Andrea Sanvito PhD

Andrea Sanvito is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Engineering Science at the University of Oxford, within the Civil and Offshore Engineering section and the Wind and Tidal Energy Research Group. His research focuses on wind energy, particularly the numerical modelling of the unsteady aerodynamics of floating offshore wind turbines, alongside experimental research on floating vertical-axis wind turbines (VAWTs).

He graduated from Politecnico di Milano, where he completed his PhD in Mechanical and Energy Engineering in 2023. During his Master’s degree, he conducted research on floating wind turbines at Lancaster University (UK), which led to a paper receiving the Best Paper Award from the Wind Energy Committee at the ASME Turbo Expo 2019.

During his PhD, Andrea spent a research period at TU Delft in 2022, working with Prof. Carlos Simão Ferreira on velocity-sampling models for actuator-line method (ALM) simulations of floating wind turbines. Following his PhD, he continued at Politecnico di Milano as a Postdoctoral Researcher until 2024 and subsequently as a Research Fellow (RTDa). In 2026, supported by an IDEA League Fellowship, he returned to TU Delft to pursue independent experimental research on the wake dynamics of floating VAWTs using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV), in collaboration with Dr. Sciacchitano and Dr. Taruffi.

Throughout his academic career, Andrea has contributed to several research projects and international collaborations, developing expertise in the numerical and experimental investigation of floating wind turbine aerodynamics.

• Unsteady rotor aerodynamics

• Horizontal and Vertical Axis Wind Turbines

• Floating Offshore Wind Energy

• Wake measurements of floating wind turbines

• Multifidelity numerical modelling

• Reduced Order Models and Surrogates

SURFWIND

The project develops a next-generation RTHT methodology that replaces simplified real-time models with machine-learning-based surrogate models trained on high-fidelity simulations. The resulting framework will accurately capture aerodynamic loads across all wind regimes, significantly improving the reliability of physical testing. By enabling the study of critical conditions beyond current capabilities, this work will establish a new standard for wave-basin testing of floating and deep-water offshore wind turbines.

1. A. Firpo, A. G. Sanvito, G. Persico, V. Dossena. Actuator line URANS-to-LES comparison of single and tandem floating offshore wind turbines. Wind Energy Science, 2026.

2. S. Cioni, F. Papi, P.F. Melani, A. Fontanella, A. Firpo, A.G. Sanvito, G. Persico, V. Dossena, S. Muggiasca, M. Belloli, A. Bianchini, How accurately do engineering methods capture floating 2 wind turbine performance and wake? A multi-fidelity perspective. Wind Energy Science Discussions (preprint), 2025.

3. A. G. Sanvito, A. Firpo, P. Schito, V. Dossena, Alberto Zasso, G. Persico. A novel vortex-based velocity sampling method for the actuator-line modeling of floating offshore wind turbines in windmill state. Renewable Energy, 2024.

4. A. Firpo, A. G. Sanvito, V. Dossena, G. Persico. Aerodynamic Study of a Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine in Surge Motion Under Angular Speed and Blade Pitch Controls. ASME Journal of Engineering for Gas Turbines and Power, 2024.

5. S. Cioni, F. Papi, Leonardo Pagamonci, A. Bianchini, N. Ramos-Garc´ıa, G. Pirrung, R. Corniglion, A. Lovera, J. Galv´an, R. Boisard, A. Fontanella, P. Schito, A. Zasso, M. Belloli, A. G. Sanvito et al. On the characteristics of the wake of a wind turbine undergoing large motions caused by a floating structure: an insight based on experiments and multi-fidelity simulations from the OC6 Phase III Project, Wind Energy Science, 2023.

6. R. Bergua, A. Robertson, J. Jonkman, E. Branlard, A. Fontanella, M. Belloli, P. Schito, A. Zasso, G. Persico, A. G. Sanvito et al. OC6 Project Phase III: Validation of the Aerodynamic Loading on a Wind Turbine Rotor Undergoing Large Motion Caused by a Floating Support Structure, Wind Energy Science, 2023

7. A.G. Sanvito, V. Dossena, G. Persico. Formulation, Validation, and Application of a Novel 3D BEM Tool for Vertical Axis Wind Turbines of General Shape and Size. Applied Science, 2021.

8. A.G. Sanvito, G. Persico, M.S. Campobasso. Assessing the Sensitivity of Stall-Regulated Wind Turbine Power to Blade Design Using High-Fidelity CFD. Journal of Engineering for Gas Turbines and Power, 2019