Ghosh Earns Al Sonntag Award for Best Technical Paper

Dr. Sujan Ghosh, assistant professor of engineering at UA Little Rock, has been honored with the Al Sonntag Award from the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers.

The Sonntag Award was established in 1983 and is given to a society member or members authoring the best technical paper on solid lubricants published by the society in the year preceding.

“The Al Sonntag Award is a very prestigious award,” Ghosh said. “I am very honored to receive this award along with my co-authors.”

Ghosh wrote the paper while he was earning his Ph.D. at the University of Arkansas. His co-authors include Nathaniel Harris, senior graduate assistant, University of Arkansas; Neda Mahmoudi, research and development engineer, SurfTec LLC; Dipankar Choudhury, staff medical device engineer, Dexcom; Josue Goss, research scientist, University of Arkansas; Samuel Beckford, founder and CEO, SurfTec LLC; and Min Zou, distinguished professor of mechanical engineering, University of Arkansas

Ghosh and his co-authors published the paper, “Improving the Tribological Performances of PDA + PTFE Nanocomposite Coatings by Hot Compaction,” in the journal “Tribology Transactions” in 2021.

The award-winning paper studied the performance of compacted and noncompacted PDA and PTFE nanocomposite coatings on stainless steel substrates commonly found on cooking pots and pans. The research was supported by grants from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy and the National Science Foundation.

After earning his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Khulna University of Engineering and Technology in Bangladesh, Ghosh moved to the United States to earn a master’s degree at the University of North Dakota. After graduating from the University of Arkansas, Ghosh joined UA Little Rock in 2022.

As a researcher, Ghosh is focused on materials and surface engineering in tribology, which is the study of the science and technology of interacting surfaces in relative motion and the application of friction, wear, lubrication, and related design aspects.

Ghosh was unable to receive the award in person during the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers annual meeting and exhibition on May 21 in Long Beach, California, as he and his wife Maia were celebrating the birth of their second child, a daughter named Maia Lynn.