After graduating with a MEngSc and PhD in hypersonics from the University of Queensland, I spent almost eight years at the University of Oxford in the Rolls-Royce funded Osney Thermofluids laboratory working on a number of industrial jet engine projects as well as teaching. I returned to Australia in 2002 to take up a faculty position at UNSW Canberra where I am now a professor in the School of Engineering and Information Technology and the Director for International Student Recruitment and Exchange.
I lead a research group developing experimental and numerical techniques to model and measure the interactions between the flow-field aerothermodynamics and the thermal-structural response of high-speed flight vehicles and propulsion systems. Work in this area is critical to ensuring the robust and efficient design of future vehicles. My group works with a range of Australian and international collaborators on a number of projects including the large DSTO/USAF HIFiRE and ESA led HEXAFLY-INT hypersonic flight-test programs.
I sit on international technical committees for the Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS), the American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics (AIAA) and the Institute of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) as well as serving as the Australian board member of the International Society of Air Breathing Engines (ISABE). I am currently the Vice President of ISABE and until recently I was the President of the Australian Division of the RAeS and
In the last few years I have also branched out into biomedical research by adapting the thermal-structural modelling techniques used in his aerospace research to the equally demanding, though very different, area of the biomechanics of nerve tissue. I also have a passion for STEM outreach and I lead the Cool Aeronautics program in Australia for the RAeS, in conjunction with the AIAA and UNSW. I am also a strong advocate for gender diversity in STEM.
When not at work I love mountain biking, skiing and travelling with my wife and two young daughters.