Aerodynamics & Aeroelasticity

Working at the intersection of fluid mechanics, structural mechanics and dynamics, Duke MEMS faculty are investigating a diverse range of aerospace problems. Using computational and experimental methods, our researchers seek to discover new knowledge of the physics involved to aid in the development of improved airframes and turbomachinery that are safer and more efficient.

Research Areas

Acoustics
Aeroelasticity
Aerospace engineering
Computational fluid dynamics
Nonlinear dynamics and complex systems
Structural dynamics
Turbomachinery aeromechanics
Vibration

Centers, Initiatives & Facilities

Related Study Opportunities

PhD

Specializations include:

Aerospace Engineering

Master of Science (MS) or Master of Engineering (MEng)

Concentrations include:

Energy, Propulsion and Structures for Earth and Space

Graduate Certificates include:

Aerospace Research

Highlights

More MEMS research news

Designing for the Future of Safe Flight, Energy Generation and National Security

The sky's the limit for Duke engineers designing the safest, most cost-efficient aircraft and turbomachinery

Kielb Receives ASME’s R. Tom Sawyer Award

American Society of Mechanical Engineers bestows highest award for contributions to gas turbines

Earl H. Dowell to Receive the 2022 ASME Thomas K. Caughey Dynamics Medal

Dowell is an international leader in computational modeling and experimentation for aeroelastic systems in which fluids and structure interact

Associated Faculty

Donald B. Bliss

Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science

Research Interests: Fluid mechanics, aerodynamics, acoustics, and structural dynamics

John Everett Dolbow

Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science

Research Interests: Modeling quasi-static and dynamic fracture of structural components, the evolution of interfaces with nonlinear constitutive laws, and developing models for stimulus-responsive hydrogels

Earl H. Dowell

William Holland Hall Distinguished Professor

Research Interests: Aeroelasticity, acoustics, nonlinear dynamics, structural dynamics, and unsteady aerodynamics.

Henri P. Gavin

Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

Research Interests: Structural dynamics, earthquake engineering, seismic hazard mitigation for building contents, nonlinear dynamics, system identification, optimal control with application to systems with controllable damping.

Kenneth C. Hall

Julian Francis Abele Distinguished Professor

Research Interests: Unsteady aerodynamics, structural dynamics, and aeroelasticity of turbomachinery and aerospace vehicles. Novel approaches to modeling complex physical phenomena using computational fluid dynamics. Optimization and sensitivity analysis. Fluid dynamics of animal propulsion.

Guglielmo Scovazzi

Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

Research Interests: Finite element methods, computational fluid and solid mechanics, multiphase porous media flows, computational methods for fluid and solid materials under extreme load conditions, turbulent flow computations, instability phenomena.

Jeffrey P. Thomas

Assistant Research Professor in the Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science

Lawrence N. Virgin

Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science

Research Interests: Study of the behavior of nonlinear dynamical systems, including the investigation of the fundamental nature of nonlinear systems based on a mathematical description of their underlying equations of motion and the application of recent results from nonlinear dynamical systems…