Session G27: Fluid Dynamics Education I

Challenge-Based Instruction to Blend Physical and Virtual Labs Experiences

Newly designed lab experience can increase students' skills for experimentation and increase their potential for engineering problem solving. Many traditional labs replicate classic experiments which provide a historical foundation for how theories were developed, and model experimental methods students need to replicate in future labs. Now, browser-based technologies and modeling tools are ubiquitous and fast enough to provide students with a richer learning experience which demand higher cognitive skills associated with model-based reasoning. Problem-based learning offers an efficient method for organizing a series of learning experiences that use blend physical and virtual labs to support students' inquiry. This presentation discusses the design and rationale our project is using to organize students' lab-based learning activities around challenges anchored in authentic engineering problem solving tasks. The presentation will focus specifically on how a new virtual window tunnel is used to prepare students for their physical lab experiences and support their inquiry post-lab.   

Development of a Modular and Scalable Undergraduate Fluid Mechanics Course Using Physical and Virtual Experiments

Instructors in the Schools of Mechanical Engineering (ME) and Aeronautics and Astronautics (AAE) at Purdue University are developing a pedagogy for implementing physical and virtual experiments to create a modular and scalable undergraduate fluid mechanics course. The course will include interactive modules on core fluid mechanics concepts, traditional laboratory experiments, and virtual labs designed to simulate the physical lab. The virtual lab platform allows students to tinker and experiment while receiving quick and targeted feedback, encouraging the development of physical intuition. Development of this innovative course structure will proceed in four stages: 1) Compiling, categorizing, and prioritizing fluid mechanics concepts and mapping them to learning objectives for lab design; 2) Development of virtual lab platforms to simulate fluid mechanics experiments; 3) Implementation of real-time simulation capabilities in the virtual labs to enable experimentation and design; and 4) Synergistic integration of learning materials, traditional laboratory experiments, virtual lab modules, and design challenges into a modular course package. Progress on the first two stages is presented and plans for implementing virtual labs and evaluation using applicable metrics is discussed.   

Development of Virtual Labs for Fluid Mechanics and Aerodynamics Courses

Continuously increasing student enrollment in engineering programs presents a significant challenge for laboratory courses, where equipment and physical space are limited. The result is that lab groups become unmanageably large, hindering student engagement and forcing many students to be observers of the experiment thus forfeiting the learning opportunity to gain meaningful hands-on experience. At Purdue University, the School of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AAE) and the School of Mechanical Engineering (ME) are addressing this issue by developing Virtual Labs for their fluid mechanics and aerodynamics courses. The Virtual Labs use simulations to produce an environment that resembles the physical lab experience. In addition to promoting student conceptual understanding, Virtual Labs can provide students opportunities for sustained interaction with the experiment to discover the impact of various physical parameters on the dynamics of the flow and the behavior of the system. A wind tunnel Virtual Lab developed in AAE and ME is presented and is used to supplement an existing hands-on lab where the students study wakes behind cylinders and spheres. Ongoing work on developing a modular undergraduate fluid mechanics course using integrated physical and virtual labs is discussed.   

Visualising student attention in learning fluid dynamics using eye-tracking in virtual reality

With the expansion of immersive technologies and supporting tools, at matar fluids group, we are experimenting with new forms of the interactive student experience for learning and teaching fluid dynamics. We have been developing an interactive and multimodal platform to facilitate learning fluid dynamics with the rationale of using an immersive environment as a visualisation medium. Our in-house virtual reality app for teaching fluid dynamics has significantly enhanced student engagement. This work has extended this platform through eye gaze and movement tracking. We introduce new methods to visualise student attention and activity patterns as they explore the FluidVR app from a third-person perspective. The results can help educators make informed decisions on restoring attention. For example, sometimes, students look outside the relevant regions to the current presentation in FluidVR. In the case of mixing, it can be hard to focus on smaller areas of bubble formation due to overall complexity. With the help of gaze tracking and visual cues, students can be encouraged to return visual focus to the appropriate area of interest. This new functionality gives an insight into student attention and help assess the effectiveness of teaching fluid dynamics using virtual reality.   

A New Course: Modeling Inhomogeneous Turbulence with a Historical Perspective

A new graduate class is developed at the University of Florida called Modeling Inhomogeneous Turbulence with a Historical Perspective. The course covers in-depth concepts of the science and mathematics of turbulence modeling. Major topics of the class include statistics for modeling, the Russian school, law of the wall, chaos, compressible Navier-Stokes equations, mean kinetic energy, Reynolds stress transport equation, boundary layer equations, two-dimensional laminar flows, mixing length concepts, Baldwin-Lomax, Cebeci-Smith, one-half equations, one-equations, Prandtl's model, Spalart-Allmarus, k-omega, k-epsilon, Boussinesq, nonlinear relations, stress transport models, closure, Morkovin hypothesis, and studies in particular flows. These topics are related to turbulent flows that are observed in our daily lives and within various fields of engineering. Student assessment is conducted via analysis assignments, term papers, and a presentation on a topic of their choice. A four part programming project involves creating a parabolic boundary layer marching code with an algebraic closure. Feedback from students and progress on making the course publicly available are presented. Portions of the course appear online. Course notes and assignments are available freely within a 351 page handout.