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Research group Applied Computational Science

We specialize in developing advanced computer-based methods and algorithms to model complex physical systems across various disciplines, including geoenergy, electrochemistry, surface water dynamics, and ocean modeling.

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Our Expertise

We offer expertise in developing and applying advanced computational methods for complex modelling and simulation problems. We specialize in creating new algorithms and transforming them into efficient, reliable, and robust software of professional quality.

How Do We Work?

We are applied mathematicians and computer scientists who, over many years, have built deep expertise in our application areas. We combine this with a strong drive to develop methods and software that can be adapted to various applications without compromising accuracy or performance.

We draw on a strong tradition at SINTEF Digital, where the development of numerical methods, algorithms, and high-quality software has been central since the early 1990s. Our goal is to create solutions that not only meet today’s needs but are also capable of handling tomorrow’s challenges. Our broad methodological expertise enables us to contribute effectively across a wide range of fields and technology areas.

What Sets Us Apart?

We combine high academic standards with a deep understanding and strong focus of industrial needs, ensuring that our solutions are both innovative and practical. What sets us apart is our ability to swiftly advance new ideas from academic research, overcoming simplifying assumptions, use our open-source software to rapidly prototype and demonstrate effectiveness in relevant environments, and bringing new research into operational use.

International Orientation

Our group is internationally oriented and consists of 19 permanent scientists, most with a PhD in mathematics or physics, and several associated master and PhD students. We have established strategic cooperations with leading academic institutions worldwide and long-lasting partnerships with international industry clients.

With over 20 years' experience, we combine high academic quality in research with a strong focus on industrial relevance.

Key Achievements

  • Numerous publications in leading journals and conferences each year demonstrate our academic strength and international position at the forefront of research.
  • Over two decades of developing high-quality, open-source, community software that is widely used by researchers and industry worldwide. Our tools make advanced simulation accessible and contribute to global knowledge sharing and innovation.
  • Proven track record in developing simulation technologies that are in operational use, such as the OPM Flow  reservoir simulator, the multiscale formulation in SLB's INTERSECT MS SFI, and the GPU Ocean simulator. This highlights our ability to take research from theory to practical application in demanding industrial settings.
  • Long-standing experience with hardware accelerators (e.g., GPUs). We were pioneers in applying GPUs to scientific computing and continue to explore emerging technologies to stay at the forefront of innovation.

Strategic Directions

To meet the future needs of our users, we have in recent years initiated research on differentiable simulators, optimization under uncertainty, integrated physics-and-data-driven methods, and practical use of quantum computing.

We are also exploring what the future of human interaction with computational models might look like by combining applied mathematics, simulation technology, and artificial intelligence. Our vision is to develop natural, conversational interfaces with simulators that allow users to set up models, seamlessly combine different simulators, analyze results, and improve simulations supported by technologies such as large language models (LLMs), retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), and AI agents, in combination with differentiable simulators.

Building on our long tradition of developing flexible and generic methods, we are now working to make simulation tools more intuitive, efficient, and intelligent—across disciplines.

How We Can Help You?

  • Need advanced simulation tools for oil & gas, CO2 storage, or geothermal energy? We offer deep expertise across a wide range of methods and can quickly bring new ideas to life using our flexible, open-source frameworks (MRST, OPM, and JutulDarcy). Our tools are designed for rapid prototyping and testing in industry-relevant environments.
  • Looking for a next-generation multiphysics simulator that blends data-driven and physics-based modeling? We develop fully differentiable, efficient, and adaptable simulation tools that compute sensitivities with respect to all parameters—ideal for model calibration, uncertainty quantification, and process optimization across disciplines. We also bring decades of experience in hardware-accelerated computing.
  • Curious about the potential of GPUs or quantum computing? We design methods that leverage cutting-edge hardware—from GPUs and compute clusters to emerging quantum technologies. We can help you evaluate whether these platforms are right for your needs and how they might deliver significant performance gains.
  • Want to make advanced simulation tools easier to use? We explore how to automate complex workflows and create intuitive user experiences. Our work includes developing conversational interfaces that let you interact with simulators as if they were expert collaborators—making modeling more accessible and efficient.
  • Need help with something not listed above? Our wide-ranging expertise allows us to support many types of challenges. Get in touch, and we will quickly determine whether we—or others at SINTEF—are the right match.

Join Us

We are always open to new collaboration opportunities. Contact us to learn more about our research and how we can work together to solve complex scientific and technological challenges. You can also engage with our expertise through tailored courses, strategic consulting, or by spending time with us as a visiting researcher or collaborator.

