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The Warner-McIntyre parametrization scheme for non-topographic atmospheric gravity waves, developed at the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics (DAMTP), University of Cambridge, during the period from 1993 to 2004, has since 2010 been used by the UK Met Office in their operational models for seasonal forecasting and climate prediction .The parametrization is regarded by the Met Office as a vital part of improved representation of the stratosphere in those models, which in turn has been shown to lead to significant operational benefits.
Research by Professor John Thuburn and his group at the University of Exeter has made several key contributions to the formulation and development of ENDGame, the new dynamical core of the Met Office weather and climate prediction model. ENDGame has been shown to deliver improved accuracy and better computational performance at high processor counts compared to the current operational dynamical core, directly impacting the technological tools available to the Met Office. These improvements will benefit users when ENDGame becomes operational in early 2014: the economic value to the UK of the weather forecasts produced by the Met Office has been estimated to be in excess of £600M pa, while climate change projections inform policy decisions on mitigation and adaptation with huge economic implications.
The impact arises from the study of extreme ocean waves and their interaction with marine structures. It is relevant to the offshore, shipping, coastal and marine renewables industries and has been both economic and regulatory, involving:
(a) The establishment of revised guidelines for the design of new structures / vessels.
(b) Enhancing best practice, both from an economic and a safety perspective.
(c) Reducing the uncertainty in critical design issues, thereby improving overall reliability.
(d) Enabling "end-of-life" extensions for existing structures.
(e) Facilitating the effective decommissioning of redundant structures.
(f) Contributing to the development of new industrial R&D equipment, thereby assisting specialist UK manufacturers to secure international orders.
Mathematical models of violent flows developed by Dr Mark Cooker at UEA have been adopted by industry. The work enhances the capabilities of coastal engineers to design and repair seawalls and coastal structures, and enhances their interpretation of damage inflicted by storm waves. The research has direct industrial application, and is used to contain, interpret and lessen sea-wave damage to structures. Commercial software has proved inadequate in this field, compared with Cooker's mathematical modelling, because computations alone cannot resolve the brief time- scales and short length-scales over which there are large changes in pressure, and sudden excursions of the liquid as splashes. An example of this impact is the design of an observation gantry exposed to storm waves.
The US National Institute of Science & Technology (NIST) "Digital Library of Mathematical Functions" (DLMF) available at http://dlmf.nist.gov/ is an online resource which informs the general public by making detailed properties of elementary and higher functions freely available to all. The DLMF together with its print companion, the new NIST Handbook of Mathematical Functions, published by Cambridge University Press (CUP, 2010), replaces and updates the National Bureau of Standards Handbook of Mathematical Functions (Abramowitz & Stegun), a classic source which is one of the best-selling mathematics texts of all time. The fact that the 10-year DLMF project has been led and funded by NIST, part of the US Department of Commerce, is a measure of the economic importance of making this information publically available, so that science and engineering practitioners can use it freely. In addition, CUP has already received considerable benefit through the strong sales of the NIST Handbook since its publication, and prestige from the praise that the DLMF has already received from the US government and industrial societies.
A chapter of the new Handbook has been contributed by a member of the School of Mathematics, Statistics and Actuarial Science, and is based on research carried out at Kent. The provision of this information in an interactive format raises awareness and understanding, and enhances the work of practitioners such as industrial scientists and teachers in disciplines outside mathematics, by allowing them easy and immediate access to the most relevant and up to date research results in this area.
Edinburgh Designs Ltd., (EDL) was spun-out to exploit ERPE research from the original Wave Power Group. With six staff and an annual turnover approaching £2M EDL has supplied the equipment and control systems for wave tanks in 19 countries including the world's largest computer-controlled wave test facility, the US Navy Manoeuvring and Station Keeping Tank. They are currently completing the world's first circular tank, combining waves with currents in any relative direction, which is operated by the 6 person company, "FloWave" EDL, still run by the founding staff, it is the world-leading supplier of wave-making technology for scientific and recreational facilities.
Guidelines and standards underpinned by Strathclyde research have improved the design, assessment and the safety of marine structures subjected to wave impact in large steep waves. The guidelines and standards are widely used in the design of floating structures, particularly Floating Production, Storage and Offloading vessels (FPSOs) and offshore wind turbines. Since January 2008 the work has impacted the design, strength assessment and failure analysis of fixed offshore oil and gas platforms, renewable energy devices and ships. The guidelines and standards are used by designers to mitigate against damage caused by breaking wave impact, thereby improving the safety of mariners and offshore workers, reducing lost production due to downtime, and cutting the risk of environmental impact due to oil pollution. The research has also been used by Strathclyde researchers in industry-focussed studies, in legal work related to the loss of the oil tanker Prestige (2009-2013), in the assessment of the Schiehallion FPSO for BP (2010), and design of a Scottish harbour wave screen (2009) that allows ferries to access and stay in the harbour in more severe weather.
A novel application of parametric resonance (PR) is described, which has improved the effectiveness of a vibrating screen used for size-sorting of crushed rock. These improvements have had an economic impact on the Ukrainian company that makes the screens: the mathematics developed in Aberystwyth permits a stable, high amplitude PR-regime to be found, reducing the damage to the screen mesh and increasing its longevity. This new technology is allowing the company to reduce costs and equipment downtime and is enabling them to gain a market advantage by being able to sort wetter materials than previously.
A two-dimensional flood inundation model called LISFLOOD-FP, which was created by a team led by Professor Paul Bates at the University of Bristol, has served as a blueprint for the flood risk management industry in the UK and many other countries. The documentation and published research for the original model, developed in 1999, and the subsequent improvements made in over a decade of research, have been integrated into clones of LISFLOOD-FP that have been produced by numerous risk management consultancies. This has not only saved commercial code developers' time but also improved the predictive capability of models used in a multimillion pound global industry that affects tens of millions of people annually. Between 2008 and 2013, clones of LISFLOOD-FP have been used to: i) develop national flood risk products for countries around the world; ii) facilitate the pricing of flood re-insurance contracts in a number of territories worldwide; and iii) undertake numerous individual flood inundation mapping studies in the UK and overseas. In the UK alone, risk assessments from LISFLOOD-FP clones are used in the Environment Agency's Flood Map (accessed on average 300,000 times a month by 50,000 unique browsers), in every property legal search, in every planning application assessment and in the pricing of the majority of flood re-insurance contracts. This has led to more informed and, hence, better flood risk management. A shareware version of the code has been available on the University of Bristol website since December 2010. As of September 2013, the shareware had received over 312 unique downloads from 54 different countries.
Examples are provided of significant impact by the Centre for Mathematical Modelling and Flow Analysis (CMMFA) upon the Marine Renewables and Offshore Wind communities. In particular, CMMFA informed the design of a novel wave energy converter being commercialised for connection to the national grid. CMMFA has also contributed to a study of the design parameters for an offshore wind power station as part of a larger interdisciplinary collaborative research effort. This work responds to and informs the RCUK Energy Programme via underpinning research, capacity building and provision of trained personnel thus enacting UK Government Energy Policy.