Navy awards Hanquist young investor award

AME assistant professor Kyle Hanquist is the latest recipient of the Office of Naval Research's Young Investigator Program. With the three-year, $750,000 grant, Hanquist plans to further his hypersonics research. This research isn’t just about going fast, but also about making sure hypersonic vehicles can withstand those extreme speeds.

“This award is well-deserved recognition of Dr. Hanquist’s groundbreaking research in hypersonics,” said AME department head Farzad Mashayek. 

Hanquist is focusing on thermionic emission, which occurs when the vehicle’s surface reaches temperatures as high as 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit and the flow field, or surrounding air, heats to as much as 18,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Under these conditions, electrons escape from the surface, forming plasma that may carry away thermal energy and help cool the material. 

Hanquist and his team will use modeling and simulation to study how plasmas interact with hypersonic vehicle surfaces and help manage intense heat loads. They will also conduct experiments that simulate extreme thermal conditions to validate their models and assess whether thermionic emission can effectively cool hot aerospace surfaces.

The award will also fund the work of four students on Hanquist's team. Two are undergraduates and two are graduate students.