My research develops analytical and numerical methods for the governing partial differential equations of fluid and plasma propulsion, with two long-term goals: improving the fidelity and efficiency of realistic propulsion simulations, and determining the theoretical feasibility limits of extreme high-speed spacecraft propulsion. At the core of this work is a simple question: what advances in PDE analysis and numerical algorithms are needed to simulate the fluid and plasma physics that limit how fast and how far we can travel through air and space?
Update-Magnitude State Redistribution (UM-SRD): A Shut-off Extension of Weighted SRD for Cut-Cell Methods
A single cut-cell finite volume framework handling both structured and randomly perturbed domain boundaries within the same formulation. With acknowledgments to Marsha Berger and Andrew Giuliani.
Defect Subspaces and Localized Instabilities in Cut-Cell Finite-Volume Operators
Characterizes cut-cell instability as a low-dimensional geometric phenomenon: m small cut cells produce an m-dimensional unstable subspace localized at the defects. Yields a geometry-only stability criterion.
The Chapman–Enskog Divergence Problem in Plasma Transport: Structural Limitations and a Practical Regularization Approach
Argues the 1/ν divergence in Chapman–Enskog transport coefficients is intrinsic rather than a closure artifact, and proposes ν_eff = ν√(1 + Kn²), which preserves conservation laws while yielding finite coefficients across all collisionality regimes.
Deriving the Minimum Value of Donated Food to Justify Food Rescue
A closed-form viability threshold for food-rescue pickups under the PATH Act enhanced deduction. Simulated across 311 real donor–recipient pairs, 84–85% of trips clear the threshold on tax savings alone.
Full publication list on Google Scholar.