The Last Word: UTD Professor on Being Inspired by Seal Whiskers to Keep Offshore Wind Turbines Safe

“The geometry of seal whiskers is not circular; the whisker’s shape is twisted cylinders.”

Dr. Yaqing Jin 
Assistant Professor
UT Dallas’ Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science.
.…on being inspired by seal whiskers to develop ways to make offshore energy technology safer for both technicians and wind turbines.

Offshore wind turbines are a growing ingredient in the race to develop clean and renewable energy sources. But the turbines—which are attached to the ocean floor with cables and “float” on platforms high above—and the technicians who work on them face risks from high winds and harsh storms that lash the open sea. UT Dallas’ Dr. Yaqing Jin has found a potential solution inspired by an unlikely source: seal whiskers. 

Read more in our story.

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