Grants / National Science Foundation / U.S. National Science Foundation

NSF PD-20-1443: Fluid Dynamics

Closed Closed Opportunity NSF PD-20-1443 ☆ Save

This grant is closed. A newer notice from the same program is open now: Major Research Instrumentation Program: (MRI) (NSF 27-500). Status: Closes January 29, 2027 (83 days left). It is in our archive of U.S. National Science Foundation notices from 2025.

• Total funding$9.2 million
• Cost sharingNot required
• Funding typeGrant

Key dates

Who can apply

This opportunity was open to any type of organization.

• Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility"

More grants for nonprofits, colleges and universities, state and local governments, tribes, small businesses, businesses, individuals.

Is this a realistic fit?

• Most of the program's money (89% over five years) went to colleges and universities.
• No cost sharing or match is required.

What the grant funds

The Fluid Dynamics program is part of the Transport Phenomena cluster, which also includes 1) the Combustion and Fire Systems program; 2) the Particulate and Multiphase Processes program; and 3) the Thermal Transport Processes program. The Fluid Dynamics program supports fundamental research toward gaining an understanding of the physics of various fluid dynamics phenomena. Proposed research should contribute to basic scientific understanding via experiments, theoretical developments, and computational discovery. Major areas of interest and activity in the program include: Turbulence and transition: High Reynolds number experiments; large eddy simulation; direct numerical simulation; transition to turbulence; 3-D boundary layers; separated flows; multi-phase turbulent flows; flow control and drag reduction. A new area of emphasis is high speed boundary layer transition and turbulence; the focus would be for flows at Mach numbers greater than 5 to understand cross-mode interactions leading to boundary layer transition and the ensuing developing and fully developed turbulent boundary layer flows. Combined experiments and simulations are encouraged. Bio-fluid physics:Bio-inspired flows; biological flows with emphasis on flow physics. Non-Newtonian fluid mechanics: Viscoelastic flows; solutions of macro-molecules. Microfluidics and nanofluidics: Micro-and nano-scale flow physics. Wind and ocean energy harvesting: Focused on fundamental fluid dynamics associated with renewal energy. Fluid-structure interactions: This is an NSF-AFOSR (Air Force Office of Scientific Research) joint funding area focused on theory, modeling and/or experiments for hypersonics applications. Proposals will be jointly reviewed by NSF and AFOSR using the NSF panel format, and a small number of awards (depending on availability of funds and proposal quality) will be provided. Actual funding format and agency split for an award will be determined after the proposal selection process. AFOSR participates in this initiative throughtheHigh-Speed Aerodynamics program(program officer: Dr. Ivett Leyva). Canonicalconfigurations:Experimental research is encouraged to develop spatiotemporally resolveddatabases for canonical configurations to either confirm historicalresults or to provide data in an unexplored parameter region. Fidelity and completeness for computational validation is a key attribute of theproposed experimental data.

Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development.

Applying now

This notice no longer takes applications. Apply under the newer notice, NSF 27-500, which is open now.

The notice on Grants.gov keeps its full text and attachments, which is useful for planning a resubmission.