
Niall O’Neill
PhD
Optimization Under Uncertainty Applied to Wind Farm Design & Control
Host Organisation
Technical University of Denmark
Project Description
The main focus of my project is to quantify the effect of model and parameter uncertainty on the design of wind farms and propagate these uncertainties through optimization algorithms (i.e., layout optimization), with a focus in achieving better AEP There are many facets to this problem that may be addressed. One of the primary research objectives is to develop a multi-fidelity framework for wind farm design under uncertainty. This may involve coupling CFD and engineering models in the design process.
Supervisors
Pierre-Elouan Réthoré (DTU)
Antoine Mathieu (EDF)
Julian Quick (DTU)
Rem-Sophia Mouradi (EDF)
Background
I grew up in Cork, Ireland and completed a M.Eng in mechanical engineering at the University of Limerick, Ireland, graduating in 2024. During my education, I completed many internships in a wide range of areas from Biotechnology to testing Floating Wind research and completed my Masters Thesis in Aeroacoustic modelling in OpenFOAM
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My reason for applying for this PhD project is that it combines the majority of my professional interests into one project. Research (broadly speaking), Renewable Energy, Numerical Modelling & Data Science / Statistics. I was keen to address Uncertainty Quantification as I have previous done many CFD based projects and felt that its importance was under-stated. I was drawn by the opportunity to learn from world class researchers at DTU & EDF, as this PhD program is carried out with an emphasis on industry collaboration. Also, spending some time in Copenhagen and Paris throughout the process sounded like a good deal!
