Civil and Environmental Engineering at Duke

Adrian Bejan, J A Jones Professor  


Adrian Bejan

Professor Bejan’s research covers a wide range of topics in thermodynamics, heat transfer, fluid mechanics, convection and porous media. More recently, he developed the constructal theory of shape and structure in nature (www.constructal.org).

Professor Bejan is ranked among the 100 most highly cited authors worldwide in engineering (all fields, all countries), the Institute for Scientific Information (http://isihighlycited.com/), 2001. Professor Bejan has received 15 honorary doctorates from universities in 10 countries.

Read about his work in:

The Constructal.org website - www.constructal.org

H. Poirier, .Une Theorie Explique l.Intelligence de la Nature., Interview with A. Bejan, /Science & Vie/, No. 1034, November 2003, pp. 44-63 [download]

J. Lewins, Bejan’s Constructal Theory of Equal Potential Distribution.

M. Torre, .La Natura, vi svelo le formule della perfezione., /La Macchina del Tempo/, January-February 2004, No. 1-2, Year 5, pp. 36-46 [download]

G. Guerreri, .Forma e struttura, dall.ingegneria alla natura, /ICP-Industria Chimica e Petrochimica/, year 32, no. 6, June 2004, pp. 134-136 [download]

M. F. Patrício, The Constructal Method of Adrian Bejan.

R. N. Rosa, A brief appraisal of Professor Adrian Bejan's work.

Constructal and Reflected Trees at Duke

The Shape of the Eiffel Tower, Page 1 & Page 2

Natural Law and Natural Design, by Teresa Mia Bejan

Note on Constructal Theory of Organization in Nature, by A.K. Pramanick, P.K. Das

Bejan's Early vs. Late Regimes Method Applied to Entropy Generation in One-Dimensional Conduction, O. Bautista, F. Méndez, J.L. Martinez-Meyer

Geometric Optimization of Shapes on the Basis of Bejan's Constructal Theory, L.A.O. Rocha, E. Lorenzini, C.Biserni

Unifying constructal theory for scale effects in running, swimming and flying, Adrian Bejan and James H. Marden

Bejan’s Heatlines and Masslines for Convection Visualization and Analysis, V. A. F. Costa.

Constructal theory of global circulation and climate, A. Heitor Reis and Adrian Bejan

Special issue of Thermal Science dedicated to Prof. Adrian Bejan

A. H. Reis, "Constructal Theory from Engineering to Physics, and How Flow Systems Develop Shape and Structure"

"Traquers de formes: Quand les morphologues reinventent la nature" (Pursuers of shapes: when the morphologists reinvent nature), Science & Vie, No. 1067, August 2006, Supplement, pp. 47-50.

Constructal H-shaped cavities according to Bejan's theory by C. Biserni, L. A. O. Rocha, G. Stanescu and E. Lorenzini.

Going with the flow, by R. Bliwise, DUKE Magazine September-October 2007, pp. 32-39.

Contact Info:
Office Location:  148A Engineering Bldg
Office Phone:  +1 919 660 5310
Email Address:   send me a message
Web Page: http://www.mems.duke.edu/faculty/bejan/const_theory.php

Education:

PhD, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), 1975
MS, MIT (Honors Course), 1972
BS, MIT (Honors Course), 1971
Specialties:

Constructal Theory
Thermodynamics
Research Interests:

Bejan’s research covers a wide range of topics in thermodynamics, heat transfer, fluid mechanics, convection and porous media.

Recent Publications   (More Publications)

