IIT Madras And ISRO To Start Centre Of Excellence To Study 'Fluid And Thermal Sciences'

Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) and Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) have collaborated to establish a Center of Excellence for research in the field of ‘Fluid and Thermal Sciences’. The IIT will provide seed capital of Rs 1.84 billion for setting up the Center and basic infrastructure and equipment, and provide additional funding for future projects in consumables, maintenance and fluid-thermal sciences.

This will also serve as a nodal center for ISRO’s spacecraft and launch vehicle-related thermal management research activities. Thermal problems related to design, analysis and testing of various components can be accomplished by leveraging the expertise of IIT Madras faculty.

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An MoU for this collaboration was signed today, November 11, 2024, at IIT Madras by Prof. Signed by Manu Santhanam, Dean (Industrial Consultancy and Sponsored Research), IIT Madras and Mr. Victor Joseph T, Director, Directorate of Technology Development and Innovation (DTDI). ), ISRO, Project coordinator Prof. Arvind Pattamatta, Department of Mechanical Engineering, IIT Madras and in the presence of other stakeholders from IIT Madras and ISRO.

The Thermal Management Research Center will serve as a key research center for ISRO, focusing on spacecraft and launch vehicle thermal management challenges. Projects will cover critical areas such as spacecraft thermal management, combustion instability in hybrid rockets, and cryo-tank thermodynamics. The Center also aims to enhance collaboration between ISRO scientists and IIT Madras faculty, promote innovation in fluid and thermal sciences, the institute said in a press release.

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Prof. from Department of Mechanical Engineering, IIT Madras. Arvind Pattamatta said, “This Center of Excellence will foster a unique industry-academia interface that will enable ISRO scientists and IIT Madras faculty and students to collaboratively advance research in critical areas of thermal science. It will contribute significantly to the country’s space program by addressing complex thermal engineering challenges.” “We aim to be present and strengthen India’s self-confidence in space technologies.”