like Material Science, Organic Chemistry, Physical Chemistry of Polymer, Biopolymers, Polymer Recycling and Waste Management, Polymer Reaction Engineering.