Wenting Sun
Prof. Wenting Sun received his B.E. and M.E. degrees from Tsinghua University, Beijing in 2005 and 2007, respectively, and his Ph.D. degree from Princeton University in 2013. He joined Georgia Tech in July 2013. Dr. Sun’s research spans on combustion simulation, combustion kinetics, and plasma/ozone assisted combustion. He develops new numerical algorithms to accelerate large scale CFD simulation using predictive kinetic models. His work on plasma/ozone assisted combustion is to induce plasma generated species into combustion system to enable combustion at extreme conditions. Dr. Sun has developed a high pressure shock tube with unique capability allowing investigation of combustion kinetics for future power generation systems.
Professor Steinberg’s teaching interests focus on undergraduate and graduate instruction in aerospace engineering fundamentals, including fluid dynamics, thermodynamics, propulsion, combustion, and experimental methods. He emphasizes a rigorous understanding of the theoretical basis of aerospace systems, integrating analytical and computational methods to prepare students for advanced study and professional practice. His pedagogy encourages student engagement through problem-solving that applies theory to realistic situations.
Professor Steinberg is the Director of the Ben T. Zinn Combustion Laboratory -- one of the largest academic combustion research facilities in the world. His research focuses on overcoming the scientific and technical barriers facing future aerospace propulsion and energy conversion devices. Working closely with government and industry, his research group develops and applies advanced laser-based measurement techniques that help unravel the coupled thermal, fluid, and chemical process occurring in these devices. Topics of interest include laser-based diagnostics, combustion, gas turbine engines and augmenters, supersonic and hypersonic propulsion, chemical rockets, detonations, space electric propulsion and plasmas, and multi-phase flows.
Lab/Collaborations:
- Strategic Energy Institute (SEI)
- Ben T. Zinn Combustion Laboratory
Disciplines:
- Propulsion & Combustion
AE Multidisciplinary Research Areas:
- Sustainable Transportation and Energy Systems
B.E., Engineering Physics, 2005, Tsinghua University; M.E., Engineering Physics, 2007, Tsinghua University; Ph.D., Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, 2013, Princeton University;
The Irvin Glassman Young Investigator Award from the Eastern States Sections of the Combustion Institute in 2018; the AFOSR Young Investigator Program Award in 2016; Bernard Lewis Fellowship, the Combustion Institute, 2012; Distinguished Paper, the 33rd International Symposium on Combustion, 2011
- C. W. Godbold, C. Segatori, C. J. Mueller, C. Genzale, A. Piano, A. M. Steinberg, “Impact of pilot injections on ducted fuel injection performance,” International Journal of Engine Research, In Press (2025)
- E. R. Jans, S. P. Kearney, A. M. Steinberg, M. K. Matzen, N. P. Brown, “Single-shot femtosecond laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy in low-density gases,” Journal of Applied Physics, 138(12) (2025)
- K. Teav, H. Jean-Ruel, A. M. Steinberg, “Performance loss and recovery of virtually imaged phased arrays with imperfect mirror parallelism,” Applied Optics, 64(26):7834 (2025)
- A. Jain, I. M. Obi, V. Salazar, M. Kodali, K. Venkatesan, Y. C. Mazumdar, A. M. Steinberg, “Characterization of a lean premixed prevaporized combustor with conventional and sustainable fuel,” AIAA Journal (2025)
- D. Purushotham, C. H. Lim, A. M. Steinberg, D. Ranjan, J. C. Oefelein, “Joint numerical and experimental investigation of turbulent mixing in a supercritical CO2 shear layer,” Journal of Fluid Mechanics, 1008:A17 (2025)