Civil Engineering Professor Shares Expertise in Thermal Research

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Panneer Selvam, University of Arkansas

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. -- Panneer Selvam, University Professor of civil engineering and holder of the James T. Womble Endowed Professorship in Computational Mechanics and Nanotechnology Modeling, was an invited speaker at two conferences on thermal management and thermal power.

Selvam, who has been conducting research in this field for 15 years, has looked at thermal energy from both sides: how to get rid of heat in order to protect delicate electronic equipment and how to collect heat to use as an energy source.

At the Advancements in Thermal Management conference in Denver, Selvam drew on his extensive experience with liquid spray cooling. In this area, Selvam has collaborated with Juan Balda, University Professor of electrical engineering and Simon Ang, professor of electrical engineering.

In his presentation, Selvam explained how he and his fellow researchers studied heat transfer using computer models to examine the way bubbles form and grow as liquid is sprayed onto a surface. Selvam's research on spray cooling has applications in the field of high power electronics, and it has been used by the Air Force, the Navy and NASA.

More recently, Selvam has been studying methods of storing heat in order to turn it into energy. At the 7^th Concentrated Solar Thermal Power Conference & Expo in Las Vegas, Selvam presented his structured thermocline system, which uses parallel concrete plates to store solar energy in the form of heat. The heat could then be transferred to a generator. Selvam explained that his system could be used by large power plants looking for solar energy storage to complement traditional energy sources, or it could help individuals store solar energy to run their homes.