Prof Thomas Harms

Professor and Head: Thermo-Fluid Division

Prof Thomas Harms is a Professor in the Thermo-Fluid Division. He is registered as a Professional Engineer with the Engineering Council of South Africa since 1987 and is evaluated as a C3-category researcher by the NRF since 2005.

Prof Harms' field of specialty is computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and he does his research in CFD and (solar) energy systems. He did his PhD on using a finite volume method for the analysis of flow fields with complex boundaries.

Academic Qualifications

B.Sc. (Eng.) Mechanical Engineering 1981 – Cape Town
M.Sc. (Eng.) Thermodynamics and Related Studies 1986 – Birmingham, U.K.
Ph.D. (Eng.) Mechanical Engineering 1995 – Stellenbosch

Professional Experience

2002, 2003, Jan 2006 to present:	Stellenbosch University, Department of Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering, Thermo-Fluid Division Division Head, Professor Apr 2006-
May 2001 to Apr 2003:	Western Cape Branch, SA Institution of Mechanical Engineering Chairman, Member of the National Council
Jan 1996 to Dec 2002:	Stellenbosch University, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Thermodynamics Division Senior Lecturer, Division Head 1999-, Associate Professor Oct 2002-
2nd Semester 1995	University of Cape Town, Department of Mechanical Engineering Part Time Lecturer for Thermodynamics
Mar 1982 to Jul 1985	Cape Town Branch, Watson Edwards Inc., Consulting Mechanical & Electrical Engineers Project Engineer

Fields of Research

CFD, (Solar) Energy Systems, Environmental Flow

Fields of Interest

Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD)

Journal Papers

36) MUVUNZI R, DIMITROV DM, MATOPE S, HARMS TM. Heat Transfer in a Hot Stamping process: A review. R&D Journal 2017; 33:75-84.

35) SIEPKER EBJ, HARMS TM. On the potential value of interval deficient wind data. JOURNAL OF WIND ENGINEERING AND INDUSTRIAL AERODYNAMICS 2017; 165:100-114.

34) SIEPKER EBJ, HARMS TM. The national wind resource assessment project of Namibia. R&D Journal 2017; 33:105-116.

33) JOUBERT EC, HARMS TM, VENTER G. Computational simulation of the turbulent flow around a surface mounted rectangular prism. Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics 2015; 142:173-187.

32) GILL A, VON BACKSTRÖM TW, HARMS TM. Flow Fields in an Axial Flow Compressor During Four-Quadrant Operation. Journal of Turbomachinery-Transactions of the ASME 2014; 136 : 14.

31) ROOS TH, HARMS TM. A new radiative transfer scattering phase function discretisation approach with inherent energy conservation. International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer 2014; 73 : 789-803.

30) BOTHA FJ, DOBSON RT, HARMS TM. Simulation of a syngas from a coal production plant coupled to a high temperature nuclear reactor. Journal of Energy in Southern Africa 2013; 24(2) : 37-45.

29) DEN HAAN R, VAN ZYL JM, HARMS TM, VAN ZYL WH. Modelling the minimum enzymatic requirements for optimal cellulose conversion. Environmental Research Letters 2013; 8 : Art. 025013.

28) HEYNS JA, MALAN AG, HARMS TM, OXTOBY OF. Development of a compressive surface capturing formulation for modelling free-surface flow by using the volume-of-fluid approach. International Journal for Numerical Methods in Fluids 2013; 71 : 788-804.

27) HEYNS JA, MALAN AG, HARMS TM, OXTOBY OF. A weakly compressible free-surface flow solver for liquid-gas systems using the volume-of-fluid approach. Journal of Computational Physics 2013; 240 : 145-157.

26) PIETERSE JE, HARMS TM. CFD investigation of the atmospheric boundary layer under different thermal stability conditions. Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics 2013; 121 : 82-97.

25) VAN ZYL JM, HARMS TM. A model for estimating the medium properties of Avicel to ethanol conversion. Bioprocess and Biosystems Engineering 2013; 36 : 1311-1318.

