LSU AIChE president places first at AIChE Southern Regional Conference
March 23, 2006
LSU American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) chapter president and senior chemical engineering student Don Morris placed first in his session and second overall for his research presentation at the AIChE Southern Regional Conference last week in Starkville, Mississippi. His awards were in the amounts of $600 and $450, respectively.
His presentation titled, “Modeling Fluid Flow in Fractured Porous Media,” showcased his research and creation of a computer algorithm that can simulate on the pore scale low Reynolds number flow through a fractured media such as a packed oil well fracture using basic fluid mechanics. Morris states that this kind of algorithm is noteworthy because it can be accomplished with uneven boundary conditions and heterogeneity in packing. This is important because once it is completed it can give an actual picture of the fluid dynamics in any porous media or packed system. Also, since this has never been done before, it may go a long way in determining the important factors in the flow of these systems. Morris has been conducting his research under the direction of chemical engineering Associate Professor Karsten Thompson as part of his senior research project.
