Ali S. Rangwala

Ali S. Rangwala is a professor in the Department of Fire Protection Engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), with an affiliation to the Chemical Engineering department. He directs WPI's pioneering master's program in Explosion Protection Engineering, focusing on industrial fire and explosion risks associated with emerging technologies like electric vehicles and hydrogen fuel cells.

Education:

• BS in Electrical Engineering from Government College of Engineering, India
• MS in Fire Protection Engineering from University of Maryland
• PhD in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from University of California, San Diego

Research Interests: Combustion science, industrial fire protection, explosion dynamics, oil spill cleanup technologies, wildfire behavior, and thermal hazard mitigation. Notable projects include in-situ burning of oil spills, deflagration of combustible dust clouds, and flame propagation analysis.

Key Contributions:

• Developed Flame Refluxer technology for enhanced oil spill cleanup efficiency
• Co-authored textbooks like Explosion Dynamics: Fundamentals and Practical Applications and Mechanism of Fires: Chemistry and Physical Aspects
• Recipient of NSF CAREER Award (2009) and Sigma Xi Outstanding Senior Faculty Research Award (2017)

Media Engagement: Provided expert analysis to The Wall Street Journal and Business Insider on lithium-ion battery fire risks. Featured in MassLive and Boston Globe for wildfire research using WPI's wind tunnel facility.

Grants & Patents: Holds patents on flame arrestors, in-situ burning systems, and dust accumulation sensors. Active in multi-disciplinary projects funded by NSF and industry collaborators.

Labs/Teams: Leads the Combustion Lab at WPI, focusing on experimental and computational fire dynamics. Collaborates with industry partners to advance explosion protection engineering solutions.