SheardLab.org

Rotating flows

We investigate the stability of shearing rotating flows to understand the polygonal deformations in atmospheric flows such as polar vortices and hurricane eyewalls.
Rotating flows

Rotating flows are found from bathtub drain whirlpools to mixing vessels in process industries to the rotating air masses in the polar atmosphere.
Magnetohydrodynamics

We are exploring novel combinations of physical and electrical turbulence generators to enhance heat transfer in MHD duct flows.
Magnetohydrodynamics

We are studying heat transfer in MHD flows under intense magnetic fields with application to emerging fusion technologies.
Magnetohydrodynamics

Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) is the interaction between electrically conducting fluid flows and magnetic fields.
Natural convection

We are uncovering the scalings controlling horizontal convection and their relationship to instability and turbulent transition in these flows.
Natural convection

Horizontal convection is the overturning circulation produced by non-uniform heating across a horizontal boundary.
Natural convection

Natural convection is the motion of fluids invoked by density gradients arising from differences in temperature, salinity, etc.
The Sheard Lab

We make use of Australia's largest supercomputers to execute our computational fluid dynamics simulations and analysis.
The Sheard Lab

We specialise in the use of the high-order spectral element method for the direct numerical simulation of these flows.
The Sheard Lab

These include rotating flows, magnetohydrodynamics, convection and heat transfer.
The Sheard Lab

We investigate the fluid dynamics, heat transfer and stability of flows with geophysical and industrial applications.
The Sheard Lab

We are a research team located in the Engineering precinct of Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.

News & highlights

PhD completion for Henry Shen! The Sheard Lab, 11 Dec 2025
Congratulations to Dr Henry Shen on the completion of his PhD! Henry's PhD investigated the motion and stability of fluids driven by natural convection in inclined square enclosures.
Subcritical transition to turbulence in quasi-two-dimensional shear flows J. Fluid Mech., 19 May 2023
Read about our discovery of a subcritical route to turbulence in quasi-2D shear flows, in our latest article published in the Journal of Fluid Mechanics.
Top Cited Article 2021-2022 Wiley, 22 Feb 2023
Our recent publications on the departure from the traditional Boussinesq approximation in buoyancy-driven flows have been recognised as Top Cited Articles in the International Journal for Numerical Methods in Fluids.
Sneha Murali wins the 12AHMTC Best Student Presentation Award The 12th Australasian Heat & Mass Transfer Conference, 1 Jul 2022
Sneha Murali has been awarded the Best Student Presentation Award from the The 12th Australasian Heat & Mass Transfer Conference, for her presentation on heat transfer enhancement in MHD duct flows.

Recent publications

Operational optimization of integrated thermal energy systems using steam methane reforming electrolysis coupling for hydrogen and electricity production.

Applied Thermal Engineering 299, 131233, 2026.
Axisymmetric pseudo-steady state natural convection in a spherical enclosure and effect of percent filling level.

Proceedings of the 13 Australasian Heat and Mass Transfer Conference (13AHMTC) (In Press), 2026.
Heat transfer enhancement of natural convection flows in inclined square enclosures utilizing nanofluids.

Proceedings of the 13 Australasian Heat and Mass Transfer Conference (13AHMTC) (In Press), 2026.
Temperature prediction of a photovoltaic panel integrated with phase change material using machine learning.

2026 International Conference on Sustainable Engineering and Digital Innovation (ICSEDI), 2026.
Pulsatility delays the transition to sustained turbulence in quasi-two-dimensional shear flows.

Physical Review Fluids 10, 023905, 2025.
Three-dimensional stability of natural convection flows in inclined square enclosures.

Journal of Fluid Mechanics 1003, A8, 2025.

Joining our team

We are expanding our team and welcome outstanding graduates with an interest in fluid mechanics, magnetohydrodynamics or convection and heat transfer to study towards a PhD. Applications must be made through Monash Graduate Research (how to apply?).