IES Research Projects

Research Projects at the Institute for Energy Systems (IES). You can search keywords within Project Titles.

We also have many Energy Systems PhD opportunities for postgraduate students looking to join the School.

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Project Title Principal Supervisorsort ascending Project Summary
DTOcean: Optimal Design Tools for Ocean Energy Arrays

Mr Henry Jeffrey

DTOcean is a European collaborative project funded by the European Commission under the 7th Framework Programme for Research and Development, more specifically under the call ENERGY 2013-1.

TeraWatt: Large scale interactive coupled 3D modelling for wave and tidal energy resource and environmental impact (Remit 1 MASTS Consortium Proposal)

Dr Vengatesan Venugopal

Scotland has substantial wave and tidal energy resources and is at the forefront of the development of marine renewable technologies and ocean energy exploitation. The next phase will see these wave and tidal devices deployed in arrays, with many sites being developed. Although developers have entered into agreements with The Crown Estate for seabed leases, all projects remain subject to licensing requirements under the Marine Scotland Act (2010).

Modelling and management of distribution networks using high-resolution synchronised measurements

Dr Sasa Djokic

This project will develop improved methodologies and tools for assessing and providing more detailed information on complex system-user interactions, which will be further implemented in an integrated framework for system state identification, system or plant/component condition assessment and evaluation of the overall system performance (all currently performed in a number of separate studies).

LEANWIND: Logistic Efficiencies and Naval Architecture for Wind Installations with Novel Developments

Dr Lucy Cradden

LEANWIND is a 4-year project that started in December 2013. It is led by a 31-partner consortium and has been awarded €10 million by the European Commission, but its total value amounts to €15 million.

The primary LEANWIND objective is to provide cost reductions across the offshore wind farm lifecycle and supply chain through the application of lean principles and the development of state of the art technologies and tools.

Electro-Mechanical Modelling of Tidal Turbines

Dr Jonathan Shek

The research in this project will focus on modelling full resource-to-wire dynamic models of tidal arrays in order to investigate and optimise their operation.  The expected impact of this study is providing industry with an understanding and guidelines of the applicability of the different electrical layouts to specific locations and size of the arrays.

Compare different generator technologies and control theories Validate models using real measured data Perform harmonic analysis and accurate loss modelling based on temperature/frequency variations Suggest cost-effective solutions for device developers
CAUSE - Control of wave energy Arrays Using Storage of Energy

Dr Jonathan Shek

There are 3 main objectives in this project:

Answer the research question: Can energy storage radically improve off-grid and on-grid control in wave energy arrays? How can it be done? Develop an electrical array model for wave energy, with energy storage and co-ordinated control Strengthen the partnership between the UK and Chinese Institutions for future research collaboration

 

WindSurf - A self-starting, active-pitch, vertical-axis wind turbine

Dr Jonathan Shek

WindSurf aims to develop a core enabling technology - active blade pitching for a vertical axis wind turbine. This will allow wind turbines to operate in challenging wind conditions, to operate quietly and for new, lower maintenance turbine designs. WindSurf will open up new sites for wind energy: sites previously rejected because wind speeds were too low, variable or subject to swirling, or where noise nuisance would have been a concern. WindSurf will tackle all three parts of the energy trilemma: reducing emissions, increasing security of supply, and reducing cost.

TorqTidal: Mitigating Torque Pulsations in Tidal Current Turbines

Dr Jonathan Shek

TorqTidal seeks to provide control strategies for tidal current turbines that will reduce the risk of failure and increase the lifetime of device components without increasing capital costs. This will act to increase investor confidence and drive down the LCOE, which is a key step in helping the UK to exploit its significant tidal energy resource.

Off-grid Hybrid Energy Systems

Dr Jonathan Shek

This project aims to innovate and improved solutions for the management of power flows in a hybrid electrical power system, to provide a secure, reliable, and high quality supply to varying load demands. The expected research outcome is the design of a robust and fault-tolerant management system, featuring higher efficiency and improved techno-economic performance.

Optimal system sizing through linear programming Testing and analysis of an off-the-shelf hybrid system Novel control system design for optimised performance Lab testing and field testing
On the Leading Edge Vortex in Highly Turbulent Flow Conditions

Dr Ignazio Maria Viola

Bio-inspired foils for low-speed performance of renewable energy converters

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