Guests Lectures

Meet our guest lecturers

Prof. Guillermo Paniagua
Guillermo-Paniagua Guillermo Paniagua, Full Professor in Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University, is a recognized authority in high-speed turbines and measurement techniques. Prof. Paniagua spent 18 years at the von Karman Institute before joining Purdue University in Fall 2014. He has made contributions to the understanding of the complex high-speed flows using a combination of experimental breakthroughs and aero-thermal analysis using computational tools, delivering fast response diagnostics of high-speed internal flows. He has authored over 250 technical papers in journals and conferences, and six patents. He has served as Editor of 14 books, editor of the Elsevier Journal Measurement, and associate Editor of the Journal of Turbomachinery. Prof. Paniagua is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA).

Participated at the 18th & 12th AIJES

Dr. Bayindir Saracoğlu
Bayindir_Saracoglu Dr. Bayindir Saracoğlu currently works as a Research Manager at the von Karman Institute. He graduated from Mechanical Engineering Department of Boğaziçi University, Istanbul, Turkey in 2004. He obtained his Master of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Bogazici University in 2008. He then completed Research Master Program of von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics (VKI), Belgium in 2008. He was a member of doctoral program of the VKI between 2008 and 2012. He has completed Wright State University PhD in Engineering Program in Ohio, USA 2012, with his dissertation on active shock control on high-pressure turbines. Dr. Saracoglu has been involved in several European and international research projects. He is also deputy coordinator of European Commission funded STRATOFLY project consortium on a hypersonic aircraft concept. His research concentrates on modeling of high-speed propulsion systems, active and passive flow control and detonation engines. Dr Saracoglu has authored more than 50 technical papers and 2 patents. Dr. Bayindir H. Saracoğlu is an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA).

Participated at the 18th & 15th AIJES

Dr. John Clark
Dr. John Clark Dr. John Clark is the Principal Engineer and Lead Researcher in Turbines for the Turbine Engine Division in the Aerospace Systems Directorate at the Air Force Research Laboratory (Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton, OH, USA). He was awarded the degree of Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Oxford where he was a student of Prof. Terry Jones at the Osney Turbomachinery Laboratory. Subsequent to his graduation he worked at United Technologies, Pratt & Whitney in the Turbine Aerodynamics group. From there he joined the Air Force Research Laboratory in 2002. Dr. Clark has more than 70 journal publications and refereed conference papers on the topics of unsteady aerodynamics in turbomachines, high- and low-pressure turbine aerodynamics, turbine design methods and applications, optimization of turbine components, boundary-layer transition modeling, and turbine heat transfer and cooling. These efforts have so far generated four US patents and one pending. Since 2013, Dr. Clark has served as Associate Editor of the ASME Journal of Turbomachinery. In 2012, he was selected by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics as the Engineer of the Year in part for his efforts to improve the understanding of unsteady shock interactions in turbines.

Participated at the 18th & 16th AIJES

Prof. Tom Verstraete
Tom_Verstraete Dr. Tom Verstraete is currently an Associate Professor at the Von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics. Previously, he was a visiting professor at Queen Mary University of London after obtaining a Marie-Curie Individual Fellowship. With over 14 years of experience in the design of various turbomachinery components, his interests range from axial/radial compressors/turbines, internal cooling channels to space propulsion inducers, nuclear pumps, to steam turbines diffusers. He has authored or co-authored over 90 journal papers, conference papers and contributions to books. His current focus is on multidisciplinary shape optimization, conjugate heat transfer and micro gas turbines.

Participated at the 17th & 14th AIJES

Prof. Francesco Montomoli
Prof. Francesco Montomoli Dr. Francesco Montomoli studied mechanical engineering at University of Florence where he obtained his M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees. During this time-frame, he was also a visiting scholar at Texas AM University, Turbine Heat Transfer Laboratory. Completing his graduate education, he joined the R&D group of General Electric Oil & Gas. In 2006, Dr Montomoli started working at University of Cambridge, Whittle Laboratory. Conducting research in the field of aerospace propulsion and power generation, his research at the time, was sponsored by Rolls-Royce and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. In 2009, he was appointed Mitsubishi Senior Fellow and College Lecturer at Girton College, University of Cambridge. In 2011, Dr Montomoli was also Research Professor and leader of CFD group at the Basque Centre for Applied Mathematics. In following, he served as Senior Lecturer in Thermofluids at the University of Surrey. Since 2014, Dr Montomoli is at the Imperial College of London as Senior Lecturer/Associate Professor and he is leading the UQLab of Aeronautics Department.

