Ehsan Zadehali

Researcher

I’m a PhD student at the University of Minnesota with a background in Civil Engineering, focusing on environmental risk mitigation and management. I earned my Master’s degree from Politecnico di Milano in Milan, Italy, where I specialized in Hydrogeological and Geomorphological Risks. My journey so far has involved exploring sediment transport dynamics through physical modeling of sediment bedforms and sediment transport in rivers, and numerical modeling to better understand river systems, sediment transport, and flood risks.

At the Saint Anthony Falls Laboratory (SAFL), I’m lucky to work under Professor Judy Yang’s guidance, work on cohesive sediments. These unique sediments—thanks to their wide range of physical, geochemical, and biological properties—are tricky to model and crucial to understand for tackling challenges like their transport, erodibility, stability, erosion, and sedimentation. My research is about bridging experiments and numerical modeling to improve how we predict cohesive sediment transport and its impact on river dynamics. I feel so fortunate to be part of SAFL with its incredible facilities and supportive atmosphere!

I always try to be useful both professionally and personally! In my personal life, I like to think of myself as an amateur polymath, enjoying a broad range of interests and constantly seeking to learn and solve problems in different areas of science, engineering, and design. My goal is to make a positive impact, whether it’s through my work or out of work for my loved ones or people around me, or doing my part for the environment. I’m also a huge Ferrari fan and love following Formula 1 races (it’s all about the strategy and tech for me!). When I’m not glued to a race on weekends, I enjoy playing chess, reading, camping, traveling, meeting new people, and losing myself in good rock or classic music!