METU NEVA Lab

Numerical Experimentation and Verification in Aerodynamics

Computational Fluid Dynamics · High-Speed Flows · Numerical Methods

View from the Engineering Building across campus buildings and tree-lined grounds at METU in Ankara. — METU from the Engineering Building · Atılım Güneş Baydın, 2003 · public domain

Research

NEVA Lab focuses on the physics of compressible flow and the numerical methods used to study it. The research interests span shock waves, their interaction with boundary layers, and the heat transfer that accompanies high-speed flight. They also include CFD solver development and verification, and the coupling of fluid motion, chemistry and heat release in reacting flows.

Shock waves in high-speed flow

Schlieren imaging makes density changes visible. Here, interacting shocks trace the compressible flow around two aircraft flying in supersonic formation.

Colorized NASA schlieren photograph of intersecting shock waves around two T-38 aircraft. — Supersonic formation flight · NASA AirBOS, 2019

Research areas

High-speed aerodynamics: Compressible and hypersonic flows, shock waves, and shock–boundary-layer interactions.
Numerical methods: CFD solver development, shock-capturing methods and verification against reference solutions.
Computational aerothermodynamics: Heat transfer and its relation to the flow field in high-speed flight.
Combustion and reacting flows: Coupling between flow, chemical reactions and heat release.