Master's Degree in Computational Fluid Mechanics

In certain areas of industry such as automotive, aerospace, energy, chemistry, civil engineering... detailed knowledge of complex phenomena related to mass transfer (fluid mechanics) and energy transfer (thermal management, heat transmission) is fundamental for the design, development and optimization of systems that can be implemented in products of these industries. Some application examples are listed below:

• Aerospace. More efficient and less polluting aircraft. Optimization of the propulsion system, auxiliary systems and components (APU, ECS, flight control systems...), external aerodynamics.
• Automotive. Adaptation of the fleet to future anti-pollution regulations. Development of new combustion systems at MCIA, hybridization, batteries and thermal management, exhaust gas post-treatment.
• Energy. Optimization of wind turbines, solar parks, new energy generation systems (hydrogen).
• Civil Engineering. Optimization of structures.

Knowledge and research in all these areas represent a contribution to the fulfillment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), whose fundamental function is the eradication of poverty and the protection of the planet.

The analysis techniques of these phenomena can be experimental or theoretical. Experimental techniques allow for direct knowledge of the phenomena by determining the different variables with the corresponding measurement techniques in physical models or scale systems that represent the real system. However, the amount of information available may be limited and insufficient and, furthermore, the financial cost of certain experimental techniques is very high.

On the other hand, theoretical models use the fundamental conservation equations (transport, mass, energy, turbulence...) to determine the thermo-fluid-dynamic processes that occur in a certain system, through a series of methods and numerical algorithms, which allow reproducing the behavior of said system. In recent years there have been great computer advances, which have in turn allowed the implementation of increasingly complex models that can faithfully reproduce the behavior of the previously mentioned systems using computational techniques (Computational Fluid Dynamics, CFD).

This has caused a growing interest in the industry for these computational techniques, and currently a very significant part of the research and development that is carried out both at the university level and in the corresponding departments of the different industries is focused on these computational techniques. This fact justifies the growing demand for graduates with specific training in this area of knowledge in the specified industry areas.

Although in certain degrees such as the Degree in Aerospace Engineering (ETSID - UPV) a part of the basic knowledge is covered (numerical methods, fluid mechanics, compressible flow, mass and energy transport phenomena, basic CFD, aerodynamics...) , specific complementary training is necessary to be able to address the problems indicated above with guarantees.