Peter M. Moretti

“difficilis, querulus, laudator temporis acti ...”

Emeritus Professor of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering

My Courses | Contact me | My Résumé | Lab Videos | Church Webmaster | Project Car

Recent Projects | Publications | Citations | World-Science | Quartet | OLLI course

Academic Background

B.S. & M.S., Caltech;
Fulbright Scholar, T.H. Darmstadt;
Ph.D., Stanford University;
registered Mechanical Engineer (P.E.);
several Summer Faculty Fellowships at NASA;
one-year rotation at U.S. Dept. of Energy;
leader for three-week seminar at Tianjin University, Dept. Chem. Engrg. (China);
Alexander von Humboldt Research Prize, and
Sabbatical at T.U. Darmstadt.

Areas of Interest

Web Flutter, Flow-Induced Vibrations,
Bi-Stable Flows, Stratified Flows,
and Alternative Energy.

Current Projects in Fluid/Structure Interaction

Web Flutter - Analysis of out-of-plane dynamics of moving belts; experiments on aerodynamic effects on flexible sheets of paper, plastic, or fabric; theory of lateral stability of translating webs in flotation ovens (for Web Handling Research Center).
Flag Flutter - Dynamically-induced tension due to flutter motion of flags and web-edges; non-linear potential-energy terms in panel flutter (using AvH-Foundation Award funds).
Didactics - Teaching Vibrations: Derivation of P.D.E.s for cables and web-lines. Complex-number modes of oscillation in threadlines, arbitrarily damped multi-degree-of-freedom systems, and damped continuous systems, to show phase-shifts within modes (using Sabbatical and Summer projects).

Past Projects in Flow and Vibration

Flow-Induced Vibrations in Heat Exchangers - Water-tunnel tests of heat-exchanger tube bundles to detect and measure vortex shedding, fluid-elastic whirling, and jet switching (at Westinghouse Advanced Reactor Division).
Flow Instabilities in Cross-Flow through Tube Arrays - Wind-tunnel measurements and water-table flow visualizations to identify flow instabilities of parallel jets emerging from tube rows (for Electric Power Research Institute).
Natural Frequencies of U-tubes - Experimental and computational determination of natural frequencies and damping in heat-exchanger tube bundles; formulation of design equations (for Tubular Exchanger Manufacturers Association).
Stratified Flows - Modeling of thermal stratifications in lakes and solar ponds, in storage tanks for heated or chilled water, and near the outlets of water reservoirs (for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers).
Alternative Energy Systems - Integration of wind-driven generators into electric utility systems (at U.S. Dept. of Energy).
Trans-Sonic Wind Tunnels - Evaluation of free-stream turbulence from boundary-layer transition data (at NASA Ames Research Center).
Convection Heat Transfer - Suppression of boundary-layer turbulence by favorable pressure gradients (for U.S. National Science Foundation).

Selected Publications

• Peter M. Moretti, Modern Vibrations Primer, ©2000, CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, ISBN 0-8493-2038-0.
• P.M. Moretti, “Flag Flutter Amplitudes,” Flow Induced Vibration, de Langre & Axisa ed., Ecole Polytechnique, Paris, 6-9 July 2004, Paper 16, Vol. I, pages 113-118.
• Peter M. Moretti, “Lateral Deflections of Webs in Air-Flotation Ovens,” (Abstract) Trans. ASME, Journal of Applied Mechanics, Vol. 71, No. 3 (May 2004), pp. 314-320.
• Peter M. Moretti, “Tension in Fluttering Flags,” (Abstract) International Journal of Acoustics and Vibration, Vol. 8, No. 4 (December 2003), ISSN 1027-5851, pp. 227-230.
• Y.B. Chang & P.M. Moretti, “Flow-induced vibration of free edges of thin films,” Journal of Fluids and Structures, Vol.16, No. 7 (Oct. 2002), pp. 989-1008; doi:10.1006/jfls.2002.0456 available online at IDEAL and Science Direct.
• Y.B. Chang & P.M. Moretti, “Aerodynamic Characteristics of Pressure-Pad Air Bars,” Trans. ASME, J. Applied Mechanics, vol. 67, no. 1 (March 2000), pp. 177-182.
• Peter M. Moretti, Young-Bae Chang, & Krishna Vedula, “Vibration Intensity Measurement of Fluttering Webs by Laser-Doppler Sensors,” Proc. of SPIE, vol. 2358 (Oct. 1994), ASBN 0-8194-1697-5, pp. 409-420.
• Peter M. Moretti, “Flow-Induced Vibrations in Arrays of Cylinders,” Annual Review of Fluid Mechanics, vol. 25 (Jan. 1993), pp. 99-114.
• Y.B. Chang, S.J. Fox, D.G. Lilley, & P.M. Moretti, “Aerodynamics of Moving Belts, Tapes, and Webs,” ASME/DE-Vol. 36: Machinery Dynamics and Element Vibrations, Miami, FL., Sept. 22-26, 1991, pp. 33-40.
• M. Cheng & P. Moretti, “Lock-In Phenomena on a Single Cylinder with Forced Transverse Vibration,” ASME Symposium on Flow-Induced Vibration and Wear, PVP Volume, San Diego, June 25, 1991.
• P.M. Moretti & M. Cheng, “Instability of Flow through Tube Rows,” Trans. ASME, J. Fluids Engrg., vol. 109, no. 2 (1987), pp. 197f.
• Peter M. Moretti & Louis V. Divone, “Modern Windmills,” Scientific American, vol. 254, no. 6 (June 1986), pp. 110-118.
• F.J. Oppel, A.J. Ghajar, & P.M. Moretti, “A Numerical and Experimental Study of Stratified Thermal Storage,” ASHRAE Transactions, vol. 92, pt. 2 (1986), pp. 293-309.
• P.M. Moretti, “Fundamental Frequencies of U-Tubes in Tube Bundles,” Trans. ASME, Journal of Pressure Vessel Technology, vol. 107, no. 2 (May 1985), pp. 207-209.
• R. Sethuram & P.M. Moretti, “Predicting Utility Peaks with and Without Wind Generators,” Solar Energy J., vol. 33 (1984), no. 1, p. 89-90.
• Ahmed A. Busnaina, David G. Lilley, & Peter M. Moretti, “Prediction of Local Destratification of Lakes,” ASCE, J. of the Hydraulics Division, vol. 107, no. 3 (Mar. 1981), pp. 259-272.
• P.M. Moretti & R.L. Lowery, “Hydrodynamic Inertia Coefficients for a Tube surrounded by Rigid Tubes,” Trans. ASME, J. of Pressure Vessel Technology, vol. 98, series J, no. 3 (Aug. 1976), pp. 190-193.
• P.M. Moretti & W.M. Kays, “Heat Transfer to a Turbulent Boundary Layer with Varying Free-Stream Velocity and Varying Surface Temperature - An Experimental Study,” Int. J. of Heat and Mass Transfer, vol. 8, no. 9 (Sept. 1965), pp. 1187-1202.

For more information: click on complete list of my Publications & Citations.

Blog: an example of Statistics and Lies, some Ramblings on truth in science, and on the definition of Regulation; notes on Investments in industry.