Research Studentship in Fluid Mechanics for Offshore Renewable Energy

Research Studentship in Fluid Mechanics for Offshore Renewable Energy

4-year D.Phil. (PhD) studentship starting October 2023

Project: Fluid Mechanics for Offshore Renewable Energy

Supervisor: Profs Richard Willden, Tom Adcock, Drs Christopher Vogel, Amanda Smyth or Takafumi Nishino

From describing the turbulent flow environment and metocean conditions, to understanding how flows interact with turbine blades and farms of devices, fluid mechanics is a core component in the design and operation of renewable energy devices for wind, wave and tidal power generation.

We are seeking doctoral students with interest in pursuing research in numerical, experimental or analytical fluid mechanics for the study of the wind, wave or tidal flow environments, resource modelling and farm optimisation, design of turbines and floating platforms, system control and optimisation for performance and load mitigation objectives. We use a range of numerical modelling techniques supported by high performance computing facilities and a new current and wave flume to support experimental research. Applications are welcomed across all aspects of fluid mechanics for offshore renewable energy.

Applicants may come from a range of backgrounds (e.g. engineering, physics, applied mathematics) and should have interests, and preferably experience, in fluid mechanics and offshore renewable energy.

The successful applicant will be a member of the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Wind and Marine Energy Systems and Structures (WAMESS CDT), which is a collaboration between the Universities of Oxford, Strathclyde and Edinburgh. Further details of the WAMESS CDT programme can be found on the course page on the University’s graduate admissions website. The CDT is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion, and is keen to attract applicants from a wide variety of backgrounds.

You will also be a member of the Environmental Fluid Mechanics group and will work as part of a team of over twenty fluid dynamicists with diverse interests spanning renewable energy and offshore fluid mechanics. Further information on the group can be found at https://eng.ox.ac.uk/efm/

Eligibility

This studentship is funded by the WAMESS CDT and is open to both UK and international applicants, although fees will only be covered at the Home rate. For an outstanding international applicant it may be possible to have Overseas fees discounted to Home level, but there is extremely limited flexibility for this. Further details about fee status can be found here under the “Fee Status” tab.

Candidate Requirements

Prospective candidates will be judged according to how well they meet the following criteria:

·        A first class honours, or strong upper second class degree in Engineering, Physics, Applied Mathematics or a related field,

·        Strong understanding of fluid dynamics,

·        Ability to undertake experimental investigations and / or scientific programming in Matlab, Python, Fortran, C/C++, etc,

·        Excellent written and spoken communication skills in English.

The following skills are desirable but not essential:

·        Experience in computational or experimental fluid dynamics

Application Procedure

Informal enquiries are encouraged and should be addressed to Prof. Richard Willden ([Email Address Removed]) in the first instance.

Formal applications should be made using the online Graduate Application Form that is accessible through the WAMESS CDT course page (click the “Apply” button on the “How to Apply” tab).

When filling out the fields of the Graduate Application Form, please observe the following guidance.

On the “Course” tab:

·        Proposed field and title of research project: Fluid Mechanics for Offshore Renewable Energy

On the “Funding” tab:

·        Are you applying for an advertised studentship competition(s): Yes

·        Advertised reference code: 23ENGCI_RW

Application deadline: noon on 9^th December 2022.

Start date: 25^th September 2023