Our research 


Our group is dedicated to the identification of flow physics characteristics and their application in advancing the quantitative analysis and prediction of complex physical phenomena. We specifically focus on studying the human circulatory system as well as real-world engineering problems. By deepening our understanding of hemodynamics, we strive to develop innovative approaches that enhance the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Our research encompasses various areas, including pediatric cardiovascular disease (both congenital and acquired heart conditions), adult cardiovascular disease, and the development of cardiovascular medical devices.

Furthermore, we explore the industrial applications of multiphase fluid mechanics, spanning laminar and turbulent flows. Leveraging numerical methods and high-performance computing, we aim to non-invasively estimate and predict key quantities of interest in systems involving complex flows. Our ultimate objective is to establish a highly intelligent and robust system design process that combines human intuition, physics, and data-driven decision-making. This integrated approach holds the potential to drive innovation in engineering industry.

To achieve our goals, we plan to integrate state-of-the-art tools and techniques, including high-fidelity multiphysics solvers, computational design optimization, uncertainty quantification, and artificial intelligence. By leveraging these advanced methodologies, we aspire to revolutionize the field, ultimately leading to significant advancements in cardiovascular research, treatment, and engineering practices.

Research areas

Cardiovascular disease

Fluid mechanics

Numerical methods

Research Projects

Project: Flow quantification in pulmonary arteries in patients with repaired Tetralogy of Fallot (2022- Current)

Collaborators: Seoul National University Hospital (Pediatrics)
Prof. Gi-beom Kim, Seungmin Paik

Funding: National Research Foundation (2023-2026)

Project: Identifying the relationship between Fontan complications and surgical design via computational modeling and hemodynamics simulation

(2022- Current)

Collaborators: Prof. M. Han (KHU/KHMC) Prof. S. Kim (BSH)

Funding: National Research Foundation (2023-2026)

Project: Hemodynamic characterization of coronary aneurysms in patients with Kawasaki disease: Nationwide cohort study (2022- Current)           

Collaborators: Korean Society of KD - 10 hospitals Nationwide

Funding: Kyung Hee University Young Investigator Award (2023-2024)

Project: Risk assessment of intracranial aneurysm rupture using CFD (2023- Current)

Collaborators: Prof. W. Yoon, Neurosurgery, Korea University Guro Hospital, Prof. Khan (Toronto Metropolitan University) 

Project: Virtual surgery on congenital heart disease patients (2023-Current)

Collaborators: Prof. J. Kwak, Seoul National University Hospital (Cardiothoracic surgery - pediatrics)
Fundings: National Research Foundation (2023-2026)

Project: Implementation of the conservative phase field method for multiphase flow simulation on unstructured finite volume framework (2021- Current)

Collaborators: PARC, Stanford CTR (Dr. Mirjalili, Prof. Mani). 

Funding: KHU Paper Award (2023)

Project: Super-resolution reconstruction of turbulent flows via artificial neural network (2023- Current)

Funding: KHU Next-generation Energy Convergence Graduate Program (2023-2027)

Project: Computational investigation on the effects of slippery surfaces in cardiovascular devices (2022- Current)

Collaborators: Dr. W. Yang (Stanford)

Funding: National Research Foundation (2022-2023)

Before KHU (~2021)

Project: Computational Evaluation of Fractional Flow Reserve of Coronary Artery Aneurysms in patients with Kawasaki disease.  (2020- 2022)
Click for details 

Funding: Private gift funds, GS Design Research. 

Collaborators: Prof. Alison Marsden, Dr. Menon (Stanford), Prof. Burns, Prof. Kahn (UCSD).  

Project: Virtual evaluation of coronary artery bypass graft surgery (2019-2021)
Click for details

Funding: National Institute of Health & National Science Foundation.

Collaborators: Prof. Andrew Kahn (UCSD), Prof. Alison Marsden, Prof. Jack Boyd (Stanford), Dr. Abhay Ramachandra (Yale)

Project: Uncertainty quantification in cardiovascular simulation with clinically-informed data uncertainty (2017-2019)
Click for details  

Funding: National Institute of Health (NIH), National Science Foundation (NSF). 

Collaborators: Prof. Daniele Schiavazzi (University of Notre Dame), Prof. Andrew Kahn (UCSD), Prof. Alison Marsden (Stanford) 

Project: Physics-based nozzle design rules for high-frequency liquid metal jetting (2021-2022)
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Funding: DARPA, Xerox Inc

Collaborators: Morad Behandish (PARC), Svyatoslav Korneev (PARC), Adrian Lew (Stanford)

Project: Turbulent drag reduction by superhydrophobic surfaces for naval applications (2011-2016)
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Funding: Office of Naval Research (ONR) MURI, Kwanjeong Scholarship. 

Collaborators: Ricardo Garcia-Mayoral (Cambridge), Ali Mani (Stanford)
MURI participants

Methods and tools

High-Performance Computing (HPC)   

Numerical methods: Finite-volume method (FVM), Finite element analysis (FEA), Finite difference (FD). 

Multiphase flow simulation: Volume-of-fluid(VoF), Phase field model(PFM), Linearized model.

Fluid-structure interaction: Arbitrary-Lagrangian-Eulerian framework (ALE), Coupled-momentum method (CMM). 

Uncertainty Quantification: Multiresolution stochastic expansion, Multi-level Monte-Carlo, Stochastic Collocation. 

Simulation software: Simvascular (3D/1D/0D models), OpenFOAM, In-house turbulent flow code.  

Linear solvers: Trilinos, PETSC, FFT, In-house solvers.  

In near future, we plan to develop AI-based tools.