Professor Peter Townsend BSc, PhD, DSc, FLSW, prior to taking up a senior university management post, was an active researcher in two main fields, namely computational non-Newtonian fluid mechanics and computer graphics. This work was of significant interest to industry which provided substantial financial backing for the research. The more fundamental scientific aspects of the fluids work included the evaluation of constitutive models of shear, extensional and elastic properties of the fluids, the derivation of new numerical algorithms for solving the non-linear partial differential equations governing the flows and the implementation of these algorithms on modern distributed or parallel architectures. The graphics work involved animated visualisation of numerical predictions of complex flows, but also the design and implementation of sophisticated user interfaces for control system software. His research work has led to over 120 publications
He is a former President of the British Society of Rheology, has co-chaired the International Congress of Rheology and currently is Chair of the Institute of non-Newtonian Fluid Mechanics..
In 1996 he took up a senior role in the management of Swansea University eventually retiring as Deputy Vice-Chancellor in 2007.
In retirement he has been active in church finances, having chaired the Board of Finance of the Diocese of Swansea and Brecon. More recently he took up the role of Treasurer of the Gower Ministry Area which is made up of twenty Gower Anglican churches. For a number of years he was an active member of the National Coastwatch Institution taking watches at the NCI station at Worms Head on Gower.