SEMINAR: Fluid Dynamics & the US ARMY Research Office

Abstract:

Dr. Matthew Munson currently serves as Program Manager for Fluid Dynamics at the U.S. Army Research Office. Fluid dynamics plays a critical role in many Army operational capabilities. Significant challenges exist for accurate and efficient prediction of flow physics critical for improved performance and future advanced capability. Army platforms are often dominated by flows with high degrees of unsteadiness, turbulence, numerous and widely separated spatio-temporal scales, and geometrical complexity of solid or flexible boundaries. In order to gain the necessary physical insight to enable future capabilities spanning Army vehicles, munitions, medical devices, and logistics, the Fluid Dynamics program seeks to support basic research investigations of fundamental and novel flow physics. In view of the nonlinear and high-dimensional character of the governing equations, revolutionary advances in fluid dynamics research tools are also of great interest; advanced experimental methods, sophisticated computational techniques and breakthrough theoretical advances will be critical for gaining the required fundamental understanding.

Dr. Munson will provide a short presentation on the U.S. Army Research Laboratory, with an overview of in-house vs extramural activities, as well as an introduction to ARO. He will also present some general interests of the ARO Mechanical Sciences Division along with specific research interests to the Fluid Dynamics Program. Finally, he will discuss some ideas of personal research interest in which he hopes to engage at NCSU under an ARO staff research agreement.

Biography:

Dr. Munson joined the U.S. Army Research Laboratory in 2012 as a Research Engineer and assumed his current position as Program Manager in late 2014. He received a PhD in Aeronautics from the California Institute of Technology in 2012, and a M.S. in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology in 2003 and 2002, respectively. He was also awarded the SMART Scholarship and the NDSEG Fellowship. Between M.S. and PhD, he worked for Honeywell Aerospace applying CFD tools for analysis of future concepts and root cause/corrective action on fielded aircraft engine control system components. Dr. Munson is an active member of AIAA and APS-DFD.