Teaching
Incompressible fluid flow (ME5310; Fall 2023, Fall 2022, Fall 2021 ):
Incompressible fluid flow is a graduate level fluid mechanics course. This course is specifically designed for masters students in thermo-fluid specialization, and for Ph. D. candidates having a deep interest in the fundamentals of fluid mechanics. This course covers the detailed derivations of all the governing equations. The applications of these equations for analyzing different physical problems and flow regimes are also demonstrated.
Introduction to fluid mechanics and heat transfer (ME5030; Spring 2023, Spring 2022, Spring 2021 ):
This is an introductory course to fluid mechanics and heat transfer. This course is meant for masters students in manufacturing and design specialization. This course introduces the students to some of the fundamental concepts of fluid mechanics and convective heat transfer.
Interfacial phenomena (ME5270; Spring 2023, Spring 2022; co-taught with Dr. Harish N. Dixit):
This course covers the fundamentals of capillarity, wetting, and thin films (essentially the details of surface tension driven phenomena). This course explains the basic concepts of menisci formation and wettability. Concepts of minimal surfaces, menisci shapes, and shapes of puddles/floating lenses are also explained within a common theoretical framework based on variational principles (calculus of variations). This course also covers the statics and dynamics of wetting of drops on substrates of varying wettability. Finally, thin film dynamics including the various capillarity-mediated thin film instabilities, e.g. Rayleigh-Plateau, Rayleigh-Taylor, and Marangoni instabilities, are also explained. So, if you are interested to know what is the common link between water striders, a floating pin, and the design of the attic in Casa Mila by Antoni Gaudi, this course is for you.
Microhydrodynamics (ME5760; Spring 2024):
This course has been designed and introduced by Ranabir since Spring 2024, as a graduate level core elective. It covers the fundamentals of Stoksean (low Reynolds number) hydrodynamics, including the fundamental theorems and problem solving methodologies. Concepts of minimum energy dissipation and Lorentz reciprocal theorems, Stokes fundamental singularities, multipole expansion, stream-function vorticity formulation, squirmer model, and method of images (just to mention a few of the highlights) are explained over the period of this course. So, if you are interested to understand how a colloidal particle settles in a viscous liquid, how Einstein came up with the expression for the modified viscosity for a dilute suspension of colloidal particles, or if you want to understand the common link between the hydrodynamics of a swimming bacterium and artificial microswimmers, this course is for you.
Fluid Mechanics (ME2240; Autumn 2024):
This is the classical undergraduate fluid mechanics course.