24) JOUBERT EC, HARMS TM, MULLER A, HIPONDOKA M, HENCHEL JR. A CFD study of wind patterns over a desert dune and the effect on seed dispersion. Environmental Fluid Mechanics 2012; 12 : 23-44.

23) JA Heyns, AG Malan, TM Harms and OF Oxtoby, Fast compressive surface capturing formulation for free-surface flows, submitted to International Journal for Numerical Methods in Fluids

22) JM van Zyl, LR Lynd and TM Harms, Model for estimating the bulk medium properties of Avicel hydrolysis and fermentation to ethanol, submitted to Biochemical Engineering Journal

21) EC Joubert, TM Harms, A Muller, M Hipondoka, JR Henschel, A CFD study of wind patterns over a desert dune and the effect on seed dispersion, Journal of Environmental Fluid Mechanics, 12, 23-44, 2012. DOI 10.1007/s10652-011-9230-3

20) JN Stander, TM Harms and TW von Backström, Selecting a small wind turbine for the South African research base SANAE IV, submitted to International Journal of Renewable Energy

19) JM van Zyl, E van Rensburg, WH van Zyl, TM Harms and LR Lynd, A kinetic model for simultaineous saccharification and fermentation of Avicel with Sacharomyces cervisiae, Biotechnology and Bioengineering, 108(4), 924-933, 2011. DOI 10.1002/bit.23000.

18) AJ Meyer, TM Harms and RT Dobson – Steam jet ejector cooling powered by waste or solar heat – International Journal of Renewable Energy, 34, 297-306, 2009.

17) JR Olivier, TM Harms and DJ Esterhuyse – Technical and economic evaluation of the utilisation of solar energy at South Africa's SANAE IV base in Antarctica, Renewable Energy, 2008, 33, 1073-1084.

16) A Gill, TW von Backström and TM Harms, TM, Fundmentals of four-quadrant axial flow compressor maps, Proc.IMechE, Journal of Power and Energy, 2007, 221(A), 1001 – 1010

15) JHM Beyers JHM, PA Sundsbø and TM Harms - Numerical simulation of three-dimensional, transient snow drifting around a cube, Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics, 2004, 92, 725-747.

14) H Teetz, TM Harms and TW von Backström - Assessment of the wind power potential at SANAE IV base, Antarctica: a technical and economic feasibility study, Renewable Energy, 2003, 28, 2037-2061, 2003.

13) JHM Beyers JHM and TM Harms - Outdoors modelling snowdrift at the SANAE IV research station, Antarctica, Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics, 2003, 91(4), 551 – 569.

12) JHM Beyers, TM Harms and DG Kröger, A finite volume analysis of turbulent convective heat transfer for accelerating radial flows, International Journal for Numerical Heat Transfer, Part A, Vol.40, pp.117-138, 2001.

11) NJJ Combrink and TM Harms, The use of solar energy for a small recirculating hydroponic system, Acta Horticulturae, No. 554, pp.285-288, 2001.

10) TM Harms, TW von Backström and JP du Plessis, Simplified control-volume finite-element method, International Journal for Numerical Heat Transfer, Part B, Vol. 30, pp. 179-194, 1996.

9) TM Harms, TW von Backström, JP du Plessis and LM Toerien, Derivation of a modified hybrid approximation - A technical note, Journal of the American Institute for Aeronautics and Astronautics, Vol. 32, No. 7, pp. 1541-1543, 1994.

8) TM Harms, JP du Plessis and TW von Backström, Derivation of a modified power law approximation - A technical note, Numerical Heat Transfer, Part B, Vol. 22, pp. 235-241, 1992.

7) TM Harms, TW von Backström and JP du Plessis, Reformulation of the SIMPLEN discretization scheme to accommodate non-centralized interfaces, International Journal for Numerical Heat Transfer, Part B, Vol. 20, pp. 127-144, 1991
Botha, F, Dobson, RT and Harms, TM - Simulation of a syngas from coal production plant coupled to a high temperature nuclear reactor – Submitted to the Journal of Energy for Southern Africa – March 2012

6) JM Van Zyl, TM Harms and AB Taylor - Numerical investigation of the thermo-flow-processes in an automobile underhood, R & D Journal of the SAIMechE, 2009, 25, 33-39, available at http://www.saimeche.org.za.

