Kazuki Tojo
Coalescence of Viscoelastic Sessile Drops: The Small and Large Contact Angle Limits
Princeton University, May 2022 to Aug 2023. Advised by Professor Howard Stone and Dr Paul Kaneelil. Accepted to Journal of Fluid Mechanics, 2025.Experimental and numerical work on the coalescence of viscoelastic drops. At small angles, the coalescence behaviour was found to be near-Newtonian. This is not the case for high contact angles. This departure of the coalescence dynamics from the Newtonian case was determined to be a function of the Deborah number and the elastocapillary number.
B.S.E. Thesis: Thermal Behaviour of a Lithium Self-Field Magnetoplasmadynamic Thruster
Princeton University, Aug 2023 to Apr 2024. Advised by Professor Edgar Y. Choueiri. Inducted into Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Honour Society.Numerical analysis and experimental validation of the thermal behaviour of a lithium self-field MPD thruster. Two phases of the thruster were studied: the heat-up phase, where only the heater is activated, as well as the firing phase, where plasma is initiated. Future works are laid out to further understand this thermal behaviour with higher accuracy and precision.
M.Eng. Thesis: Gas Sensing for Cooling and Combustion using Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems
University of Oxford, Oct 2022 to Jun 2023. Supervised by Professor Kam Chana and Professor John Coull. First-class honours.Developed a novel method of high frequency and high sensitivity gas analysis by pulsing, through a soldered 9-pin d-sub connection, the tungsten filament of a MEMS gas flow sensor as a thin-film and obtaining heat curves. Derived and validated a finite-elements model using high pressure argon gas, compressed dry air and exhaled breath. Improved the measurement frequency by 3 orders of magnitude compared to gas sensors on the current market