John W. Gillespie Jr.

Professor

Education

PhD | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Delaware
MS | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Delaware
BS | Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Delaware

Executive Summary

Dr. Gillespie is an internationally recognized authority in composites. Dr. Gillespie has served the University of Delaware in several roles since 1981, achieving the position of Director of the Center for Composite Materials in 1996. He received his degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Delaware, is the Donald C. Phillips Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and holds joint appointments in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering and the Department of Mechanical Engineering. He leads four Centers of Excellence in Composites on processing, mechanics and performance of multifunctional composite materials and an industrial consortium with more than 60 companies conducting research at the forefront of the science of composites that address real-world engineering problems. He has served as a member of the influential National Research Council Board on Manufacturing and Engineering Design, and Chair of the National Materials Advisory Board Committee on High-Performance Structural Fibers for Advanced Polymer-Matrix Composites. He has been Editor of the Journal of Thermoplastic Composite Materials since 1993, and he serves on numerous international editorial boards. Dr. Gillespie was awarded the U.S. Army’s Paul A. Siple Memorial Award in 1998 for his research on processing of multifunctional armor materials. The prestigious Jud Hall Composites Manufacturing Award was bestowed in 2000 by the Composites Manufacturing Association of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers. He was also one of only six individuals elected to the 2013 Society of Manufacturing Engineers College of Fellows. In 2015, he was one of four elected as a Fellow of SAMPE. Dr. Gillespie has co-authored more than 800 publications and 19 patents. He has graduated 56 Master’s and 38 Ph.D. students, of which 9 are currently faculty members at other universities. His research interests include processing-structure-property relationships, interphase and adhesion science, mechanical properties and durability and multi-scale modeling of composites.

RESEARCH AREAS

• Composites & Advanced Materials

FACULTY EXPERTISE

• Materials Engineering