Projects

Completed

Basic and strategic applied research

PHYSICAL SCIENCES AND MATHEMATICS (Computer Science and Informatics)
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES (Earth Systems and Environmental Sciences)

Not Cross-cutting
Sociological economical and environmental impact of energy (Environmental dimensions)

Sylvain Laizet
Imperial College London

Standard

EPSRC

01 October 2025

01 April 2026

6 months

£298,206

Unknown

London

Artificial Intelligence and Robotics

Sylvain Laizet, Imperial College London

David Emerson, STFC - Laboratories
Julia Handl, University of Manchester
Luca Magri, Imperial College London
Alistair Revell, University of Manchester
Jeyan Thiyagalingam, STFC - Laboratories
Andrew Wheeler, University of Cambridge

We propose the creation of AIRTUK, a national centre of excellence dedicated to pioneering artificial intelligence (AI) techniques for the analysis, prediction, and control of turbulent flows. This hub will unite the UK's foremost experts in turbulence, fluid dynamics, high-performance computing, and machine learning to address one of the most complex and enduring challenges in physics, with far-reaching implications for aerospace, energy & environmental sciences. It will be created in close partnership with the Alan Turing institute. AIRTUK will position the UK at the global forefront of AI-enhanced turbulence research, creating a sustainable ecosystem that drives innovation across disciplines while addressing critical industrial challenges and environmental concerns. The objectives of the hub are (1) Research Excellence: Deliver groundbreaking research that fundamentally transforms how turbulent flows are studied, modelled, and understood by integrating cutting-edge AI methodologies with classical fluid dynamics approaches, (2) Data Infrastructure: Develop and maintain a comprehensive national infrastructure for curating large-scale datasets (in collaboration with the National Wind Tunnel Facility), creating an invaluable resource accessible to the entire UK research community, (3) AI Innovation: Drive forward UK's AI capabilities by developing novel techniques, algorithms, and analytical approaches with applications extending beyond turbulence research into diverse scientific and industrial domains, (4) Environmental Sustainability: Pioneer environmentally sustainable approaches to turbulence research through energy-efficient computing techniques (sharing best practice and latest developments in on-the-fly post processing), and applications focused on reducing carbon footprints, (5) Diversity & Inclusion: Address diversity challenges through targeted knowledge exchange activities, and various outreach activities; share ideas/tools required for a broader up-skill of the UK high education landscape

14/01/26