Nancy Diallo ’22
Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Oil Spill Remediation Through Enhanced Turbulence
Certificate(s): French Language and Culture, Sustainable Energy
As a result of oil drilling, several ocean ecosystems face disruption due to oil spills. In order to protect these ecosystems, it is important to develop new and more efficient ways to clean up oil spills. My research analyzed one possible method: dispersion through means of enhanced turbulence propagated by synthetic jets. Dispersion is the process of breaking oil up into small droplets that are then mixed with ocean water, which happens naturally due to the turbulence of breaking waves. Synthetic jets that force water to flow through small openings could also be used to create turbulence in water and cause dispersion. Our group designed a synthetic jet array and research tank using computer-aided design software, and experimented with image analysis tools to study the sizes of oil droplets. We also conducted a mini at-home experiment using a fish tank to visualize fluid mechanics concepts. This work improved my technical writing abilities and knowledge of image analysis, as well as further developed my experimental and mechanical design skills. It helped cement my fascination with fluid mechanics and the environment, and I now plan to pursue graduate study in sustainable fluid mechanics.
2020
Water and the Environment
Smits Fluid Mechanics Lab, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University
Alexander Smits, Eugene Higgins Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Emeritus; Liuyang Ding, Postdoctoral Research Associate, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering