Dr Sam Evans
Conjoint Senior Lecturer
School of Engineering
- Email:samuel.evans@newcastle.edu.au
- Phone:(02) 4921 8879
Career Summary
Biography
As a trained academic my career has been anything but textbook. I am driven to commercialise deep tech into real-world impact. My passion in renewable energy led me to co-found Diffuse Energy, a spin-out from The University of Newcastle. Diffuse Energy have successfully completed the CSIRO ON Program - Australia’s National Science and Technology Accelerator. Our wind technology is currently being rolled out to remote telecommunications sites.
I was awarded my PhD in 2017 on the topic of small wind turbine aeroelasticity. How can we design more efficient, cheaper, and structurally sound small-scale wind turbines? How can we tap into existing wind resources to improve renewable energy penetration? These wicked problems drive my research.
My secondary research interest is computational biomechanics. This exciting field combines the application of computer aided engineering, medical imaging, and biology. My work has received national and international media coverage in; The Royal Society, New Scientist, Australian Geographic, Fairfax media, and Nine Network news.
I am always seeking to make connections with like-minded individuals.
Qualifications
- Doctor of Philosophy, University of Newcastle
- Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical) (Hons), University of Newcastle
Keywords
- Computational biomechanics
- Finite element analysis
- Renewable energy
- Wind turbines
Languages
- English (Mother)
Fields of Research
| Code | Description | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| 091399 | Mechanical Engineering not elsewhere classified | 50 |
| 090608 | Renewable Power and Energy Systems Engineering (excl. Solar Cells) | 50 |
Invitations
Speaker
| Year | Title / Rationale |
|---|---|
| 2019 | NEXUS 2019 Jingsu-Victoria Startup Summit |
| 2019 |
The 6th annual Off Grid and Stand Alone Power Conference Invited Conference Chair |
| 2018 | IMPACT7 2018 |
Teaching
| Code | Course | Role | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| MECH4580 |
Computer Aided Engineering and Manufacturing Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment - The University of Newcastle (Australia) |
Course coordinator | 1/1/2017 - 30/6/2018 |
| MECH1110 |
Mechanical Drawing/CAD and Workshop Practice Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment - The University of Newcastle (Australia) |
Course coordinator | 1/7/2017 - 31/12/2018 |
Publications
For publications that are currently unpublished or in-press, details are shown in italics.
Chapter (2 outputs)
| Year | Citation | Altmetrics | Link | ||||||||
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| 2019 |
Rakib MI, Nay S, Evans S, Clausen P, 'Wind Regimes in Urban Environments: Experimental Comparison with the IEC 61400.2-2013 Open Terrain Wind Model', Wind Energy Exploitation in Urban Environment: TUrbWind 2018 Colloquium, Springer Nature, Cham, Switzerland 201-214 (2019) [B1]
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| 2019 |
Bradney D, Evans S, Clausen P, 'The Effect of Tail Fin Size on the Yaw Performance of Small Wind Turbines Operating in Unsteady Flow', Wind Energy Exploitation in Urban Environment: TUrbWind 2018 Colloquium, Springer Nature, Cham, Switzerland 55-70 (2019) [B1]
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Journal article (10 outputs)
| Year | Citation | Altmetrics | Link | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 |
KC A, Whale J, Evans SP, Clausen PD, 'An investigation of the impact of wind speed and turbulence on small wind turbine operation and fatigue loads', Renewable Energy, 146 87-98 (2020) [C1]
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| 2020 |
Rakib MI, Evans SP, Clausen PD, 'Measured gust events in the urban environment, a comparison with the IEC standard', Renewable Energy, 146 1134-1142 (2020) [C1]
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| 2020 |
Bradney D, Evans S, Chu M, Clausen P, 'A low-cost, high-speed, multi-channel Arduino-based data acquisition system for wind turbine systems', Wind Engineering, 44 509-518 (2020) [C1]
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| 2018 |
Evans SP, Bradney DR, Clausen PD, 'Development and experimental verification of a 5 kW small wind turbine aeroelastic model', Journal of Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics, 181 104-111 (2018) [C1]
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| 2018 |
Evans SP, Bradney DR, Clausen PD, 'Assessing the IEC simplified fatigue load equations for small wind turbine blades: How simple is too simple?', Renewable Energy, 127 24-31 (2018) [C1] © 2018 It is well known that wind turbine blades are fatigue critical, with much literature and methodologies available for assessing fatigue loading of large wind turbine blades.... [more] © 2018 It is well known that wind turbine blades are fatigue critical, with much literature and methodologies available for assessing fatigue loading of large wind turbine blades. Little research effort has been directed at assessing the fatigue life of small wind turbines which operate at higher rotational speeds and are subject to highly unsteady aerodynamic loading. In this paper the simplified load model proposed in IEC 61400.2 is used to determine the fatigue life of a small 5 kW wind turbine blade. This estimated life is compared to that determined from both measured operational data and aeroelastic simulations. Fatigue life was estimated by the standard at 0.09 years, compared to 9.18 years from field measurements and 3.26 years found via aeroelastic simulations. All methods fell below the 20 year design life, with the standard over-conservative by a factor of 102 and 36 for measurements and simulations respectively. To the best of the authors¿ knowledge these three fatigue methods specified in the standard have not been quantitatively compared and assessed for small wind turbines. Results are of importance to small wind turbine developers as they seek best practice for determining blade fatigue life. Shortcomings of the IEC methodology are detailed and discussed.
