Special Seminar: “Image-based computational modeling of biological fluid systems”

Abstract: 

Biology offers a rich source of inspiration for engineering designs and healthcare applications. However, the complex geometries and moving boundaries involved in biological locomotion and physiological activities create numerous challenges in the numerical modeling of fluid transport phenomena among these systems, such as flying animals, swimming organisms, and human respiratory and cardiovascular flows. In this talk, a versatile image-based computational approach will be demonstrated to investigate the underlying flow physics of biological systems, including aerodynamics of flapping flight, hydrodynamics of metachronal swimming, and transport phenomena of the human upper respiratory system. Based on high-speed photogrammetry or high-resolution computerized tomography, accurate 3D geometries and dynamic motions are reconstructed with extraordinary details. Then, an in-house Cartesian-grid-based computational fluid dynamics (CFD) solver is used to simulate the 3D viscous incompressible flow in all its complexity. This talk covers several examples from previous and ongoing projects, followed by a discussion of physics-based modeling research directions for bio-inspired aerial/underwater robotic design, energy harvesting, and CFD-guided clinical diagnosis.

Bio: 

Dr. Chengyu Li is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Villanova University. He received his Ph.D. in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from the University of Virginia in 2016 and was a postdoctoral researcher at the Wexner Medical Center of The Ohio State University from 2016 to 2018. His research is situated at the intersection of fluid dynamics and computation with an emphasis on engineering and healthcare applications. In particular, his research focuses on developing state-of-the-art computational methods that leverage mathematical models and numerical simulations to improve the understanding of biological and physiological flows. Dr. Li’s research interests include bio-inspired propulsion, fluid-structure interaction, energy harvesting, and transport phenomena in human respiratory and cardiovascular systems. His interdisciplinary research has been recognized with NSF CAREER Award (2021), Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Award (2019) by Oak Ridge Associated Universities, and Polak Young Investigator Award (2017) by the Association for Chemoreception Sciences.