Chyr Pyng (Jim) Liou, Ph.D., P.E.

Jim Liou came to University of Idaho as a student in 1971. After completing this doctorate at the University of Michigan in 1976, he worked as a consultant to various industries for 10 years. Drawn by his fond memories of northern Idaho, he returned to U of I in 1986. He enjoys teaching modern hydraulics as a science rich in applications in engineering analysis and design. His core expertise is fluid transients and has also engaged in other areas of research such as stratified flows in advanced nuclear reactors, mobility and transport of bio-waste in aquaculture, and tracking water quality parameters in potable water distribution networks. He has kept current with industry practice through consulting with various engineering companies and government agencies.

• Fluid transients
• Pipeline leak detection
• Pipeline safety
• Hydraulics and water quality in potable water distribution networks
• Stratified flows
• Frictional drag reduction by superhydrophobicity

• Liou, Jim, C. P. “Understanding Line Packing in Frictional Water Hammer,” Journal of Fluids Engineering, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, (accepted for publication, March 7, 2016)
• Liou, C. P., and Wylie, E. B., Chapter 15 - Water Hammer, in Handbook of Fluid Dynamics, Second Edition, Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. (Anticipated Publication date: 2016) 
• Liou, Jim C. P., and Parks, Donald, L., “Water Hammer Induced by a Line Break,” Pipeline 2014 – 1602, Proceedings of the Pipelines 2014 Conference, American Society of Civil Engineers, Portland, Oregon, August 3-6, 2014.
• Liou, C. P. and Wylie, E. B., “On the Approximation of the Friction Integral in the Water Hammer Equations,” Journal of Hydraulic Engineering, American Society of Civil Engineers, Vol. 140, No. 5, pp. 06014008-1 to 06014008-5, 2014.
• Liou, Jim C. P., and Schultz, R. R., “Wave Propagation in the Hot Duct of VHTR,” ICONE21 – 16807, Proceedings of the 21th International Conference on Nuclear Engineering, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Chengdu, China, July 29 – August 2, 2013.
• Liou, Jim C. P., “AUV Hydrodynamics for Survivability and Controllability,” Paper 0-933957, Proceedings of the OCEANS2011 MTS/IEEEE KONA Conference and Exhibition, Marine Technology Society and IEEE, Sept. 19-222, Kona, Hawaii, 2011.
• Liou, C. P., Parks, D., and Schultz, R., “A Criterion for the Onset of Air Ingress in VHTR by Air Intrusion,” ICONE18 – 29840, Proceedings of the 18^th International Conference of Nuclear Engineering, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Chinese Nuclear Society, and Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers. May 17-22, Xi’an, China, 2010.
• Smith, D., and Liou, C. P., “Critical Shear Stress of Trout Feed and Implications for Particulate Transport in Flow-through Raceways,” Agricultural Engineering, Vol. 42, pp. 112-120, 2010.

• Water hammer in fluid transmission and distribution systems
• Hydrodynamics of autonomous underwater vehicles
• Air ingress and stratified flow phenomena related to next generation nuclear reactors
• Stratified flows and biosediment transport in aquacultural facilities
• Real time leak detection for oil and natural gas pipelines
• Consulting to industries and governments on water hammer, pipeline safety, pipeline leak detection and water quality in distribution networks

• Teaching “Water Hammer in Transmission and Distribution Systems,” a two-day short course taught twice yearly for the American Society of Civil Engineers, 2001 – Present.

• Serves as a member of the Technical Advisory Committee of BHR Group (formally British Hydromechanics Research Association), 2015.
• Served as a guest lecturer in Advanced Hydraulics-Fluid Transients and on Hydroinformatics – Hydraulics of Water Distribution Networks at UNESCO – IHE Institute for Water Education, Delft, The Netherlands, 1999 – 2006.