Application areas

Modelling and simulation of flow in porous media

Modelling and simulation of flow in porous media

Simulation of flow in porous media involves modeling the movement of fluids through materials like soil and rock, providing insights into phenomena such as groundwater flow, oil reservoir behavior, and subsurface carbon storage. This field plays a...

Carbon capture and storage (CCS)

Carbon capture and storage (CCS)

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is a crucial technology in the energy transition, aiming to mitigate the impact of carbon dioxide emissions on climate change by capturing CO2 from industrial processes and power generation and securely storing it...

Geothermal energy and gas storage

Geothermal energy and gas storage

Geothermal energy harnesses the Earth's internal heat for a reliable and sustainable power supply, while subsurface storage of thermal energy contributes to a balanced energy infrastructure. Gas storage, involving the underground storage of natural...

Computational electrochemistry

Computational electrochemistry

Computational electrochemistry is a field that employs computer simulations to analyze and predict the behavior of electrochemical systems, finding widespread applications in areas such as battery technology, fuel cells, and electrolysis. As a...

Surface water and urban flooding

Surface water and urban flooding

The aftermath of severe weather events, whether on a national or international scale, leads to substantial infrastructure damage, often resulting in considerable insurance claims. The anticipated rise in extreme weather incidents emphasizes the...

Ocean modelling

Ocean modelling

Accurately simulating and predicting drift in the ocean, along with its associated uncertainty, is crucial for various reasons. It is essential for maritime safety, helping to forecast the movement of objects like drifting vessels, debris, or...

General computational modelling

General computational modelling

Advanced mathematics and computational methods are essential across all of SINTEF’s business areas. What distinguishes us from domain experts is our emphasis on enabling technology and cross-cutting expertise, which often allows us to operate...

Enabling simulation technologies

Gridding and discretization

Gridding and discretization

Gridding and discretization form the backbone of numerical simulation, transforming continuous mathematical models into finite sets of discrete quantities that can be solved for on a computer. Research on new methods is essential to develop more...

Numerical solvers and solution algorithms

Numerical solvers and solution algorithms

Numerical solvers and solution algorithms are central to simulation, enabling the solution of large, coupled systems of equations that arise from physical models. Research in this area ensures robust, scalable, and efficient simulations for complex...

Rapid prototyping of differentiable simulators

Rapid prototyping of differentiable simulators

To research innovative computational methods and mature them to a stage suitable for commercial implementation or deployment it is imperative to develop and maintain efficient and flexible ecosystems that facilitate effective experimental programming...

Discussing with your simulator

Discussing with your simulator

We envision a future where human-computer interaction within computational sciences is transformed. Imagine discussing complex simulations with your software—just like you would with a colleague.

Hardware-accelerated numerics

Hardware-accelerated numerics

Hardware-accelerated numerics refers to the use of specialized hardware to enhance the performance of numerical computations. Graphics processor units (GPUs) have, for instance, been used for almost two decades in scientific and engineering...

Visual computing

Visual computing

Visual computing is a field of computing that deals with the processing of visual information in forms such as images, videos, and 3D data. Our recent focus has mainly been on visual computing for medical ultrasound, but we have also worked with...

Quantum computing

Quantum computing

Quantum computing is an impending technology that offers a huge potential for societal and business disruption. However, quantum computers work in a fundamentally different way than classical computers, and utilizing them requires a deep...

Open-source software

BattMo

BattMo

BattMo is an open source simulation code for continuum modelling of electrochemical devices written in Matlab and Julia

GPU Ocean

GPU Ocean

A GPU-accelerated simulation framework for running large ensembles of simplified ocean models for real-world domains.

Jutul

Jutul

Experimental Julia framework for fully differentiable multiphysics simulators based on implicit finite-volume methods with automatic differentiation.

MRST - MATLAB Reservoir Simulation Toolbox

MRST - MATLAB Reservoir Simulation Toolbox

A free open-source community code for rapid prototyping of new methods for modelling and simulation of flow in porous media. Has a large user community from all over the world.

MRST-co2lab

MRST-co2lab

MRST-co2lab offers a set of open-source simulators and workflow tools that have been specially designed for the study of long-term, large-scale storage of CO2.

Open Porous Media (OPM)

Open Porous Media (OPM)

The Open Porous Media (OPM) initiative provides open-source software for simulation, upscaling and visualization of porous media processes, in particular subsurface reservoirs.

Open Quantum Computing

Open Quantum Computing

Open Quantum Computing is an open-source framework for conducting research on algorithms on noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) computers.

SWIM

SWIM

Software for static modeling and prediction of surface water and urban flooding based on analysis of topography/terrain.

Group members