Dr. Md Hafizur Rahman

Assistant Professor

Office

GE Road 133

Office Phone

(309) 438-7705office
phone

mrahm29@ilstu.eduemail

About
Education
Awards & Honors
Selected Research

Biography

Dr. Md Hafizur Rahman joined Illinois State University in 2025 as a founding Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering, bringing a diverse and interdisciplinary research background in sustainable energy, advanced manufacturing, and surface engineering.
Dr. Rahman began his research career by developing novel thermochemical reactors for converting biomass and waste plastics into bio-oils, contributing to global efforts in waste-to-energy conversion and circular economy. He remains deeply committed to hands-on, student-centered research that addresses real-world energy and environmental challenges. His interests also include rural mobility and healthcare-focused engineering solutions, aiming to create impactful and inclusive technologies for underserved communities.
Dr. Rahman’s expertise spans tribology, electrochemistry, and surface engineering, with a special emphasis on electrified lubrication systems for electric vehicle (EV) applications. His pioneering work investigates friction, wear, and corrosion behavior of ionic liquid lubricants under the influence of electrical currents. Additionally, he explores the efficacy of alternative lubricants developed from waste plastics or simply obtained using water. Besides, he also explored ultrasonication-assisted post-processing techniques to reduce the surface roughness of additively manufactured (3D printed) heat exchanger components for aerospace and space exploration.
Dr. Rahman has published 20+ peer-reviewed journal articles, 4 book chapters, and has received over 1100+ citations with an h-index of 16 and i10-index of 19. He has presented his work at several international conferences, earned 10+ research and presentation awards, and actively engages in collaborative research across academia and industry. He is an active member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers (STLE). He has been inducted into Phi Kappa Phi and Beta Gamma Sigma honor societies in recognition of his academic excellence.
Prospective students interested in his research are encouraged to reach out. Dr. Rahman welcomes collaboration and mentorship opportunities across disciplines.

Current Courses

EGR 130.003 Introduction to Engineering Design

EGR 130.006 Introduction to Engineering Design

EGR 130.009 Introduction to Engineering Design

MEC 140.001 Computer-Aided Design and Prototyping

MEC 140.003 Computer-Aided Design and Prototyping

Teaching Interests & Areas

· Engineering Exploration
· CAD and prototyping
· Machine Design
· Manufacturing Engineering
· Professional communication for Mechanical Engineering
· Tribology and surface engineering

Research Interests & Areas

· CAD and Manufacturing
· Reactor design and development
· Producing bio-oil from biomass and waste plastics
· Surface engineering & tribology

PhD Mechanical Engineering

University of Nevada, Reno, USA

MS Mechanical Engineering

Georgia Southern University, USA

BS Mechanical Engineering

Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET), Bangladesh

Full Graduate Faculty Status

Illinois State University

2026

Impact Award

Illinois State University

2026

Founders Day Bell Ringer

Illinois State University

2026

World's Top 2% Scientists (single-year list)

Elsevier and Stanford University

2025

Northern California Research Scholarship

Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers (STLE)

2024

Top Cited Paper Award

Wiley

2024

Best Poster Award

Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers (STLE)

2022

Dean's Merit Scholarship

University of Nevada Reno

2022

Outstanding International Student Award

University of Nevada Reno

2022

Three Minute Thesis (3MT)

University of Nevada Reno

2022

Top Eagle Graduate Award

Georgia Southern University

2020

Research Innovation Award (First Place)

Georgia Southern University

2019

SPARK Business Case Competition (Second Place)

Ramboll

2019

Undergraduate Technical Scholarship

Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET)

2014

Grants and Contracts

Advancing Zero Waste to Landfill at OSF HealthCare through Plastic Waste Valorization

Md Hafizur Rahman, Umar Iqbal, Craig C McLauchlan, Ryan Wolf.

Connected Communities Initiative (CCI), OSF HealthCare and Illinois State University. July 1 2026 - June 30 2027

Design and Development of a Modular Airpath System to Enable Consistent Recycled Plastic Extrusion

Md Hafizur Rahman.

