As the ideal candidate:
You have a Master of Science degree in electrical engineering, computer science, or numerical mathematics, preferably from a reputable institute from a country within the European Economic Area. You have obtained excellent study results.You are communicative and motivated to work in a team with other experts studying different aspects of HVDC grids and power systems.You are willing to occasionally travel in the framework of the PhD project.You can communicate fluently in English, both orally and in writing. Knowledge of the Dutch language is a plus.Your background and experiences match the following expectations or allows you to achieve them quickly:
Have a solid background in power systems, power electronics, control system hardware architectures, control system design and dynamical system analysis.Become a power systems expert in HVDC control system interactions.Gain specific expertise on detailed HVDC control system architectures and implementations for the MMC topology.Continuously align your project with industry expectations and technological trends.Become proficient in the engineering mathematics required to execute the project, such as modelling and numerical simulation, continuous-time and discrete-time control system analysis, state-space analysis, and frequency-domain analysis. Become highly skilled in programming languages Julia, C , C++, etc., as needed.Become highly skilled in EMT simulation packages, such as the commercial tool PSCAD with custom component design in the Fortran programming language, or our in-house simulation tools with custom component design in Julia.Contribute to in-house developed simulation and analysis tools. The large-scale integration of renewable generation and associated transmission system development projects cause transmission system dynamics to be increasingly more influenced by the fast response of power electronic converters at HVDC stations and renewable generation units. To mitigate undesired stability issues and resonance incidents transmission system operators express deep interest in detailed time-domain simulation studies to assess converter interactions across the transmission system. As converter interactions occur over a wide frequency range, analysis at time-scale of electromagnetic transients (EMT) with a detailed representation of converter response is generally desired. Simulation studies at this level of detail prompt multiple challenges, around which this project will be positioned.
Stability analysis is typically performed in the continuous-time domain through linearization at an operating point and using time-domain state-space stability analysis of frequency-domain stability analysis.The importance of including control system implementation details such as measurement sensors, discrete-time control code, sample rate, modulation, and control delays of various origins, needs to be investigated deeper, as well as potential mitigation solutions.Such details often depend on the actual hardware architecture used to implement the control code. (Distributed control units with CPUs, DSPs, or FPGAs, and time-critical communication links).Converter manufacturers often provide only black-box compiled control system models to system operators, in which (parts of) the real control code is typically included and protected. The closedness of the control system model complicates analysis to find the root cause of interaction incidents. Approximations in EMT simulation often compromise the accuracy of discrete control timing.The computation time associated with large-scale EMT simulation with detailed models is often impractical. Candidates interested in a PhD on this topic should have a good understanding of modelling and control of power electronics converters. A strong interest and affinity in power system dynamics and simulations is essential. A keen interest or background in control systems and numerical simulation is crucial.
The Department of Electrical Engineering (ESAT) at KU Leuven offers a PhD position on the role of control system implementation details in interactions between HVDC systems and AC transmission systems grid interaction studies.Within the Electrical Energy Systems and Applications (Electa) division and EnergyVille, the research team led by prof. Jef Beerten focuses on the combined modelling and control of power electronic converters and power systems, with a focus on HVDC systems.The team is part of a larger group that conducts leading HVDC research at Electa. Our research projects contribute directly to the engineering of the future electricity grid in close collaboration with industry. Within the team, we have a PhD position available on the topic of HVDC interaction studies and the role of control system implementation details in such studies.
We offer an exciting job as PhD researcher in one of the leading research institutes in the field. HVDC technology is receiving significant attention from both academia and industry. This project allows you to work in an inspiring environment within a team of enthusiastic colleagues on a highly timely research topic.
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