Towards Next Generation Ocean Engineering: From foundation to Frontiers

面向下一代海洋工程：从基础到前沿

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This talk will focus on what has been achieved in marine hydrodynamics for ocean engineering at UCL since 1980s when the North Sea Oil was at its peak. The research has been focusing on the modelling and simulation of fluid-structure interactions problems with its wide range applications in ocean engineering. A variety of numerical methods have been developed or adopted, including the finite element method, finite volume method, finite difference method, boundary element method, lattice Boltzmann method and analytical method. Examples highlighted include motions of ships and offshore platforms in waves; fluid/structure impact; sloshing in a tank, harbour and polynya; flow induced vibration; motion of pipelines near seabed, wave/structure/ice interactions in the polar region. This has laid a solid foundation for development of new frontiers of ocean engineering.

Professor Wu earned his Bachelor’s degree in Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering from Shanghai Jiao Tong University in 1982. He went to University College London, in 1983, at the time when the offshore development at the North Sea was at its peak. He obtained Msc and PhD degrees in Ocean Engineering from UCL. After completion of his PhD in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at UCL, he continued his academic career there, serving as a researcher, lecturer, reader, and was appointed as professor in 2000, the post he has held even since.

Professor Wu research primarily focuses on the modelling and simulation of fluid-structure interaction problems within engineering applications. His work covers a wide range of numerical methods, including the finite element method, finite volume method, finite difference method, boundary element method, lattice Boltzmann method and was seen as a pioneer for the applications of some these methods in marine hydrodynamics. He has developed several computer codes for large scale computations based on these methods. He has also developed various analytical methods for the physical insights of specific engineering problems. The principal applications of his research span (1) naval architecture, (2) harbour, coastal, offshore, and deep-water engineering, (3) renewable energy and (4) polar engineering. In addition to addressing fundamental and challenging problems in engineering through cutting-edge research, a key emphasis has been placed on applying these findings to improve design, protect the environment, enhance safety and reduce costs. Prof Wu has published extensively, especially on journals such as Journal of Fluid Mechanics, Proceedings of the Royal Society, as well as selectively with the aim of achieving real significance in engineering and academia.