PhD Studentships at School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, The University of Manchester

Overview

PhD Studentships (Power Conversion Research Group)

EPSRC PhD Studentship

High Performance Power Electronics for Electric Vehicles

To accelerate the development and exploitation of electric vehicles, step-change advances are needed in the size and cost of the on-board power electronics. At present multiple power electronic units are used within the electrical power train, for example separate DC-DC converters to interface the traction battery and super-capacitor power buffer to the DC-link of the traction drive, and a DC-AC converter to supply the traction machine. Power levels are typically in the range 50-75 kW.

To reduce the size and weight, new silicon carbide semiconductor devices will be used which have the capability to operate at higher frequencies and temperatures, new circuit topologies will be devised which integrate the multiple conversion functions into a single circuit, soft-switching techniques will be used to reduce losses, and new magnetic component structures will be researched with integrated liquid cooling. Initially the concepts will be explored by means of circuit analysis, electrical and thermal modelling, then full-power prototypes will be constructed and tested. This studentship forms part of a major £3M project that includes ten university partners and many of the UK’s automotive companies. The research student will therefore work in collaboration with the students and research engineers at the partner institutions and companies.

The student will be based in the Power Conversion Group in the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering. The Group is one of the largest in this area in the UK, consisting of eight academic staff and a team of around 40 research staff and students. The Group’s research is focussed on electrical technologies for transport applications and sustainable electricity supply. The Group has extensive, well-equipped labs and hosts the Rolls-Royce University Technology Centre in Electrical Systems.

The successful applicant will be a recent graduate in electrical and electronic engineering with a minimum of a 2:1 honours degree and will have a strong interest in, and aptitude for, power electronic circuits and systems. The scholarship provides a bursary of £13,950 pa plus UK fees for 3.5 years. Normal EPSRC eligibility conditions apply.

All inquiries and applications, which should take the form of a CV, should be directed to Prof Andrew Forsyth, emailandrew.forsyth@manchester.ac.uk, phone 0161 306 4675.

The closing date for applications is 31 July 2011.

Fully Funded PhD Studentship in The School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering

Condition Monitoring of Wind Turbine Generators

Wind power generation remains one of the fastest developing forms of sustainable power production. A large proportion of near future wind turbines will be located at off-shore sites in order to maximize power production through utilizing steadier and higher speed off-shore wind resource. Off-shore locations however expose the turbines to extremely harsh operating conditions. Recent fault surveys indicate a significant failure rate in wind turbine generators that are typically followed by lengthy and expensive repair periods. It is therefore important to put systems in place that are capable of reliably detecting incipient generator faults thus enabling remote fault detection and facilitating planned maintenance.

There is currently a significant push in wind power industry towards increased use of synchronous (PM and wound field) generators in the next generation of wind turbines. The aim of this study is to investigate electrical and mechanical fault detection in wind turbine synchronous generators with a view to identifying mechanical/electrical fault indicators and devising suitable algorithms to monitor these. This project will focus on the development of machine models suitable for analysis of fault. The models should be capable of reliable prediction of machine behaviour under a range of healthy/faulty operating conditions in both time and frequency domains. A laboratory test rig will also be developed to be used for of experimental research of generator electrical/mechanical fault effects.

The University of Manchester Power Conversion group is a part of The SUPERGEN Wind Consortium that consists of university research teams and industrial partners with expertise in wind turbine technology. The mission is to undertake research to achieve an integrated, cost-effective, reliable and available offshore wind power station operating in remote and hostile environments, and this PhD research will overlap with SUPERGEN project activities. This project offers an outstanding opportunity for a graduate engineer to build a research portfolio in the attractive field of wind power generation.

Candidate eligibility and funding

Applicants should be educated to at least BEng (Hons) level with a 2:1 or better in Electrical and Electronic Engineering and ideally have knowledge of electrical machine design, operation and modelling.

A fully funded UK studentship is available for 3 to 3.5 years which covers full tuition fees along with a stipend of £13,590 (tax-free) per year of study.

Due to funding restrictions, the full studentship is only available to students from the UK / EU would be eligible for a fees only scholarship.

If you wish to apply please email a covering letter, full Curriculum Vitae and the names and contact details of at least two academic referees to Ms Marie B Davies.

Informal enquiries should be directed to Dr Sinisa Durovic.

Deadline: 30th June 2011

http://www.eee.manchester.ac.uk/research/groups/pc/postgraduate/research/phd_studentships.html

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