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Flow Control 2026

Date: Feb. 23, 2026 - Feb. 27, 2026
Location: von Karman Insitute on-site / online, , ,
Contact: secretariat@vki.ac.be
Phone:

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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.

  • Deadline for on-site registration: 9 February 2026
  • Deadline for online registration: 16 February 2026

 

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

Before registering, please check our eligibility criteria.


Sales Conditions:

  • Please follow this link to access our sales conditions.


  • on-site - Undergraduate Students (Proof Needed) 315.0
    on-site - PhD Students (Proof Needed) 864.0
    on-site - Recognized Universities / Research Center 1368.0
    on-site - Commercial Organizations 1728.0
    on-site - Special Registration 0.0
    on-site - Lecturer 0.0
    online - Undergraduate Students (Proof Needed) 283.5
    online - PhD Students (Proof Needed) 777.6
    online - Recognized Universities / Research Center 1231.2
    online - Commercial Organizations 1555.2
    online - Special Registration 0.0
    online - Lecturer 0.0

    *Fees are VAT included.

    *Additional Discounts (if applicable, i.e. Nato membership) are applied at checkout.

    **Prices include early bird -10% discount.

    Flow Control 2026

    **Early Bird Limit: Dec. 23, 2025


    By purchasing this product you agree with our sales conditions.