Alberto Aliseda - Assistant Professor

  • University of California, San Diego (PhD 2004)
  • Energy & Fluids

Courses

  • ME 333: Introduction to Fluid Mechanics
    ME 533: Fluid Mechanics I
  • ME 534: Fluid Mechanics II
  • ME 537: Topics in Fluid Mechanics: Cardiovascular Flows

Contact Information

Biography

My research and teaching focuses on fluid mechanics with applications to Energy, Enviromental and Biomedical Flows. In particular, I am interested in the dynamics of multiphase flows, such as bubbles in water and droplets in air. This type of flows arise in many engineering and environmental problems such as the exchange of gases between the atmosphere and the ocean, the formation of rain drops in clouds, the atomization of liquids in combustion and manufacturing processes and the dynamics of microbubbles injected in the human circulation to enhance ultrasound imaging and therapeutical use. I use a large number of experimental techniques (Laser Doppler Velocimetry, Laser Induced Fluorescence, Particle Image Velocimetry, Hot-Wire Anemometry, Phase Doppler Particle Analysis, etc.) to gain insight into the fundamental physics of these complex flows. I complement these experimental studies with mathematical analysis and modeling in order to extract useful information that can be applied outside the laboratory in real world problems.

Current Research Projects

Dynamics of Microbubbles Ultrasound Contrast Agents (UCA) in the Human Circulation:
My research in this area tries to understand the different physical phenomena that determines the trajectories of very small bubbles (1-10 microns) while they are transported in the human circulatory system. A better understanding of the dynamics of these bubbles will greatly improve their efficiency when they are used for imaging and diagnostics, and will open the possibility of innovative treatment techniques.

Air Entrainment and Bubble Transport in breaking waves:
The gas exchange between the Ocean and the Atmosphere plays a key role in the global dynamics of both, yet it is determined by local phenomena that are not well understood. This problem is one of the missing physical processes that need to be described in quantitative models attempting to make long term predictions on weather patterns and global warming.

Droplet Atomization and Transport in Turbulent Flows:
The formation of liquid droplets and its transport and accumulation in a turbulent are important problems with innumerable applications. Currently, I am studying two different aspects of this problem. The break up of a liquid stream by a coaxial high speed gas jet is commonly used in combustion processes to atomize the fuel and mix it with the oxidizer. Extension of existing models to account for viscous and non-Newtonian effects in the liquid phase are underway. The interaction of the resulting droplets with the underlying turbulence in the gas plays an important role in the accumulation of droplets in certain regions of the flow and can potentially enhance collisions and coalescence. This goes against the intuitive behaviour of turbulence leading to homogeneous and well-mixed concentration fields based on passive scalar results that do not correspond to the physics of inertial particles or droplets. A better understanding of this problem can be used in the design of improved chemical reaction and manufacturing processes, as well as lead to better models of naturally occurring phenomena such as droplet formation in clouds and pollutant dispersion.

Selected Publications

  • Aliseda, A. and Lasheras, J.C. "Effect of buoyancy on the dynamics of a turbulent boundary layer laden with microbubbles " Journal of Fluid Mechanics Vol 559: 307-334 2006.
  • Aliseda, A., Ariyur, K.B., Sarrazin, O., Lasheras, J.C. and Krstic, M. "Tailored fuel injection for pulsed detonation engines via feedback control ," AIAA Journal of Propulsion and Power Vol 19 (5): 917-921 2003.
  • Aliseda, A., Cartellier, A., Hainaux, F. and Lasheras, J.C. "Effect of preferential concentration on the settling velocity of heavy particles in homogeneous isotropic turbulence" Journal of Fluid Mechanics Vol 468: 77-105 2002.


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