Congratulation to Guiyue Duan on His Public Ph.D. Defense
© 2026 EPFL
On January 23, 2026, in the public defense, Guiyue Duan successfully presented his doctoral thesis titled “Impact of Wind Turbine Motions on Power Output and Wake Flow in Wind Farms.”
Congratulation to Guiyue Duan, who successfully delivered the public defense of his doctoral thesis following the prior completion of his private examination. His presentation marked the culmination of an in‑depth research effort exploring how turbine motions affect wind farm power performance and wake behavior.
Duan’s thesis begins with a comprehensive investigation of cyclic yaw control (CYC), a strategy that introduces periodic yaw oscillations to actively reshape turbine wakes. Using extensive wind tunnel experiments, he studied CYC across multiple layouts and inflow conditions, identifying the key aerodynamic mechanism responsible for power improvements and the conditions under which the method is most effective.
Building on the kinematic parallels between CYC motion and the platform motions of floating offshore wind turbines (FOWTs), the second part of the thesis examines how prescribed platform movements influence power output and wake characteristics. His findings provide valuable insight into motion‑induced aerodynamics relevant to offshore wind development.
Duan’s work advances the scientific understanding needed for next‑generation wind farm control strategies and the growing floating wind industry.
