Bio

Jim is a physicist, materials scientist and the Founder and CEO of The Fluid Group, Oxford. He began his career modelling the atomic structure of glass with reverse Monte Carlo (RMC), combining neutron, X-ray and EXAFS data for the first time [1]. Now, he applies Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and other techniques to solve hydrodynamic problems from nano- to kilometre-scale in the water, chemical and environmental engineering industry [2] around the world.

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Curriculum Vitae (pdf) available on request.

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Education

B.A. (Hons), M.A. Physics, Lincoln College, Oxford  (1990)

D.Phil. on 'The Structure of Disordered Materials', Clarendon Laboratory, Oxford, UK  (1993). Supervisor: R. L. McGreevy MBE

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Academic and Business Appointments

1993-96:  Founder Member, Condensed Matter & Materials Physics (CMMP), UCL Department of Physics & Astronomy

1996-97:  Research Associate, School of Physical Sciences, The University of Kent, Canterbury

1997-98:  Lloyds' of London Fellow, Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge

1998-99:  Research Fellow, Department of Materials, University of Oxford

1999-2005:  Founder Member and Head of Anglian Water Process & CFD Modelling Team

2005-     :  Founder and CEO of The Fluid Group, Oxford

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Research

Jim focusses extensively on the combination of simulation techniques: ASM (activated sludge modelling) with fluid dynamics (CFD), solids transport in magnetic fields, and plasma physics with high temperature liquid and glass simulation.

He works regularly in the areas of industrial mixing and separation, fluid structure interaction, non-Newtonian physics, renewable energy, public health and water resource recovery (water treatment, disinfection and anaerobic digestion).

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62 articles in peer-reviewed journals  (publication list available on request). 1100+ citations as of November 2024.

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Fellowships, Memberships and Committees

Lloyds Tercentenary Foundation Fellow, Cavendish Laboratory, Cambridge  (1996 - 1998) 

Chartered Physicist and Member of the Institute of Physics  (1998 -   )

Founder Member and Vice Chair of the CFD Working Group for the International Water Association  (2008 -     )

​Founder Member of The Henry Moseley Society, Oxford University Physics Department  (2015 -   ) 

Member of UKRI (EPSRC) Peer Review College  (2017 -     )

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Member of International Water Association, IWA  (2006 -   )

Member of the Society of Glass Technology, SGT  (2018 -   )

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EPSRC Programme Grant Interview Panel Member  (2018)

EPSRC Centres for Doctoral Training (CDT) Expert Panel  (2018)

EPSRC Centres for Doctoral Training (CDT) Interview Panel Chair  (2018)

EPSRC Collaborative Computational Projects (CCP) Expert Panel  (2019)

EPSRC ExCALIBUR (UK Exascale Computing Development) Expert Panel (Phase 1b 2020, Phase 2 2021), Vice Chair (2020)

EPSRC High End Computing Consortia Expert Panel  (2022)

EPSRC Centres for Doctoral Training (CDT) Expert Panel  (2023)

UKRI DRI (Digital Research Infrastructure) Hubs for Accelerated Compute Expert Panel  (2024)

UKRI Future Leaders Fellowships (FLF) Core Panel Member  (2019 - 2025)

          Round 3 Sift Panel  (2019)

          Round 3 Interview Panel  (2020)

          Round 5 Sift Panel  (2021)

          Round 6 Interview Panel  (2022)

          Round 7 Sift Panel  (2023)

          Round 8 Interview Panel  (2024)

          Round 9 Sift Panel  (2025)

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Recent Conference Activity

Scientific Committee, WRRmod2021, Arosa, Switzerland  (2021)

Scientific Committee, Watermatex2023, Quebec, Canada  (2023)

Scientific Committee, Tracer 9, Benicassim, Spain  (2024)

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Contact details

Email: jim.wicks@thefluidgroup.com