Samar Malek, Ph.D.

Associate Professor
Mechanical & Nuclear Engineering Department
United States Naval Academy
590 Holloway Road
Annapolis, MD 21402-5042
410 293 6528
malek@usna.edu

• Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
• Doctor of Philosophy, Structures and Materials
• Dissertation: "The Effect of Geometry and Topology on the Mechanics of Grid Shells"

• Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
• Master of Science, Structures and Materials
• Thesis: "A study of the dynamics of shells with boundary layers and the MITC3 shell element"

• Department of Civil Engineering
• Bachelors of Science with Departmental and General Honors, Structures
• Minor: Mathematical Sciences

• High-performing Shell Structures
• Active Bending and Gridshells
• Biomimicry in Architecture and Structural Engineering
• Computational Methods and Geometry

• Associate Professor, U.S. Naval Academy, (Aug. 2019 - present
• Assistant Professor, U.S. Naval Academy, (Aug. 2014-Aug. 2019)
• Part-Time Teaching Fellow, University of Bath, (Sept. 2012-June 2013)
• Visiting Lecturer, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Spring 2010)
• Structural Engineer, Thornton Tomasetti, (2008)
• Civil Engineer, Naval Surface Warfare Center, (May 2004-Aug. 2005)

• DeVries, L.D., Luznik, L. & Malek, S. Modeling, system identification, and friction compensation of an actuator system for heave and surge wave energy converter experiments. J. Ocean Eng. Mar. Energy (2024). 
• Malek, S., Ryan, C. and Slager, J. A comparative analysis of 3d printed gridshell structures using finite element models and experimental load-deflection tests in the Proceedings of the IASS Annual Symposium 2024 Redefining the Art of Structural Design August 26-30, 2024, Zurich Switzerland Philippe Block, Giulia Boller, Catherine DeWolf, Jacqueline Pauli, Walter Kaufmann (eds.)
• Imhoff, T., and Malek, S., Is there a case for gridshell structures in humanitarian assistance and disaster relief efforts? Journal of Humanitarian Engineering, Vol. 9 (1), July 19, 2024.
• Malek, S., and Williams, C. (2014). Corrugated plate and shell structures. Nexus Network Journal: Architecture and Mathematics. Under Review.
• Malek, S., Wierzbicki, T., and Ochsendorf, J. (2014). Buckling of spherical cap gridshells: A numerical and analytical study revisiting the concept of equivalent continuum. Engineering Structures, 75 pp.288-298.
• Aish, F., Joyce, S., Malek, S., and Williams, C. (2014). The use of a particle method for the modelling of isotropic membrane stress for the form-finding of shell and fabric structures. Computer-Aided Design, Available online 10 February 2014.
• Adriaenssens, S., Malek, S., Miki, M., and Williams, C. (2013). Generating smooth curves in 3 dimensions by minimizing higher order strain energy measures. International Journal of Space Structures, 28 (3-4) pp. 119-126.

• Marshall-Sherfield Fellowship, 2012, Post-doctorate fellowship awarded to one American scientist or engineer by the Marshall Commission
• MIT Martin Family Society of Fellows for Sustainability, 2011, MIT fellowship for graduate level research, education, and collaboration in sustainability
• MIT Graduate Student Council Teaching Award, 2008, awarded to one professor or teaching assistant for excellence in teaching a graduate level course; recipient for the MIT School of Engineering.