5) Snyman H, Harms TM and Strauss JM – Design analysis methods for Stirling engines – Journal of Energy for Southern Africa, August 2008, 19(3), 4-19.

4) Brooks MJ, Mills I and Harms TM - Performance of a parabolic trough solar collector. Journal of Energy for Southern Africa, 2006, 17(3), 71-80.

3) Moolman R, Migeotte G, Harms TM and Bertram V - Comparative evaluation of a hydrofoil-assisted trimaran, R&D Journal of the South African Institution of Mechanical Engineering, 2006, 22 (2), 3-8

2) Wipplinger KPM, Harms TM and Taylor AB - Stainless steel finned tube heat exchanger design for waste heat recovery, Journal of Energy in Southern Africa, 2006, 17(2), 47-56.

1) 1. Harms TM, Von Backström TW and Du Plessis JP - Comparison of three finite volume interpolation schemes, R&D Journal of the South African Institution of the Mechanical Engineering, 1997, 13 (1), 20-30.

Conference Papers

42) MUVUNZI R, DIMITROV DM, MATOPE S, HARMS TM. Heat Transfer in a Hot Stamping process: A review. R&D Journal 2017; 33:75-84.

41) SIEPKER EBJ, HARMS TM. On the potential value of interval deficient wind data. JOURNAL OF WIND ENGINEERING AND INDUSTRIAL AERODYNAMICS 2017; 165:100-114.

40) SIEPKER EBJ, HARMS TM. The national wind resource assessment project of Namibia. R&D Journal 2017; 33:105-116.

39) JOUBERT EC, HARMS TM, VENTER G. Computational simulation of the turbulent flow around a surface mounted rectangular prism. Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics 2015; 142:173-187.

38) GILL A, VON BACKSTRÖM TW, HARMS TM. Flow Fields in an Axial Flow Compressor During Four-Quadrant Operation. Journal of Turbomachinery-Transactions of the ASME 2014; 136 : 14.

37) ROOS TH, HARMS TM. A new radiative transfer scattering phase function discretisation approach with inherent energy conservation. International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer 2014; 73 : 789-803.

36) BOTHA FJ, DOBSON RT, HARMS TM. Simulation of a syngas from a coal production plant coupled to a high temperature nuclear reactor. Journal of Energy in Southern Africa 2013; 24(2) : 37-45.

35) DEN HAAN R, VAN ZYL JM, HARMS TM, VAN ZYL WH. Modelling the minimum enzymatic requirements for optimal cellulose conversion. Environmental Research Letters 2013; 8 : Art. 025013.

34) HEYNS JA, MALAN AG, HARMS TM, OXTOBY OF. Development of a compressive surface capturing formulation for modelling free-surface flow by using the volume-of-fluid approach. International Journal for Numerical Methods in Fluids 2013; 71 : 788-804.

33) HEYNS JA, MALAN AG, HARMS TM, OXTOBY OF. A weakly compressible free-surface flow solver for liquid-gas systems using the volume-of-fluid approach. Journal of Computational Physics 2013; 240 : 145-157.

32) PIETERSE JE, HARMS TM. CFD investigation of the atmospheric boundary layer under different thermal stability conditions. Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics 2013; 121 : 82-97.

31) VAN ZYL JM, HARMS TM. A model for estimating the medium properties of Avicel to ethanol conversion. Bioprocess and Biosystems Engineering 2013; 36 : 1311-1318.

30) JOUBERT EC, HARMS TM, MULLER A, HIPONDOKA M, HENCHEL JR. A CFD study of wind patterns over a desert dune and the effect on seed dispersion. Environmental Fluid Mechanics 2012; 12 : 23-44.

