Seven Embry‑Riddle Aeronautical University faculty members have earned honors for their outstanding accomplishments in research and innovation. The ERAU Research Award Program named as its 2024 awardees: Dr. Eduardo Rojas-Nastrucci, Dr. Morad Nazari, Dr. Foram Madiyar, Dr. Riccardo Bevilacqua, Dr. Jonathan Snively, Dr. Aroh Barjatya and Dr. Radu Babiceanu.

The awards span five categories of research achievement, including receiving invention disclosures and patents; securing industry research funding; mentoring undergraduates; supporting doctoral research; and having $1 million in research expenditures.

“At Embry‑Riddle, we always seek to strengthen and promote the groundbreaking innovation and the world-changing impact of our faculty and research scientists, and these awards exemplify that commitment,” said Embry‑Riddle President P. Barry Butler, Ph.D. “The honorees have secured pioneering patents, earned significant research funding, and guided students. My congratulations to all seven faculty members receiving these well-deserved accolades.”

Dr. Jeremy Ernst, vice president for research and doctoral programs, said that the ERAU Research Award Program is designed to highlight faculty who demonstrate the highest accomplishments in research and innovation goals outlined in Embry‑Riddle’s 2023-2028 Strategic Plan. 

This year’s awards recognize accomplishments during the 2024 fiscal year, which ended in June.

“Embry‑Riddle is dedicated to research excellence by supporting an engaged community of scholars,” Ernst said. “We are pleased to celebrate the 2024 FY accomplishments as Embry‑Riddle reaches new heights in research.”

Innovation Award

Dr. Rojas-Nastrucci, associate professor in the , has been honored with the Innovation Award, which recognizes individuals who have demonstrated exceptional research innovation and commercialization. The awardee has the highest number of intellectual property disclosures, awarded patents and licensed patents during the prior fiscal year, according to the ERAU Research Award Program.

A research fellow in the and the director of Embry‑Riddle’s , Rojas-Nastrucci filed two invention disclosures and had a patent awarded in fiscal year 2024. He specializes in using additive manufacturing for microwave/millimeter-wave circuits and antenna applications, wireless sensing for harsh environments, security of radio-frequency hardware and packaging for free-space optical communications devices. He is the co-inventor on a total of eight existing patents and has several other patents pending.

Rojas-Nastrucci has also been named a 2024 National Academy of Inventors Senior Member, which identifies him as a rising star in his field, based on his patents, licensing and commercialization of innovative, society-impacting technologies.

Industry Catalyst Award

Dr. Nazari, associate professor of , has been honored with the Industry Catalyst Award, which recognizes a faculty member or research scientist who has successfully fostered partnerships with industry and secured significant outside funding. The awardee has obtained the highest amount of external funding from industry or businesses during the prior fiscal year.

In 2024, Nazari secured $421,000 from industry — with contracts issued by ControlX Inc. and a.i. solutions — for his research in dynamics and control systems for space travel and exploration.

Nazari and the student researchers in his have published numerous papers in peer-reviewed scientific journals, and students in the lab have gone on to work at elite institutions, including Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Boeing, United Airlines and NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.

In April 2023, Nazari received the Graduate Teaching Award from Embry‑Riddle’s Department of Aerospace Engineering.

Research Mentorship Award

Dr. Madiyar, assistant professor in Embry‑Riddle’s , has been honored with the Research Mentorship Award, which recognizes excellence in mentoring undergraduate students in research. The awardee has supervised the largest number of undergraduate research projects that result in publications, presentations or awards during the prior fiscal year.

In 2024, Madiyar has been involved in numerous research projects with undergraduates and has led major efforts to increase the number of undergraduates headed toward careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

Focusing on polymers, self-healing materials and smart materials, Madiyar and her undergraduate researchers have worked on projects that include creating materials that can withstand the harsh conditions of space and fabricating thin films of melanin to take advantage of their ultraviolet protection and antioxidant properties in such applications as protective coatings, drug delivery and biomedical devices.

Earlier this year, Madiyar co-administered two National Science Foundation-funded programs for undergraduate researchers. One NSF-funded program welcomed undergraduates from educational institutions across the country, including Embry‑Riddle; the other included Embry‑Riddle undergraduates, high school students and their teachers. The programs aimed to increase interest in STEM fields and expand the STEM talent pool, while helping students navigate their educational journeys successfully and providing hands-on learning opportunities.

Research Engagement Award

Dr. Bevilacqua, professor of Aerospace Engineering, has been honored with the Research Engagement Award, which is awarded to a faculty member or research scientist who has effectively engaged doctoral students in research and supported their development as scholars. The awardee has provided the highest number of doctoral opportunities for students, as evidenced by externally sponsored doctoral student expenditure during the last fiscal year.

Bevilacqua helped to secure $193,000 in external funding for doctoral research in the 2024 fiscal year. Sources included the U.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research, the U.S. Department of Defense, NASA and others.

Research out of his , where he mentors five Ph.D. students and several students pursuing master’s and bachelor’s degrees, focuses on spacecraft formation flight, space robotics and warhead/spacecraft fragment fly-out predictions.

Bevilacqua was the 2024 recipient of the Abas Sivjee Outstanding Researcher of the Year Award. This award is conferred annually to one faculty member on Embry‑Riddle’s Daytona Beach Campus. He also received the 2023 College of Engineering Researcher of the Year Award.

Eagle Research Award

The Eagle Research Award recognizes individuals who have achieved exceptional research accomplishments, secured significant research funding and implemented related research programs. Faculty members or research scientists who have $1 million or more in research expenditures during the prior fiscal year are eligible for the award.

This year, three faculty members have been honored with Eagle Research awards.

Dr. Snively, professor in the Physical Sciences Department and director of the Center for Space and Atmospheric Research (CSAR), had $1.7 million in research expenditures. He studies acoustic-gravity wave propagation and processes — including their connection to thunderstorms, tornadoes, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tsunamis and other major disturbances — via numerical modeling.

Dr. Barjatya, professor in the Department of Physical Sciences and director of the , had $1 million in research expenditures. His research spans small satellites, sounding rockets, high altitude balloons, spacecraft charging, embedded electronics, space situational awareness and space systems engineering.

Dr. Babiceanu, professor and program coordinator for the Ph.D. in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and director of the , also had $1 million in research expenditures. His research focuses on cybersecurity and safety-critical systems assurance; cyber, operational and human/organizational resilience; and artificial intelligence and machine learning approaches to enhance operations in aviation and aerospace.