**About the Editors**

### **Denis Benasciutti**

Denis Benasciutti is Associate Professor of Machine Design at the University of Ferrara, Italy. In 2001 he graduated cum laude in Materials Engineering at the University of Ferrara, where, in 2005, he also received his Ph.D. In 2006, he earned a Master in Welding Engineering and the diploma as European/International Welding Engineer (EWE/IWE). From 2006 to 2015, he was Assistant Professor at the University of Udine, Italy. His research interests involve the structural integrity of mechanical components subjected to stochastic uniaxial and multiaxial loadings (with special focus on frequency-domain spectral methods) and the cyclic plasticity and low-cycle fatigue behaviour of traditional and additive manufactured materials. He published over 80 scientific articles in peer reviewed journals, on the topics of metal fatigue and structural durability, finite element method, "energy harvesting", cyclic plasticity of metals.

### **Mark T. Whittaker**

Professor Mark Whittaker is the Director of the Institute of Structural Materials at Swansea University, and has a background in high-temperature materials. Following his Ph.D. in 2003, he undertook postdoctoral research mainly based around fatigue lifing of titanium alloys, before accepting an RCUK Research Fellowship in 2007, leading to promotion to Senior Lecturer in 2012, Associate Professor in 2015, and Professor in 2019.

His research interests over this time have extended to high temperature lifing of materials with a particular focus on material behaviour under creep and thermo-mechanical fatigue conditions. Collaboratively working with Professor Brian Wilshire for 5 years enabled the further development of the Wilshire Equations, with the aim to relate concepts from the equation, such as activation energy to micromechanical behaviour, an activity which is still being pursued currently.

Prof Whittaker has worked extensively with industrial partners including Rolls-Royce, TIMET, Pratt & Witney, and Forged Solutions. He also collaborates with national and international research partners and has published over 60 papers in peer reviewed journals, also making invited presentations at a number of international conferences.

### **Turan Dirlik**

Turan Dirlik is the managing director of Dirlik Controls Ltd, UK, supplying bespoke materials testing software to research institutions. Turan's Ph.D. thesis focused on developing a fatigue life assessment technique, using the rainflow cycle counting process. This method is now commonly known as the *Dirlik Formula*. His current work includes fatigue crack propagation and thermo-mechanical fatigue.
