Student Spotlight: José Luis Amell Hernández, University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez

ARROW student José Luis Amell Hernández, a PhD Candidate in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez, knows that offshore wind farms are central to the transition toward renewable energy, but their large-scale operation can alter the interaction between the atmosphere and the tropical ocean. So, his research focuses on how turbine wakes modify the surface wind stress and, in turn, drive vertical ocean motions such as upwelling and downwelling. To explore these processes, he uses the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) forced with an analytical Gaussian wake model that conserves momentum, enabling simulations of ocean circulation, Ekman transport, and mixed-layer dynamics under different deployment scenarios in tropical waters.

With a background that bridges physics, engineering, and ocean sciences, José aims to connect fundamental research with real-world challenges, contributing to both the advancement of offshore renewable energy and the understanding of its environmental impacts.