/College of Engineering and Applied Sciences
Department of Mechanical Engineering

Spencer Zimmerman, PhD

Spencer ZimmermanAssistant Professor, Mechanical Engineering

Office: Light Engineering 159

Email Address:  spencer.zimmerman@stonybrook.edu

Phone Number: (631) 632-8816

Bio:

Spencer Zimmerman is an Assistant Professor at Stony Brook University. His research interests include characterization and modeling of dynamics, energetics, and flow-field pressure sources in turbulent flows (particularly wall-bounded flows), along with the development of experimental techniques to permit such analysis.  Flow measurement techniques of interest include conventional and holographic particle image/tracking velocimetry, multi-sensor hotwire anemometry, molecular tagging thermometry/velocimetry, and Mach-Zehnder interferometry. 


Education:

  • University of Melbourne, Mechanical Engineering, Ph.D 2019
  • University of New Hampshire, Mechanical Engineering, B.S. 2014

Professional Experience:

  • Assistant Professor, Mechanical Engineering, Stony Brook University, 2024- Present 
  • Post Doctoral Research Fellow, Mechanical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University 2021-2023
  • Post Doctoral Research Fellow, Mechanical Engineering, University of Melbourne 2019-2021

Awards & Publications:

  • Journal of Fluid Mechanics ‘ Outstanding Reviewer’ 2024
  • Zimmerman, S. J., Philip, J., & Klewicki, J. (2026). "The Reynolds shear stress phase distribution and its relationship to spectral energy density in wall-bounded flows." In Journal of Physics: Conference Series (Vol. 3173, No. 1, p. 012028). 
  • Zimmerman, S. J., Antonia, R. A., Djenidi, L., Philip, J., & Klewicki, J. C. (2022). "Approach to the 4/3 law for turbulent pipe and channel flows examined through a reformulated scale-by-scale energy budget." Journal of Fluid Mechanics, 931, A28. 
  • Romero, S., Zimmerman, S., Philip, J., White, C., & Klewicki, J. (2022). "Properties of the inertial sublayer in adverse pressure-gradient turbulent boundary layers." Journal of Fluid Mechanics, 937, A30. 
  • Zimmerman, S., Philip, J., Monty, J., Talamelli, A., Marusic, I., Ganapathisubramani, B., ... & Klewicki, J. (2019). "A comparative study of the velocity and vorticity structure in pipes and boundary layers at friction Reynolds numbers up to." Journal of Fluid Mechanics, 869, 182-213.

Overview:

Spencer Zimmerman’s research is generally aimed at developing advanced fluid flow diagnostics and deploying these techniques to identify robust features in turbulent flows that engineers can exploit for improved modeling or control. Current foci include i) holographic reconstruction of light-scattering particles in heterogeneous refractive index media for the purposes of characterizing buoyancy flux in turbulent flows, and ii) characterization of nonlinear wake-wake interactions in wind turbine array boundary layers with many degrees of freedom. 


Highlights & Accomplishments:

  • Designed and Deployed a Custom 8-Sensor Hotwire Anemometry Probe for Vorticity Flux Measurement in Wall-Bounded Flows
  • Developed Measurement Systems for Underwater stereo-Particle Image Velocimetry through Doubly Curved Surfaces
  • Linked Classical Turbulence Scaling with the Empirically Observed Approach of Turbulent Inter-scale Energy Flux to its Isotropic Limit

Research Areas:

Research Interests:

  • Fluid-Structure Interactions (e.g. Cavitation Erosion, Flow-Induced Vibration, Boundary Layer Hydroacoustics)
  • Physical Oceanography/Atmospheric Turbulence Modeling
  • Irreversibility of Salinity/Temperature Mixing in Turbulent Flows
  • Medical Imaging/Bio-Relevant Flow Diagnostics (Ultrasound or MRI-Based Flow Measurements)