Hongjoo Rhee

Hongjoo Rhee is a Professor in the Michael W. Hall School of Mechanical Engineering at Mississippi State University and serves as Associate Director at the Center for Advanced Vehicular Systems (CAVS). His work bridges fundamental materials science with industrial and aerospace applications, with strong affiliations in both academic and applied research environments.

• Ph.D., Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Michigan State University, 2005
• M.S., Metallurgical Engineering, Inha University, Republic of Korea, 1993
• B.S., Metallurgical Engineering, Inha University, Republic of Korea, 1991

Dr. Rhee's research focuses on steel alloy design, additive manufacturing, bio-inspired materials, and in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) for space exploration. His work emphasizes the chemistry-process-structure-property-performance relationships in advanced materials, particularly next-generation high-strength steels and metal matrix composites. He leverages multi-scale modeling, experimental characterization, and ICME (Integrated Computational Materials Engineering) to innovate in sustainable and high-performance materials.

The recent publications reflect a strong trend in space-compatible materials development, microstructure optimization in steels, and additive manufacturing. His work spans from aerospace alloys like Ti-6Al-4V to Martian regolith-based iron production, demonstrating interdisciplinary innovation. Keywords across these works include metallurgy, mechanical behavior, and sustainable processing, with subfields covering hydrogen embrittlement, twin interactions, and cold spray modeling.

His research has been supported by prestigious sponsors including the Department of Defense (DoD), National Science Foundation (NSF), and NASA. These grants enable cutting-edge projects in vehicle lightweighting, component design, and planetary resource utilization.

• DoD
• NSF
• NASA
• Industrial Partners

Dr. Rhee leads research at CAVS, where the Steel Research team operates a fully equipped lab-scale steel manufacturing facility, including vacuum induction melting, rolling mills, and heat treatment systems. His group actively works on ICME-driven alloy development and collaborates with industrial partners for scalable innovations.