Flow Control 2026
Date: 23 - 27 February 2026
Location: online / on-site: Waterloosesteenweg, 72, 1640 Sint-Genesius-Rode, Belgium - near Brussels
Uncontrolled jet (left) vs. optimally controlled jet for mixing enhancement (right). LIC streamlines of the velocity field; vorticity magnitude shown in color. Data from event-based imaging velocimetry. Credit: Luca Franceschelli (Universidad Carlos III de Madrid)
About the course
The manipulation of fluid flows stands as one of the most critical and enduring challenges in modern engineering and science. The ability to precisely control the behaviour of fluids for an extremely diverse portfolio of tasks (vehicle drag reduction, noise suppression, efficiency enhancement of wind energy, heat management and recovery, to cite some) translates directly into enormous economic, environmental, and technological benefits. In the current scenario demanding greater energy efficiency and minimised environmental impact, Flow Control (in its passive and active variants) is a key enabler for the development of future technologies.
This lecture series is dedicated to exploring the fundamental principles, state-of-the-art technologies, and future directions that are driving the development of flow control. We have gathered a distinguished panel of international experts to deliver a comprehensive program, moving from the core physics to advanced algorithms and real-world applications.
The lecture series directors are Prof. Miguel M. Mendez from the von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics and Prof. Stefano Discetti from the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid.
Programme
Monday, 23 February 2026: Fundamentals and key challenges
08:30 - 09:00 Registration and Welcome Coffee
09:00 - 09:15 Welcome Address and Course Overview
Miguel A. Mendez, von Karman Institute
09:15 - 10:45 Lecture 1: Introduction to flow control
Louis Cattafesta, Illinois Institute of Technology, USA
10:45 - 11:15 Coffee Break
11:15 - 12:45 Lecture 2: Linear+ modelling of transitional and turbulent shear flow
Peter Jordan,Institute PPRIME, CNRS, France
12:45 - 14:00 Lunch Break
14:00 - 15:30 Lecture 3: Passive control strategies for drag reduction
Gioacchino Cafiero,Politecnico di Torino, Italy
15:30 - 16:00 Coffee Break
16:00 - 17:30 Lecture 4: Reactive control of turbulent shear flow
Peter Jordan,Institute PPRIME, CNRS, France
17:30 End of Day
Tuesday, 24 February 2026: Control Algorithms
09:00 - 10:30 Lecture 5: From optimization to learning: a unified perspective on control algorithms
Miguel A. Mendez, von Karman Institute
10:30 - 11:00 Coffee Break
11:00 - 12:30 Lecture 6: Reinforcement learning for control
Onofrio Semeraro, CNRS, LISN, Université Paris-Saclay, France
12:30 - 14:00 Lunch Break
14:00 - 15:30 Lecture 7: Model Predictive Control
Stefano Discetti, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain
15:30 - 16:00 Coffee Break
16:00 - 17:30 Lecture 8: A guide to data-driven predictive control design for linear and nonlinear systems
Mircea Lazar,Eindhoven University of Technology, the Netherlands
17:30 End of Day
Wednesday, 25 February 2026: Active flow control technology
09:00 - 10:30 Lecture 9: Sensors
Louis Cattafesta, Illinois Institute of Technology, USA
10:30 - 11:00 Coffee Break
11:00 - 12:30 Lecture 10: Actuators
Louis Cattafesta, Illinois Institute of Technology, USA
12:30 - 14:00 Lunch Break
14:00 - 15:30 Lecture 11: Sensing and Controlling with PIV
Stefano Discetti, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain
15:30 - 16:00 Coffee Break
16:00 - 17;30 Lecture 12: Strategies for active and passive flow control: from actuators to metamaterials
Marios Kotsonis, TU Delft, the Netherlands
17:30 End of Day
Thursday, 26 February 2026: Flow control in the age of data
09:00 - 10:30 Lecture 13: Reinforcement twinning
Miguel A. Mendez , von Karman Institute
10:30 - 11:00 Coffee Break
11:00 - 12:30 Lecture 14: Data-Driven Model Reduction and Control via Spectral Submanifolds
George Haller, ETH Zürich, Switzerland
12:30 - 14:00 Lunch Break
14:00 - 15:30 Lecture 15: Event-based flow sensing
Andrea Ianiro, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain
15:30 - 16:00 Coffee Break
16:00 - 17:30 Lecture 16: Explainability and deep reinforcement learning for control
Ricardo Vinuesa, University of Michigan, USA
17:30 End of Day
Friday, 27 February 2026: Applications
09:00 - 10:30 Lecture 17: Passive and reactive control of jet noise
Matteo Mancinelli, Università Roma Tre, Italy
10:30 - 11:00 Coffee Break
11:00 - 12:30 Lecture 18: Active flow control for unsteady inflows
Gioacchino Cafiero, Politecnico di Torino, Italy
12:30 - 14:00 Lunch Break
14:00 - 15:30 Lecture 19: Floating offshore wind turbines: modeling and control
Frank Lemmer, sowento GmbH, Germany
15:30 - 16:00 Coffee Break
16:00 - 17:30 Round Table
17:30 End of Day
Fee and Registration
- Deadline for on-site registration: 9 February 2026
- Deadline for online registration: 16 February 2026
- Discount of 10% in case of online participation*
- Discount of 30% for citizens from NATO countries*
* applicable on the price listed below
Early Bird Registration until 23 December 2025
- Undergraduate students: €315
- PhD students: €864
- Staff from recognized universities / research center: €1368
- Staff from commercial organizations: €1728
Late Registration after 23 December 2025
- Undergraduate students: €350
- PhD students: €960
- Staff from recognized universities / research center: €1520
- Staff from commercial organizations: €1920