
Center for Nondestructive Evaluation
The Center for Nondestructive Evaluation (CNDE) was formed in 1985 as a National Science Foundation Industry/University Cooperative Research Center (IUCRC). ISU teams with industrial and government sponsors who help guide the research and share the results. At CNDE, scientists, faculty, support staff, and graduate and undergraduate students work closely, in an interdisciplinary fashion, with industry and government agencies to advance the field of NDE in its plurality. State-of-the-art research and commercial instrumentation at CNDE support cutting-edge R&D in numerous NDE modalities and technologies.
News and Announcements

CNDE 2025 Webinar Schedule
We are excited to announce our 2025 webinar list. Check back for updates as webinars are scheduled. To see the list of webinars click here.

ASNT’s Inaugural Hill Day in April 2025 Materials Evaluation
Dr. Reza Zoughi recently attended ASNT’s inaugural “Hill Day.” This event was designed to allow ASNT members to travel to Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., to meet with congressional members and their staff to discuss issues important to their associations. To read more about it, click here.

CNDE GRA Aaron McCarville received the Sellers Scholarship for 2025
Aaron McCarville, a CNDE graduate student, was selected to receive the Sellers Scholarship for 2025. This prestigious and competitive award is selected based on the student’s academic achievements and merits.

CNDE Student Spotlight: Aaron McCarville
Name: Aaron McCarville Research areas of interest: Microwave NDE, Microwave SAR Imaging, Microwave Engineering Anticipated graduation date: December 2025 Who or what inspired you to pursue your studies in NDE? During the fall of my first year at ISU, I happened to meet the director of CNDE, Dr. Zoughi, at a lunch event for transfer…

CNDE – Spring 2025 IAB Meeting
CNDE hosted its Spring 2025 Industrial Advisory Board (IAB) Meeting on April 8-10. As usual, CNDE hosted a Pizza with Students event, during which our board members connected with students interested in working in the NDE community after graduation. Every spring, R.B. Thompson & O.D.& O.U. Trapp Fellowship recipients present a poster to the board…

ASNT Local Section of Iowa April Technical Talk
The ASNT Local Iowa Section hosted a virtual guest speaker during their April 2025 meeting. Steven Fuller Jr. from NDT Systems presented to 17 professional and student attendees, seven of whom gathered in-person on Iowa State’s campus to enjoy complimentary pizza and soda while participating. Virtual attendees joined from Okoboji, Waterloo, IA, Springfield, IL, and…

CNDE hosted Lab Tours during the 2025 State Science & Technology Fair of Iowa on March 27
CNDE participated in this year’s 2025 State Science & Technology Fair of Iowa on March 27 and 28. This two-day fair, organized by Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, was for students in grades 6 – 12 and provided a space to showcase their research projects. Students also got the chance to meet with professionals…

CNDE Webinar with Dr. Laurence Jacobs was mentioned in the February 2025 ASNT Materials Evaluation Edition
Dr. Laurence J. Jacobs, Senior Vice Provost for Education and Learning at the Georgia Institute of Technology and a professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Mechanical Engineering, presented a CNDE webinar in December 2024 titled “Generation of Higher Harmonics and their Application of Material Characterization.” The February 2025 issue of Materials Evaluation included an…

Joe Filbert Set to Recieve His Ph.D.
Joseph Filbert, a Ph.D. candidate in the Electrical and Computer Engineering department, will be awarded his Ph.D. degree during the Spring 2025 commencement ceremony. Dr. Filbert defended his dissertation titled “Microwave Nondestructive Evaluation of Metal Powders Used in Additive Manufacturing” in January 2025. Dr. Filbert is a fellow of the Rickover Fellowship in Nuclear Engineering,…

Farzaneh Ahmadi awarded her Ph.D degree in December 2024
Farzaneh Ahmadi, a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, received her doctoral degree during the December 2024 commencement ceremony. She successfully defended her dissertation, titled “Millimeter-Wave Evaluation of Polymer and Metal-Based Additive Manufacturing Processes, in November 2024. Throughout her academic journey, Dr. Ahmadi earned the prestigious Research Excellence Award from the…

ASNT Section of Iowa December Technical Talk
The ASNT Local Iowa Section hosted guest speaker Dustin Davis from RDI Technologies during their December 2024 meeting in Ames. Dustin presented to 11 professional and student attendees, who enjoyed complimentary pizza and soda, and provided an engaging overview of RDI’s proprietary Motion Amplification inspection technique. He explained how their software, paired with a high-speed…

ASNT Iowa Section mentioned in the December 2024 ASNT Materials Evaluation Edition
The ASNT Iowa Section hosted Rick Lopez, NDT Compentcy Lead at John Deere and a CNDE board member at their October meeting. Mr. Lopez gave a presentation to the group titled “Heavy Off-Road Industrial NDT Application.” To read the article, click here.

CNDE Spotlight: Joseph Filbert
Name: Joseph Filbert Research area of interest: Microwave materials characterization, Additive manufacturing Anticipated graduation date: January 2025. Who or what inspired you to pursue your studies in NDE? During my undergrad I took EE311 Electromagnetic Fields & Waves with Dr. John Bowler. I really enjoyed the class andwas invited by Dr. Bowler to work in…

CNDE Featured Researcher/Collaborator: John Aldrin
Name: John C. Aldrin How long have you been at CNDE or collaborating with? My earliest collaborations involved working with Bruce Thompson on model-assisted probability of detection (MAPOD) evaluation working group, going back to 2001. Bruce was a great leader, while also so gracious with his time and experience. I got to really appreciate how…

NDE Minor at Iowa State University
The NDE minor is growing and expanding, with over forty students pursuing this minor and additional students joining every semester. The NDE minor courses are now available online and in person. Click here for the ISU schedule of classes. The offering of NDE courses has been structured to ensure students can take the desired courses as…
CNDE Administration
Dr. Reza Zoughi
ASC II, Suite 151
Email: rzoughi@iastate.edu
Phone: 515.294.5704
Susie McBirnie
ASC II, Suite 151
Email: susiem@iastate.edu
Phone: 515.294.8152
Cheryl Sansgaard
ASC II, Suite 151
Email: cheryls@iastate.edu
Phone: 515.294.8157
Melissa Twedt
ASC II, Suite 151
Email: mtwedt@iastate.edu
Phone: 515.294.5813