An Introduction to Immersed Boundary Methods

Roberto Verzicco is Professor of Fluid Dynamics at Tor Vergata University of Rome, the Gran Sasso Science Institute and the University of Twente. He is an Associate Editor of the 'Journal of Fluid Mechanics' and became Euromech President in 2025. The American Physical Society awarded him the Frenkiel Award (2005) for his studies on natural convection and the Stanley Corrsin Award (2022) for the immersed boundary method and its application to heart flows. Marco D. de Tullio is Professor of Fluid Dynamics at Politecnico di Bari. He has been Visiting Researcher at the Center for Turbulence Research at Stanford University. His research focuses on the development of numerical codes for the simulation of complex multi-physics problems, involving fluid-structure and electrophysiology interaction. Francesco Viola is Professor of Fluid Mechanics at Gran Sasso Science Institute, L'Aquila, working on multi-physics computational models that bridge engineering, physics and medicine. In his research, he combines numerics, experiments and theory to rationalize the physics at play in problems arising in natural and laboratory settings. Viola has applied immersed boundary methods to create a computational model of the whole human heart, which is currently exploited within the ERC-StG CARDIOTRIALS to investigate cardiac pathologies and optimize medical devices.

• 1. Introduction; 2. Introduction to flow simulations; 3. Computational geometry and grid generation; 4. Forcing methods; 5. Moving boundaries; 6. Computation of hydrodynamic loads; 7. Fluid–structure interaction; 8. Turbulence and wall models within IBMs; 9. Advanced IBM applications; 10. Numerical examples; References; Index.

'A much-needed reference, this book offers a clear and self-contained overview of the immersed boundary method. Blending theory and practical examples, and via the illustrative accompanying code, it covers all key aspects of the approach, making it an invaluable resource for both experienced researchers and newcomers.' Simone Camarri, University of Pisa