Neelesh A. Patankar

About

Neelesh A. Patankar is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Northwestern University, with courtesy appointments in Engineering Sciences and Applied Mathematics. He is also the Director of the Northwestern Advanced Institute for Science and Engineering (NAISE). His research group focuses on three primary missions: developing fully resolved computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques for fluid-structure interaction problems, using theory and CFD to understand organ physiology and integrating mechanics-based analyses and diagnostic tools into clinical practice, and establishing the foundational science of controlling phase transitions such as anti-icing, anti-frosting, boiling, condensation, and non-wetting superhydrophobic surfaces through surface roughness and chemistry. Patankar's work has significant implications across multiple fields, including biomedical engineering, fluid mechanics, and surface science. He has received numerous recognitions, including the NSF CAREER Award, the Searle Junior Fellowship, and the International Conference on Multiphase Flow Junior Award. He has also been honored for outstanding teaching and has contributed extensively to the academic community through his research, teaching, and leadership roles.

Research topics

• Physics
• Composite material
• Materials science
• Mechanics
• Thermodynamics
• Mathematical optimization
• Meteorology
• Chemistry
• Mathematical analysis
• Mathematics

Selected publications

• Frost-free zone on macrotextured surfaces

  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · 2020 · 81 citations

  Numerous studies have focused on designing functional surfaces that delay frost formation or reduce ice adhesion. However, solutions to the scientific challenges of developing antiicing surfaces remain elusive because of degradation such as mechanical wearing. Inspired by the discontinuous frost pattern on natural leaves, here we report findings on the condensation frosting process on surfaces with serrated structures on the millimeter scale, which is distinct from that on a conventional planar…

  DOI

• Stabilization approaches for the hyperelastic immersed boundary method for problems of large-deformation incompressible elasticity

  Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering · 2020 · 35 citations

  DOI

• The thermo-wetting instability driving Leidenfrost film collapse

  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · 2020 · 32 citations

  Senior authorCorresponding

  Above a critical temperature known as the Leidenfrost point (LFP), a heated surface can suspend a liquid droplet above a film of its own vapor. The insulating vapor film can be highly detrimental in metallurgical quenching and thermal control of electronic devices, but may also be harnessed to reduce drag and generate power. Manipulation of the LFP has occurred mostly through experiment, giving rise to a variety of semiempirical models that account for the Rayleigh-Taylor instability, nucleation…

  DOI

• Blood–wall fluttering instability as a physiomarker of the progression of thoracic aortic aneurysms

  Nature Biomedical Engineering · 2023-12-11 · 13 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Preventing mass loss in the standard level set method: New insights from variational analyses

  Journal of Computational Physics · 2024-10-11 · 11 citations

  articleOpen accessCorresponding

  For decades, the computational multiphase flow community has grappled with mass loss in the level set method. Numerous solutions have been proposed, from fixing the reinitialization step to combining the level set method with other conservative schemes. However, our work reveals a more fundamental culprit: the smooth Heaviside and delta functions inherent to the standard formulation. Even if reinitialization is done exactly, i.e., the zero contour interface remains stationary, the use of smooth…

  PublisherDOI

Recent grants

• SI2-SSI: Collaborative Research: Scalable Infrastructure for Enabling Multiscale and Multiphysics Applications in Fluid Dynamics, Solid Mechanics, and Fluid-Structure Interaction

  NSF · $513k · 2015–2021

• Fully resolved simulation of self-propelling fish

  NSF · $330k · 2008–2012

• CAREER: Computational Techniques for Sub-Micron/Nanoscale Fluid Dynamics

  NSF · $375k · 2002–2007

Frequent coauthors

• John E. Pandolfino

  Medpace (United States)

  65 shared

• Peter J. Kahrilas

  Northwestern University

  64 shared

• Wenjun Kou

  Lanzhou University of Technology

  59 shared

• Sourav Halder

  West Bengal University of Animal and Fishery Sciences

  50 shared

• Amneet Pal Singh Bhalla

  43 shared

• Shashank Acharya

  McCormick (United States)

  41 shared

• Dustin A. Carlson

  Northwestern University

  34 shared

• Guy Elisha

  Northwestern University

  30 shared

Labs

• Patankar GroupPI

Awards & honors

• International Conference on Multiphase Flow Junior Award, 20…
• Defense Science Study Group member, 2010-2011
• Associated Student Government Honor Roll for outstanding tea…
• Honorable mention McCormick Teacher of the Year, 2008
• NSF CAREER Award, 2002

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