PhD Studentship in Aeronautics: A Lagrangian Perspective of Entrainment into Wind-turbine Wakes (AE0091)

Start date: Between 1^st August 2027 and 1^st July 2028

Application deadline: 23:59, 4^th January 2027 (UK time)

Wind turbines clustered together for reasons relating to land availability, onwards power transmission to the grid, and maintenance scheduling amongst others. Unfortunately, wind-turbine clustering is aerodynamically disadvantageous. Each turbine produces a turbulent wake that interacts with downstream turbines to reduce the efficiency of power generation and accelerate the accumulation of fatigue damage. Improved understanding of the spreading, and propagation of wind-turbine wakes is therefore essential to design more efficient wind farms.

Wakes increase in size with distance downstream, similarly to a plume of smoke expanding as it leave a chimney. The processes by which turbulent flows expand are, collectively, known as entrainment. Wind-turbine wakes are complex flows; they involve a background that is already turbulent (due to atmospheric processes) and contain multiple coherent motions such as the blade-tip vortices. All of these features complicate our understanding entrainment into wind-turbine wakes.

You will perform cutting edge experiments to directly observe entrainment, and how the wake’s coherent motions affect these processes, in a laboratory-scale wind-turbine wake from a Lagrangian perspective (i.e. one that moves with the flow), by undertaking state-of-the-art particle tracking velocimetry (PTV) measurements. Our research group has conducted groundbreaking research in recent years on turbulent entrainment and this is the next, exciting step in the journey.

A key feature of this PhD project is that it will run in parallel to a project running at DTU (in Copenhagen) aiming to produce reduced-order models of wind-turbine wakes accounting for the coherent motions and entrainment that you will study. This project will therefore grant you the opportunity to collaborate with one of Europe’s leading research groups in wind energy as well as travel between London and Copenhagen. You will also:

• Gain hands-on experience of PTV and running experiments in a water facility that is well optimised for entrainment measurements,
• Work in a research group that has taken a leading role in studying turbulent entrainment,
• Be expected to write cutting-edge papers and present your findings at international conferences,
• Gain access to Imperial’s network for professional development, helping you to make future career decisions.

Supervisor: Prof. Oliver Buxton

Duration: 3.5 years.

Funding: Full tuition fees and an annual tax-free stipend of £23,805 for Home, EU and International students. Find out about fee status.

Eligibility: Candidates will be expected to achieve/have achieved a First class honours MEng/MSci or higher degree (or international equivalent) in: Aeronautical, Mechanical Engineering; Maths or Physics.

Students with a strong motivation, the ability to think and work independently, and a passion for fluid mechanics are welcome to apply. Previous experience with experimental fluid mechanics is desirable but not essential, a willingness and aptitude to learn new things is a far more important quality.

Apply: Visit A Lagrangian perspective of entrainment into wind-turbine wakes for important application instructions.

Contact: For project information, email: Prof. Oliver Buxton

For admissions questions, see our FAQs. If your question isn’t answered, email PhD Administrator (Admissions)

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: Imperial is committed to equality and valuing diversity. We are an Athena SWAN Silver Award winner, a Stonewall Diversity Champion, a Disability Confident Employer and are working in partnership with GIRES to promote respect for trans people.

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