Dr. Jalali is a Senior Lecturer within Mechanical and Construction Engineering Department at Northumbria University, Newcastle, England. His main research interest is structural dynamics with a focus on linear and nonlinear mechanical joints and contact interface modelling. He received his PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Iran University of Science and Technology (IUST) and was a research assistant in the Zienkiewicz Centre for Computational Engineering (ZCCE) at Swansea University.

Description of Keynote Speech:
Joints and fasteners often have a significant effect on the dynamical behavior of assembled mechanical structures and the analytical prediction of structural responses therefore depends upon the accuracy of joint modelling. Detailed constitutive models that fully describe the behavior of frictional interfaces are often unduly complicated; in which case simpler phenomenological models having parameters identified from vibration tests may be preferable. Unfortunately, the direct measurement of forces transmitted between two contacting surfaces and their relative displacements are not possible in practice and it is therefore necessary to rely on measurements remote from joints. Uncertainty and non-linearity are two major effects of contact interfaces which introduce challenges in accurate modelling. Randomness in surface roughness quality, surface finish and contact preload are the main sources of variability in the contact interfaces. On the other side, slip and slap are two mechanisms responsible for nonlinear behavior of joints. Stochastic linear/nonlinear models need to be developed for such uncertain structures to be used in dynamic response analysis or system parameter identification.