Nicholas Bonfanti
My academic background revolves around aerodynamics (theoretical, computational, and experimental) and aerospace engineering in general. My creative approach to modeling and problem solving has led me to have significant roles in different projects I partecipated in. I easily develop interest in various arguments, following a serendipitous approach to knowledge.
My Curriculum Vitae in PDF can be found here.
Education
Politecnico di Milano
Master of Science
Aeronautical engineering | Aerodynamics Track
Final mark: 105/110 | GPA: 3.57
October 2014 - October 2017
Politecnico di Milano
Bachelor of Science
Aerospace engineering
Final mark: 98/110 | GPA: 3.03
September 2011 - September 2014
Liceo Scientifico Elio Vittorini
High School Diploma
High School leaving qualification in Scientific Studies
Final mark: 81/100
September 2006 - July 2011
Work experiences
Not so much... (yet!)
I mainly focused my life on studying and learning since now. I have occasionally tutored people from 7th to 12th grade, and used Photoshop for graphics and photo editing.
December 1992 - Present
Projects
Click on a project title for a brief photo gallery if available
Numerical parametric analysis and experimental investigation of MFC-actuated trailing edges
I developed an aeroelastic numerical model for piezoelectric airfoil shape morphing, with a subsequent system construction in composite materials, and wind tunnel test.
Several scaling laws for the piezo-actuation effects were discovered, in good agreement with the experimental data.
This project received funding from the EU's Horizon 2020 Program.
(CB)2: a GUI-based software for airfoil optimization
This project consisted in the development of a easy-to-use software - called (CB)2 - for airfoil optimization in MATLAB, in a team of 4 people.
The software was later used by other students. My role was scope definition, interface design, and algorithm design.
Design of a wind turbine
Design and aeroelastic simulations of a 1.6 MW horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT) with the software CpLambda, in a team of 4 people.
Calculation of optimal orbital manouvers given start and and points
This project was carried out by a team of 3 people; we developed a MATLAB software to compute a set of pareto-optimal orbital manouvers, taking into account transfer time and cost.
Slideshow not available yet
Code not available yet
Whatsatlab: a MATLAB software to statistically analyze personal WhatsApp chat histories
I wrote a MATLAB sofware to analyze my personal WhatsApp chat histories.
It allows to easily perform text analytics for both personal and group chats.
Code not available yet
Various
These projects were carried out for the Aerodynamics course during the Master's Degree. They required high coordination and teamwork in a team of 6 people.
All the project concerned numerical and experimental aerodynamics.
Reports unavailable
Skills
Click on a category for a more detailed description
I'm an Italian native speaker, and I learned English both during school and travelling. I attended various MSc courses in English, and both my thesis and a significant portion of my lesson notes are written in English. The TOEIC certification was taken in September 2014.
- Native speaker | Italian
- Highly proficient | English (TOEIC certification, 900/990)
During my thesis I carried on all the experimental activities. I had to choose appropriate cabon/glass fiber lamination sequences, produce them using a heated press, and test the resulting systems. The used wind tunnel was rather small (4 m open circuit) and completely operable by a single person.
- In thesis | Composite material lamination, Wind tunnel testing
I extensively used MATLAB during my academic career, from fast scripting to the development of GUI-based programs. I learned to use Photoshop for image editing as a personal passion. I generally use Google Docs when i need a WYSIWYG text editor or a spreadsheet environment. I used OpenFOAM only for 2D RANS simulations.
- Very frequent use | Mathworks MATLAB, Adobe Photoshop, Google Docs
- Occasional use | OpenFOAM, Microsoft Word & Excel & PowerPoint
- Only in university courses | Siemens Solid Edge, Dassault SolidWorks, Autodesk Inventor, Wolfram Mathematica, FreeFem++-cs, ANSYS Fluent
I code mainly in MATLAB, a high-level interpreted language for mathematical purposes, and I extensively use LaTeX (I know it is a programming language only in a very broad sense). I used ANSI C mainly for the Informatics university course, and Fortran for Numerical Fluid Dynamics, developing a 1-dimensional high-resolution solver for Euler equations. I use HTML and CSS mainly for the development of this website.
- Very frequent use | Python, MATLAB, LaTeX
- Only in university courses | ANSI C, Fortran, FreeFem++
- Very basic level | HTML, CSS
I am used to working with multiple operative systems, depending on my needs.
- Very frequent use | Microsoft Windows, Apple MacOS, GNU/Linux Ubuntu, Android
- Occasional use | iOS
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) life skills are «abilities for adaptive and positive behaviour, that enable individuals to deal effectively with the demands and challenges of everyday life».
- From the WHO list | Teamworking, Problem solving, Creative thinking, Critical thinking, Coping with emotions
Interests
During my life I have done Karate, Muay Thai, Kick Boxing, and Scuba Diving (with FIPSAS certification). I like to travel (how unespected and unusual!), expecially by car in Europe, and I was a couchsurfer.
When I am at home, neither studying nor working on something or reading, I'm a videogamer and TV series lover. Other two interests of mine are board game design and photography. I'm also looking forward to start my own beer brewing.