Dr. Phil Ligrani
ACADEMIC EMPLOYMENT:
- Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, 2014-Present. Eminent Scholar in Propulsion, 2014-2025. Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Propulsion Research Center, 5000 Technology Drive, University of Alabama at Huntsville, Huntsville, AL 35899 USA. E-MAIL: p_ligrani@msn.com.
- Professor of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, Oliver L. Parks Endowed Chair, 2010-2014. Director of Graduate Programs, 2010-2013. Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology, Saint Louis University.
- Donald Schultz Professor of Turbomachinery, Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford, 2006-2009. Tenured Position. The Donald Schultz Professorship of Turbomachinery is one of several Statutory – Chair Professorships in the Department of Engineering Science. Professorial Fellow at St. Catherine’s College. Director of the Rolls-Royce UTC (University Technology Centre) in Heat Transfer and Aerodynamics.
- Professor, University of Utah, Department of Mechanical Engineering, 1992-2006. Tenured Position. Associate Department Chair, TFES Thermal-Fluids and Energy Sciences Division, 2005-2006. Director of Thermal-Fluids Laboratory, 1992-2006.
EDUCATION:
- Ph.D. Stanford University, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering
- M.S. Stanford University, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering
- B.S. University of Texas at Austin, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering
RESEARCH AREAS AND EXPERTISE:
(i) Traditional Heat Transfer and Fluid Mechanics Investigations involving electronics cooling, heat transfer augmentation, drag reduction, turbulent boundary layers, flows in channels with dimpled surfaces, flows in curved channels, elastic turbulence, slot impingement cooling, and macro-scale pumps and pump flows. Also included are aerodynamics investigations with high-speed, compressible flows at transonic and supersonic Mach numbers, including SWBLI – Shock Wave Boundary Layer Interactions. Related projects involve transonic and supersonic experimental testing. Research interests also include experimental diagnostics in high speed flows, and air breathing propulsion.
(ii) Air Breathing Engines – Gas Turbine Heat Transfer, Cooling, and Aerodynamics Losses, including internal cooling, film cooling, impingement cooling, cooling of extremities, aerodynamic performance including aerodynamic losses, and transonic turbine flows and heat transfer. This subject area includes the effects of uses of bio-fuels, synthetic fuels, and renewable energy sources in relation to gas turbines and gas turbine heat transfer and cooling technologies. Note that an important area of turbomachinery research interest involves heat transfer and aerodynamics investigations with high-speed, compressible flows at transonic and supersonic Mach numbers, including linear cascade studies.
(iii) Micro-Fluidics and Millimeter-Scale-Fluidics, including micro-pump flows, and the effects of slip phenomena on gas and liquid flows in micro-scale passage flows with and without surface roughness, including the effects of hydrophobic surfaces and elastic turbulence.
(iv) Experimental Techniques, including development of millimeter-scale multiple-hole pressure probes, subminiature hot-wire anemometry, infrared thermography, liquid crystal thermography, and Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV).
RESEARCH AREAS AND EXPERTISE:
Ligrani – Current Research Activities
Ligrani – Research Areas
CURRENTLY ACTIVE RESEARCH COLLABORATIONS:
Ligrani – Currently Active Research Collaborations
ARCHIVAL JOURNAL PUBLICATIONS AND RELATED ITEMS:
As of June 2025, Dr. Ligrani is author or co-author of more than 234 publications in archival journals, including the International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, the ASME Transactions-Journal of Turbomachinery, the ASME Transactions-Journal of Engineering for Gas Turbines and Power, the ASME Transactions-Journal of Heat Transfer, the ASME Transactions-Journal of Fluids Engineering, the International Journal of Thermal Sciences, Nature – Scientific Reports, the Journal of Fluid Mechanics, the AIAA Journal, Experiments in Fluids, Physics of Fluids, the AIAA Journal of Heat Transfer and Thermophysics, the International Journal of Rotating Machinery, Separation Science and Technology, Sensors and Actuators A: Physical, Measurement Science and Technology, Applied Thermal Engineering, Shock Waves, Microfluidics and Nanofluidics, and the Journal of Microcolumn Separations. He is also author of 11 book chapters, and about 177 conference presentations and publications. A number of these are invited conference presentations at international meetings, at locations which include Korea, France, the Ukraine, Croatia, Germany, England-United Kingdom, and Belgium. From 1994 to 2025, he has also presented approximately 208 lectures at different institutions and establishments, including many invited lectures. From 2006 to 2025, he presented or is scheduled to present 11 Invited Keynote Papers, 18 Invited Papers, and 11 Invited Plenary Papers at different international conferences.
● Current SCOPUS Reference Citation H-INDEX is 53.
● Current GOOGLE SCHOLAR Reference Citation H-INDEX is 59.
● GPS Scholar ranking in the top 22/100ths of one percent internationally in mechanical engineering and the top 8/100ths of one percent internationally in heat transfer.
● AD Scientific Index ranking of number 1 out of 9 scientists in mechanical engineering at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, and number 1 out of 59 scientists in engineering and technology at the University of Alabama in Huntsville.