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| 2018 |
Wroe S, Parr WCH, Ledogar JA, Bourke J, Evans SP, Fiorenza L, et al., 'Computer simulations show that Neanderthal facial morphology represents adaptation to cold and high energy demands, but not heavy biting', PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES, 285 (2018) [C1]
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| 2017 |
Bradney DR, Davidson A, Evans SP, Wueringer BE, Morgan DL, Clausen PD, 'Sawfishes stealth revealed using computational fluid dynamics', JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY, 90 1584-1596 (2017) [C1]
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| 2017 |
Evans SP, KC A, Bradney DR, Urmee TP, Whale J, Clausen PD, 'The suitability of the IEC 61400-2 wind model for small wind turbines operating in the built environment', Renewable Energy and Environmental Sustainability, 2 (2017) [C1]
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| 2015 |
Evans SP, Clausen PD, 'Modelling of turbulent wind flow using the embedded Markov chain method', Renewable Energy, 81 671-678 (2015) [C1] © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. Small wind turbines are usually installed to provide off-grid power and as such can be situated close to the load in a less-than-ideal wind resource. These wi... [more] © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. Small wind turbines are usually installed to provide off-grid power and as such can be situated close to the load in a less-than-ideal wind resource. These wind regimes are often governed by low mean speeds and high wind turbulence. This can result in energy production less than that specified by the manufacturer's power curve. Wind turbulence is detrimental to the fatigue life of key components and overall turbine reliability and therefore must be considered in the design stage of small wind turbines. Consequently it is important to accurately simulate wind speed data at highly turbulent sites to quantify loading on turbine components. Here we simulate wind speed data using the Markov chain Monte Carlo process and incorporate long term effects using an embedded Markov chain. First, second and third order Markov chain predictions were found to be in good agreement with measured wind data acquired at 1Hz. The embedded Markov chain was able to predict site turbulent intensity with a reasonable degree of accuracy. The site exhibited distinctive peaks in wind speed possibly caused by diurnal heating and cooling of the earth's surface. The embedded Markov chain method was able to simulate these peaks albeit with a time offset.
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| 2012 |
Evans SP, Parr WCH, Clausen PD, Jones A, Wroe S, 'Finite element analysis of a micromechanical model of bone and a new 3D approach to validation', Journal of Biomechanics, 45 2702-2705 (2012) [C1]
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Conference (5 outputs)
| Year | Citation | Altmetrics | Link | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 |
Rakib MI, Evans SP, Clausen PD, 'Simulating the response of a small horizontal-axis wind turbine during wind gust using FAST', Journal of Physics: Conference Series, Amherst, MA (2020) [E1]
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| 2020 |
Evans SP, Kesby JE, Bradley J, Clausen PD, 'Commercialization of a Diffuser Augmented Wind Turbine for Distributed Generation', Journal of Physics: Conference Series (2020) [E1] © 2020 IOP Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved. Small-scale distributed wind generation faces challenges in being cost competitive due to recent advances in solar photovoltaic and... [more] © 2020 IOP Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved. Small-scale distributed wind generation faces challenges in being cost competitive due to recent advances in solar photovoltaic and battery storage technology. Reductions in levelized cost of energy (LCOE) can be achieved by improvements in aerodynamic efficiency, generator controller design, or reducing cost of manufacture. In this paper we present a case study detailing the commercialization of a novel 200 W high-efficiency diffuser augmented wind turbine (DAWT). Results include increased rotor efficiency, bespoke controller design, and the novel use of manufacturing processes. Findings and conclusions are of direct interest to small wind turbine designers as they seek to reduce LCOE.
