Fifth International Conference on Fluid Structure Interaction

pcr.jpg25 - 27 May, 2008
Royal Mare Village, Crete

 Overview & Opening Address

fluid09.jpgThe fifth international conference on Fluid Structure Interaction took place recently on the island of Crete.

The conference was organised by Wessex Institute of Technology (WIT) and co-chaired by Professor Carlos Brebbia, Director of the Institute, and Professor Subrata Chakrabarti, Director of Offshore Structure Analysis Inc of Chicago, Illinois.

Professor Brebbia opened the conference by expressing his sadness about having to tell the participants of the recent and sudden death of his Co-Chairman, Professor Subrata Chakrabarti.

“Subrata was a world renowned expert in design and analysis of offshore structures, namely oil platforms.  He was a member of the National Academy of Engineering, one of the highest professional distinctions in the US.  He had a 40 year career in the offshore platform industry, half of it at the Chicago Bridge and Iron Company (CBI) in Plainfield, Illinois.  Early in his career at CBI, he developed a special test method to facilitate analysis and design of offshore platforms.  His experimental technique for understanding the fluid-structure interaction for offshore structures soon became a world standard.  He was involved in the development of several offshore projects including Dubai storage tanks, Gulf of Mexico Submersible, Brazilian Mooring Towers, North Sea Production Platform, and Gulf of Mexico Tension Leg Platform.  He had performed research and experiments for the US Navy on such projects as their Submarine Development, Advanced Navy Seal Delivery System, Advanced Torpedo, and USS Midway Aircraft re-design effort.  He also founded his own company Offshore Structure Analysis inc., providing engineering and technical services.

“He was the author of seven books on the various subjects of offshore structures, fluid-structure interaction, and design.  Professor Chakrabarti joined the University of Illinois at Chicago’s College of Engineering five years ago, and possessed joint appointments at two Departments.  He was a Fellow of the American Society of Civil Engineers, American Society of Mechanical Engineers and a number of other organizations.  He had over 300 publications, lectured world wide and served as an expert and consultant to industry.  He was also an excellent teacher at both his undergraduate and graduate courses.

“He was born in Calcutta, India, on 3rd February 1941.  Subrata was a gold medallist in 1963 at the Jadavpur University, Calcutta, during his bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering.  He achieved his Master in Mechanical Engineering in 1965 and a PhD with honours in Engineering Mechanics from the University of Colorado in 1968, having arrived in America with eight dollars in his pocket!

“He was a most beloved husband and dear father.  He enjoyed spending time with his family, home improvement projects, walking for exercise, and cultural activities of the Bengali Association.  He is survived by his wife Prakriti (Nature), daughter Sumita, son Prabal and granddaughter Sajni.

Professor Brebbia said Subrata was a frequent visitor to the Wessex Institute of Technology where he offered two courses on offshore structures every year.  He was editor of a book series published by WIT Press and author of the best selling book “Hydrodynamics of Offshore Stuctures” also published by WIT Press.

Professor Brebbia explained that his path crossed with Subrata’s on many occasions and this gave him an unique awareness of the importance and depth of Subrata’s work.  This relates, for instance, to the work done by Professor Chakrabarti for Petrobras and the University of Rio de Janeiro, institutions in which Professor Brebbia taught for some time.  It was in the latter that Subrata designed what is today the largest hydraulic model basin in the world.  Subrata was also USA Editor for the International Journal of Applied Ocean Research, a publication that Professor launched from Ashurst Lodge in collaboration with Subrata many years ago, and now in the hands of Elsevier.

The Industrial Research unit at the Institute also profited from Subrata’s deep knowledge of offshore problems, a field in which WIT continues to be very active.

Professor Brebbia concluded by expressing the sense of loss that the international scientific community feels as a result of Subrata’s early departure when he was at the height of his productive life.  The world has lost a unique researcher and an outstanding engineer.  Many of us will forever miss his friendship.

fsi_pcr2.jpgProfessor Chakrabarti, who was a truly extraordinary person, will be sorely missed by his family and friends, and by all the members of our scientific and academic communities.  He was the inspiration behind this conference and many other activities carried out at our Wessex Institute of Technology.

