PhD Studentship - Heat Transfer Effect on Nonlinear Disturbances in Transitional Boundary Layers

The transition of boundary layers from the laminar to the turbulent regime is one of the most challenging topics in classical physics and applied mathematics, and stands as a bottleneck problem in the modern flow engineering technology. Major issues are the undesired increase of wall friction and wall-heat transfer when the flow becomes turbulent, which impacts directly on the performance of vehicles and on the efficiency of machinery because of the energy losses in boundary layers. It is therefore desirable to predict the occurrence of transition to turbulence and suppress the unstable disturbances in boundary layers that lead to transition.

In this project, the central objective is to utilise wall-heat transfer (cooling/heating) to stabilise the boundary layer and obtain a delay of transition to turbulence. The effect of external agents, such as free-stream disturbances and wall roughness, will also be taken into account. The methodology of the research is theoretical, based on matched asymptotic analysis and other perturbation methods, and numerical, i.e. an existing in-house code will be modified to achieve the objectives. This project offers the unique opportunity to develop strong skills in viscous fluid mechanics, numerical methods and applied mathematics. The research project will be supervised by Prof. Pierre Ricco.

Funding:

The studentship is available only for UK citizens due to funding restrictions. Funding is only available to cover the level of fees set for UK applicants and a stipend at the standard EPSRC rate of £20,780 in 2025/26.

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