Dunn Invited to Deliver Pratt and Whitney Distinguished Lecture in ME at UConn
Michael Dunn, Ohio State Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and Director of the Gas Turbine Laboratory, has accepted the invitation of the University of Connecticut’s Department of Mechanical Engineering (UConn) to deliver the 2011 Pratt and Whitney Distinguished Lecture in Mechanical Engineering. Professor Dunn’s lecture, which is titled “Volcanic Ash – Aircraft Engine Encounters” is scheduled for April 15.
Dunn was selected to deliver the annual Pratt and Whitney Distinguished Lecture because of interest in his previous research regarding the operation of gas turbine engines in clouds containing foreign material. The volcanic ash clouds that developed over Iceland and Europe in the spring of 2010 as a result of the “Eyjafjallajokull” volcano eruption shut down air travel across much of Europe and affected travelers worldwide. Very recently, many of the technical research reports describing the results of Dunn’s work have been declassified and can now be discussed in the context of potential volcanic ash problems faced by the airline industry.
The lecture will focus on a description of the environment used for the measurement program, the various engine damage mechanisms known to occur, engine tear down photographs illustrating the seriousness of the problem, air crew recognition of the cloud contaminant including response of on-board instrumentation, techniques for safe operation of the engine until the aircraft can exit the contamination area, brief discussion of the current state-of-the-art in predicting dust cloud migration, and a discussion of appropriate crew action in the event of the presence of cloud contamination greater than what ground controllers may have predicted.
Professor Dunn has been an Ohio State faculty member since December 1995. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. His BS, MS, and PhD degrees in Mechanical Engineering were earned at Purdue University.
