Prof. Dr. Cem Bülent ÜSTÜNDAĞ

Dr Ustundag is a professor in the Department of Bioengineering at Yildiz Technical University. He received B.Sc. degree in Ceramic Engineering from Dumlupinar University, Turkey in 1999 and M.Sc. degree in Materials Science & Engineering from Gebze Technical University in 2003, and he has dual Ph.D. degree in Materials Science & Engineering from Yildiz Technical University (YTU), Turkey in 2011 and Biomaterials from Tohoku University, Japan in 2013.

He was a part-time research engineer at Kalevit-ROCA Inc., Canakkale, Turkey in 2001. He joined Can Vocational School, Canakkale Onsekiz Mart University as a lecturer in 2002, where he established the e-commerce program (the first state university program in Turkey) and the logistics program in 2004, and rose to become the deputy director of Can Vocational School, Canakkale Onsekiz Mart University in 2003-2005. Dr Ustundag joined YTU Vocational School and was promoted to Assistant Professor in 2005 and 2011 respectively. He obtained the UNIDO Technology Foresight Diploma in 2008. From 2010-2012, Dr. Ustundag served as the Head of Ceramics Program and was appointed as the Head of Technical Programs Department (9 technical programs and over 1200 students) at YTU Vocational School and was the Deputy Director of YTU Vocational School in 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 respectively. Dr Ustundag headed the Commission for the Establishment of the Faculty of Applied Sciences, YTU in 2013-2014. He was a visiting scholar at the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Princeton University, NJ in 2014-2015. He joined the Department of Bioengineering at YTU in April 2015. Dr Ustundag was promoted to full professor in February 2023.

Dr Ustundag's research interests include the development of nanomaterials for biomedical applications, synthesis and applications of graphene and carbonaceous nanomaterials, nanocomposites, tissue engineering, 3D printing and nanomaterials for environmental remediation. He currently teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in biomedical materials, tissue engineering and mathematical modelling in bioengineering, characterisation of biomaterials, carbon nanomaterials and their biomedical applications in the Department of Bioengineering. He has authored/co-authored over 46 research papers, 13 review papers, 2 book (co-editor), 10 book chapters, 7 patents and 11 patent applications, and over 100 national and international conference papers. In addition, he has consulted with Spinamer Ltd. on the development of novel biomaterials and collaborated with Biosertaech Ltd., Nanortepedi Ltd., ABC Health Ltd., Bilimplant Ltd. and MITEC Ltd. on biomaterials, tissue engineering and drug delivery systems. He is a member of the organising committee of the International Congress on 3D Printing (Additive Manufacturing) Technologies and Digital Industry Congress Series (2018, 2019, and 2020), and an advisory board member of the International Journal of 3D Printing Technologies and Digital Industry.

Dr. Üstündağ has received several prestigious awards, including a bronze medal at the International Invention Competition (ISIF) for the patent “Biomimetic Biomaterial and Production Method Thereof,” and second place in the academic category at the 7th LivingLab project competition in 2020. Most recently, at the 17th edition of EUROINVENT – European Exhibition of Creativity and Innovation, he received two Gold Medals: one in the Book Category for the Springer-edited volume “Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering”, and another in the Project Category for the HORIZON FLAG-ERA project “SMART2GRAPH”, focusing on smart nerve grafts for nervous system regeneration. His projects have been supported by numerous grants, including the Erasmus+ KA226 Digital Education Readiness project grant (2020), the HORIZON FLAG-ERA JCT2023 grant (2023), the Erasmus Mundus Design Measures (EMDM) grant (2024), as well as TÜBİTAK 1001 and TÜSEB A and B project grants between 2021 and 2023.