Participated at the 17th AIJES

Mr. Abdul Nassar
Abdul Nassar Mr. Abdul Nassar is currently the Managing Director of SoftInWay Turbomachinery Solutions Pvt. Ltd., a sister concern of SoftInWay, the global engineering company offering turbomachinery solutions. He is also the Technical Director for Asia and Middle East. He has about 22 years of experience in the industry and academia. He started his career as a steam turbine maintenance engineer. Prior to joining SoftInWay, he was working as an assistant professor at M. S. Ramaiah School of Advanced Studies teaching turbomachinery and aerodynamics. He has guided more than 35 students in their Masters’ projects and has 24 technical publications in various journals and conference proceedings. His main areas of interest are turbomachinery design, aerodynamics and thermodynamics.

Participated at the 16th AIJES

Mr. Bruno Aguilar
Bruno Aguilar Mr. Bruno Aguilar joined Honeywell Aerospace in 1999. Mr. Aguilar spent his first 7 years at Honeywell performing design and analysis of turbine components for multiple Honeywell engines, including the successful HTF7000 engine. In 2006, Mr. Aguilar became Technical Manager of the Integrated Supply Chain (ISC) support group responsible for providing engineering support to the manufacturing of compressor, combustor and turbine components in the USA, Mexico and Czech Republic. In 2009, Mr. Aguilar became Technical Manager of the Turbines component design group responsible for Honeywell Aviation Transport and Regional (ATR) and Defense and Space (D&S) engines. Since 2016, Mr. Aguilar is a Sr. Technical Manager of the Turbines component design group responsible for Honeywell Commercial Aviation and Defense and Space Engines – Turboshaft, Turboprop, Turbofan and APU.  Mr. Aguilar has a BS and MS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Arizona, MBA from Arizona State University and Master in Global Management from Thunderbird School of Global Management. Mr. Aguilar has 6σ Black Belt and Material Review Board (MRB) certifications.

Participated at the 16th AIJES

Dr. Alan H. Epstein
Dr. Alan Epstein Dr. Alan Epstein is the Vice President, Technology and Environment and is responsible for setting the direction and coordinating technology as applied to product performance and sustainability across Pratt & Whitney. He provides strategic leadership in the investment, development and incorporation of technologies that reduce the environmental impact of the company’s world-wide products and services. Prior to joining Pratt & Whitney, Epstein was the R.C. Maclaurin Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and currently holds an appointment there as Professor Emeritus. Epstein has won many international awards for gas turbine technology. He is a member of the US National Academy of Engineering and a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. He received his B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from MIT in aeronautics and astronautics.

Participated at the  15th AIJES

Mr. Ryan M. Chapin
Ryan Chapin Ryan leads GE Aviation’s digital product engineering activities associated with the industrial internet.  His team partners with GE Digital to deliver advanced analytics, diagnostics, and prognostics aimed at improving engine/aircraft reliability and enabling new product offerings to assist our aviation customers with asset and operational efficiency. Ryan has a BS in aerospace engineering from University of Michigan, an MS in mechanical engineering from University of Cincinnati and is a certified Six Sigma Black Belt. His technical background includes aeromechanics, non-linear dynamics, damage modeling, design optimization and mechanical design of turbomachinery parts, modules and systems.

Participated at the 15th AIJES

Mr. Joachim Kurzke
Joachim Kurtke Education:

1963-1969 Aero & Space Technology at the Technical University of Munich. Doctorate 1976

Employment History:

1969 – 1976 Assistant Professor Technical University of Munich, Flight Propulsion Institute

1976 – 2004 MTU Aero Engines, Engine Performance Department

Engine Projects: RB199, MTR390, PW 300, PW 500, PW2000, PW4090, EJ200 and others

1980 – 1985 Development of the MTU Modular Performance Simulation Program

MOPS, since 1997 development of the MOPS derivative MOPEDS

1985 – 1991 MTU Representative and Chairman of the international

EJ200 Performance Working Group

1993 – 2000 Head of Engine Performance Department at MTU

Since 2004 Gas turbine performance consultant

Since 1991 Development of GasTurb

GasTurb is a cycle program which is used worldwide at Universities and in industry.

