Research Projects

Rayleigh-Taylor Unstable Flames: Connecting Local and Global Properties

The goal of this research project is to understand how the Rayleigh-Taylor instability, self-generated turbulence, and burning set the global flame speed and flame width of Rayleigh-Taylor unstable flames. I've shown that the flame speed is typically higher than the Rayleigh-Taylor flame speed model predicts, and that RT unstable flames are thinned and then thickened as the strength of the RT instability increases. I continue to investigate these two surprising findings by measuring local properties of the flame structure and then using these local measurements to better understand the global flame behavior. An understanding of how the global flame speed is set should lead to more accurate subgrid models for full star Type Ia simulations. An investigation of the flame width should shed further light on the trigger for Type Ia explosions. In addition, the methods and ideas developed for this project could be useful for efficient aviation engine design, and to the general study of turbulent combustion, fluid instabilities, and the ablative RT instability, which is of key importance in laser-driven fusion experiments. This project currently uses ACCESS supercomputing resources Stampede3, Ranch, and Expanse, the open source spectral element code Nek5000, and the visualization tool VisIt.

Solar Dreams

This short movie takes a journey through the mind of a solar physicist using modern dance and NASA solar footage. A collaboration with choreographer Megan Rhyme, physicist Elizabeth Hicks and videographer Steve Tarzia. Coming soon!

Rayleigh-Taylor Unstable Flames: The Effect of Two-mode Coupling

We explored how adding a reaction to a Rayleigh-Taylor unstable interface affects the way that two short wavelength modes couple to generate longer wavelength modes. Using simulations, we identified five distinct flame growth solution types. Depending on the greatest common divisor of the wavenumbers of the two modes, the flame may stall, develop coherent pulsations, or even become a metastable traveling wave. We also compared our results with two-mode coupling in ablative and classical Rayleigh-Taylor and showed that all three systems may follow the same mode coupling dynamics.

Far From Equilibrium: Curiosity, Creativity, Uncertainty

What drives research in science and in art? Curiosity? Uncertainty? Creativity? Perseverance? What are the similarities and differences between scientific and artistic research processes? How do people from different fields establish a shared language, common goals, and shared values? In Far From Equilibrium, a choreographer, a composer, and a physicist work together with artists and engineers to explore these questions.

The first half of the evening is our creative investigation: a 20-minute modern dance accompanied by original music. Both the dance and the music explore turbulence, a chaotic twisting and stretching of fluid studied by fluid dynamics. Turbulence is in most places in the universe: in cream stirred into coffee, in the raging, swirling flames of forest fires on Earth, and even in massive explosions of energy from the surface of our Sun. However, this chaotic, complex, unstable fluid phenomenon is mysterious, even to the scientists who study it. Both the movement and the music interpret the fundamental motions of turbulence, recombining them into new, intuitive forms. We invite audiences to immerse themselves in the beauty of turbulence and to consider uncertainty, complexity, and how motion underlies form.

In the second half of the evening, we invite you to join our research and carry out your own exploration. Enter our immersive research environment, filled with physics, dance, and music activities. Ask your own questions about the double pendulum, generate your own turbulent flow, improvise your own turbulence dance, or write your own composition. Question the show's dancers, musicians, and creators. Record your impressions on our question boards. Work with other audience members to create a piece of art. Unleash your curiosity and experience research, creativity and collaboration in a whole new way.

Far From Equilibrium: An Dance About Turbulence

Our dance project, “Far From Equilibrium”, is an artistic exploration of turbulence. It was be performed on October 17th, 2015 at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago. Turbulence is in most places in the universe: in cream stirred into coffee, in the raging, swirling flames of forest fires on Earth, and even in massive explosions of energy from the surface of our Sun. However, this chaotic, complex, unstable twisting and stretching of fluid is mysterious, even to the scientists who study it. This work interprets and embodies the fundamental motions of turbulence, recombining them into new, intuitive forms: the turbulence of bodies mixing, the shear and glide of dancers in space, spirals and eddies of movement that appear and disappear without warning. “Far from Equilibrium” invites audience members to immerse themselves in the beauty of turbulence and reflect on its role in everyday life.