Posting Title

Postdoctoral Researcher – Mechanical Vibrations and Aeroelasticity

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Location

CO - Boulder

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Position Type

Postdoc (Fixed Term)

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Hours Per Week

40

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COVID-19 Safety Protocols

Employment at NREL is contingent upon your compliance with all NREL and U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) safety protocols and mitigation efforts directed at the COVID-19 pandemic.

Working at NREL
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From day one at NREL, you’ll connect with coworkers driven by the same mission to save the planet. By joining an organization that values a supportive, inclusive, and flexible work environment, you’ll have the opportunity to engage through our eight employee resource groups, numerous employee-driven clubs, and learning and professional development classes.

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Job Description

The National Wind Technology Center (NWTC) at NREL is seeking a highly motivated and skilled postdoctoral researcher specializing in mechanical vibrations and aeroelasticity. This position offers an exciting opportunity to contribute to cutting-edge research funded by the DOE Wind Energy Technologies Office. The research aims to identify and understand the structural mechanisms responsible for triggering instabilities in wind turbines under various wind flow conditions.

As a member of our dynamic team, you will collaborate closely with NREL staff and researchers from academia and industry partners. Your primary focus will be on developing tools and techniques for high-fidelity fluid-structure interaction simulations, enabling the establishment of a comprehensive theoretical framework to address wind turbine instabilities. Your contributions will be instrumental in shaping the future of next-generation wind turbines.

Key Responsibilities:

• Conduct in-depth research on the structural mechanisms underlying wind turbine instabilities and their interactions with aerodynamic forces.
• Perform advanced fluid-structure interaction simulations to accurately model and analyze wind turbine behavior.
• Collaborate with a diverse team of experts to integrate your findings into broader research efforts.
• Independently identify, analyze, and solve complex problems related to mechanical vibrations and aeroelasticity.
• Publish research results in high-impact technical journals and present findings at conferences, symposia, and review meetings.

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Basic Qualifications
Must be a recent PhD graduate within the last three years.

* Must meet educational requirements prior to employment start date.

Additional Required Qualifications

• Strong understanding of the principles and theories related to mechanical vibrations, including free and forced vibrations, damping, resonance, and vibration analysis techniques,
• Proficiency in aeroelasticity is crucial, as it deals with the interaction between aerodynamic forces and structural dynamics. The candidate should be familiar with concepts like flutter, divergence, control reversal, and the dynamic behavior of aircraft, wind turbines, or other relevant structures,
• Experience in modern programming and software development, with the ability to write efficient code and implement numerical simulations. Proficiency in low-level programming languages such as Fortran and/or C++ is required.
• Established publication record in peer-reviewed journals.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with fluid-structure interaction (FSI) techniques,
• Experience with system identification techniques for structural dynamics,
• Proficiency in scripting languages such as Bash, Python, etc.,
• Experience in a Linux-based high-performance computing environment,
• Experience in git and GitHub version control.

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Annual Salary Range (based on full-time 40 hours per week)
Job Profile: Postdoctoral Researcher / Annual Salary Range: $71,300 - $117,600

NREL takes into consideration a candidate’s education, training, and experience, expected quality and quantity of work, required travel (if any), external market and internal value, including seniority and merit systems, and internal pay alignment when determining the salary level for potential new employees. In compliance with the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, a potential new employee’s salary history will not be used in compensation decisions.

Benefits Summary
Benefits include medical, dental, and vision insurance; short-term disability insurance*; pension benefits*; 403(b) Employee Savings Plan with employer match*; life and accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) insurance; personal time off (PTO) and sick leave; and paid holidays. NREL employees may be eligible for, but are not guaranteed, performance-, merit-, and achievement- based awards that include a monetary component. Some positions may be eligible for relocation expense reimbursement.

* Based on eligibility rules

Submission Guidelines

Please note that in order to be considered an applicant for any position at NREL you must submit an application form for each position for which you believe you are qualified. Applications are not kept on file for future positions. Please include a cover letter and resume with each position application.

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