Department of Engineering / Profiles / Dr Alexander White

Department of Engineering

Dr Alexander White

ajw36

Alexander White

Senior Lecturer

Academic Division: Energy, Fluids and Turbomachinery

Research group: Energy

Telephone: +44 1223 7 65310

Email: ajw36@eng.cam.ac.uk


Research interests

Dr White’s research aims to contribute to the efficient exploitation of energy resources and the associated environmental factors, particularly in the context of power generation. There are two main themes, mainly two-phase flow and energy storage.

Energy storage (particularly for electricity) is clearly important for the efficient integration of renewable generation technologies onto the grid. A project investigating a recently proposed form of large-scale storage (Pumped Thermal Electricity Storage) is currently underway. This involves a collaboration between Cambridge, Imperial College and Durham University to model thermodynamic aspects of this storage system and analyse the benefits that would accrue from its incorporation into transmission and / or distribution networks,

Most of Dr White’s two-phase flow work relates to condensation in steam turbines (i.e., wet steam flows) and focuses on the physics of phase change and its impact on turbine performance. A related area is the deliberate introduction of water into gas-turbine cycles to improve specific work output and efficiency – e.g., via evaporative compression cycles.

Strategic themes

Energy, transport and urban infrastructure

All research activities lie broadly within the Energy theme.