Flow Imaging and Renewable Energy (FIRE)

No one can predict the future exactly, but we know two things: it's going to be different, and it must be rooted in today's world.

From Zero to One

Our Lab at the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Colorado Denver focuses on developing and optimizing advanced flow diagnostics and instrumentations and applying our flow imaging knowledge and skills to reveal fundamental principles in thermal fluid and energy systems. Our goal is to achieve efficient, reliable, and affordable renewable and low-carbon energy systems. We are also interested in investigating the influence of extreme weather on renewable energy systems with laboratory experiments, field measurements, and numerical simulations.

News & Events

Open Ph.D. positions! See Join us! for details.

2025 Spring/2025 Fall: One PhD and one postdoc opening in Experimental Fluid Dynamics

[Experience in flow diagnostic techniques and multiphase flow are highly desired]

Lab Director Prof. Gao is committed to providing mentorship to undergraduate students who possess a passion for research. Prof. Gao serves as EURēCA! Faculty Mentor at CU Denver.

05/2025 Dr. Gao received Early Career Award for Excellence in Research at CU Denver. Congratulations!

04/2025 Kang-Ping Lee has successfully defended his master's thesis. Congratulations!

04/2025 Richard Bergquist and David Malfavon Campos joined the lab. Welcome!

02/2025 Dr. Gao joined the Editorial Board for Scientific Reports.

12/2024 Dr. Gao received the prestigious NSF CAREER Award from the U.S. National Science Foundation.

09/2024 Joshua Rathbun joined the lab. Welcome!

08/2024 Kang-Ping Lee and Fuhao Chen joined the lab. Welcome!

08/2024 Sz-Pei Ho has successfully defended her master's thesis. Congratulations!

07/2024 Juan Hernandez and Gabriel Elftman-Hanson won the 2024-2025 EURēCA! Award. Congratulations!

06/2024 Dr. Gao begins to serve as the Associate Editor for IET Renewable Power Generation.

06/2024 Dr. Gao won the prestigious 2024 Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Award from the Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU). Congratulations!

05/2024 Henry Jackson and Rogelio Gutierrez joined the lab. Welcome!

05/2024 Sz-Pei Ho won the Graduate Education Scholarship. Congratulations!

05/2024 Congratulations to Dominic Bonato, Brian Can, and Jeffrey Peters for graduating from CU Denver!

04/2024 Juan Hernandez-Jimenez won the EUReCA! Summer Fellows Award. Congratulations!

12/2023 Dr. Gao won the OER Course Grant. Congratulations!

10/2023 Abraham Cabrera Gonzalez and Juan Hernandez joined the lab. Welcome!

09/2023 Dr. Gao won the Teaching Innovation Grant. Congratulations!

09/2023 Sz-Pei Ho joined the lab. Welcome!

08/2023 Brian Can won the EURēCA! Award, CU Denver. Congratulations!

06/2023 Elianna Martin joined the lab. Welcome!

04/2023 Dr. Gao won the Early-Career Professional Development Grant from CFDA, CU Denver. Congratulations!

04/2023 Dr. Gao won the Open/All-Disciplines Seed Grants Program from ORS, CU Denver. Congratulations!

01/2023 Dr. Gao opened a new course MECH 4228/5228 Renewable Energy in Spring 2023, focusing on training students to join the climate change mitigation workforce.

11/2022 Dr. Gao begins to serve as the Review Editor for Frontiers in Aerospace Engineering.

10/2022 Dominic Bonato won the CEDC Apprenticeship from CU Denver (1/2 in the Department). Congratulations!

10/2022 Dr. Gao won the Early-Career Professional Development Grant from CFDA, CU Denver. Congratulations!

10/2022 Brian Can, Peters Jeffrey, and Amaya Iwatsuru joined the lab. Welcome!

09/2022 Dominic Bonato joined the lab. Welcome!

09/2022 Dr. Gao won the Small Grant from ORS, CU Denver. Congratulations!

09/2022 Our book "Wind Turbine Icing Physics and Anti-/De-Icing Technology" is published and is now live on ELSEVIER.

Wind Turbine Icing Physics and Anti-/De-Icing Technology gives a comprehensive update of research on the underlying physics pertinent to wind turbine icing and the development of various effective and robust anti-/de-icing technology for wind turbine icing mitigation. The book introduces the most recent research results derived from both laboratory studies and field experiments. Available on Amazon.

08/2022 Dr. Gao begins to serves as the Youth Editor for the new journal Carbon Neutrality.

Carbon Neutrality is an international, multi-disciplinary open access journal in the areas of low carbon science, technology, and policy. The APCs are fully covered by Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Welcome to contribute!

08/2022 New lab website launched.

08/2022 Dr. Gao joined the Mechanical Engineering Department at CU Denver as an Assistant Professor.

05/2022 Congratulations to master students Sarahanne Mora, Samuel Tkachuk, and Andrew Chan for graduating from Sac State!

Gao Lab

Department of Mechanical Engineering

University of Colorado Denver

1200 Larimer Street

North Classroom 2024

Denver, CO 80204, United States

visitors since 02/2019