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| 2016 |
Evans SP, Bradney DR, Clausen PD, 'Aeroelastic measurements and simulations of a small wind turbine operating in the built environment', Journal of Physics: Conference Series, Munich, Germany (2016) [E1]
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| 2016 |
Bradney DR, Evans SP, Da Costa MSP, Clausen PD, 'Comparison of computational modelling and field testing of a small wind turbine operating in unsteady flows', Journal of Physics: Conference Series, Munich, Germany (2016) [E1]
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| 2014 |
Evans S, Clausen PD, 'High Resolution Wind Speed Modelling of Turbulent Flow using Markov Chain Monte Carlo Simulation', Proceedings of the 52nd Annual Conference: Australian Solar Energy Society (Australian Solar Council), Melbourne (2014) [E1]
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Thesis / Dissertation (1 outputs)
| Year | Citation | Altmetrics | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Evans SP, Evans SP, Aeroelastic measurements, simulations, and fatigue predictions for small wind turbines operating in highly turbulent flow, University of Newcastle (2017) |
Grants and Funding
Summary
| Number of grants | 11 |
|---|---|
| Total funding | $1,112,303 |
Click on a grant title below to expand the full details for that specific grant.
20201 grants / $922,307
Resilient Wind Energy for Telecommunication Sites$922,307
Funding body: Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA)
| Funding body | Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) |
|---|---|
| Scheme | Advancing Renewables |
| Role | Lead |
| Funding Start | 2020 |
| Funding Finish | 2022 |
| GNo | |
| Type Of Funding | Aust Competitive - Commonwealth |
| Category | 1CS |
| UON | N |
20191 grants / $20,000
New Ventures Incubation Grant$20,000
Funding body: CSIRO - Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation
| Funding body | CSIRO - Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation |
|---|---|
| Scheme | CSIRO New Ventures |
| Role | Lead |
| Funding Start | 2019 |
| Funding Finish | 2019 |
| GNo | |
| Type Of Funding | External |
| Category | EXTE |
| UON | N |
20184 grants / $67,000
Minimum Viable Product grant$50,000
Funding body: NSW State Government
| Funding body | NSW State Government |
|---|---|
| Scheme | Jobs for NSW |
| Role | Investigator |
| Funding Start | 2018 |
| Funding Finish | 2019 |
| GNo | |
| Type Of Funding | C2220 - Aust StateTerritoryLocal - Other |
| Category | 2220 |
| UON | N |
CSIRO ON Accelerate - High Performing Team Grant$10,000
Funding body: CSIRO - Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation
| Funding body | CSIRO - Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation |
|---|---|
| Scheme | Australia's National Innovation Accelerator Program |
| Role | Investigator |
| Funding Start | 2018 |
| Funding Finish | 2018 |
| GNo | |
| Type Of Funding | External |
| Category | EXTE |
| UON | N |
Teaching Innovation Investment Scheme$5,000
Funding body: Centre for Teaching and Learning, The University of Newcastle
| Funding body | Centre for Teaching and Learning, The University of Newcastle |
|---|---|
| Scheme | Teaching Innovation Investment Scheme |
| Role | Lead |
| Funding Start | 2018 |
| Funding Finish | 2018 |
| GNo | |
| Type Of Funding | Internal |
| Category | INTE |
| UON | N |
Research Conference Travel Grant$2,000
Funding body: Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment - The University of Newcastle (Australia)
| Funding body | Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment - The University of Newcastle (Australia) |
|---|---|
| Scheme | Faculty Conference Travel Grant |
| Role | Lead |
| Funding Start | 2018 |
| Funding Finish | 2018 |
| GNo | |
| Type Of Funding | Internal |
| Category | INTE |
| UON | N |
20175 grants / $102,996
Develop and optimise a cement lined water based end pipe fitting technology$33,108
Funding body: Pipe Lining & Coating Pty Limited
| Funding body | Pipe Lining & Coating Pty Limited |
|---|---|
| Project Team | Associate Professor Phil Clausen, Professor Craig Wheeler, Doctor Sam Evans |
| Scheme | Entrepreneurs’ Programme: Innovation Connections Partner Funding |
| Role | Investigator |
| Funding Start | 2017 |
| Funding Finish | 2017 |
| GNo | G1700887 |
| Type Of Funding | C3111 - Aust For profit |
| Category | 3111 |
| UON | Y |
Develop and optimise a cement lined water based end pipe fitting technology$33,108
Funding body: Department of Industry, Innovation and Science
| Funding body | Department of Industry, Innovation and Science |
|---|---|
| Project Team | Associate Professor Phil Clausen, Professor Craig Wheeler, Doctor Sam Evans |
| Scheme | Entrepreneurs' Programme: Innovation Connections |
| Role | Investigator |
| Funding Start | 2017 |
| Funding Finish | 2017 |
| GNo | G1700933 |
| Type Of Funding | C2110 - Aust Commonwealth - Own Purpose |
| Category | 2110 |
| UON | Y |
Quantifying the turbulent built environment wind resource$18,780
Funding body: Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment - The University of Newcastle (Australia)
| Funding body | Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment - The University of Newcastle (Australia) |
