3/4/2026 Taylor Parks
Written by Taylor Parks
MechSE doctoral student Srividhya Sridhar won first place in the prestigious Alan Gent Distinguished Student Paper Award by the Adhesion Society. The award is the highest recognition bestowed upon student researchers by the international society, whose mission is to promote the advancement and dissemination of adhesion science and technology.
“Winning the award felt incredibly rewarding and affirming,” said Sridhar, who is the first recipient in a long line of contenders from Illinois. “It felt rewarding not just on a personal level, but also as an opportunity to bring recognition to the institution and department that have been shaping my PhD journey.”
Sridhar’s winning presentation, “Multiscale, quantitative fractography of soft material failure,” focused on the mechanics of soft fracture, or the tendency of stretchy or squishy materials to create new surfaces when subjected to mechanical loads. She is advised by Associate Professor Shelby Hutchens. The award is sponsored by Henkel, the world’s leading producer in bonding, sealing, and coating solutions for both industrial customers and craftsmen.
The phenomenon of soft fracture has wide-ranging impact, from medical devices and tire performance to consumer product durability. Sridhar has employed sophisticated techniques to examine failure across multiple scales, from molecular interactions to visible crack patterns. Her research has provided insights that bridge theoretical understanding and practical applications. In collaboration with Hutchens, Sridhar has developed approaches to quantitatively analyze fractured surfaces in soft materials—an area of growing importance as industries increasingly rely on polymers and elastomers in critical applications in health, energy, and soft robotics.
“[Sridhar] demonstrated her unwavering pursuit of excellence through mastering her experimental technique first and continuing to energetically grow her skills in hypothesis formation and testing, computational modeling and analysis, and technical communication,” Hutchens said, noting that Sridhar’s efforts included uncounted figure iterations, slide design and organization, and applying lessons learned in Professor Amy Wagoner Johnson’s special topics course on science communication.
To be considered for the award, competitors must first earn one of seven spots in the Peebles Awards Symposium for Graduate Student Research in Adhesion Science at the society’s annual meeting. Selected from an initial pool of 18 applicants, Sridhar and six peers each presented their work to the full conference audience in Savannah, Georgia. Each presentation was judged by a panel that evaluated the quality and significance of the research, organizational coherence, visual presentation design, and each presenter’s ability to engage thoughtfully with audience questions.
“I felt a strong sense of responsibility to represent my school and department well,” Sridhar said of her Peebles Award, which qualified her to compete.
“[Sridhar] clearly displayed her love of her work and enthusiasm for sharing it with others,” competition organizers noted in their evaluation.
“[MechSE’s] emphasis on developing both research and communication skills proved essential, as the competition evaluated not just scientific merit but also the ability to convey complex ideas clearly and respond to expert questioning under pressure,” Hutchens wrote.
The competition proved to be a family affair for Sridhar, whose uncle flew in from California to witness her presentation (and subsequent award) in person.
“Having my uncle in the audience this time made a meaningful difference,” she said, noting that she has missed her parents’ physical presence (both reside in India) throughout her PhD journey. As an attendee, her uncle was able to record the presentation and award to share with them. “As an international student, it’s rare to have family present for these milestones, so this felt especially personal and memorable. I’m really grateful they were able to share in the outcome of all the effort I’ve put into this journey.”
In her ongoing work, Sridhar intends to refine and publish the fractographic approach she developed to study soft material failure. Based on feedback from conference participants, she will also seek to address some of the lingering mechanics questions surrounding soft fracture—questions that her experimental technique has the potential to solve.
“This experience has reinforced my motivation to contribute to the soft materials community,” she said. “Moving forward, I aim to continue advancing fundamental mechanical characterization of soft materials.”
“I hope to see [Sridhar] successfully pursuing and sharing her own ideas in soft solid mechanics and setting the stage in the next chapter in her career as faculty or a researcher at a national lab,” Hutchens said.