Stargate kawoosh effect

Hi there,
I've hit a wall in my project.
For my final year project at university, I am making the control room from Stargate Atlantis.
I want to create the stargate activation effect using partcles.
I also need it to ripple like it does in the show when something goes through it, and I need it to turn off like it does in the show.
Ive been trying to figure out how to do this for a month and a half now, and I still don't know how to do it.
Also to note.. I need this to wrok in both 3DS Max and in UDK.
Any advice that anyone can give would be awesome.
Thanks.
I can't post links until I've posted 15 times.. If you search 'Stargate test - texture with ripples' in youtube. The videos by KShiyaniDesign are my ones.
I did a test using a spline and the lathe modifer in 3DS Max.
I followed a tutorial, but added some tweaks of my own.

You can try using aftereffects with that. But the the way I would approach it is with mayas sine wave deformer in a shape of a circle.