In the area of instabilities it is the goal of the present research to examine the physics of the spontaneous generation of spatial patterns in processes that involve solidification, electrodeposition and free-surface convection. The pattern formation is associated with instabilities of a parent state as a control parameter is changed. Other processes of interest that involve instabilities are shearing flows with viscous dissipation of heat and oscillatory flows where flow reversal is the cause of non- rectilinear patterns.

The mathematical methods used in our research are related to bifurcation theory, nonlinear energy methods and perturbation techniques. The experimental methods involve flow sensing by infrared imaging, shadow-graphy and electrochemical titration.

Studies are also being conducted in transport phenomena as applied to regenerative life support. In this regard the effect of pulsatile flow on mass and heat transfer is being investigated with the objective of enhancing transport and separation of species. In addition, these studies have application to biomedical fields such as transport in the lungs.