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Alain Liné

Alain Liné

Professeur des universités

Actual position and research subject

Since 1994, my research is inherently interdisciplinary, focusing on fluid mechanics in chemical engineering, combining (i) hydrodynamics of mixing (mixing tank, complex rheology, PIV-POD, flocculation & PBM), (ii) hydrodynamic of bubbly reactors (bubble column, bubble plume, airlift, PIV-POD, image analysis), (iii) interactions between hydrodynamics and flocs (physico-chemical or biological), hydrodynamics and biofilms, hydrodynamics and membranes, … . In parallel and on an ongoing basis, I have been interested since 1981 in two-phase flow hydrodynamics in pipes and wells (stratified, bubbly, slug, churn & annular flows, severe slugging, …).

After a first CNRS position as full researcher at IMFT (1985-1989), I spent 5 years as assistant professor in fluid mechanics department (ENSEEIHT-INP Toulouse -IMFT). During these 10 years, my research activity was mainly on two-phase flow hydrodynamics in pipes and wells (including experiments, modelling and numerical simulation). Since 1994, I am professor of Fluid Mechanics in Chemical Engineering department at INSA Toulouse. As soon as I arrived at the LIPE laboratory at INSA, I initiated two areas of research, one on the hydrodynamics of mixing in stirred tanks, the other on the modelling and numerical simulation of bubble reactors. I continued this research work after the merging between LIPE and LBB, and the creation of a new laboratory LISBP in 2007, which became TBI (Toulouse Biotechnology Institute)  in 2020. My research focuses on the experimental analysis of the hydrodynamics in these reactors, with complex liquids mimicking the rheology of biological media. I mainly use PIV (2D2C, 2D3C and TOMOPTV in collaboration with IMFT through the FERMaT research structure), and I develop tools such as POD and PBM to analyse and model the physical phenomena.

Education and Diploma

Teaching

  • Transport phenomena, Momentum transfer and turbulence, Multiphase flows
  • Applied Mathematics, Computational Fluid Dynamics
  • Co-author of a book on Transport Phenomena : JP Couderc, C. Gourdon, A. Liné, Phénomènes de Transfert en Génie des Procédés, Ed Tec&Doc, Lavoisier, 2008 (820 pages).
  • National & International short course on “Multiphase flow transport in oil and gas industry” in Pisa, Oslo, Paris and Toulouse between 1990 and 1994, in Caracas Venezuela (INTEVEP) 1992, in Hanoi Vietnam 1999, in Grenoble (RSI) 2000, in Paris (IFP) 2004, in Stavanger (TOTAL) Norway 2008, in Pau (TotalEnergies) 2022.

Others

  • Supervision : 30 PhD students
  • Invited to review 109 PhD (84 in France and 25 abroad) and 15 HDR (in France) Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches
  • Stays as a visiting scientist in London: 2009-2010 part time at King’s College (with Mihalis Yianneskis), part time at Imperial College (with Geoffrey Hewitt)

 

  • Examples of contribution to research projects since 1994:
    • 1995-2005 : LIPE-INSA & CIRSEE Lyonnaise des Eaux : Usine Virtuelle TM de Production d’Eau Drinking Water Virtual Plant TM (in collaboration with M. Roustan & A. Cockx)
    • 2003-2006 : ADEME, Lyonnaise des Eaux & Degrémont AND VEOLIA & Anjou-Recherche : effect of aeration on membrane fouling (in collaboration with C. Guigui, SOPHYE team)
    • 2004-2007 & 2006-2009: IFP : Liquid-liquid flow modelling (in collaboration with O. Masbernat, LGC, Toulouse)
    • 2005-2008 : Saint-Gobain Pont à Mousson: interaction hydrodynamic & biofilms (in collaboration with E. Paul, SYMBIOSE team)
    • 2010-2013 & 2014-2017: interaction hydrodynamic & physico-chemical flocs (in collaboration with C. Frances & C. Saudejaud, LGC, Toulouse)
    • 2009-2012, 2021-2024: IFPen, Mixing and mass transfer in complex fluids mimicking biological media (in collaboration with J. Morchain)
    • 2020-2024: ANR MORPHING Digital twin contribution to better control the morphological properties of aggregates under hydrodynamic constraints (in collaboration with C. Frances & C. Saudejaud, LGC, Toulouse, J. Debayle, LGF, Saint-Etienne & Arkema)
    • Since 1994 : Scientific expertise in flow assurance: Elf (1994-2003), IFP (2004-2009), Total & TotalEnergies (since 2007), Vibratec (2012), CERG (2015), SealEngineering & Oceanide (2019, 2021)

 

  •  Administration
      • Deputy director of the laboratory LIPE (1998-2002)
      • Head of the laboratory LIPE (2002-2006)
      • Deputy director of the FERMaT federative structure (2003-2006)
      • Deputy director of the laboratory LISBP (2007-2009)
      • Scientific advisor in Sciences & Technology Research Department at HCERES (2017-2022) Haut Comité d’Evaluation de la Recherche et de l’Enseignement Supérieur
      • Deputy director of MORPHEA GdR (2018-2022) Groupe de Recherche
      • Academic representative at EFCE Working Party Multiphase Fluid Flow (since 2016) EFCE : European Federation of Chemical Engineering
      • Academic Guest Member at EFCE Working Party Mixing (since 2021).

