VTNSI Distinguished Speaker: Graham V. Candler (UMN)

Title: Future Prospects for the Simulation of Hypersonic Flows

Abstract: Hypersonic flows involve complex interactions between high-temperature gas dynamics and material response. For example, the aerodynamics and heating of a planetary entry capsule are affected by finite-rate gas-phase and gas-surface reactions, transition to turbulence, radiative transport, and thermal protection system response. It is not possible to replicate the entire hypersonic flight environment in wind tunnels, and flight tests are extremely expensive. Thus, modeling and simulation is required for the design and analysis of future hypersonic flight systems. It is now possible to predict many of these effects using physics-based models, advanced numerical methods and large-scale computing. In this seminar, I will use several examples to illustrate recent advances in the prediction of hypersonic flows, as well as to motivate the need for further improvements to models, numerical methods and grid generation approaches.

Biography: Graham Candler is the McKnight Presidential Chair of Aerospace Engineering and Mechanics at the University of Minnesota.  He uses computational methods to study hypersonic flows and high-temperature gas dynamics. He and his research collaborators have developed widely-used computational methods and codes, which have been used for the design and analysis of future hypersonic flight systems, including several NASA exploration missions and DoD programs. He is a Fellow of the AIAA and a member of the National Academy of Engineering.