Ligrani – Recent Publications
Ligrani – Conference Plenary, Keynote, Invited Papers
GRADUATE STUDENT PRODUCTIVITY:
● As of December 2025, successfully supervised theses and dissertations of 111 graduate students, who have received Diploma Degrees, Master of Science (M.S.) Degrees, Mechanical Engineering (M.E.) Degrees, and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) Degrees.
● 15 successfully supervised Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) dissertations.
● 11 successfully supervised theses and dissertations of women graduate students.
Ligrani – Successfully Supervised UAH Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations
Ligrani – Successfully Supervised UAH Undergraduate Student Theses
ACADEMIC APPOINTMENT DISTINCTIONS:
● 2006-2009. Donald Schultz Professor of Turbomachinery, Statutory – Chair Professorship. Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford, Oxford, England, United Kingdom.
● 2010-2014. Oliver L. Parks Endowed Chair. Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology, Saint Louis University, St. Louis, Missouri, USA.
● 2014-2019. Eminent Scholar in Propulsion. Endowed Professorship. Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Propulsion Research Center, University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama, USA.
● 2019-2024. Eminent Scholar in Propulsion. Endowed Professorship. Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Propulsion Research Center, University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama, USA.
● 1999. AGTSR Faculty Fellowship at General Electric Corp.-Corporate Research and Development Center. Funded by the SCERDC, South Carolina Energy Research and Development Center. Schenectady, New York, USA.
● 2000. Guest Professor, Institut fuer Thermische Stroemungs-maschinen, Universitaet Karlsruhe, Kaiserstrasse 12, 76128 Karlsruhe, Germany.
● 2001, 2002, 2004. Invited Visiting Scholar, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Institute of Engineering Thermophysics, Kiev-57, 252057, Ukraine.
● 2015. Distinguished Visiting Scholar, School of Energy and Power, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, P. R. China.
● 2010-2012, 2012-2014, 2014-2016, 2016-2018, 2018-2020, 2020-2022. Distinguished Advisory Professor. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Inje University, Gimhae, South Korea.
● 2019-2022. Guest Professor. School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, P. R. China.
SELECTED RECENT ACADEMIC RECOGNITIONS AND AWARDS:
● July 2024. 2024 ASME Henry R. Worthington Medal “for the development of innovative and unique pumping concepts and devices with micro-, millimeter-, and macro-scale flow passage arrangements in consideration of the displacement of fluids subject to diverse physical phenomena.” American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME).
● July 2024. Employee Service Award, Ten Years of Service. University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama, USA.
● May 2023. Invited Archival Journal Paper, “Relative Influences of Inertia and Polymeric Viscoelastic Effects on Nusselt Numbers within Rotating Couette Flows” (P. M. Ligrani, V. Hietsch, and M. Su), Fluids, Special Issue: Non-Newtonian Flow: Interfacial and Bulk Phenomena (Editors: D. Andrew S. Rees, Amir H. Hirsa, and P. T. Underhill).
● 2010-2012, 2012-2014, 2014-2016, 2016-2018, 2018-2020, 2020-2022. Distinguished Advisory Professor. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Inje University, Gimhae, South Korea.
● 2019-2022. Guest Professor. School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, P. R. China.
● May 2022. Invited Archival Journal Review Paper, “Flow and Heat Transfer in Swirl Tubes – A Review” (F. Seibold, P. M. Ligrani, and B. Weigand), International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer.
● January 2022. Invited Archival Journal Paper, “Characterization of Effective Diffusion Within Viscoelastic Fluids With Elastic Instabilities” (V. Hietsch, P. M. Ligrani, and M. Su), Fluids, Special Issue: Transport in Viscoelastic Fluids (Editors: Robert Handler and Mahmoud Mamou).
● August 2020. 2020 College of Engineering Outstanding Faculty Member Award. University Award, University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama, USA.
● August 2020. 2020 Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity Mentor Award. University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama, USA.
● May 2020. Hermann Oberth Award in recognition of outstanding individual scientific achievement in the field of astronautics and advancement of the aeronautical sciences. AIAA – American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Greater Huntsville Section of the AIAA, Huntsville, Alabama, USA.
● March 2020. Five Years of Employee Service Award, University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama, USA.
● January 2019 to Present. Invited Member. European Union Academy of Sciences (EUAS). An international scientific organization and among the most prestigious in Europe. The academy is composed of distinguished members worldwide, including the world’s leading scientists, scholars and business people, aiming to promote excellence in science and technology. Membership was the result of an election done through President’s Council consisting of the distinguished members of the Board of Governors.
● June 2019. ASME IGTI Outstanding Service Award. Presented at ASME TURBO EXPO 2019, Phoenix, Arizona, USA. ASME – American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
● April 2019. 2019 University Distinguished Research Award for Excellence. 2019 University Distinguished Research and Creative Achievement and Scholar Performance Award. University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama, USA.
● February 2019. Outstanding Senior Faculty Member Award for 2019. College of Engineering, University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama, USA.
