Ben Merkel Yavitt

We utilize experimental rheology and scattering techniques to investigate out-of-equilibrium material transitions relating to processing, manufacturing, and recycling of polymeric systems. Our research interests include polymer nanocomposites and hierarchically structured soft materials used as advanced & commodity plastics.

Check out our group website - RheOhioLab at UC

B.S.: Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, 2013

Ph.D.: University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, 2018

Rheology, polymer processing, advanced materials and composites, scattering and rheo-optics, polymer physics

2013 -2018 Graduate Research Assistant, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA

2019 -2020 Postdoctoral Research Associate, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY

2021 -2022 Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC

2023 -To Present Assistant Professor, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH

Peer Reviewed Publications

Yavitt, B.M.; Tomkovic, T.; Gilmour, D.J.; Zhang, Z.; Kuanr, N.; van Ruymbeke, E.; Schafer, L.L.; Hatzikiriakos, S.G. (2022. ) Rheology and Self-healing of Amine functionalized Polyolefins .Journal of Rheology, , 66 ,1125

Yavitt, B.M.; Salatto, D.; Zhou, Y.; Huang, Z.; Endoh, M.K.; Wiegart, L.; Bocharova, V.; Ribbe, A.E.; Sokolov, A.P.; Schweizer; K.S.; Koga, T (2021. ) Collective Nanoparticle Dynamics Associated with Bridging Network Formation in Model Polymer Nanocomposites .ACS Nano, , 15 ,11501

Yavitt, B.M.; Fei, H.; Kopanati, G.N.; Winter, H.H.; Watkins, J.J. (2020. ) Liquid-to-Solid Transitions in Nanoparticle-Filled Brush Block Copolymer Composites .Journal of Polymer Science, , 58 ,3227

Yavitt, B.M.; Wiegart, L.; Salatto, D.; Huang, Z.; Endoh, M.K.; Poeller, S.; Petrash, S.; Koga, T. (2020. ) Structural Dynamics in UV Curable Resins Resolved by In Situ 3D printing X-ray Photon Correlation Spectroscopy .ACS Applied Polymer Materials, , 2 ,4096

Yavitt B.M.; Fei H.; Kopanati G.N.; Li, R.; Fukuto, M.; Winter H.H.; Watkins J.J (2020. ) Long-range lamellar alignment in di-block bottlebrush copolymers via controlled oscillatory shear .Macromolecules, , 53 ,2834

01-2019-12-2020 Postdoctoral Research Associate, In-operando studies of structure and dynamics in polymer nanocomposites during additive manufacturing processing in collaboration with Henkel Corporation. Development and optimization of in-situ experimental rheology set-ups for high throughput synchrotron studies on beamlines 11-ID, 12-BM, and 12-ID at National Synchrotron Light Source II, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Stony Brook University, , Stony Brook, NY

01-2021-09-2022 Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Rheology and processing of associating polymers. Advancing commercialization of aminated polyolefin technologies with A2O Advanced Materials Inc., University of British Columbia, , Vancouver, BC, Canada

Academic - 858 Engineering Research Center
2901 Woodside Drive
Cincinnati  Ohio, 45221