 

  • International conferences
    • Member of scientific committees: Mixing 16 Saint-Petersbourg (2015); ISMIP 9 Birmingham (2017); ISMIP 10 Kobe (2021)
    • Member of scientific Advisory Board: GLS congress (Brussel, Belgium, 2017 & Ottawa, Canada, 2022)
    • Member of organizing committee of Mixing 17 European Congress, Toulouse (2018); PBM Lyon (2022)

 

  • Other:
    • More than 90 papers published
    • H index: google scholar 37, research gate 32, web of science 28
    • international collaborations with LMHE-ENIT, Tunis (since 1985); LSRE Porto (2015); HZDR Dresden, Germany (2016); Biomath UGent, Belgium (2017); Multiphase Flow Research center NUEM Curitiba, Brazil (2021-)

List of selected publications

(citations Isi Web of Sciences 08/2022)

  1. Fabre, J and Liné, A, Modeling of two-phase slug flow, 1992, Annual Review of Fluid Mechanics 24 , pp.21-46 (253 citations)
  2. Escudie, R and Liné, A, Experimental analysis of hydrodynamics in a radially agitated tank, 2003, AIChE J 49 (3) , pp.585-603 (129 citations)
  3. Paul, E; Ochoa, JC; Pechaud, Y; Liu, Y.; Liné, A, Effect of shear stress and growth conditions on detachment and physical properties of biofilms, 2012, Water Research 46 (17) , pp.5499-5508 (112 citations)
  4. Delafosse, A; Line, A; Morchain, J; Guiraud, P, LES and URANS simulations of hydrodynamics in mixing tank: Comparison to PIV experiments, 2008, Chemical Engineering Research & Design 86 (12A) , pp.1322-1330 (85 citations)
  5. Coufort, C; Bouyer, D and Liné, A, Flocculation related to local hydrodynamics in a Taylor-Couette reactor and in a jar, 2005, Chemical Engineering Science 60 (8-9) , pp.2179-2192 (80 citations)
  6. Cockx, A; Do-Quang, Z; Liné, A; Roustan, M, Use of computational fluid dynamics for simulating hydrodynamics and mass transfer in industrial ozonation towers, 1999, Chemical Engineering Science 54 (21) , pp.5085-5090 (74 citations)
  7. Bouyer, D; Coufort, C; Liné, A; Do-Quang, Z, Experimental analysis of floc size distributions in a 1-L jar under different hydrodynamics and physicochemical conditions, 2005, Journal of Colloid and Interface Science 292 (2) , pp.413-428 (69 citations)
  8. Escudie, R; Bouyer, D and Liné, A, Characterization of trailing vortices generated by a Rushton turbine, 2004, AIChE J 50 (1) , pp.75-86 (66 citations)
  9. Cockx, A; Do-Quang, Z; Audic, JM; Liné, A; Roustan, M, Global and local mass transfer coefficients in waste water treatment process by computational fluid dynamics, 2001, Chemical Engineering and Processing-Process Intensification 40 (2) , pp.187-194 (58 citations)
  10. Bouyer, D; Liné, A and Do-Quang, Z, Experimental analysis of floc size distribution under different hydrodynamics in a mixing tank, 2004, AIChE J 50 (9) , pp.2064-2081 (58 citations)
  11. Bouyer, D; Liné, A; Cockx, A; Do-Quang, Z, Experimental analysis of floc size distribution and hydrodynamics in a jar-test, 2001, , Chemical Engineering Research & Design 79 (A8) , pp.1017-1024 (55 citations)
  12. Bugay, S; Escudie, R and Liné, A, Experimental analysis of hydrodynamics in axially agitated tank, 2002, AIChE J 48 (3) , pp.463-475 (52 citations)
  13. Ochoa, JC; Coufort, C; Escudié, R; Liné, A; Paul, E, Influence of non-uniform distribution of shear stress on aerobic biofilms, 2007, Chemical Engineering Science 62 (14) , pp.3672-3684 (50 citations)
  14. Talvy, S; Cockx, A and Liné, A, Modeling hydrodynamics of gas-liquid airlift reactor, 2007, AIChE J  53 (2) , pp.335-353 (48 citations)
  15. Wan, JF; Mozo, I; Filali, A; Liné, A; Sperandio, M, Evolution of bioaggregate strength during aerobic granular sludge formation, 2011, Biochemical Engineering Journal 58-59 , pp.69-78 (45 citations)
  16. Talvy, S; Cockx, A and Liné, A, Modeling of oxygen mass transfer in a gas-liquid airlift reactor, 2007, AIChE J 53 (2) , pp.316-326 (43 citations)
  17. Laupsien, D; Le Men, C; Cockx, A; Liné, A, Image processing for bubble morphology characteristics in diluted bubble swarms, 2019, Physics of Fluids 31 (5)
  18. Laupsien, D; Le Men, C.; Cockx, A; Liné, A, Labelled Object Velocimetry: Simultaneous Measurements of Bubble Size and Velocity, 2021, Chemical Engineering Science (230)
  19. Laupsien, D; Cockx, A; Liné, A, The organized flow structure of an oscillating bubble plume, 2021, Jun 2021 (Early Access) AIChE J 67 (10)
  20. Boucher, A; Belt, R; Liné, A, Review of potential flow solutions for velocity and shape of long isolated bubbles in vertical pipes, 2021 (Early Access) Reviews in Chemical Engineering