Biography
Dr. Povinelli’s professional accomplishments have contributed to the advancement of aeronautics and astronautics in several areas: air breathing propulsion, scramjet propulsion, rocket propulsion and pulse detonation engines.
He was a FIAT-Fulbright post-doctoral fellow at the Polytechnic of Turin. He worked at Bell Aircraft Corporation on the X-2 and rocket engine testing before joining NASA Lewis. His activities at NASA Lewis and Glenn involved research on pulse detonation engines, turbine aerodynamics, inlets, diffusers, mixers and nozzles, turbomachinery, CFD validation, scramjet fuel injection, hypersonic propulsion systems rocket combustion instability and real gas effects in pulse detonation engines. In addition, he taught a three part series in high speed gas dynamics in the NASA Lewis Advanced Study Program.
Dr. Povinelli has served in research and management positions throughout his career; including Group Leader, Section Head, Branch Chief, Deputy Division Chief and Acting Division Chief for Internal Fluid Dynamics. He is currently a Senior Technologist (ST) and serves as the Chief Scientist for the Propulsion Systems Division at Glenn Research Center.
In addition, he is the Project Scientist for the Fundamental Aerodynamics project in Supersonics. Dr. Povinelli’s research contributions have resulted in 140 publications and presentations. He was instrumental in establishing the Institute for Computational Mechanics (ICOMP) at NASA, as well as the Numerical Propulsion Simulation System (NPSS).
Education
- Detroit University (B.S.M.E.)
- Kentucky University (M.S.M.E.)
- Northwestern University (PhD.)
Technical Memberships/Professional Affiliation
Dr. Povinelli is a Fellow of the ASME and also the AIAA, and has served as the Chairman of the ASME Aerospace Division. He served as the Chairman of the Guggenheim Board of Award and as a member of the Turbomachinery Committee of the International Gas Turbine Institute. He has served as Chair of the AIAA Propellants and Combustion Committee, and as a member of the Fluid Dynamics Committee. He also served as the Chair of the Northern Ohio Section of the AIAA.
Currently, he serves as the American co-editor for the International Journal of Computational Fluid Dynamics. Dr. Povinelli has been active in the NATO/AGARD Propulsion and Energetics Panel as a Symposium Technical Evaluator, as an ONERA consultant on Hypersonics (France) and as a member of Working Group on Turbomachinery CFD Validation. Currently, he serves on the University of Michigan’s Aeronautical Engineering Advisory Board and the Embry-Riddle Engineering College Advisory Board.
He also serves on the Air Force Executive Independent Review Team for the F-119 and for the Joint Strike Fighter engine development programs (P&W and GE). In addition, he served in the Office of Science and Technology in the Executive Office of the President, the Air Force Scientific Advisory Board and the National Science Foundation Japan Study Team on High Speed Flight.
Honors and Awards
- NASA Exceptional Scientific Achievement Medal
- AIAA Air Breathing Propulsion Award
- ISABE (International. Society Of Air-breathing Engines) Wu Memorial Lecturer Award
- ASME IGTI Aircraft Turbine Technology Award
- NASP (National Aerospace Plane) Gene Zara Award
Six NASA Group Achievement Awards
- Space Shuttle Main Engine Durability
- Computational Fluid Dynamics Methods for NASP
- Aeronautics Supercomputer Strategy
- Energy Efficient Engine Project
- F119 High Pressure Turbine
- Collier Trophy Advanced Turboprop
