Collaborative Research: IRES Track I: U.S.-Denmark program for advanced reliability analysis of ac/dc converters with INNOVAtive conTrols in glObe-spanning supergRid (INNOVATOR)

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This International Research Experiences for Students (IRES) award provides eighteen U.S. undergraduate students the opportunity to participate in an eight week research program on power electronic systems at Aalborg University (AAU) in Denmark. Principal investigators at Georgia Southern University (GSU) and Mississippi State University will recruit and provide initial training and preparation for cohorts of six U.S. undergraduates each year for three years. The PIs have had previous and ongoing collaborations on advanced controls of power electronic converters and interacted with the Center of Reliable Power Electronics (CORPE) in AAU Energy (formerly known as the Department of Energy Technology). Some European countries are currently leading the research on the practical use of renewables in smart grids. AAU’s power program is one of the largest and youngest in Europe, consistently ranked No. 1 across the continent. AAU Energy and CORPE are ranked among the best for Research Impact Measures. It is an ideal partner for the proposed project—offering U.S. students a unique international research experience in all areas of power electronic systems. This research benefits society and the environment by 1) increasing the penetration of renewables, 2) increasing career interest in the field of power electronic systems for modern power grids, and 3) improving the quality and quantity of the U.S. power engineering workforce. Theories confirmed by project research may be tailored and broadly developed for other systems in the power and energy industry. GSU and MSU are ready, willing, and singularly able to recruit underrepresented minorities, including women, African Americans, Native Americans, and Latin American, to participate in STEM research and teaching. Moreover, the women leading the power/energy system research at CORPE are excellent role models in an area where women remain underrepresented. Students will be engaged in multidisciplinary topics—advanced controls and reliability analysis techniques of power electronic systems in modern power grids with the integration of renewables—trained to conduct innovative STEM projects with broad impacts on the energy sector’s reliability, resilience, and efficiency. They will be exposed to cutting-edge laboratories, unique reliability analysis tools, and international training to prepare them for national and international careers. This program will facilitate a unique knowledge/experience transfer mechanism, help students build international ties and confidence, and pave the way for future NSF and Danish National Research Foundation collaborations.Looking to the power system workforce of the future, our students need to understand and analyze different power systems as they may be involved in various projects worldwide while working at national or international companies with technical teams in the U.S. Also, power systems are rapidly and increasingly globalizing and modernizing in response to global policies driven by climate change. In the IRES work, students will conduct cohort-based research projects associated with ac/dc power electronic converters [voltage-source converters (VSCs)] in a possible globe-spanning supergrid (GS2G)—an essential component of the energy sector to integrate renewables to respond to urgent environmental concerns caused by global warming at an alarming rate and international agreements. Under the umbrella of smart grids, they assess and improve the reliability of VSCs with innovative controls in GS2G. The proposed research will advance fundamental knowledge related to 1) enhancing the stability and performance of VSCs in GS2G, 2) integrating renewables into power and energy systems via GS2G’s ac/dc grids, 3) achieving more reliable energy exchange and secure power transfer through VSCs, and 4) employing state-of-the-art technologies to test VSC performance and reliability. In this collaboration, students will rigorously investigate technical aspects of VSCs with advanced controls and reliability analysis techniques for GS2G’s VSCs. This project is funded by the Office of International Science and Engineering (OISE), and the non-Lead portion is co-funded by the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR).This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.