Rakan Alturk

Rakan Alturk, Ph.D. has extensive work experience in engineering and research roles. Rakan is currently working as a Research and Testing Senior Engineer at ENSCO, Inc. where they conduct research on railroad track component performance, welded rail stress management, and tank car safety. Their responsibilities include leading research on inspection methods for track components, assisting with finite element simulations, and reducing the risk of derailment.

Prior to their current position, Alturk worked as an Engineer for FADI-ASD LLC, specializing in material modeling and computational analysis. Rakan led a project on fracture prediction of automotive and rail materials during crash scenarios using the GISSMO model, as well as performed multi-physics simulations. Alturk's work also involved analyzing lightweighting methods for the transportation industry, resulting in the redesign of structures produced.

Alturk's earlier experience includes working as a Research Assistant at Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research. During this time, they developed test methodologies to improve data quality and accuracy, characterized the mechanical properties of different steel alloys, and developed constitutive models for material behavior in LS-DYNA simulations. Rakan also performed crash simulations using finite element analysis for sheet metal and tank cars.

Alturk has also gained experience through research internships at General Motors. Rakan developed test methodologies for high strain rate tensile testing and studied the effects of microstructures on the behavior of advanced high strength steels. Rakan also upgraded testing equipment and incorporated high-speed digital image correlation systems for material testing and crash simulations.

Overall, Alturk's work experience demonstrates their expertise in material modeling, computational analysis, and finite element simulations. Rakan has contributed to the improvement of safety and performance in the transportation industry through their research and engineering work.

Rakan Alturk, Ph.D., pursued their education with a strong focus on engineering. Rakan completed their Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Jordan, where they attended from 2010 to 2014. Building upon their undergraduate studies, Rakan then proceeded to further their knowledge and expertise in the field of Automotive Engineering. From 2014 to 2018, they attended Clemson University, where they successfully earned their Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree.