AmeriMech Symposium

Interfaces and Mixing - Non-Equilibrium Transport Across the Scales

18-19 November 2017
Denver, CO, USA

Invited by the US National Academies of Sciences and US National Committee on Theoretical and Applied Mechanics
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Symposium outline

Interfacial mixing and transport control a broad variety of phenomena in fluids and materials, in nature and technology, over celestial to atomistic scales. Examples include fusion and supernovae, planetary convection and reactive and super-critical fluids, material transformation under impact, colloidal assembly, wetting and adhesion, and turbulence and turbulent mixing. Addressing the societal challenges posed by alternative energy sources, efficient use of non-renewable resources, purification of water and development of reliable diagnostics and therapeutics in medicine, requires a better understanding of non-equilibrium dynamics.

Interfacial transport and mixing are non-equilibrium processes coupling kinetic to meso- and macroscopic scales. Their dynamics often involve sharp changes of vector and scalar fields, and may also include strong accelerations and shocks, radiation transport and chemical reactions, diffusion of species and electric charges, among other effects. Interfacial transport and mixing are inhomogeneous, anisotropic, non-local, and statistically unsteady. At macroscopic scales, their spectral and invariant properties differ substantially from those of canonical turbulence. At atomistic and meso-scales, the non-equilibrium dynamics depart dramatically from the standard scenario given by Gibbs ensemble averages and the quasi-static Boltzmann equation. At the same time, non-equilibrium transport may lead to self-organization and order, thus offering new opportunities for flow diagnostics and control. Capturing properties of interfaces and mixing can aid better understanding of the fundamental of Eulerian and Lagrangian dynamics, and developing methods of control of non-equilibrium transport in nature and technology.

Significant success has been recently achieved in understanding of interfacial transport and mixing on the sides of theoretical analysis, large-scale numerical simulations, laboratory experiments, and technology development. This success opens new opportunities for studies of fundamentals of non-equilibrium dynamics across the scales, and for developing a unified description of particles and fields on the basis of synergy of experiment, theory and numerics. This is the right moment to apply the fundamentals of non-equilibrium transport for addressing contemporary challenges of modern science, technology and society, including energy, environment and health care. Alternative energy sources, efficient use of non-renewable resources, purification of water and development of reliable diagnostics and therapeutics in medicine - addressing these challenges requires the in–depth understanding of non-equilibrium dynamics, and the strong interplay of ideas and approaches from the interdisciplinary areas of research.

The symposium is focused on mechanics and hydrodynamic aspects of interfacial transport and mixing that couples kinetic to macroscopic scales. It provides the opportunity to bring together scientists from different areas of fluid dynamics, applied mathematics, statistics, chemistry and material science. The symposium is structured to encourage participants’ interactions with experts from various fields to motivate the discussions of rigorous mathematical issues, theoretical approaches and state-of-the-art numerical simulations along with advanced experimental techniques and technological applications. Participants include experts and researchers at experienced and early stages of their careers from academia, national laboratories and industry, and graduate students from national and international communities. The organizers expect the symposium to explore and assess the state-of-the-art in the non-equilibrium transport, and to chart new directions of the interdisciplinary research for the future.