ISU Office of Research and the College of Engineering. July 1 2026 - June 30 2027

Book, Chapter

Additively manufactured functionally graded metallic materials

Dallas Evans, Md Hafizur Rahman, Mathew Heintzen, Jacob Welty, Joel Leslie, Keith Hall, Pradeep L. Menezes.

(2022), 107--136, 10.1016/B978-0-12-821328-5.00004-4, Tribology of Additively Manufactured Materials, Elsevier

Fundamentals of stereolithography: techniques, properties, and applications

Amanendra K. Kushwaha, Md Hafizur Rahman, David Hart, Branden Hughes, Diego Armando Saldana, Carson Zollars, Dipen Kumar Rajak, Pradeep L. Menezes.

(2022), 87--106, 10.1016/B978-0-12-821328-5.00003-2, Tribology of Additively Manufactured Materials, Elsevier

Fused deposition modeling (FDM): processes, material properties, and applications

Matthew Montez, Keegan Willis, Henry Rendler, Connor Marshall, Enrique Rubio, Dipen Kumar Rajak, Md Hafizur Rahman, Pradeep L. Menezes.

(2022), 137--163, 10.1016/B978-0-12-821328-5.00005-6, Tribology of Additively Manufactured Materials, Elsevier

Powder bed fusion-based additive manufacturing: SLS, SLM, SHS, and DMLS

Amanendra K. Kushwaha, Md Hafizur Rahman, Ethan Slater, Radul Patel, Christopher Evangelista, Ethan Austin, Eric Tompkins, Angus McCarroll, Dipen Kumar Rajak, Pradeep L. Menezes.

(2022), 1--37, 10.1016/B978-0-12-821328-5.00001-9, Tribology of Additively Manufactured Materials, Elsevier

Journal Article

Structure-Property-Biodegradability Relationship of Phosphonium-Based Ionic Liquids: Experimental Investigation and DFT Computations

Mostafa Khodakarami, Md Hafizur Rahman, Manoranjan Misra, Pradeep L. Menezes.

Journal of Molecular Structure, 143764, (2026), 10.1016/j.molstruc.2025.143764

Synergistic mechanisms of wear and corrosion of bio-based phosphonium ionic liquids in sliding contacts

Md Hafizur Rahman, Lincoln Pinoski, Ashlie Martini, Pradeep L. Menezes.

ASME Journal of Tribology, 1--39, (2026), 10.1115/1.4072196

Relationship between structure and properties of bio-based aromatic ring carrying ionic liquids for tribological applications

Md Hafizur Rahman, Ashlie Martini, Pradeep L. Menezes.

Tribology International, 202, 110353, (2025), 10.1016/j.triboint.2024.110353

Unveiling the Effect of Electrification on Phosphonium-Based Ionic Liquid Lubrication at Tribo Interfaces for Electric Vehicle Applications

Md Hafizur Rahman, Pradeep L. Menezes.

ASME Journal of Tribology, (2025), 10.1115/1.4068277

The effect of Fe-anion interactions on corrosion of ferrous surfaces by phosphonium ionic liquids

Ting Liu, Md Hafizur Rahman, Pradeep L. Menezes, Ashlie Martini.

Corrosion Science, 227, 111734, (2024), 10.1016/j.corsci.2023.111734

The role of ionic liquid additives in enhancing the tribological performance of plastic-derived oils

Md Hafizur Rahman, Soumya Sikdar, Prakashbhai R. Bhoi, Pradeep L. Menezes.

Journal of Molecular Liquids, 414, 126099, (2024), 10.1016/j.molliq.2024.126099

Ultrasonic assisted electropolishing to reduce the surface roughness of laser powder bed fusion based additively manufactured copper heat exchanger components

Md Hafizur Rahman, Angus McCarroll, Arpith Siddaiah, Pradeep Kumar, Pradeep L. Menezes.

The International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology, 1--18, (2024), 10.1007/s00170-024-14399-6

Enhancement in tribological performance of plastic oil by solid lubricant additives

Soumya Sikdar, Md Hafizur Rahman, Alessandro M. Ralls, Pradeep L. Menezes.

Lubrication Science, (2023), 10.1002/ls.1647

Physicochemical and tribological comparison of bio- and halogen-based ionic liquid lubricants

Md Hafizur Rahman, Ting Liu, Tatianna Macias, Manoranjan Misra, Manish Patel, Ashlie Martini, Pradeep L. Menezes.