● January 2018. Invited Book Chapter, “Full-Coverage Effusion Cooling in External Forced Convection: Sparse and Dense Hole Arrays,” on “Forced Convection – External Flow” to the Handbook of Thermal Science and Engineering, Springer Publishing Corporation, Editor: Francis A. Kulacki.
● November 2016. Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award, Marquis Who’s Who, New Providence, New Jersey, USA.
● March 2016. Invited Archival Journal Paper, “Jet Array Impingement Cooling Local Nusselt Number Variations: Effects of Hole Array Spacing, Jet-to-Target Plate Distance, and Reynolds Number,” for Heat Transfer Research, Special Issue: Heat Transfer Advances for Energy Conservation and Pollution Control (IWHT2013), (Guest Editors: Bengt Sunden, Qiuwang Wang), Vol. 47, No. 2, pp. 119-140, March 2016.
● February 2016. Outstanding Mechanical Engineer of the Year Award 2016, ASME – American Society of Mechanical Engineers, NAS – North Alabama Section, Huntsville, Alabama, USA.
● January 2016 – Present. AIAA, Associate Fellow, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.
● December 2015. Certificate of Excellence. Propulsion Research Center. With recognition of the sustained and dedicated efforts of faculty and staff for their roles as mentors, educators, and leaders. Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Development (OVPRED), University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama, USA.
● July 2015. Distinguished Visiting Scholar, School of Energy and Power, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, P. R. China.
● January 2014. Invited Book Chapter, “Recent Developments in Impingement Array Cooling, Including Consideration of the Separate Effects of Mach Number, Reynolds Number, Temperature Ratio, Hole Spacing, and Jet-to-Target Plate Distance,” Impingement Jet Cooling in Gas Turbines (Editors: R. S. Amano, B. Sunden), WIT Press, Southampton, United Kingdom, Chapter 3, pp. 63-102, 2014.
● June 2011. Silver Winner – Annual 26th Educational Advertising Awards, for Brochure – Graduate Program Profile – Saint Louis University – Parks College, Saint Louis, Missouri, USA. Higher Ed Marketing, Higher Education Marketing Report.
● April 2011. Distinguished Lecture Award, Over-Tip Shock Wave Structure and Its Impact on Turbine Blade Tip Heat Transfer Including the Effects of Varying Tip Gap, CEAS Distinguished Lecture Series, Department of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA.
● November 2006. Degree of Master of Arts by Resolution, Register of Congregation, University of Oxford, High Street, Oxford OX1 4BG, United Kingdom.
● January 2006 – Present. Member, Distinguished Editorial Review Board, Advances in Transport Phenomena, Book Series, Springer Publishing Corporation.
● March 2003. Invited Archival Journal Review Paper, “Comparison of Heat Transfer Augmentation Techniques,” AIAA Journal, Vol. 41, No. 3, pp. 337-362.
● September 2002. Recognition for highest ranked course taught in Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. Ranking provided by seniors graduating in Spring Semester of 2002.
● May 2001, June 2002, June 2004. Invited Visiting Scholar, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Institute of Engineering Thermophysics, Kiev-57, 252057, Ukraine.
● December 2000 – Present. ASME, Fellow, American Society of Mechanical Engineering.
● April 2000-June 2000. Guest Professor, Institut fuer Thermische Stroemungs-maschinen, Universitaet Karlsruhe, Kaiserstrasse 12, 76128 Karlsruhe, Germany.
● AGTSR Faculty Fellowship at General Electric Corp.-Corporate Research and Development Center. Funded by the SCERDC, South Carolina Energy Research and Development Center. Schenectady, New York, USA.
● Professor of the Year Award, presented by the undergraduates of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Utah for exceptional teaching.
● NASA Space Act Tech Brief Award, ARC-12228-1, “Development of Subminiature Multi-Sensor Hot-Wire Probes.”
● Naval Postgraduate School Faculty Performance Awards.
● Carl E. and Jessie W. Menneken Faculty Award for Excellence in Scientific Research.
● Stanford University Fellowship.
● Bachelor of Science Degree with Highest Honors, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, USA.
● Moody Foundation Scholar. The Moody Foundation, 704 Moody National Bank Building, Galveston, Texas, 77550, USA.
YEARLY PHOTOGRAPHS:
ITEMS – UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA IN HUNTSVILLE:
Movers and Shakers Article – Worthington Medal – 2024
PD Wire Article – Worthington Medal – 2024
UAH Article – Worthington Medal – 2024
World Pumps Article – Worthington Medal – 2024
UAH Hypersonics Research – 2023
Research Magazine ARTICLE – 2019
WIND TUNNEL DEVELOPMENT – UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA IN HUNTSVILLE:
Wind Tunnel – Gas Turbine Research – 2018
Research Magazine Article – 2016
Wind Tunnel Student Interview Article – 2016
Building Wind Tunnel is Hands-On Experience – 2016
Huntsville Times WIND TUNNEL Newspaper Article – 2016
UAH Wind Tunnel Article – 2015
ITEM – SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY: