Award Abstract #0619665
Acquisition of A Modular Wave Tank for Fundamental and Applied Research in the New UNC Multiscale Fluid Dynamics Lab

NSF Org:	DMS Division of Mathematical Sciences
Initial Amendment Date:	July 21, 2006
Latest Amendment Date:	July 21, 2006
Award Number:	0619665
Award Instrument:	Standard Grant
Program Manager:	Dean M Evasius DMS Division of Mathematical Sciences MPS Directorate for Mathematical & Physical Sciences
Start Date:	August 1, 2006
Expires:	July 31, 2009 (Estimated)
Awarded Amount to Date:	$619607
Investigator(s):	Roberto Camassa camassa@math.unc.edu (Principal Investigator) Francisco Werner (Co-Principal Investigator) Richard McLaughlin (Co-Principal Investigator) Alberto Scotti (Co-Principal Investigator)
Sponsor:	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 104 AIRPORT DR STE 2200 CHAPEL HILL, NC 27599 919/966-3411
NSF Program(s):	MAJOR RESEARCH INSTRUMENTATION
Field Application(s):	0000099 Other Applications NEC
Program Reference Code(s):	OTHR, 0000
Program Element Code(s):	1189

ABSTRACT

The acquisition supported by this Major Research Instrumentation (MRI)

grant consists of a modular wave tank and related wave making and data collecting

instrumentation to be housed in the new Fluids Lab at the University of

North Carolina. The proposed modular wave tank has been designed with

maximum flexibility in mind. Much of fluid mechanics takes place across multiple scales, and their

nonlinear coupling is arguably one of the most challenging features of

theoretical and experimental science. With this instrument the team of PIs and

participants will be able to probe into phenomena, some of them newly discovered

in the existing Mathematics Fluid Lab or in field experiments by Marine Science faculty, as never

before. From mixing in stratified jets and their generation and

interaction with internal waves, to sedimentation of particles in stratified fluids and their

entrainment phenomena, to large internal solitary wave propagation from deep to

shallow topography with forcing and breaking, to boundary layer sediment

transport by surface wave motion, the host of experiments that the new instrumentation

makes possible is such as to guarantee intensive usage for many years to come.

The modularity of the new wave tank is designed so that each module can serve a different

purpose, as well as allowing simultaneous experiments to take place in the

different modules. This will optimize time sharing as well as usage of resources.

The destructive powers of water, set in motion by large natural forces, have been painfully

illustrated by the tragic events that marked the recent past. Tsunamis and

hurricane surges have taken untold lives, and cost hundreds of billions of

dollars in damage. The primary means to mitigate the effects of these uncontrollable

natural forces is accurate prediction and forecast, which in turn relies on fundamental

understanding of the physical phenomena at play. Close integration of experimental

and mathematical modelling is becoming more and more recognized as the most

successful approach to study this range of fluids problems. The proposed instrumentation

is dedicated to the study of the relevant physical processes that govern the dynamics of

water emulating these natural events, with the ultimate goal of improving predictive capabilities.

The visual appeal of fluid motion and the challenge of its mathematical modeling

will further extend the proposed instrumentation into a primary educational tool able

to attract bright undergraduate students to careers in the sciences, thereby increasing

the competency of our workforce in these fields of national interest.

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