Researcher position in wind resource modelling

Published: 2023-02-20

Uppsala University is a comprehensive research-intensive university with a strong international standing. Our ultimate goal is to conduct education and research of the highest quality and relevance to make a long-term difference in society. Our most important assets are all the individuals whose curiosity and dedication make Uppsala University one of Sweden’s most exciting workplaces. Uppsala University has over 54,000 students, more than 7,500 employees and a turnover of around SEK 8 billion.

The Department of Earth Sciences at Uppsala University is Sweden´s largest and most versatile department of its kind with approximately 250 employees. Our activities are interdisciplinary and combine natural science and technology with social science. We have research programs in air, water and landscape science (LUVAL); geophysics; natural resources and sustainable development; (NRHU); petrology, mineralogy and tectonics (MPT); paleobiology, and wind energy. By investigating the history of Earth, we understand how our planet has developed over time and how sustainable development benefits from this knowledge.

The Wind Energy Section is located at Campus Gotland, an international campus in the middle of world heritage town Visby. Our division is engaged in activities related to wind power project development and sustainable energy transition. These activities includes teaching, research and outreach. The group currently consists of about 20 persons who focus on the high fidelity modeling, planning, development and management of wind power projects as well as on sustainable energy transition. These individuals have a range of backgrounds and the group has competencies in technical, natural- and social science. The group’s teaching consists of both campus and distance education at the Bachelors level and beyond.

The division is located at Campus Gotland, an international campus in the middle of world heritage town Visby. Read more on the division´s website. https://www.geo.uu.se/research/wind-energy/

Read more about our benefits and what it is like to work at Uppsala University

Duties
The aim of this position is the development of modelling approaches based on Lattice-Boltzmann methods to simulate the performance of a wind park. This requires the modelling of the dynamic characteristics of atmospheric flows, wind turbine wakes and rotor loads with the ultimate goal of simulating the functioning of a wind park and optimizing the power production. To this aim, it will be necessary to implement, validate and utilize different methodologies to represent the effect that various elements have in the performance of a wind park. This comprise the numerical simulation of individual rotors, the influence of different types of surfaces (from sea to a complex and forested terrain) as well as the atmospheric flow including stratification effects. These models should be implemented using Lattice-Boltzmann methods in a GPU-based simulation platform.

The work will be mainly performed within the project “HiFiWake - Enabling High-fidelity Wind Farm Modelling for Industrial Applications”. Financed by the Swedish Energy Agency.

The complexity of Northern European wind conditions and new grid requirements for wind farm control challenge the state of industrial wind farm modelling. High-fidelity large-eddy simulation (LES) is considered the most accurate tool for such applications. However, the large computational demand limits the use of LES to fundamental academic studies. The lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) states an alternative to classical LES models and offers significantly higher computational efficiency. Already now, LBM-LES is replacing lower fidelity models in various industries. This project will close remaining gaps in the wind-energy-specific modelling capabilities of LBM models. The resulting LBM framework will finally bridge the gap between academic high-fidelity modelling and the industrial practice. This holds the potential for notable uncertainty reductions in power and load estimation that will directly benefit a resource and cost-efficient wind power development.

Requirements
To be eligible for a position as researcher, the applicant must hold a PhD degree in Mechanical Engineering, Meteorology, Climate Sciences, Physics, Mathematics or similar fields, with a focus on computational fluid dynamics. Candidates should have documented experience working with computational modelling of atmospheric flows and turbulence.  You need to be fluent in English, both spoken and written.

Additional qualifications
Special emphasis will be placed on a strong background and relevant experience in Lattice Boltzmann method, GPU-based simulations, programming skills on C++ and CUDA, actuator methods for rotor modelling as well as a broad knowledge of atmospheric boundary layer flows. Documented experience of implementation of models based on LES on the platform OpenFOAM is desirable. Acquaintance with Linux-based operative systems and Python. The evidence of independent thinking, quality of peer-reviewed publications and feedback provided by the references will contribute to the ranking of candidates.

About the employment
The employment is a temporary position, 12 months. Scope of employment 100 %. Starting date 01-04-2023 or as agreed. Placement: Visby, Gotland

For further information about the position, please contact: Professor, Head of Windenergy section Campus Gotland, Stefan Ivanell. E-mail: [email protected]
Telephone: +46498-108360

Please submit your application by 8 March 2023, UFV-PA 2023/605.

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About Campus Gotland: Uppsala University Campus Gotland offers the best of two worlds: the full-scale university’s broad offering and weight and a unique, small-scale campus in an interdisciplinary research environment. Campus Gotland is a hub for the University’s research and education in sustainability. Find out what it’s like to live on Gotland.

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Placement: Department of Earth Sciences

Type of employment: Full time , Temporary position

Pay: Fast Lön

Number of positions: 1

Working hours: 100%

Town: Gotland

County: Gotlands län

Country: Sweden

Union representative: Seko Universitetsklubben [email protected]
Saco-rådet [email protected]
ST/TCO [email protected]

Number of reference: UFV-PA 2023/605

Last application date: 2023-03-08

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