|---|---|
| Scheme | FEBE Strategic Pilot Grant |
| Role | Lead |
| Funding Start | 2017 |
| Funding Finish | 2018 |
| GNo | |
| Type Of Funding | Internal |
| Category | INTE |
| UON | N |
CSIRO ON Accelerate 4$15,000
Funding body: CSIRO - Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation
| Funding body | CSIRO - Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation |
|---|---|
| Scheme | Australia's National Innovation Accelerator Program |
| Role | Investigator |
| Funding Start | 2017 |
| Funding Finish | 2018 |
| GNo | |
| Type Of Funding | External |
| Category | EXTE |
| UON | N |
CSIRO On Prime Grant$3,000
Funding body: CSIRO - Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation
| Funding body | CSIRO - Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation |
|---|---|
| Scheme | ON Prime |
| Role | Investigator |
| Funding Start | 2017 |
| Funding Finish | 2017 |
| GNo | |
| Type Of Funding | External |
| Category | EXTE |
| UON | N |
Research Supervision
Number of supervisions
Current Supervision
| Commenced | Level of Study | Research Title | Program | Supervisor Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | PhD | Fluid Rotations and Power Efficiency of Wind Turbine | PhD (Mechanical Engineering), Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment, The University of Newcastle | Co-Supervisor |
| 2016 | PhD | Effect of Wind Gusts on Small Wind Turbines | PhD (Mechanical Engineering), Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment, The University of Newcastle | Co-Supervisor |
Past Supervision
| Year | Level of Study | Research Title | Program | Supervisor Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | PhD | Structural Response and Optimisation of a Small Wind Turbine Blade | PhD (Mechanical Engineering), Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment, The University of Newcastle | Co-Supervisor |
Research Collaborations
The map is a representation of a researchers co-authorship with collaborators across the globe. The map displays the number of publications against a country, where there is at least one co-author based in that country. Data is sourced from the University of Newcastle research publication management system (NURO) and may not fully represent the authors complete body of work.
| Country | Count of Publications | |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | 15 | |
| Germany | 1 | |
| United Kingdom | 1 | |
| Italy | 1 | |
| United States | 1 |
News
Venture capitalist blown away by University-born small wind turbine startup
June 5, 2020
Flame retardants: how Australian universities are responding to the bushfires
April 2, 2020
The big catch they don’t tell you about the CSIRO ON Program
July 9, 2019
Sawfish’s fearsome snout evolved to be undetectable to prey
March 29, 2017
Sawfish are the ultimate stealth hunters, study finds
March 24, 2017
Why the endangered sawfish is the ultimate stealth killer
March 23, 2017
Dr Sam Evans
Position
Conjoint Senior Lecturer
School of Engineering
Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment
Contact Details
| samuel.evans@newcastle.edu.au | |
| Phone | (02) 4921 8879 |
| Links |
Twitter Personal webpage YouTube |
Office
| Room | ES402 |
|---|---|
| Building | Engineering Science |
| Location | Callaghan University Drive Callaghan, NSW 2308 Australia |
NEWS • Jun 05.2020
Venture capitalist blown away by University-born small wind turbine startup
The University of Newcastle-based start-up, Diffuse Energy, has secured $400,000 in seed funding from Australian venture capital fund, Shearwater Growth Equity, to scale production of its promising renewable energy option.
NEWS • Apr 02.2020
Flame retardants: how Australian universities are responding to the bushfires
Six months of devastating and unprecedented destruction has brought home the reality of climate change to many Australians. But with time for mitigation short and some politicians still in denial, what more can universities do to save the ‘lucky country’ – and the rest of the planet?
NEWS • Jul 09.2019
The big catch they don’t tell you about the CSIRO ON Program
Dr Samuel Evans completed ON Accelerate in 2018. He's written in to tell us about the hidden catch in his experience.
NEWS • Mar 29.2017
Sawfish’s fearsome snout evolved to be undetectable to prey
The sawfish’s long, rigid snout – called a rostrum – looked oddly similar to some of the industrial wind turbine blades he had investigated as a professor of engineering at Australia’s University of Newcastle.
NEWS • Mar 24.2017
Sawfish are the ultimate stealth hunters, study finds
New research has shed light on the function of the distinctive 'saw' on sawfish – and how it enables the unusual species to sneak up on its prey.
NEWS • Mar 23.2017
Why the endangered sawfish is the ultimate stealth killer
Researchers at the University of Newcastle have shown that the water dynamics of the sawfish's weapon make it one of nature's deadliest stealth predators.
Renew Economy article
'There is renewed hope for the future of “small wind” energy generation this week with news that Australian start-up Diffuse Energy has locked in $400,000 in seed funding to scale production of its very small, enclosed-blade diffuser turbine technology.'