Developing reduced-order models for long-term wave loading to enable accurate fatigue estimation in offshore wind turbines

Project Description:

This PhD scholarship is offered by the EPSRC CDT in Offshore Wind Energy Sustainability and Resilience; a partnership between the Universities of Durham, Hull, Loughborough and Sheffield. The scholarship is co-funded, and co-supervised by, HR Wallingford. HR Wallingford are a global expert in water-related challenges, providing research, consultancy, and physical and computational modelling that supports the offshore wind sector internationally. The studentship funds four years full time study (part time options available), including: six-months of multi-disciplinary training, delivered by the University of Hull; and a research programme, based between Loughborough University and HR Wallingford.

Offshore wind energy is a cornerstone of the European Union’s energy strategy. Europe continues to deliver new wind projects, adding 2.6 GW of offshore capacity in 2024, with a projection to triple capacity by 2030. This doctoral studentship is partnered with industry to directly tackle a critical sector challenge: continuous offshore infrastructure operations.

The studentship will address the challenge of accurately predicting the fatigue life of offshore wind turbines, a critical issue in both deployment and long-term maintenance. A key aspect of this work involves resolving the complex, long-term interaction of wave and wind loads, which generate combined stress cycles and contribute to material fatigue. This interaction requires advanced coupled simulation models that account for both wind and wave dynamics to ensure reliable fatigue predictions. Current methodologies have well-documented limitations in accurately capturing the effects of complex flow scenarios and nonlinear drag dominated flow regimes on structural loads.

By leveraging advanced computational fluid dynamics models and utilising real sea state data from major offshore wind farm locations, this project aims to provide a step change is our ability to predict fatigue life. The student will develop new datasets and apply machine learning-based analytical tools that offer value across the wind energy sector. The outcomes are expected to enhance the long-term economic viability of offshore wind turbines globally.

Training and development

You will benefit from a taught programme, giving you a broad understanding of the breadth and depth of current and emerging offshore wind sector needs. This begins with an intensive six-month programme at the University of Hull for the new student intake, drawing on the expertise and facilities of all four academic partners. It is supplemented by Continuing Professional Development (CPD), which is embedded throughout your 4-year research scholarship.

The successful applicant will have the opportunity to undertake CDT funded placements at HR Wallingford during their PhD programme. These include extended collaboration with their industry supervisor and potential use of industry accredited test facilities. Beyond academia, these placements open pathways to a career in the wind energy sector and hydraulic engineering more broadly.

Entry requirements

If you have received a First-class Honours degree, or a 2:1 Honours degree and a Masters, or a Distinction at Masters level with any undergraduate degree (or the international equivalents) in engineering, environmental science, mathematics and statistics or physics, we would like to hear from you. The ideal candidate for this project will have studied fluid mechanics/physical oceanography to a high level as part of their undergraduate degree.

If your first language is not English, or you require Tier 4 student visa to study, you will be required to provide evidence of your English language proficiency level that meets the requirements of the Aura CDT’s academic partners. This course requires academic IELTS 7.0 overall, with no less than 6.0 in each skill.

In-kind support & Industry Supervision

If you have any queries about this project, please contact Professor Robert M Dorrell via auracdt@hull.ac.uk.

Watch our short video to hear from Aura CDT students, academics and industry partners:

Funding

The Offshore Wind CDT is funded by the EPSRC, allowing us to provide scholarships that cover fees plus a stipend set at the UKRI nationally agreed rates. These are currently £20,780 per annum at 2025/26 rates and will increase in line with the EPSRC guidelines for the subsequent years (subject to progress).

Eligibility

Research Council funding for postgraduate research has residence requirements. Our CDT scholarships are available to Home (UK) Students. To be considered a Home student, and therefore eligible for a full award, a student must have no restrictions on how long they can stay in the UK and have been ordinarily resident in the UK for at least 3 years prior to the start of the scholarship (with some further constraint regarding residence for education). For full eligibility information, please refer to the EPSRC website.

We also allocate a number of scholarships for International Students per cohort.

Guaranteed Interview Scheme

The CDT is committed to generating a diverse and inclusive training programme and is looking to attract applicants from all backgrounds. We offer a Guaranteed Interview Scheme for home fee status candidates who identify as Black or Black mixed or Asian or Asian mixed if they meet the programme entry requirements. This positive action is to support recruitment of these under-represented ethnic groups to our programme and is an opt in process.

Find out more

How to apply

Applications for this project will open in Autumn 2025 for September 2026 entry.

Interviews will be held online with an interview panel comprising of project supervisory team members from the host university where the project is based.  Where the project involves external supervisors from university partners or industry sponsors then representatives from these partners may form part of the interview panel and your supplementary application form will be shared with them (with the guaranteed interview scheme section removed).

If you have any queries about this project, please contact Professor Robert M Dorrell via auracdt@hull.ac.uk.

References

1 Wind energy in Europe: 2024 Statistics and the outlook for 2025-2030, Feb 2025, Wind Europe.

2 J. Ding et al, J. Mar. Sci. Eng. 13 (2025) 506

3 OpenFAST v3.5.3 documentation

4 G. J. Hayman and M. Buhl, Jr., MLife User’s Guide for Version 1.00, Technical Report, October 2012, NREL.

5 Offshore wind analysis software | Sesam Wind Manager (dnv.com)

6 H. F. Veldkamp, J. van der Tempel, Wind Energ. 8 (2005) 49–65

7 J.H. Vugts, Fatigue damage assessments and the influence of wave directionality, Appl. O. Res. 27 (2005) 173–185.

8 J.-T. Horn et al., Long-term fatigue damage sensitivity to wave directionality, Proc IMechE Part M: 232 (2018) 37–49