Advanced materials and applications for marine engineering (UO2)

The objective of this operational unit is to study advanced solutions in the fields of composite material structures, computational fluid dynamics, advanced design methods, and sensor technologies, with the aim of making vessels more high-performing, environmentally sustainable, lighter, and more cost-effective. In particular, the unit focuses on the development of:

• Advanced design systems, including multiparameter optimization of complex dynamic systems and the use of automated simulation (Simulation Driven Design)

• Finite Element Method (FEM) structural analysis systems specifically designed for composite materials and complex structures such as marine structures

• Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) methodologies applied to advanced problems involving two-phase flows or fluid–structure interaction, using both traditional formulations (RANS, potential flow codes) and innovative approaches (SPH, Vortex Methods)

• Innovative and environmentally sustainable composite materials, together with their related manufacturing and disposal processes

• Instrumentation systems for marine sensing and computer vision, together with quality control systems for composite material structures

• Virtual prototyping and photorealistic visualization

The main industrial sectors for the application of these innovative systems are:

• Transport systems (automotive, motorcycling, railway, aerospace, and naval sectors)

• Plastic, composite, ceramic, and nanostructured materials

• Energy and environmental sectors