Christopher Roy

Dr. Christopher Roy is a Professor and Assistant Department Head for Graduate Studies in the Aerospace and Ocean Engineering Department at Virginia Tech (since 2013). He holds a Ph.D. from North Carolina State University (1998) and has held roles at Sandia National Laboratories and Auburn University. His research focuses on Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), Verification and Validation, Turbulence Modeling, and Uncertainty Quantification, with notable contributions to CFD validation frameworks and error estimation techniques. He leads the CFD Research Group and co-teaches courses like Computational Fluid Dynamics and Verification and Validation in Scientific Computing.

Education:

• Ph.D., 1998, Aerospace Engineering, North Carolina State University
• M.S., 1994, Aerospace Engineering, Texas A&M University
• B.S.E., 1992, Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Duke University

Research Interests:

Dr. Roy’s work emphasizes advancing CFD methodologies for complex flows, including turbulence modeling for hypersonic and high Reynolds number flows, and validation strategies for non-equilibrium boundary layers. He explores computational acceleration techniques (e.g., GPU-CPU hybrid systems) and error transport equations to improve simulation accuracy and efficiency. His team collaborates with NASA and industry on challenges like the VT-NASA CFD Validation Challenge and BlueRidge CFD solver development.

Awards:

• Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (2006)
• Associate Fellow, AIAA (2006)
• Faculty Fellow Award, Virginia Tech (2009)

Advising and Grants:

Dr. Roy oversees graduate studies and has secured grants for research in CFD validation and turbulence modeling. His work bridges academic, industrial, and federal collaborations, including projects with Sandia National Labs and NASA. He actively contributes to AIAA technical committees and organizes CFD validation workshops.

Labs and Teams:

He leads the CFD Research Group at Virginia Tech, focusing on code development, validation experiments, and computational methodologies. His team develops tools like the SENSEI and BlueRidge solvers and participates in NATO-AVT349 projects for naval applications.