News & Press Releases
Featured News
![Drone shot of SMAST building and pier](https://pxl-umassdedu.terminalfour.net/fit-in/320x500/filters:quality(80)/prod01/production-cdn-pxl/media/umassdartmouth/news/2024/SMAST-aerial-pier-1-845X450.png)
Funding to enhance the university’s role and positive impact on the regional blue economy and the sustainability of vital coastal and ocean resources
Latest News
News & Public Information![Drone shot of SMAST building and pier](https://pxl-umassdedu.terminalfour.net/fit-in/320x500/filters:quality(80)/prod01/production-cdn-pxl/media/umassdartmouth/news/2024/SMAST-aerial-pier-1-845X450.png?text=fallback320)
Funding to enhance the university’s role and positive impact on the regional blue economy and the sustainability of vital coastal and ocean resources
![Visiting faculty Brian Sirman (left) and Lisa M. Ungerbuehler (right).](https://pxl-umassdedu.terminalfour.net/fit-in/320x500/filters:quality(80)/prod01/production-cdn-pxl/media/umassdartmouth/news/law/honorary-degree-2024-(1)-1-1200X600.jpg?text=fallback320)
Visiting faculty bring diverse expertise in civil procedure, health law, legal research, and more
![book cover art of an island and ocean](https://pxl-umassdedu.terminalfour.net/fit-in/320x500/filters:quality(80)/prod01/production-cdn-pxl/media/umassdartmouth/news/2024/Undiscovered-island-cover-24-1-970X1500.jpg?text=fallback320)
The publishing arm of the Center for Portuguese Studies and Culture at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth announces the publication of The Undiscovered Island by Darrell Kastin.
![Tyler Ramey presenting at the Leadership Conference](https://pxl-umassdedu.terminalfour.net/fit-in/320x500/filters:quality(80)/prod01/production-cdn-pxl/media/umassdartmouth/news/2024/Tyler-Ramey-Leadership-Conference8_1_24-1-1200X1600.png?text=fallback320)
The event focused on supporting and developing the next generation of educational leaders
![UMass Law Dean's Advisory Board](https://pxl-umassdedu.terminalfour.net/fit-in/320x500/filters:quality(80)/prod01/production-cdn-pxl/media/umassdartmouth/news/law/web-story-template-multiple-(1)-1-1200X600.jpg?text=fallback320)
Prominent members of MA business and legal community to provide strategic advice to the Commonwealth's only public law school
![Tobey Curtis and Megan Winton review data on white shark](https://pxl-umassdedu.terminalfour.net/fit-in/320x500/filters:quality(80)/prod01/production-cdn-pxl/media/umassdartmouth/news/2024/BabySharksInTheCity_00422-1-1200X900.jpg?text=fallback320)
SMAST alumni and adjunct faculty appear in Discovery and Nat Geo shark programs, including a groundbreaking study on baby great white sharks.
![Jonathan kush](https://pxl-umassdedu.terminalfour.net/fit-in/320x500/filters:quality(80)/prod01/production-cdn-pxl/media/umassdartmouth/profiles/charlton/_MG_0479-_2_Jonathan-Kush-1.jpg?text=fallback320)
Assistant professor of management receives Keyton-Brower Best Paper Award for article appearing in Small Group Research
Feature Stories
Feature storiesVideo
See more UMassD videosEvents
Event CalendarFinancial Aid Services wants to remind all students to file their FAFSA! Join Financial Aid Services for FAFSA Help Labs in LARTS 203 on Tuesdays from 10am-11am for help filing your FAFSA and learning more about financial aid. Contact Mark Yanni myanni@umassd.edu
Financial Aid Services wants to remind all students to file their FAFSA! Join Financial Aid Services for FAFSA Help Labs via Zoom on Fridays from 2-3pm for help filing your FAFSA and learning more about financial aid. Contact Mark Yanni myanni@umassd.edu
Welcome New Corsairs! We're thrilled to have you join the Corsair Family! Our orientation programs are designed to welcome new students, parents, and families to the UMass Dartmouth community. Through carefully planned sessions, you will gain a comprehensive perspective on life at UMassD. You will have the opportunity to connect with fellow students and learn about campus resources and essential information for a successful university experience.
Welcome New Corsairs! We are thrilled to have you join the Corsair Family! Our orientation programs are designed to welcome new students, parents, and families to the UMass Dartmouth community. Through carefully planned sessions, you will gain a comprehensive perspective on life at UMassD. You will have the opportunity to connect with fellow students and learn about campus resources and essential information for a successful university experience.
Mechanical Engineering MS Thesis Defense by Mr. Mohammed Shonar DATE: August 29, 2024 TIME: 9am-11:00am LOCATION: Science & Engineering (SENG), Room 110 (Materials Science Lab) TOPIC: Design and Experimental Study of the Mode-I and Mixed-Mode Fracture Toughness of Polyacrylamide-Amylopectin Hydrogel with Tunable Chitosan Topohesion ABSTRACT: Hydrogels are soft and water-rich polymer networks with tunable adhesive properties, that are extensively utilized in biomedical engineering applications. Due to their excellent bonding characteristics, hydrogels can adhere to various surfaces, including skin and organ tissues. However, the fracture properties of soft-soft (e.g. gel-gel and gel-tissue) interfaces have not been thoroughly explored, and typical peel-test configurations have limitations. Hence, in this work, two fracture test setups are designed, built, and tested to accommodate the mode-I and mixed-mode (I/II) fracture characteristics of interfacially bonded hydrogels. A single network hydrogel composed of Polyacrylamide and Amylopectin was selected to evaluate the proposed test setups. The hydrogels were photocured into T-shaped cross-section adherents and bonded together to form test specimens. The interface of the adherents are topologically connected with 200 L of chitosan solution consisting of average molecular weights of 1.5 kDa, 15 kDa, 120 kDa, 250 kDa, 343 kDa, and a control group with no chitosan solution. The study investigates the effect of different chitosan molecular weights and pH (ranging from 2.5 to 4.5) on the interfacial fracture toughness. The mode-I and mixed-mode (50% mixity) fracture initiation toughness are evaluated using nonlinear J-integral fracture mechanics. The chitosan with the highest molecular weight and pH resulted in a 200% increase in mode-I fracture toughness compared to the control with no chitosan topological connections, which is attributed to the robust interfacial chemistry and crack tip blunting phenomena. In the mixed-mode loading conditions, the toughness is lower than the mode-I toughness for all configurations, and the highest molecular weight and pH lead to an 80% increase in the mixed-mode toughness. These results are supplemented with analysis by Digital Image Correlation (DIC), which is utilized to compare the strain distribution around the fracture process zone at initiation and crack growth resistance curves (R-curves) to assess the propagation fracture mechanics. ADVISOR: - Dr. Vijaya Chalivendra, Department of Mechanical Engineering, UMass Dartmouth COMMITTEE MEMBERS: - Dr. Dapeng Li, Department of BioEngineering, UMass Dartmouth - Dr. Caiwei Shen, Department of Mechanical Engineering, UMass Dartmouth Open to the public. All MNE students are encouraged to attend. For more information, please contact Dr. Vijaya Chalivendra (vchalivendra@umassd.edu).
Welcome new Corsairs, and thank you for your service! We are thrilled to have you join the Corsair Family! Veteran Orientation is designed to welcome you to the UMass Dartmouth community. Through carefully planned sessions, you will gain a comprehensive perspective on life at UMassD. You will have the opportunity to connect with fellow student veterans and learn about campus resources and essential information for a successful university experience.