29) JM van Zyl, LR Lynd and TM Harms, Bioethanol production: from wood to fuel, First Postgraduate Renewable Energy Symposium, 11-12 November 2010, Lynedoch, Western Cape, South Africa.

28) D Dimitrov, A Moammer and TM Harms, Investigation towards the impact of cooling surfaces on the performance of injection moulds, 9th RAPDASA Annual International Conference Bloemfontein, 18 pp., 13-15 November, 2008

27) A Gill, TW von Backström and TM Harms, Reverse Rotation Operation of a Multi-Stage Axial Flow Compressor – paper GA1, 6th International Conference on Heat Transfer, Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics (HEFAT 2008), 30th June to 2 July 2008, Pretoria, South Africa

26) A Gill, LM Beviss-Challinor, TW Von Backström and TM Harms, Four-quadrant total to static characteristics of an axial flow compressor. Presented at Hefat 2007, 5th International Conference on Heat Transfer, Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics, 1-4 July 2007, Sun City, South Africa, 6 pp., Paper No. GA1, 2007.

25) JM Van Zyl, B De Rouw, TM Harms, P Wipplinger and AB Taylor, CFD Investigation of an Experimentally Detected Heat Transfer Phenomenon, SA Conference for Applied Mechanics, Cape Town, pp. 364-372, 16-18 January 2006.

24) GR Smith, TM Harms and RT Dobson, Introductory computational fluid dynamics model for a pulse tube cryocooler, SA Conference for Applied Mechanics, Cape Town, pp. 223-231, 16-18 January 2006.

23) I Diedericks and TM Harms, Vapour power cycle autodidactic and simulation programs, Proceedings of the National Seminar on Engineering Education, pp. 54-59, CREE, University of Cape Town, 11 - 12 September, 1997.

22) TM Harms, The use of internet based lecture material in a final year optional mechanical engineering course, Proceedings of the National Seminar on Engineering Education, pp. 114-118, CREE, University of Cape Town, 11 - 12 September, 1997.

21) JC Van der Merwe, TM Harms and TW von Backström, Flow calculations through a torque converter turbine, Proceedings of the 1st South African Conference on Applied Mechanics (SACAM '96), 1st - 5th July, Midrand, South Africa, pp. 39-46, 1996.

20) TM Harms, TW von Backström and JP du Plessis, Finite volume turbulent flow calculations based on non-orthogonal physical grids, Proceedings of the 13th Symposium on Finite Element Methods in South Africa, 18th-20th January, Stellenbosch, South Africa, pp.305-320, Institute for Structural Engineering, University of Stellenbosch, 1995.

19) TM Harms, JP du Plessis and TW von Backström, Towards a new control volume method for non-staggered and non-orthogonal grids, Proceedings of the 3rd National Symposium on Computational Fluid Dynamics, 30th-2nd July, Stellenbosch, pp. 111-126, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Stellenbosch, 1993.

18) TM Harms, JP du Plessis and TW von Backström, Evaluation of full Navier-Stokes interpolation through direct discretization, Proceedings of the 3rd National Symposium on Computational Fluid Dynamics, 30th-2nd July, Stellenbosch, South Africa, pp. 97-110, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Stellenbosch, 1993.

17) TM Harms, JP du Plessis and TW von Backström, A comparison of discretization options for the source term in the SIMPLEN interpolation equation, Proceedings of the 2nd National Symposium on Computational Fluid Dynamics, 24th - 27th June, Vereeniging, South Africa, pp. 191-205, Unit for Computational Mechanics, Potchefstroom University, 1991.

16) JM van Zyl, TM Harms, E van Rensburg, WH van Zyl and LR Lynd, Modelling simultaneous saccharification and fermentation of microcrystalline cellulose using computational fluid dynamics – extended abstract only – AIChE Annual Meeting, Minneapolis, October 16-21, 2011

15) ML Combrinck, TM Harms and MA McGeoch, A computational fluid dynamic analysis of the air flow over keystone plant species, Azorella selago, on sub-Antarctic Marion Island – abstract only – AFRICOMP, 1st African Conference on Computational Mechanics – an international conference, p.53, Sun City, South Africa, 7-11 January 2009.

14) EC Joubert, TM Harms, A Muller, M Hipondoka and JR Henschel, Seed movement over a desert dune – abstract only – AFRICOMP, 1st African Conference on Computational Mechanics – an international conference, p.77, Sun City, South Africa, 7-11 January 2009.

13) JM van Zyl, TM Harms and AB Taylor, Numerical investigation of the flow and thermal processes occurring within an automobile underhood – abstract only – AFRICOMP, 1st African Conference on Computational Mechanics – an international conference, p.64, Sun City, South Africa, 7-11 January 2009.

12) L Ginsberg and TM Harms, Introduction to lymphatic modelling – abstract only –AFRICOMP, 1st African Conference on Computational Mechanics – an international conference, p.67, Sun City, South Africa, 7-11 January 2009.

11) RL Harris, TM Harms, DG Kröger and A Gill, Flow around a solar chimney power plant: a numerical analysis – abstract only - AFRICOMP, 1st African Conference on Computational Mechanics – an international conference, p.58, Sun City, South Africa, 7‑11 January 2009.

10) HJ Van der Westhuizen, TM Harms, AB Taylor and A Gill, A computational and experimental comparison between two spark ignition engine combustion chambers, abstract only, AFRICOMP, 1st African Conference on Computational Mechanics – an international conference, p.59, Sun City, South Africa, 7-11 January 2009.

9) JN Stander, TM Harms and TW von Backström, A small commercial wind energy conversion system for the South African Antarctic base SANAE IV, - abstract only - Winterwind 2008, An International Cold Climate Wind Turbine Conference, Norrköping, Sweden, 9 – 10 December 2008.

8) JM van Zyl, TM Harms and LR Lynd, Modeling cellulose to ethanol hydrolysis and fermentation using computational fluid dynamics, Abstract Only - Cape Biotechnology Forum 2008, Lord Charles Hotel, Somerset West, 30 November to 2 December 2008.

7) JK Roux and TM Harms, CFD analysis of a water cooling jacket, Abstract Only, Proceedings of the Thermal Energy Fluids Conference, Western Cape Forum for Mechanical Engineering, University of Stellenbosch, 13-14 September 2001.

6) JHM Beyers and TM Harms, Modeling snow flow characteristics surrounding the SANAE IV base, Antarctica, Abstract Only, Proceedings of the Thermal Energy Fluids Conference, Western Cape Forum for Mechanical Engineering, University of Stellenbosch, 13-14 September 2001.

5) RC Davids, TM Harms and AJ Lamprecht, Parabolic trough research, Abstract Only, Proceedings of the Thermal Energy Fluids Conference, Western Cape Forum for Mechanical Engineering, University of Stellenbosch, 13-14 September 2001.

4) D Lotun, TM Harms and AB Taylor, Vehicle exhaust heat recovery revisited, Abstract Only, Proceedings of the Thermal Energy Fluids Conference, Western Cape Forum for Mechanical Engineering, University of Stellenbosch, 13-14 September 2001.

3) HW Teetz, TM Harms and TW von Backström, Wind energy at SANAE IV base – Antarctica, Abstract Only, Proceedings of the Thermal Energy Fluids Conference, Western Cape Forum for Mechanical Engineering, University of Stellenbosch, 13‑14 September 2001.

2) RL Harris, DG Kröger and TM Harms, Application of CFD to the flow field above the solar chimney collector, Abstract Only, Proceedings of the Thermal Energy Fluids Conference, Western Cape Forum for Mechanical Engineering, University of Stellenbosch, 13-14 September 2001.

1) J Potgieter andTM Harms, Cost savings through increased energy efficiencies in french fries processing, Abstract Only, Proceedings of the Thermal Energy Fluids Conference, Western Cape Forum for Mechanical Engineering, University of Stellenbosch, 13-14 September 2001.