Participated at the 15th AIJES

Dr. Boris Glezer
Boris Glezer Over his 50 years of gas turbine design and research carrier Dr. Boris Glezer has established US national as well as world reputation in the field of turbine cooling and transient hot section behavior. He is a Fellow of ASME and a member of major IGTI committees.  His early successful engineering and academic development began in the former Soviet Union where, after earning his PhD degree, he has become a leader for advancement of industrial gas turbines operating in Gasprom pipeline system. Soon after immigrating to US in 1980 Boris became a team leader for turbine hot section design and then a Chief Engineer at Solar Turbines Inc. with responsibilities for turbine cooling design and heat transfer analysis.  During his years with Solar Turbines Dr. Glezer was awarded 18 US/international patents and published over 40 papers in professional journals as well as separate chapters in 3 books, including Turbomachinery Handbook. Being an owner of consulting firm “Optimized Turbine Solutions” Boris combined his consulting activity with teaching at universities and lecturing at VKI, Belgium. Over the last few years, he was invited to AE faculty of the Technion to teach a number of advanced gas turbine courses and to assist in the faculty research.

Participated at the 8th, 11th & 15th AIJES

Dr. Michael Klassen
image Dr. Klassen is currently a Principal Research Engineer and founding partner at Combustion Science & Engineering, Inc (CSE). He is also Chief Technical Officer of LPP Combustion, a company which is developing new techniques for the clean combustion of liquid fuels.  During his tenure at CSE, he has been involved in a diverse range of experimental and analytical engineering projects, including the design, development and implementation of both small- and large-scale fire tests and combustion studies; chemical kinetic studies of processes such as ignition, extinction and flame holding in various combustion systems; and fuel/air mixing studies in a variety of combustion systems.  He has directed projects involving the development of novel combustion systems, including applications at extreme temperatures and pressures, oxygen/ fuel combustion, and lean, premixed, prevaporized liquid fuels systems.  He holds numerous patents on novel combustion methods and hardware and for fire safety devices.  He has authored or co-authored dozens of journal papers and conference papers.

Participated at the 14th AIJES

Mr. Michael Victor Casey
image Michael Casey graduated in Engineering Science at Oxford University in 1970, and continued in Oxford to complete his doctoral thesis on “Cavitation inception on hydrofoils” in 1974. He subsequently held post-doctoral positions in Durham and Cambridge Universities in the UK, before taking up engineering and management roles for nearly 30 years in various international companies (WS Atkins, Sulzer Turbo, Rolls Royce, and Sulzer Innotec). Over this period, his technical work included the development, design and analysis of all aerodynamic components of centrifugal compressors, and he carried out research on compressors and turbines, turbomachinery design methods, CFD and experimental methods. From 2003 until his retirement in 2011, he was Professor of Thermal Turbomachinery in Stuttgart University, Germany where he worked mainly on steam turbines. During this period, he became a director of PCA Engineers Limited in the UK where he still consults, mainly on design methods and performance of centrifugal compressors. He has authored or co-authored well over 100 technical papers, and has received many awards for his publications. In addition to his university teaching, he has given courses and workshops on radial turbomachinery in various industrial companies and universities, notably at the prestigious Cambridge Turbomachinery Course. He is a Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers and of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.

Participated at the 13th AIJES

Mr. Damian Maria Anton Vogt
Vogt_Damian Dr. Damian Vogt graduated in Mechanical Engineering at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich in 1998 and continued at the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) in Stockholm, Sweden, to complete his doctoral thesis on turbine aero-elasticity. He has over 15 years of experience in experimental and numerical research, on turbomachines, with a main focal point on turbomachinery aero-elasticity. He was leading the EU FP7 collaborative project “FUTURE” within which 25 partners from academia, industry and research institutes from Europe and South Africa were researching on turbomachinery flutter. He has published over 60 journal and conference articles as well as book chapters. Dr. Vogt is currently Professor of Thermal Turbomachinery and Director of the Institute of Thermal Turbomachinery and Machinery Laboratory at the University of Stuttgart (Germany). After having chaired the Structures & Dynamics Committee of ASME IGTI, he is presently serving as the Technical Program Chair of the 2015 Turbo Expo conference.

Participated at the 13th AIJES

Dr. Srinath Varadarajan Ekkad
Srinath Ekkad Dr. Srinath Ekkad is currently Commonwealth Professor of Aerospace Propulsion Systems; Director of Commonwealth Center for Aerospace Propulsion Systems (CCAPS); and Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Virginia Tech. He joined the Mechanical Engineering department at Virginia Tech in August 2007 after 9 years at LSU and 2 years at Rolls-Royce Allison Engine Company in Indianapolis He has over 20 years of experience in heat transfer related research. He has published over 170 journal & conference articles, two patents and co-authored a book and a book chapter.

Participated at the 12th AIJES