• Associate Department Head of Undergraduate Programs, Mechanical Engineering
  • Professor, Mechanical Engineering
  • Holdredge/Paul Professor
  • Chancellor EDGES Fellow
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Waruna Kulatilaka

Educational Background

  • Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering, Purdue University – 2006
  • M.S., Mechanical Engineering, Texas A&M University – 2002
  • B.Sc., Mechanical Engineering, University of Moratuwa – 2000

Research Interests

    • Optical diagnostics and imaging
    • Laser spectroscopy and ultrafast lasers
    • Combustion and energy conversion
    • Hypersonics and high-speed propulsion
    • Propellants and energetics
    • Extreme materials
    • Remote sensing
    • Fluid flow and plasma diagnostics
    • Gas turbine combustion and internal combustion (IC) engines

Certifications & Memberships

  • Senior Member, The Optical Society (OSA) – 2015
  • Fellow, American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) – 2014

Awards & Honors

  • Aerodynamic Measurement Technology Innovation Award, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) – 2024
  • James J. Cain ‘51 Faculty Graduate Teaching Award, J. Mike Walker ‘66 Department of Mechanical Engineering – 2022
  • Engineering Genesis Award, Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station (TEES) – 2019
  • Morris E. Foster Faculty Fellow I, Texas A&M University College of Engineering – 2017
  • Forty Under 40 Award, Dayton Business Journal – 2013
  • Invited Speaker on Laser Diagnostics in Combustion, Gordon Research Conference (GRC) – 2013
  • Associate Fellow, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) – 2012
  • Outstanding Technical Contribution Award, Dayton Section of American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) – 2012

Selected Publications

  • W.D. Kulatilaka, et al. “High-Speed Hydroxyl and Methylidyne Chemiluminescence Imaging Diagnostics in Spherically Expanding Flames,” AIAA Journal, (2021).
  • W.D. Kulatilaka, et al. “OH, PAH, and Sooting Imaging in Piloted Liquid-Spray Flames of Diesel and Diesel Surrogate,” Combustion and Flame, 231-11479 (2021).
  • W.D. Kulatilaka, et al. “Simultaneous Imaging of H and OH in Flames Using a Single Broadband Femtosecond Laser Source,” Proceedings of the Combustion Institute, 38(1) 1813–1821. (2021).
  • W.D. Kulatilaka, et al. “Simultaneous Measurement of OH and CO in Flames using a Single Broadband, Femtosecond Laser Pulse,” Combustion and Flame, 214, 358–360 (2020).
  • W.D. Kulatilaka, et al. “High-Speed Digital In-Line Holography for In-Situ Dust Cloud Characterization in a Minimum Ignition Energy Device,” Powder Technology, 376, 612–621 (2020).
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