Associate Professor
Brandon Runnels
- Department of Aerospace Engineering
- Iowa State University
Dr. Runnels develops computational methods for mechanics of materials, with emphasis on phase-field and diffuse-interface methods, interfacial mechanics, energetic materials, and scalable simulation tools for complex microstructures.
Education
PhD, Mechanical Engineering
California Institute of Technology
2015MS, Mechanical Engineering
California Institute of Technology
2012BS, Mechanical Engineering
New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology
2011Appointments
Associate Professor, Department of Aerospace Engineering
Iowa State University
2023 -presentAssociate Professor, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
University of Colorado Colorado Springs
2022 -2023Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
University of Colorado Colorado Springs
2015 -2022Graduate Research Assistant
California Institute of Technology
2011 -2015Graduate Research Assistant
Los Alamos National Laboratory
2011 -2015Honors + Awards
- NSF CAREER Award, 2022
- Researcher of the Year, UCCS Engineering and Applied Science, 2022
- AFOSR Summer Faculty Fellowship, 2017
- Seaborg Institute Research Fellowship, 2014
Research Areas
Energetic materials
Mechanics and multiphysics simulation of solid propellants and solid rocket motor materials.
Interfacial mechanics
Grain boundaries, phase boundaries, fracture, damage, and microstructure evolution.
Computational methods
Phase-field, diffuse-interface, adaptive, and high-performance methods for mechanics.
Professional Affiliations
- Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics
- American Physical Society
- The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society
- Society of Engineering Science
- Engineering Mechanics Institute
- Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honors Society
- Kappa Mu Epsilon Mathematics Honors Society
Publications
Full publication record, conference papers, presentations, software outputs, and related research products are maintained on the publications page.
View PublicationsScientific Review + Service
Acta Materialia, Archive of Applied Mechanics, Cambridge University Press, Computational Materials Science, Department of Energy, European Research Council, Fondecyt Program National Research and Development Agency, Journal of Applied Mechanics, Journal of Applied Physics, Journal of Computational Physics, Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets, Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids, Manufacturing Technology, Mechanics of Materials, Modelling and Simulation in Materials Science and Engineering, Scripta Materialia, Society of Industrial and Applied Mathematics, Swiss National Supercomputing Centre.