9424422 Gera This award supports a 9-month Postdoctoral Fellowship for Dr. Dinesh Gera, Research Assistant Professor at West Virginia University. This fellowship opportunity will enable Dr. Gera to begin a collaborative research effort with Professor Yutaka Tsuji of Osaka University. The investigators propose to apply a Discrete Particle Simulation (DPS) technique to predict the motion of a large number of particles in various cases such as dense flows and disperse phase flows. The purpose of this collaboration is to develop the DPS technique for fluidized beds in order to provide quantitative agreement with actual phenomena. The DPS technique was developed by Prof. Tsuji's group and many researchers are now to applying this preliminary model in their simulation techniques. As a postdoctoral fellow, Dr. Gera will have the opportunity to become familiar with research techniques and equipment at Osaka University while contributing to the overall research effort. After becoming acquainted with their simulation techniques, experimental equipment, and procedures, Dr. Gera intends to continue his research efforts at West Virginia University. The 9-month visit by Dr. Gera will help him to establish a personal and professional link with a leading researcher in Japan. The publications resulting from this project will be beneficial to researchers in the "multiphase community" in the United States, Japan, China, and Europe. Therefore, this proposal fulfills the objectives of the Program in its exchange and transfer of scientific knowledge through an international collaboration. ***
