Mahdi Bodaghi

Role

Qualifications: BSc, MSc, PhD, PGCAP, FHEA, CEng, MIMechE

Dr Mahdi Bodaghi is Associate Professor of Smart Materials & Manufacturing in the Department of Engineering, the School of Science and Technology at Nottingham Trent University. He actively pursues research on Smart Materials, Bio-composites, Metamaterials, Robotic Materials, Bio-inspired Design, Constitutive Modelling, 3D and 4D Printing (Additive Manufacturing) Technologies (h-index: 75, citations: 16,736). His experience and research has led him to:

a) establish and lead the 4D Materials & Printing Lab (since 2019)

b) co-found the 4D Printing Society (since 2020)

c) co-edit the book series- Smart Materials in Additive Manufacturing (Vol. 1, 2 & 3) published by Elsevier

d) co-found and chair the 4D Materials Design and Additive Manufacturing Conferences (since 2022)

e) launch Journal of 4D Printing (Co-Editor in Chief)

f) co-author Roadmaps on 1) 4D Printing, 2) Why Space? The Opportunity for Materials Science and Innovation (Satellite Applications Catapult), 3) Artificial Intelligence‐Augmented Additive Manufacturing, 4) Unlocking the potential of metamaterials.

His research has also resulted in the publication of 361 peer-reviewed scientific papers in prestigious journals.

He leads the following modules at NTU as well:

Smart Materials for Medical Applications(2019-2026) (lead)

Solid Mechanics and Dynamics, (2018-2024) (lead)

Career overview

Mahdi received his BSc, MSc and PhD Degrees in Applied Design in 2007, 2010 and 2015, respectively. For his doctoral research, he developed constitutive models for functional Shape Memory Alloys (SMAs) and Piezoelectrics and assessed their sensory and actuation performance in controlling shape and vibration of smart structures by non-linear Finite Element Analysis. He received the Best Doctoral Thesis Award in 2015. During his PhD training, he also served as a Teaching Assistant and a Lecturer for the modules of Mechanics of Materials (I, II, III), Engineering Plasticity and its Applications, and Manufacturing Processes and Technologies.

From July 2015 to July 2018, he was working as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Smart Materials and Structures Laboratory at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. He worked with Prof. Wei-Hsin Liao to develop advanced multi-functional shape-memory structures fabricated by 3D and 4D Printing Technologies for Mechanical, Aerospace and Biomedical Applications.  Since October 2018, Mahdi has been with the Department of Engineering at Nottingham Trent University (NTU). He received Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice from NTU in November 2020. Mahdi has been ranked amongst top 2% of the most influential researchers in 2020-24 in the world by Elsevier and Stanford University, top 1% of reviewers in the cross-field ranked by WoS, and endorsed as Global Talent by the Royal Academy of Engineering. He has served as Chairman and member of Scientific Committees for 16 International Conferences, as Guest Editor for 8 Journals, as Editorial Board Member for 12 scientific Journals, and as Reviewer for over 150 Journals.

Mahdi’s research awards include the Best Doctoral Thesis Award; 2016 CUHK Postdoctoral Fellowship; 2017 ASME Best Paper Award in Mechanics and Material Systems; 2018 Horizon Fellowship Award; 2021 IJPEM-GT Contribution Award recognised by the Korea Society for Precision Engineering; 2023-26 Researcher in Residence supported by 2023-25 EPSRC Innovation Launchpad Network+; 2024-27 EPSRC NI Award; 2024-25 RAEng/Leverhulme Trust Research Fellowship; 2024 CAS PIFI Fellowship.

External activity

Professional Society:

• Fellow of Higher Education Academy (FHEA)
• Member of the Institute of Mechanical Engineers (M-IMechE), London, UK
• Chartered Engineer (CEng) recognised by IMechE and registered by the UK Engineering Council
• Member of the IEEE Robotics and Intelligent Sensing Technical Committee
• Member of the Engineering Professors’ Council (EPC)
• Member of the Institute of Acoustics
• Board Representative of the UK Association for Computational Mechanics (UKACM)

Journal Service:

• Co-Editor-in-Chief of 4D Printing
• Editorial Board Member of Macromolecular Materials and Engineering
• Editorial Board Member of International Journal of Extreme Manufacturing
• Editorial Board Member of Smart Materials and Structures (2021-2025)
• Editorial Board Member of Biomedical Physics & Engineering Express (2020-2025)
• Editorial Board Member of International Journal of Precision Engineering and Manufacturing-Green Technology
• Editorial Board Member of Journal of Medical Engineering & Technology
• Editorial Board Member of  International Journal of Bioprinting
• Editorial Board Member of Smart Materials in Manufacturing
• Editorial Board Member of Sustainable Futures
• Editorial Board Member of Science and Engineering of Composite Materials
• Editorial Board Member of Journal of Functional Biomaterials
• Editorial Board Member of Designs 
• Editorial Board Member of Journal of Composites Science
• Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Smart Materials and Structures Journal (ISSN 1361-665X, IF: 3.7): 4D Materials Design and Additive Manufacturing 2024-25 (it is open for submission; deadline: June 5, 2025)
• Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Smart Materials and Structures Journal (ISSN 1361-665X, IF: 4.1): 4D Materials Design and Additive Manufacturing 2023 (it is closed)
• Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Micromachines Journal (ISSN 2072-666X, IF: 3.4): 3D-Printed Implants: Design, Manufacture, Simulation and Applications (it is open for submission; deadline: Aug 1, 2024)
• Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Materials Research Express Journal (ISSN 2053-1591, IF: 2.3): Metamaterials in Robotics and Intelligent Structures (it is open for submission; deadline: Aug 1, 2024)
• Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Smart Materials and Structures Journal (ISSN 1361-665X, IF: 4.1): 4D Materials Design and Additive Manufacturing (it is open for submission; deadline: April 30, 2023)
• Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Journal of Functional Biomaterials (ISSN 2079-4983, IF: 4.8): Selected Reviews in Biomaterials: Development, Applications and Challenges (it is open for submission; deadline: Sept 22, 2023)
• Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Mathematics Journal (ISSN 2227-7390, IF: 2.4): Analytical and Computational Mechanics of Advanced Materials and Functional Structures (it is open for submission; deadline: March 25, 2022)
• Topic Editor of the Research Topic in Frontiers in Robotics and AI (ISSN 2296-9144, IF: 3:4): 4D Printing and 3D Printing in Robotics, Sensors, and Actuators Manufacturing (it is open for submission; deadline: 5 April 2022)
• Guest Editor of the Special Issue of International Journal of Bioprinting (ISSN 2424-8002, IF: 8.4): Mechanical Behaviours of 3D/4D Printing Biomaterials and Smart Structures (it is open for submission; deadline: Nov 30, 2022)
• Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Progress in Additive Manufacturing (ISSN 2363-9520, IF: 4.5): Special Issue on New Trends in 4D Printing (it is open for submission; deadline: February 28, 2023)
• Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Actuators (ISSN 2076-0825, IF: 2.6): Smart Materials in Robotics and Actuators (it is open for submission; deadline: Dec 31, 2023)
• Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050, IF: 3.9): Sustainable 3D/4D Printing Systems, Materials, and Applications (it is open for submission; deadline: Dec 30, 2023)
• Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Polymers Journal (ISSN 2073-4360, IF: 5): The Next Generation of Smart Materials and 3D/4D Printing Technologies (closed; deadline: June 20, 2021)
• Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Applied Sciences Journal (ISSN 2076-3417, IF: 2.7): Acoustic Metamaterials and Acoustic Foams: Recent Advances (closed; deadline: Dec 10, 2021)
• Guest Editor of the Special Issue of Applied Sciences Journal (ISSN 2076-3417, IF: 2.7): 3D-printed Soft Robots and 4D Printing: Modeling, Fabrication, and Control (closed; deadline: Dec 30, 2021)
• ​The top 1% of reviewers in the cross-field ranked by Web of Science
• Reviewer for 150+ International Journals verified by Web of Science (1430+ reviews)

Member of organising committee and/or keynotes of the following conferences:

• The 9^th International Conference on Mechanical Engineering and Applied Composite Materials,  Istanbul, Turkey, August 21-23, 2026.
• The 2^nd International Online Conference on Functional Biomaterials,  8-10 July 2026.
• 13^th International Conference on Sensors, IoT and Intelligent Networks - SENSORNETS 2026,  8-10 July 2026, Porto, Portugal.
• 10th International Conference on Advanced Manufacturing and Materials (ICAMM),  London, United Kingdom, 1-4 July 2026.
• 41^st International Conference of the Polymer Processing Society (PPS-41), Paestum, Salerno, Italy, 31 May -  4 June 2026.
• 2026 IEEE Int Workshop on Metrology for Industry 4.0 & IoT,  June 9-10, Rome, Italy. (Special Session on Wearable Sensors: From Design and Optimization to Manufacturing and Testing)
• 9^th International Conference on Frontiers of Sensors Technologies (ICFST 2025), Shenzhen, China, December 19‑21, 2025.
• 32^nd International Conference on Computational & Experimental Engineering and Sciences (ICCES), Hong Kong, 7-11 August 2025.
• International Conference On Civil Engineering & Technology 2025 (CIVENTECH 2025), Universiti Malaysia Perlis, Perlis, Malaysia,  10-11 Sept 2025.
• The 8^th International Conference on Mechanical Engineering and Applied Composite Materials (MEACM 2025), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, August 25-27, 2025.
• 4^th international 4D Materials Design and Additive Manufacturing Conference 2025 (4DMDA 2025),  Singapore, 8-10 July  2025.
• International Conference on Digital Frontiers in Buildings and Infrastructure (DFBI2025), TU Delft, The Netherlands, 2-13 June 2025.
• 18^th European Congress and Exhibition on Advanced Materials and Processes – FEMS EUROMAT 2025, Granada, Spain, 14 -18 September 2025.
• 1st International Conference on Future of AM,  AM Powered by AI, Singapore, 5-7 August 2025.
• Annual International Conference on Biomedical Engineering and Systems (AICBES2025), Amsterdam, Netherlands, 5-7 May 2025.
• 18^th International Joint Conference on Biomedical Engineering Systems and Technologies (BIODEVICES 2025),  Porto, Portugal, 20-22 Feb 2025.
• 4^th International Conference on Robotics, Computer Vision and Intelligent Systems (ROBOVIS 2025), Porto, Portugal, 25-27 Feb 2025.
• 7^th International Conference on Mechanical Engineering and Applied Composite Materials (MEACM 2024), Singapore, September 23-25, 2024.
• 30^th International Conference on Computational & Experimental Engineering and Sciences (ICCES2024), Singapore, 3-6  August 2024.
• 4D Materials Design and Additive Manufacturing Conference 2024, UTBM, Ajaccio, France, 4-5 July 2024.
• 6^th International Conference on Advances in Manufacturing and Materials Engineering (ICAMME) 2024, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 13-14 August 2024.
• 4^th International Conference on Mechanical Design and Smart Manufacturing, Wuhan, China, August 23-25, 2024.
• 2^nd International Conference on Advanced Sensing and Intelligent Systems, Kunming, China, June 22-23, 2024
• 9^th European Congress on Computational Methods in Applied Sciences and Engineering, ECCOMAS 2024,  Lisbon, Portugal, 3-7 June 2024.
• International Conference on Polymer Science and Composite Materials, Vancouver, Canada, 4-6 November 2024.
• 1^st International Online Conference on Functional Biomaterials,  Jul 10-12, 2024.
• 5^th International Conference on Machine Learning and Soft Computing (MLSC 2024), Vancouver, Canada, 24-25 February 2024.
• 10^th International Conference on Metallurgy Technology and Materials, Bangkok, Thailand, 24-25 May 2024.
• 2024 International Conference on Automation Engineering and Artificial Intelligence (ICAEAI 2024), Shanghai, China organized by Hubei Zhongke Research Institute of Nature Science, September 21-22, 2024
