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Professor Suman Shrestha
Magnesium alloys

Suman Shrestha received his PhD on ‘Corrosion and wear of thermal sprayed coatings’ from the University of Glasgow, UK and an MSc with Honours in Mechanical Design Engineering from St. Petersburg State University of Technology & Design, Russia. He is currently Global Applications Engineering Manager at Keronite International Ltd and is responsible for directing, managing and conducting Keronite applications engineering focusing on strategic application developments / solutions for automotive, aerospace & space and oil & gas sectors with the use of light metal alloys. His current research interests include light alloys, MMCs, corrosion and wear of materials, coatings, environmentally safe surface technologies with specific focus on plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO). Keronite PEO is the world’s most advanced electrolytic surface technology for light alloys. He is particularly keen on the use of materials science knowledge in solving problems with industry applications. He is currently leading various projects for Airbus, Astrium GmbH, Boeing, Cummins Turbocharger Technologies, European Space Agency (ESA), GM and the Technology Strategy Board with focus on the PEO coating technology for Al, Mg, Ti alloys. Recent successful and commercial application exploitations of the research he has led include approval of the Keronite PEO coating for: a) repair of Boeing 737-NG landing gear; b) Cummins turbochargers for Exhaust Gas Recirculation; c) Astrium’s space hinge mechanisms for ESA’s SWARM mission; d) Astrium GmbH’s Near Infrared Spectrum (NIRSpec) OBKs integrated into NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST); e) cryogenic bearings for EMIR infrared spectrograph, the largest optical telescope in the world, the Gran Telescopio CANARIAS (GTC); and f) LPGmbH magnesium tweeters fitted in volume automotive production. Another recent successful example of the project he was involved with is the development and production of the Keronite coated PFOA/PTFE free and Ecological frying pans for a major EU manufacturer (see attached videolink).

While working for industry, most of Suman’s work and over 100 technical reports within industry funded programmes remain confidential. Suman has authored/co-authored over 55 journal & conference papers including one patent and has presented his research works at numerous national and international conferences. He has worked in the capacity of Symposium Organiser, Chair and Scientific Committee member in International Conferences such as SMT21 2007, Paris; SMT22 2008, Trollhättan; Euromat 2009, Glasgow and Euromat 2011, Montpellier.

He is on the Editorial Board of Surface Engineering and in the panel for peer reviewing scientific papers for publications in leading International Journals. He also engages as assessor for Chartered Engineer/Scientist and Fellowship applications for the IOM3. He is currently involved in advising several PhD and MSc students on surface coatings and has also been an External Examiner for several PhD and MSc students.
He is a chartered engineer and a chartered scientist. He received ‘Lenin Gramota’ and ‘Red Diploma’ (Russia’s prestigious achievements) during his study in Russia. He is the recipient of USSR Ministry of Education Scholarship, ORS Award and Glasgow University Faculty of Engineering Research Scholarship. He was decorated twice (1996 and 2001) by the Late King His Majesty Birendra of Nepal with Nepal’s highest educational honour ‘Mahendra Vidhya Bhushan Medal’. For his achievements and significant contributions in his field of industrial applications, he was elected Fellow of the Institute of Materials Minerals & Mining, UK in 2007 and subsequently in 2010, Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, UK. In October 2011, he was appointed Visiting Professor by the University of Leeds to work on materials and surface technologies related to industrial applications. At Leeds, he will be working closely with Professor Anne Neville and Professor David Barton.

If you would like to contact Suman about this article or his work, please email suman.shrestha@keronite.com

Download and read the Technology Vision ' Magnesium and surface engineering' by Professor Shrestha.

Recent Peer Reviewed Journals / Chapters in Text Books
1. U. Malayoglu, K. C. Tekin and S. Shrestha: ‘An investigation into the mechanical and tribological properties
    of plasma electrolytic oxidation and hard-anodized coatings on 6082 aluminium alloy" Materials Science and
    Engineering A 528 (2011) 7451– 7460.
2. K. C. Tekin, U. Malayoglu and S. Shrestha: ‘Influence of post treatment on the corrosion resistance of PEO
    coated AM50B and AM60B Mg alloys’, Surface & Coatings Technology 205 (2010) 1793–1798.
3. E. Cakmak, K.C. Tekin, U. Malayoglu and S. Shrestha: The effect of substrate composition on the
    electrochemical and mechanical properties of PEO coatings on Mg alloys’, Surface & Coatings Technology
    204 (2010) 1305-1313.
4. S. Shrestha: ‘Magnesium and Surface Engineering-Technology Vision’, Editorial in Surface Engineering,
    2010 Vol.26, No.5, p.313-316.
5. S. Shrestha and B.D. Dunn: ‘Surface Modification of light alloys by Plasma Electrolytic Oxidation and
    Anodising processes - Spacecraft Applications’, Surface Engineering of Light Alloys - Al, Mg and Ti Alloys
    Edited by H. Dong, Woodhead Publishing Ltd, 2010, ISBN 978-1-84569-537-8, p.603-641.

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