  1. Bejan, A. and Lorente, S., Constructal tree-shaped flow structures, Applied Thermal Engineering, vol. 27 no. 4 (2007), pp. 755 - 761 [008]  [abs].
  2. Wang, Haojie and Dai, Weizhong and Bejan, Adrian, Optimal temperature distribution in a 3D triple-layered skin structure embedded with artery and vein vasculature and induced by electromagnetic radiation, International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, vol. 50 no. 9-10 (2007), pp. 1843 - 1854 [005]  [abs].
  3. Zimparov, V.D. and da Silva, A.K. and Bejan, A., Constructural tree-shaped parallel flow heat exchangers, Int. J. Heat Mass Transf. (UK), vol. 49 no. 23-24 (2006), pp. 4558 - 66 [035]  [abs].
  4. Bejan, A. and Lorente, S., Design with constructal theory, Int. J. Eng. Educ. (Ireland), vol. 22 no. 1 (2006), pp. 140 - 7  [abs].
  5. Wang, K.-M. and Lorente, S. and Bejan, A., Vascularized networks with two optimized channel sizes, Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics, vol. 39 no. 14 (2006), pp. 3086 - 3096 [031]  [abs].
Employment:
  • 1989 - present: J.A. Jones Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Duke University, Durham, NC.
  • 1984 - 1989: Full Professor with Tenure, Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Duke University, Durham, NC.
  • 1981 - 1984: Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO.
  • 1978 - 1981: Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO.
  • 1976 - 1978: Fellow of the Miller Institute of Basic Research in Science, University of California-Berkeley.
  • 1975 - 1976: Lecturer and Research Associate, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
  • 1971 - 1974: Research Assistant, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
  • 1972: Staff Engineer, Scientific Energy Systems, Inc., Watertown, Massachusetts.
Awards and Honors:
  • Edward F. Obert Award, 2004, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, for the paper "Thermodynamic Formulation of the Constructal Law" written with Prof. S. Lorente.
  • Charles Russ Richards Memorial Award, 2001, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, for "outstanding achievement in mechanical engineering by an engineer twenty years or more following graduation."
  • Ralph Coats Roe Award, 2000, American Society of Engineering Education.
  • Max Jakob Memorial Award, 1999, awarded jointly by the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, "for highly imaginative and inspiring ideas in the thermal science and design of engineering and nature."
  • Worcester Reed Warner Medal, 1996, of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, "for originality, challenges to orthodoxy, and impact on engineering thermodynamics and heat transfer, which were made through the first three books: Entropy Generation Through Heat and Fluid Flow (1982), Convection Heat Transfer (1984), and Advanced Engineering Thermodynamics (1988)."
  • Heat Transfer Memorial Award, 1994, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, science" category, "for significant and often unconventional contributions to heat transfer, notably in natural convection, thermodynamic aspects of heat transfer, convection in porous media, thermal tribology, solar energy conversion, cryogenics, and transition to turbulence; and for bringing modern research results and methods into heat transfer education."
  • James Harry Potter Gold Medal, 1990, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, for "original and unorthodox ideas, journal articles, textbooks, graphics and lectures demonstrating that engineering thermodynamics is an active and often controversial field of research, and for encouraging others to invest their creativity in the future of the field."
  • Gustus L. Larson Memorial Award, 1988, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, for "demonstrated outstanding achievement in mechanical engineering within ten to twenty years following graduation."
  • Ralph R. Teetor Award, 1980, of the Society of Automotive Engineers.
  • Robert Henry Thurston Lecture, 1999, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, "Shape and Structure in Engineering and Nature: Constructal Theory."
  • ASME Distinguished Lecturer, 2002-2005.
  • Meritorious Service Award, for "outstanding leadership in and contributions to the development of the fields of exergy, energy and environment," received at the International Exergy, Energy and Environment Symposium, Izmir, Turkey, 15 July 2003.
  • Academy of Sciences of Moldova, Honorary Member, 2001.
  • George E. Palade Prize of the Romanian Cultural Foundation, Bucharest, 1996.
  • The 50 th Anniversary Jubilee Medal of the University of the Lower Danube, Galati, Romania, 1998.
  • The Special Prize of the Romanian Society of Thermodynamicists, 1998.
  • Honorary Citizen, Galati, Romania, 1996.
  • Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, elected in October 1987.
  • International Academy of Refrigeration, Member, 1999.
  • Bejan number (Be), proposed as name for the dimensionless pressure difference group in forced convection (S. Bhattacharjee and W.L. Grosshandler, The formation of a wall jet near a high temperature wall under microgravity environment, ASME HTD-Vol. 96, 1988, pp. 711-716).
  • Bejan number (Be), proposed as name for the dimensionless ratio of fluid friction irreversibility divided by heat transfer irreversibility, in convection (S. Paoletti, F. Rispoli and E. Sciubba, Calculation of exergetic losses in compact heat exchanger passages, ASME AES-Vol. 10-2, 1989, pp. 21-29).
  • Bejan number (Be), proposed as name for the dimensionless pressure difference group in forced convection, electronic cooling, contact melting, and second law analysis of heat transfer (S. Petrescu, Int. J. Heat Mass Transfer, Vol. 37, 1994, p. 1283).
  • Cover story of Mechanical Engineering magazine, ASME, "How Nature Takes Shape," October 1997.
  • Cover story of Science & Vie, "Une Théorie Explique l'Intelligence de la Nature," November 2003, No. 1034, pp. 1, 44-63.
