Wildfire Modeling Expert To Join Fire Protection Engineering as Assistant Professor

The Department of Fire Protection Engineering (FPE) welcomes Assistant Professor Ali Tohidi, a fire and fluid dynamicist, to lead research efforts in wildfire modeling, high-performance scientific computing, and machine learning beginning in 2025.

“FPE is one of the country's most respected fire science programs and has a global reputation. I am thrilled to join and contribute to the continued success of the program through collaboration with my colleagues and bringing my expertise in fluid and fire dynamics,” said Tohidi. “I am also looking forward to connecting with other programs across the campus to establish a high-impact research and teaching program in the department.”

Tohidi joins from San Jose State University’s Department of Mechanical Engineering, where he holds appointments as assistant professor and co-principal investigator of the Wildfire Interdisciplinary Research Center, a National Science Foundation Industry-University Cooperative Research Center.

He combines his expertise in mathematical models for large-scale systems to study fluid dynamics phenomena, with the goal of developing next-generation wildfire behavior models and characterization of near-term risk to communities and infrastructure.

Recently, the assistant professor developed a predictive model for pyro-aerobiology, the transport of bacteria and fungi through wildfire smoke plumes, a damaging effect that extends beyond the wildfire’s spatial “burn scars.” His technology can help simulate the transport of bioaerosols via smoke plumes—which can affect a region’s wildlife and vegetation—through vast time and spatial scales of wildfires.

This work, which also furthers the understanding of the effects of bioaerosols transported via smoke on community and firefighter health, was published in a paper earlier this year in Environmental Science & Technology, a journal by the American Chemical Society.

Before joining academia, Tohidi was a data scientist for several companies, including capital marketplace platform Figure Technology Solutions, environmental think-tank Spatial Informatics Group and risk analysis platform One Concern.

Prior to that, he was a postdoctoral researcher in the department advised by Affiliate Professor Michael Gollner, studying the effects of thermal degradation of wood on its mechanical properties and the formation of firebrands, as well as fire whirl formation at different conditions from 2016 until 2017. The department looks forward to Tohidi’s return.

“We are thrilled at the prospect of Dr. Tohidi joining FPE. He will help us strengthen our teaching and research activities in the areas of wildland fires and wildland-urban-interface (WUI) fires,” said department chair Arnaud Trouvé. “He will also help us grow our expertise and capabilities in computational modeling, data science and machine learning.”

Tohidi, originally from Tehran, holds a doctorate degree in civil engineering focused on applied fluid dynamics from Clemson University, as well as a master of science in hydraulic structures from Sharif University of Technology, and a bachelor of science in civil engineering from Islamic Azad University Central Tehran Branch.

He is a professional member of the American Physical Society, International Association of Fire Safety Science, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, American Association of Wind Engineering, and the American Geophysical Union. He has contributed to three patents, and has co-authored in journals such as the Fire Safety Journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and wrote one chapter on firebrands for a book titled “Wildland Fire Dynamics, Fire Effects and Behavior from a Fluid Dynamics Perspective.”

Published September 16, 2024