04 April 2023 13h00-14h00
by B.G. Marinus & B. Janssens
Flows and the associated mass and energy transfer as well as forces have been studied from the dawn of engineering for their prevalence around us. The movement of gases and fluids govern an extremely wide set of applications ranging from life functions such as circulation and breathing, to climate or convective heat transfer in buildings, to in-flight forces on projectiles, to mass transport by explosions, and to high-end military applications such as aircraft or ships. Nonetheless, flows are extremely challenging since their conservation equations can only rarely be solved analytically, so one has no other choice than to resort to complex numerical models requiring huge soft- and hardware resources, or to make demanding yet imperfect measurements during expensive experiments. Moreover, we face the question of turbulence, which is largely unsolved despite its impact on many engineering applications. Measuring and computing the desired quantities from a flow requires delicacy and long-term experience. In the Environmental Mechanics and Mobility Applications laboratory of the RMA, we focus on the relation between mechanical devices and their environment (vibrations, acoustics, ageing, air quality, sensing) as well as on the performance, stability and technology of mobility platforms. Together we will go through various themes of research and expertise covering several domains (Air, Sea, Land, Med, Infra, & CIS) and show what techniques we use to measure and simulate flow behavior. Flows are one common and satisfying part of our daily job!