Ph.D. Candidate · University of Michigan

Uncovering the physics
inside reacting flows.

Using large-eddy simulation and custom OpenFOAM tools, I study how turbulence, mixing, and chemistry govern flame stability, emissions, and transport in complex reacting systems.

Explore selected work GitHub LinkedIn CV

LES Live flow field

A living sketch of a reacting jet in crossflow—the canonical problem at the center of my doctoral research.

01 / Research

From first principles
to predictive tools.

My work connects fundamental transport, turbulence, and chemical kinetics with practical questions in emissions, energy, and high-performance scientific computing.

Combustion

Turbulent reacting flows

Large-eddy simulation of non-assisted methane flares in crosswind, with a focus on turbulence–chemistry interaction, flame stability, and combustion efficiency.

Scientific computing

OpenFOAM solver development

Custom low-Mach and compressible reacting-flow solvers, kinetic-energy-preserving numerics, detailed chemistry, and scalable workflows for large simulations.

Multiphysics

Thermal-fluid systems

Simulation of micro-combustors, particle-resolved transport, adsorption, and coupled heat and mass transfer across scales.

Research media

Flow physics, in motion and at scale.

Selected results from flare combustion, compressible micro-combustion, coherent-structure analysis, and particle-resolved transport.

10 s loop

01 / Reacting flow

Vorticity, dilatation & temperature

Coupled field evolution through the combustor and downstream channel.

10.6 s loop

02 / Compressible flow

Numerical schlieren

Density-gradient structures and wave transport in a methane–oxygen micro-combustor.

4.3 s loop

03 / Multiphysics

Particle-resolved packed-bed transport

Transient species transport through a resolved assembly of adsorbing particles.

4 s loop

04 / Coherent structures

Q-criterion in a flare plume

Resolved vortical structures reveal the organization and breakup of the turbulent plume.

Temperature isosurfaces comparing circle, diamond, square, HARE, and LARE flare nozzles — **Nozzle geometry and flame structure**Circle · Diamond · Square · HARE · LARE

Temperature isosurfaces showing blowout progression at zero, two, four, and eight seconds for four nozzle geometries — **Geometry-dependent blowout progression**Transient temperature field · t = 0–8 s

Temperature visualization around a perforated flare geometry — **Perforated flare configuration**Three-dimensional reacting-flow structure

Temperature fields comparing a baseline perforated flare and ten perforation designs — **Perforation-design comparison**Baseline and D1–D10 configurations

Combustion inefficiency plotted against an algebraic predictive model with points colored by turbulence intensity — **Predictive combustion-inefficiency scaling**LES and experiments · turbulence-intensity dependence

Downstream combustion efficiencyVelocity ratios Uc/Uj = 1–4

Flame temperature isosurfaces comparing crosswind velocity ratio and turbulence intensity — **Crosswind ratio and turbulence intensity**Instantaneous 800 K flame boundary · D = 7.62 cm

02 / Selected work

Research in motion.

A growing archive of manuscripts, research software, and talks. The content lives in one editable data file, so this page can evolve with the work.

03 / About

Building reliable simulations for difficult flows.

I am a Ph.D. candidate in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Michigan, working at the intersection of computational fluid dynamics, turbulent combustion, and scientific software. I enjoy translating complex flow physics into models that are both rigorous and useful.

Based inAnn Arbor, Michigan

Research areasCFD · Combustion · HPC

EducationPh.D. Mechanical Engineering · M.S. & B.Tech. Aerospace Engineering

Recognition2026 Towner Prize nominee · ACCESS allocation recipient

Read full curriculum vitae

Interested in collaborating?

ashraym@umich.edu

Uncovering the physicsinside reacting flows.

From first principlesto predictive tools.