For more than three decades, the Aerodynamics Department has been engaged in the study of flow phenomena and their interactions with components of flow systems. Our research combines advanced numerical methods, high-fidelity 3D flow models, and reduced-order modeling approaches with experimental investigations conducted in the aerodynamic tunnels of the Institute of Fluid-Flow Machinery, Polish Academy of Sciences (IMP PAN), and in collaboration with partner institutions.

The aviation sector has entered a new era of technological innovation, demanding highly efficient propulsion systems and aerodynamic lifting surfaces. These challenges involve complex flow and thermal phenomena across a broad range of flight regimes — from low subsonic to supersonic speeds — where the interaction of shock waves plays a key role in aerodynamic performance.

A particularly dynamic area of development is the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) segment, commonly known as drones. UAVs are increasingly used in both civil and military applications, and their growing presence in the airspace introduces new technological challenges related to aerodynamics, flight efficiency, and energy consumption.

The Department’s expertise in studying flow and thermal phenomena in aircraft turbomachinery is also leveraged in research on power-generation systems, including gas and steam turbines operating in conventional and combined-cycle power plants.

Wind energy, widely recognized as a cornerstone of Europe’s future low-emission power system, is another key research focus. The productivity of wind farms depends on atmospheric conditions, turbine technology, and the relative arrangement of turbines within the farm. The efficiency of individual turbines, the aerodynamic performance of their blades, and the mutual aerodynamic interactions between turbines all play a crucial role in determining the overall energy output.