• World Summit and Expo on 3D Printing and Additive Manufacturing (WSE3DPAM-2024), Prague, Czech Republic, December 2-4, 2024.
• 5^th International conference on Industrial Engineering and Artificial Intelligence (IEAI 2024),  Bangkok, Thailand, April. 24-26  2024.
• ROBOVIS 2024: 4th International Conference on Robotics, Computer Vision and Intelligent Systems, Rome Italy, Feb. 25-27 2024.
• Panel: DFAM – Design for AM, Formnext 2023, Messe Frankfurt, Germany, 10 Nov 2023.
• 12^th-15^th International Conference on Advanced Materials and Engineering Materials (ICAMEM2023-25), Bangkok, Thailand, 2023; Dubai, UAE, 2024; Hongkong, China, 2025.
• Design for 4D Printing Workshop, UK Design for Additive Manufacturing Network, Online, 18 September 2023.
• 4D Materials Design and Additive Manufacturing Conference 2023, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, USA and Online, Sept 7-8, 2023.
• 2023 International Conference on Biotechnology and Bioengineering (13th ICBB) ICBB 2023, Pozzuoli Italy, Sept. 28- Oct. 1, 2023.
• 17^th International Joint Conference on Biomedical Engineering Systems and Technologies, Rome, Italy, 21-24 Feb. 2024.
• 7^th International Congress on 3D Printing (Additive Manufacturing) Technologies and Digital Industry 2023 (HYBRID), ISTANBUL, TURKIYE, 25-27 October, 2023.
• 4^th International Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain Conference, the University of Aizu in Aizu-Wakamatsu, Japan, 27-29 October, 2023.
• 6^th IEEE-RAS International Conference on Soft Robotics (RoboSoft), Marina Bay Sands, Singapore, April 3-7, 2023. ROBOSOFT WORKSHOP 2023: Additive Manufacturing and Novel Fabrication Techniques of Small-Scale Soft Robotics, April 3, 2023.
• Fourth International Conference on Simulation for Additive Manufacturing (Sim-AM 2), IS09 - Modelling, Simulation and Optimization of Functional Materials and Structures for Advanced Additive Manufacturing, Munich, Germany, 26-28 July 2023.
• 17^th International Conference on Advances in Experimental Mechanics, University of Glasgow, UK, 30 August 2023 - 01 September 2023.
• POLYMERFORUM 2023, San Francisco, USA, September 04-06, 2023.
• International Conference on Nanotechnology & Materials Science, Barcelona, Spain, September 25-27, 2023.
• 2022 International Symposium on Computing and Artificial Intelligence (ISCAI 2022) organized by the Hong Kong Society of Robotics and Automation (HKSRA) and Dalian University of Technology, Beijing, China, Dec 16-18, 2022.
• 4D Materials Design and Additive Manufacturing Conference, Sept 1-2, 2022.
• International Summer School on New Advances in Materials for Additive Manufacturing, Brescia, Italy, September 5-9, 2022.
• The 6^th International Conference on Innovative and Smart Materials, Krakow, Poland, December 9-11, 2022.
• International Conference on Additive Manufacturing for a Better World, Singapore, August 23-25, 2022.
• WCCM-APCOM 2022: 1003 Modeling, Simulation and Optimization of Functional Materials and Advanced Manufacturing, Yokohama, Japan, July 31 to August 5, 2022.
• International Undergraduates Poster Competition (IUPC 2022), Johor Bahru, June 29-30, 2022.
• The 2^nd International Conference on Additive Fabrication of Composites, November 23-24, 2021.
• Global Summit on Polymer Science and Composite Materials (PolyScience2021), Valencia, October 18-20, 2021.
• Smart Devices Symposium 2021 (SDS2021), Osaka, May 19-21, 2021.
• The 3^rd International Conference on Biosciences and Medical Engineering, Johor Bahru, June 29-30, 2021.
• TII Advanced Materials Seminar, Khalifa University, December 14-15, 2020.
• 4D Printing & Meta Materials Conference, Online, March 9, 2021, 6th edition, 14:00-18:00 CET.
• The 3^rd Annual International Conference on Computer Science and Mechanical Automation, Wuhan, November 2017.