This conference, Professor Brebbia said, is dedicated to his memory.  Professor Brebbia hoped that the meeting will continue to reflect Subrata’s high standards of personal and scientific integrity.  As a result, it has been decided that this conference, from now on, will be known as the Subrata Chakrabarti Conference on Fluid Structure Interaction in honour of his memory.

Professor Chakrabarti would have been delighted to see that this conference, as with previous meetings, attracted a series of outstanding contributions.  This reflects the excellent work of all authors and the care taken by the Scientific Advisory Committee, including Subrata and other colleagues in reviewing presentations.

The conference was held in an excellent hotel with many facilities and most appropriate to increase the contacts among delegates.  To this end, a series of social functions were arranged, including a cocktail party, conference dinner with Greek music and dancing and an excursion at the end of the meeting.

 Conference Sessions

fsi_pcr.jpgThe papers were organised in the following sections:
  • Computational methods
  • Experimental studies and validation
  • Flow induced vibrations
  • Acoustics
  • Hydrodynamic forces
  • Offshore structures
  • Response of structures including fluid dynamics
  • Fluid pipeline interaction

 Invited Presentations

The proceedings were enhanced by a series of invited presentations:
  • “Simulation of elastic scattering with a coupled FMBE-FE approach” by L. Gaul, University of Stuttgart, Germany
  • “Heat and mass transfer in compressible fluid saturated porous media with the boundary element method” by R. Jecl, University of Maribor, Slovenia
  • “The effect of the wave radiation on the second-order steady loads for arbitrary bodies” by M. Rahman, Dalhousie University, Canada
  • “An n-body displacement framework for marine hydrodynamics” by J.M. Roesset, Texas A&M University, USA
  • “Simulation analysis using CFD on vibration behaviours of circular cylinders subjected to free jets through narrow gaps in the vicinity of walls” by K. Fujita, Osaka City University, Japan
  • “Flow-induced vibrations of offshare flare towers and flare booms” by J.M. Niedzwecki, Texas A&M University, USA

 Social Events

fsi_pcr3.jpgThe delegates were offered a cocktail at the end of the first day of the meeting and this presented an opportunity for them to mingle and get to know each other better.  The Conference Dinner consisted of a typical Greek barbeque with an excellent dance group and a musical ensemble.  Participants and their partners were able to demonstrate their skill at Greek dancing with varying degrees of success!

 International Scientific Advisory Committee Meeting

The International Scientific Advisory Committee met over dinner to discuss how the conference could be improved in 2011.  Several possible locations were proposed and a series of new topics added to ensure that the Conference continues to evolve.  A resolution was passed to send a note of condolence to Subrata’s family, letting them know that the conference will, from now on, be called by his name.

 Excursion to Heraklion

A complimentary excursion to Heraklion was arranged at the end of the conference.  The excursion had an excellent guide who explained some interesting aspects of the long and rich history of the city.  The tour ended with a dinner at a Greek Taverna where they were able to try excellent local wines as well as the famous Cretian ‘raki’.

 Registration Information

fsi09_book.jpgThe proceedings of Fluid Structure Interaction V, 400pp (Print ISBN: 1-84564-182-5; Online ISBN 1-84564-359-1; Print ISSN 1746-4498) are available in hard back from WIT Press priced at £148/US$266/€192.  Orders can be placed by telephone: +44 (0) 238 029 3223, fax: +44 (0) 238 029 2853, e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or via the WIT Press web site at www.witpress.com.

Papers from the conference will also be hosted online at the WIT eLibrary as Volume 105 of WIT Transactions on the Built Environment (Online ISSN: 1743-3509). For more details visit the WIT eLibrary at http://library.witpress.com.