Oleg Zikanov

Oleg Zikanov is a Professor and Chair of the Mechanical Engineering Department at the University of Michigan-Dearborn. He holds a Ph.D. in Fluid Dynamics and Plasma Physics from Moscow State University and the Institute for Problems in Mechanics RAS, alongside an M.S. in Mechanics from the same institution. His research focuses on computational fluid dynamics, magnetohydrodynamics (MHD), thermal convection, and hydrodynamic instabilities.

His work emphasizes energy technology applications, particularly in liquid metal systems and MHD-driven flows. Notable research areas include magnetoconvection, turbulence in MHD duct flows, and the interplay between magnetic fields and fluid dynamics in engineering contexts.

Zikanov has led numerous NSF and DOE-funded projects, including studies on extreme magnetoconvection and thermal management systems for batteries. His recent publications explore topics such as liquid metal response to magnetic fields, reduced-order modeling for aerosol transport, and advanced numerical methods for MHD simulations.

• Grants: Includes NSF awards for MHD duct flow studies, DOE funding for plasma-liquid metal interaction research, and grants for thermal food processing control systems.
• Teaching: Specializes in thermal-fluid sciences, computational fluid mechanics, and engineering mathematics.

He collaborates on interdisciplinary projects involving numerical modeling, experimental fluid dynamics, and machine learning applications in engineering systems.