Journal of Molecular Liquids, 369, 120918, (2023), 10.1016/j.molliq.2022.120918

Pyrolysis of waste plastics into fuels and chemicals: A review

Md Hafizur Rahman, Prakashbhai R. Bhoi, Pradeep L. Menezes.

Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 188, 113799, (2023), 10.1016/j.rser.2023.113799

Recent Progress of Machine Learning Algorithms for the Oil and Lubricant Industry

Md Hafizur Rahman, Sadat Shahriar, Pradeep L. Menezes.

Lubricants, 11 (7), 289, (2023), 10.3390/lubricants11070289

Tribological performance of ionic liquid impregnated porous aluminum borate ceramic

Ashish K. Kasar, Md Hafizur Rahman, Brian D'Souza, Pradeep L. Menezes.

Tribology International, 180, 108219, (2023), 10.1016/j.triboint.2023.108219

Effect of Ion Pair on Contact Angle for Phosphonium Ionic Liquids

Ting Liu, Md Hafizur Rahman, Pradeep L. Menezes, Ashlie Martini.

The Journal of Physical Chemistry B, 126 (23), 4354--4363, (2022), 10.1021/acs.jpcb.2c01989

Hydrocarbon recovery through catalytic pyrolysis of compostable and recyclable waste plastics using a novel desk-top staged reactor

Prakashbhai R. Bhoi, Md Hafizur Rahman.

Environmental Technology and Innovation, 27, 102453, (2022), 10.1016/j.eti.2022.102453

Recent progress on phosphonium-based room temperature ionic liquids: Synthesis, properties, tribological performances and applications

Md Hafizur Rahman, Arash Khajeh, Pawan Panwar, Manish Patel, Ashlie Martini, Pradeep L. Menezes.

Tribology International, 167, 107331, (2022), 10.1016/j.triboint.2021.107331

Review of molecular dynamics simulations of phosphonium ionic liquid lubricants

Ting Liu, Pawan Panwar, Arash Khajeh, Md Hafizur Rahman, Pradeep L. Menezes, Ashlie Martini.

Tribology Letters, 70 (2), 44, (2022), 10.1007/s11249-022-01583-6

Thermal decomposition of phosphonium salicylate and phosphonium benzoate ionic liquids

Arash Khajeh, Md Hafizur Rahman, Ting Liu, Pawan Panwar, Pradeep L. Menezes, Ashlie Martini.

Journal of Molecular Liquids, 352, 118700, (2022), 10.1016/j.molliq.2022.118700

Tribological and corrosion behavior of high pressure cold sprayed duplex 316 L stainless steel

Alessandro M. Ralls, Mohammedreza Daroonparvar, Soumya Sikdar, Md Hafizur Rahman, Momena Monwar, Kevin Watson, Charles M. Kay, Pradeep L. Menezes.

Tribology International, 169, 107471, (2022), 10.1016/j.triboint.2022.107471

An overview of non-biodegradable bioplastics

Md Hafizur Rahman, Prakashbhai R. Bhoi.

Journal of Cleaner Production, 294, 126218, (2021), 10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.126218

Recent progress on electroactive polymers: Synthesis, properties and applications

Md Hafizur Rahman, Harmony Werth, Alexander Goldman, Yuki Hida, Court Diesner, Logan Lane, Pradeep L. Menezes.

Ceramics, 4 (3), 516--541, (2021), 10.3390/ceramics4030038

Synergistic study of solid lubricant nano-additives incorporated in canola oil for enhancing energy efficiency and sustainability

Soumya Sikdar, Md Hafizur Rahman, Pradeep L. Menezes.

Sustainability, 14 (1), 290, (2021), 10.3390/su14010290

Thermo-catalytic co-pyrolysis of biomass and high-density polyethylene for improving the yield and quality of pyrolysis liquid

Md Hafizur Rahman, Prakashbhai R. Bhoi, Arpita Saha, Vivek Patil, Sushil Adhikari.

Energy, 225, 120231, (2021), 10.1016/j.energy.2021.120231