H. S. Udaykumar, a University of Iowa professor of mechanical engineering, has been awarded the Roy J. Carver Professorship in Engineering.  

Udaykumar serves as the associate dean for graduate programs, research and faculty in the College of Engineering, and leads a robust research program, advises graduate students, and teaches.  

“Professor Udaykumar is an internationally recognized researcher who has made seminal contributions in computational mechanics and fluid dynamics,” College of Engineering Dean Harriet Nembhard said. “Moreover, Prof. Udaykumar also excels as a teacher and a mentor.” 

Udaykumar’s research efforts are in the broad area of modeling and simulation of moving boundary problems, which arise in a variety of natural and engineered systems. A sampling of focus areas includes multiscale modeling of hypervelocity phenomena, sustainable energy to combat climate change, materials solidification, biofluid dynamics in the human system, and development of new materials for hypersonic aircraft. His recent focus is on melding artificial intelligence/machine learning to model complex materials under extreme conditions of pressure and temperature.  

His research has been funded by the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Department of Defense, the U.S. Department of Energy, and other agencies.  

The Roy J. Carver Professorship is awarded by the UI Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost to recognize outstanding scholarship and teaching. The professorship fund is intended to assist in retention and/or recruitment of national and international scholars and university-wide appointments in areas of greatest need.