Tian Zhao

Tian Zhao is a PhD candidate in the field of environmental fluid mechanics whose research focuses on fluid motion and sediment transport in aquatic ecosystems, which has critical implications for natural habitat provision, water quality protection, flood and erosion mitigation, and carbon sequestration. Supported by a MathWorks Fellowship, Tian is investigating the fundamental hydrodynamic processes in this complex system to understand how aquatic vegetation, like seagrasses or mangroves, interact with flow and sediment and, in turn, how these outcomes affect sediment transport, erosion, and deposition. MathWorks tools enable Tian to work with complex velocity datasets and simulate flow through aquatic canopies with varying geometries. By expanding our understanding of these important earth surface processes, Tian’s work could advance the restoration and building of green infrastructures in coastal and alluvial systems and improve the prediction of restoration outcomes, potentially impacting the lives and livelihoods of millions around the globe.