February 2021: Joseph Meadows
Joseph Meadows
Assistant Professor
Mechanical Engineering
PhD, Mechanical Engineering, University of Alabama, Alabama
MS, Mechanical Engineering, University of Alabama, Alabama
BS, Mechanical Engineering, University of Memphis, Tennessee
Email jwm84@vt.edu
How do you see your work contributing to the goals and vision of IIHCC?
A lot of my work goes into improving efficiency, such as in power generation industry where a more efficient engine would ultimately reduce the need for fossil fuels. Some of that work can be classified as working with different types of fuels, including working with renewable fuel sources. There are a lot of opportunities to develop combustion technologies to work with renewable fuel sources, which would fall under that umbrella. I have also been working on a new technology called rotating detonation engines (RDE), of which there are currently zero in production, but it has the potential to be the single largest increase in thermal efficiency for gas turbine engines for one technology. RDEs increase the pressure leaving the combustion device as opposed to traditional combustion engines, which experiences a decrease in pressure from the combustion device. As such, there is more available energy in the flow, which can be converted to electrical energy or increased thrust for propulsion applications. Lately I have been working on the development RDE in hopes of one day advancing the technology to market in order to increase efficiency and reduce fuel consumption.
What other areas outside of your discipline would you entertain for future research and proposal work?
The days of an issue being confined to a single discipline are primarily behind us, so for most any problem today you need to take an interdisciplinary approach, so I am very open-minded to explore any opportunities that could use my expertise in ways that I have not used it before. My background is in fluid thermal sciences, and since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, I have developed a flow sensor to measure the flow coming in and out of patients so they can use BiPAP devices as a ventilator in case hospitals become overwhelmed. This sensor is based on fundamental science of fluid mechanics, but I have been working with doctors from the Carilion Clinic to use the device in medical applications.