  • Doctor of Science Honoris Causa, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH), Zürich, Switzerland, 2003, "for outstanding originality, challenges to conventional thinking, impact on modern thermal sciences, and for his pivotal role as promoter of constructal theory, entropy generation minimization, and European scientific culture."
  • Docteur Honoris Causa, Université Henri Poincaré, Nancy, France, 2001: "Leader scientifique mondial des domaines Energ étique-Thermique et Mécanique des fluides. Promoteur de l'Analyse Entropique et de la Théorie Constructale. Profondément attaché aux valeurs humanistes et à la culture européenne."
  • Doctor Honoris Causa, University of Évora, Portugal, 2003 : "For outstanding contributions to the progress of knowledge in the field of engineering, namely for the development of Constructal Theory, which provides a groundbreaking method that enlightens the generation of shape and structure in both engineering and nature." 
  • Doctor Honoris Causa, Federal University of Parana, Curitiba, Brazil, 2001.
  • Doctor Honoris Causa, Technical University of Moldova, Chisinau, Moldova, 2001.
  • Honorary Doctor of Science, Azerbaijan Technical University, Baku, Azerbaijan, 2000.
  • Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering (honoris causa), University of Durban-Westville, South Africa, 1999.
  • Doctor Honoris Causa, Odessa State Academy of Refrigeration, Odessa, Ukraine, 1999.
  • Doctor Honoris Causa, Technical University of Civil Engineering, Bucharest, 1999.
  • Doctor Honoris Causa, Gh. Asachi Technical University, Iasi, Romania, 1998.
  • Doctor Honoris Causa, Ovidius University, Constanta, Romania, 1997.
  • Doctor Honoris Causa, University of the Lower Danube, Galati, Romania, 1995.
  • Doctor Honoris Causa, Polytechnic University of Bucharest, 1992.
  • Honorary Diploma, Romanian General Association for Refrigeration (AGFR), 11 November 2000.
  • Honorary Professor, University of the Lower Danube, Galati, Romania, 1993.
  • Graduation Speaker, University of Durban-Westville, South Africa, 1999.
  • TEPCO Endowed Chair, Keio University, Yokohama, Japan, 1998.
  • The Legacy of Adrian Bejan: Three Generations of Brazilian Scientists, International Symposium, Pontifical Catholic University of Parana, Curitiba, Brazil, December 12, 1997.
  • J.A. Jones Chair in Mechanical Engineering, Duke University, April 1989.
  • F. Mosey Visiting Scholarship of the Faculty of Engineering, University of Western Australia, Nedlands, Western Australia, 1984.
  • Faculty Fellowship of the University of Colorado, for the academic year 1984-85.
  • Croft Professorship 1981-82, College of Engineering, University of Colorado.
  • Post-Doctoral Research Fellowship, Miller Institute for Basic Research in Science, University of California - Berkeley, March 1976.
  • MIT, Sloan Research Traineeship, June 1971.
  • MIT, Member of Honors Course, Department of Mechanical Engineering, 1970 - 1972.
  • MIT, De Florez Award for ingenuity in engineering design, 1969.
Society Membership:
  • Fellow, American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME).
  • Member, American Academy of Mechanics.
  • Member, American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE).
  • Member, American Society of Engineering Education (ASEE).
  • Founding Member, International Center for Applied Thermodynamics.
  • Member of the Scientific Council of the International Centre for Heat and Mass Transfer (ICHMT), 1994-
  • Member, Pi Tau Sigma (Mechanical Engineering Honor Society).
  • Member, Tau Beta Pi (Engineering Honor Society).
Professional Society Service Activities:
  • Honorary Editor, International Journal of Exergy, 2004
  • Honorary Editor, Exergy, An International Journal, 2001.
  • Honorary Editor, International Journal of Applied Thermodynamics, 1998.
  • Honorary Editor, Termotehnica, 1993.
  • Honorary Editorial Advisory Board, International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 1992.
  • Honorary Editorial Advisory Board, International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer, 1992.
  • Associate Editor, International Journal of Thermal Sciences, 2001
  • Associate Technical Editor, ASME Journal of Heat Transfer, 2000.
  • Associate Editor, Energy-The International Journal, 1997.
  • Editor, Heat Transfer Handbook, Wiley, 2001.
  • Editorial Board, Journal of Porous Media, 1996.
  • Editorial Board, Mechanical Engineers' Handbook, Second Edition, Wiley, 1995.
  • International Editorial Board, Book series The Sustainable World, Wessex Institute of Technology, 2002.
  • Editorial Advisory Board, Acta Mechanica, 2003.
  • Editorial Advisory Board, Journal of Green Energy, 2003.
  • Editorial Advisory Board, Engenharia Térmica, 2001.
  • Editorial Advisory Board, International Journal of Heat and Technology (formerly Calore e Tecnologia), 2000.
  • Editorial Advisory Board, Heat Transfer-Asian Research, 1998.
  • Editorial Advisory Board, International Journal of Transport Phenomena, 1997.
  • Editorial Advisory Board, Heat Transfer Research (formerly, Heat Transfer Soviet Research), 1997.
  • Editorial Advisory Board, Journal of Non-Equilibrium Thermodynamics, 1996.
  • Editorial Advisory Board, Numerical Heat Transfer, 1995.
  • International Advisory Board, Archives of Thermodynamics, 1997.
  • Board of Editors, International Journal for Engineering Analysis and Design, 1992.
  • Advisory Editor, Heat Transfer-Japanese Research, 1990.
  • Advisory Editor, International Journal of Heat and Fluid Flow, 1988-2001.
  • Member of the Max Jakob Memorial Award Committee, 2003-2006.
  • Member of the Nusselt-Reynolds Prize Board, 1990-1992.
  • Member of the Committee on Honors and Awards, ASME Heat Transfer Division, 1997-2000.
  • Chairman of the Committee on Honors and Awards, ASME Heat Transfer Division, 1999-2000.
 


Department of Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science
Pratt School of Engineering | Duke University
Box 90300 Hudson Hall • Durham, NC 27708-0300
Phone: (919) 660-5310 • Fax: (919) 660-8963