Mechanical Engineering - University of Rochester

My research interests lie in the general area of solid mechanics, more specifically in wave propagation and vibrations in elastic media.

Much of my research is done in collaboration with the Center for Optics Manufacturing. The goal of the Center is to develop machines and processes to increase the state of the of optical manufacturing. My research centers on determining the effects of machine vibrations and tool properties on ground precision optical surfaces. In particular, we are interested in determining process parameters that minimize chatter and tool mark generation for a wide variety of part geometries and material properties.

The Rochester Center for Biomedical Ultrasound provides a convenient mechanism for collaboration between researchers working with ultrasound from both the School of Engineering and the Medical Center. Frequent group meetings and lectures by outside experts provide easy information exchange. My initial research in this area was to analyze mechanisms of kidney stone and gallstone destruction caused by ultrasonic shock waves to better understand the lithotripsy process. We developed a numerical model to study the interaction of shock waves with bubbles to better understand the role acoustic cavitation plays in stone fragmentation. More recently, I have collaborated with Prof. Dalecki to determine the effect of diagnostic ultrasound and low frequency sonar on biological tissues with air cavities. To accomplish this task, we are developing 2- and 3- dimensional boundary element and finite element models to investigate the interaction of acoustically excited bubbles with biological cells and vessels. I also collaborate with Prof. Parker and Dr. Levinson in their efforts to develop an ultrasound based technique to determine muscle and tumor elasticity.

Representative Publications

Tool wear and profile development in contour grinding of optical componenets (Yi Li, P.D. Funkenbusch, S.M. Gracewski, J.Ruckman), Int. J. Mach. Tools & Manu. 44 (4): 427-438, 2004.

Chatter simulation and stability predictions for contour grinding of optical glasses (Yi Li, S. Gracewski, P. Funkenbusch, and J Ruckman), Optical Fabrication and Testing Proceedings, OSA, pp. 14-16, 2000.

Bioeffects of positive and negative acoustic pressures in mice infused with microbubbles (D. Dalecki, S.Z. Child, C.H. Raeman, C. Xing, S. Gracewski, E.L. Carstensen), Ultrasound in Med. & Biol. 16(8), 1327-1332, 2000.

Noninvasive and quantitative estimation of tissue elasticity using an iterative forward approach (D. Fu, S.F. Levinson, S.M. Gracewski, and K.J. Parker), Phys. Med. & Biol. 45, 1495-1509, 2000.

The search for cavitation in vivo (E.L. Carstensen, S. Gracewski, D. Dalecki), Ultrasound in Med. & Biol. 26(7), 1377-1385, 2000. Noninvasive and Quantitative Estimation of Tissue Elasticity using an Iterative Forward Approach (D. Fu, S.F. Levinson, S.M. Gracewski, and K.J. Parker), Physics in Medicine & Biology, 18, pp. 69-80 1999.

The Behaviour of a Gas Cavity Impacted by a Weak or Strong Shock Wave (Z. Ding and S.M. Gracewski), J. Fluid Mech., Vol.309, pp.183-209, 1996.

Optical Generation of High Frequency Acoustic Waves in GaAs/AlxGa 1-x as Periodic Multilayer Structures (P. Basseras, S.M. Gracewski, G.W. Wicks and R.J.D. Miller), J. Appl. Phy., Vol.75(6), 1994.

Response of Constrained and Unconstrained Bubbles to Lithotripter Shock Waves Pulses (Z. Ding and S.M. Gracewski), J. Acoust. Soc. Am., Vol.96(6), pp.3636-3644, 1994.

Internal Stress Wave Measurements in Solids subjected to Lithotripter Pulses (S.M. Gracewski, G. Dahake, Z. Ding, S.J. Burns and E.C. Everbach), J. Acoust. Soc. Am., Vol.94(2), pp.652-661, 1993.