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Details of Grant 

EPSRC Reference: EP/P004687/1
Title: Fluid dynamic properties of irregular, multi-scale rough surfaces
Principal Investigator: Busse, Dr A
Other Investigators:
Researcher Co-Investigators:
Project Partners:
Department: School of Engineering
Organisation: University of Glasgow
Scheme: First Grant - Revised 2009
Starts: 13 March 2017 Ends: 12 March 2018 Value (£): 100,764
EPSRC Research Topic Classifications:
Aerodynamics Continuum Mechanics
EPSRC Industrial Sector Classifications:
Aerospace, Defence and Marine
Related Grants:
Panel History:
Panel DatePanel NameOutcome
02 Jun 2016 Engineering Prioritisation Panel Meeting 1 and 2 June 2016 Announced
Summary on Grant Application Form
Surfaces roughness affects energy efficiency and maintenance costs in many industrial

sectors. Rough surfaces impair the performance of turbomachinery and marine energy harvesting sys-

tems. Surface roughness caused by fouling increases the drag of ships and aircraft.

An accurate prediction of the impacts of roughness is a prerequisite for the design of resilient systems

and the economic scheduling of maintenance cycles for machinery affected by surface roughness built-up e.g.

due to surface fouling or erosion.

Surface roughness increases fluid dynamic drag and cause a downwards shift in the near-wall velocity profile called the roughness function.

The fluid dynamic roughness effect is influenced both by the roughness height and the roughness topography.

Engineering rough surfaces with the same roughness height but different topographies can give rise to

roughness function values that differ by a factor of four.

While the relationship between roughness height and drag is well understood, the relationship

between roughness topography and fluid dynamic properties remains unclear, making an accurate prediction

of the fluid dynamic properies of a rough surface impossible.

In this project, surface simulations methods from tribology will be used to generate realistic random

rough surfaces with specified topographical parameters. Direct numerical simulations of turbulent channel

flow over the surfaces will be used to obtain their fluid dynamic properties with the aim to establish

relationships between topographical parameters and quantities such as the fluid dynamic drag, the roughness function

and near-wall turbulence intensity levels. The new relationships will enable the development of better

turbulence models for typical industrial computational fluid dynamics simulations that can take

surface topography effects into account. This will provide the basis for a more accurate prediction of

the impact of roughness in a wide range of engineering systems including the marine energy sector,

where bio-fouling and corrosion lead to strong surface roughness effects.
Key Findings
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Potential use in non-academic contexts
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Impacts
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Summary
Date Materialised
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Organisation Website: http://www.gla.ac.uk