Transportation
We all need to get around -- but so does freight, and food, and even space cargo. To that end, Purdue researchers focus on making engines more efficient in cars and trucks, and perfecting the acoustics of tires and cabin interiors. They explore autonomous vehicles, and how they can actually make the roads safer. They work with aircraft companies to develop the next generation of jet engines. And they investigate the infrastructure of roads and systems, lending engineering expertise to one of the most vital industries in the world.
Faculty in Transportation
- Modeling of nonlinear systems
- Structural dynamics and localization
- Flow-induced vibrations
- Impacting systems
- Bifurcations and chaos
- Modeling and Analysis of Thermal Systems
- Heat Pumping, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Technologies
- High Performance Buildings
- Refrigerant and Lubricant Properties
- Acoustics
- Active and passive noise control
- Sound field visualization
- Structural acoustics and wave propagation in structures
- Noise control material modeling
- Applied signal processing
- Modeling, analysis, and control of thermal systems
- Identify interactions and design spaces at the intersection of energy technologies, economics, and decision-making process to minimize the cost of transitioning to new, decarbonized energy systems
- Sound quality
- Signal Processing
- Data analysis
- System modeling and identification
- Condition monitoring of machinery
- Perception-based engineering
- Seat-occupant modeling
- Principles of aerial and aquatic locomotion in animals
- Experimental fluid mechanics
- Dynamics
- Control
- Bio-inspired robotics
- Biologically inspired micro aerial vehicles and underwater robots
- Bio-sensing and sensor fusion algorithms
- Vibrations and nonlinear dynamics
- Smart material systems
- Non-pneumatic tires
- Optimization of mechanical systems
- Additive manufacturing
- Laser-absorption spectroscopy, laser-induced fluorescence, & IR imaging sensors for gas temperature, pressure, velocity, and chemical species
- Molecular spectroscopy, photophysics, & energy transfer in gases
- Energetic materials (e.g., explosives & propellants) detection & combustion
- Combustion and propulsion systems (small and large scale)
- Biomedical sensing
- Sustainable energy and environment
- Combustion and turbulent reacting flows
- Combustion and heat transfer in materials
- Biomedical flows and heat transfer
- Global policy research
- Thermal sciences as applied to HVAC&R systems and equipment
- Dynamic modeling and optimal control; model predictive control; decentralized control
- Thermodynamics-based optimization; entropy generation minimization; exergy analysis
- Integrated energy management and storage in distributed energy systems, building systems
- Cooperative learning
- Acoustics
- Vibrations
- Active noise and vibration control
- Smart materials
- Intelligent structures
- Sustainable manufacturing
- Environmental life cycle assessment
- Mechanics of multilayered systems
- Adhesion in paints and coatings
- Lightweighting strategies for transportation
- Robotics
- Marine Robotics
- Unmanned Systems
- Energy Autonomy
- Systems Design
- Coordination and Controls
- Motion and vibration control
- Adaptive control
- Intelligent control using fuzzy logic and neural networks
- Engine and emissions diagnostics
- Robotics
- Advancement of next-generation propulsion concepts including Rotating Detonation Engines (RDEs), Rotating Detonation Rocket Engines (RDREs) and Scramjet Engines
- Laser diagnostics development for applied thermal environments including RDEs, RDREs, gas-turbines, rockets, IC engines, and scramjet engines
- Laser Diagnostics and Spectroscopy for detonations, combustion, sprays, energetics, propellants, hypersonics, plasmas, and non-equilibrium flows
- Estimation of performance, efficiency and emissions using state of the art optical diagnostics (PLIF, CARS, TP-LIF, PIV, 3D Imaging, X-Rays, PIV, Molecular Tagging, Thermographic Phosphors and Pressure Sensitive Paints)
- Thermal-fluid behavior at the extremes, including turbulent, acoustically coupled, high-temperature, high-pressure, multiphase, and non-equilibrium reacting flows
- Boiling
- Condensation
- Two-phase Flow
- High heat flux
- Thermal management systems
- Cryogenic systems
- Space vehicles
- Lunar and Martian environments
- Microgravity
- Experiments on International Space Station
- Electronic cooling
- Energy storage and conversion (batteries, fuel cells)
- Mesoscale physics and stochastics
- Reactive transport, materials, processing, and microstructure interactions
- Gas turbine combustion
- Internal combustion engines
- Laser-based spectroscopy
- Turbomachinery, turbines
- Measurement techniques, experimental turbomachinery
- Air-breathing propulsion
- Contact mechanics
- Stresses, fatigue and friction of rolling/sliding
- Micro-mechanics of boundary and mixed lubrication regimes
- Spall initiation and propagation
- Surface science and damage
- Dynamics of ball and rolling element bearings and rotating systems
- Friction induced vibration and squeal in dry contacts
- Friction and wear of dry and lubricated contacts
- Virtual tribology
- Dry and lubricated fretting wear
- MEMS for in-situ monitoring of tribological contacts
- Discrete element modeling
- Design
- Large eddy and direct simulations
- Turbulent Combustion
- Thermoacoustics
- Non-linear acoustics
- Heat-and-mass transfer
- Physical oceanography and limnology
- Numerical methods for complex geometries
- Designing and modeling hydrostatic pumps and motors
- Hydrodynamic pumps and turbines
- Fluid power systems
- Advanced computational and experimental tribological analysis
- Model-based system and control design of commercial vehicle power trains
- Connected and automated commercial vehicles
- Internal combustion engine & after-treatment system design and controls
- Flexible valve actuation in diesel and natural gas engines
- Modeling and simulation of hydraulic systems
- Modeling and testing of pumps and motors for fluid power applications
- Hydraulic valves modeling and testing
- Reduction of noise emissions in fluid power systems
- Two-Phase Flows and Heat Transfer
- High-Heat-Flux Thermal Management Systems for Several Applications, e.g., Outer Space Missions, Electric Vehicles, Ultra-Fast Charging Systems, Electronics Cooling, Avionics, Nuclear Reactors, Metal Manufacturing, Superconductors, Data Centers, etc.
- Gravitational Effects
- Experiments onboard the International Space Station (ISS)
- Two-Phase Flow Instabilities
- Fluid-Structure Interactions & Non-Newtonian Fluids in Biological Systems
- Adaptive and robust control
- Nonlinear control
- Precision control of mechanical systems
- Vehicle control
- Robotics
- Environment friendly design and life cycle engineering
- Applications of bio-based materials in manufacturing
- Fast and low-cost detection of pathogenic microorganisms
- Biomass thermo-chemical upgrading for liquid and gaseous fuel