Projects

Kármán vortex street is a repetitive pattern generated downstream of blunt objects due to unsteady flow separation phenomena. Understanding vortex shedding, a key mechanics underlying the Kármán vortex street formation, is essential in designing numerous engineering structures (tall buildings, industrial chimneys, submerged periscopes, and airplane wings to name a few). Modifying and modulating the vortex shedding pattern has an immense effect on the overall forces experienced by the blunt object. The central idea is to avoid any unwanted oscillations or engineering failures of structures due to Kármán vortex street. This is extensively looked into by Subhash Paramanik, a PhD scholar working in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at NIT Durgapur. 

Viscous instability, also known as Saffman–Taylor instability, is a hydrodynamic phenomenon of finger-like structure formation by a fluid-fluid interface that occurs when a low viscous fluid attempts to displace a high viscous fluid. Viscous instability in a porous medium is often encountered in drainage systems, the oil recovery industry, carbon capture through underground carbon dioxide sequestration, and many more. Accurate knowledge of the flow phenomena, its chaotic signatures, and its dispersive nature give intriguing insights into the fate of the displacing and displaced fluids over time. Presently, Abhishek Kumar is looking into the viscous instability phenomena through a porous medium to understand the flow intricacies and underlying chaos.