Two West Virginia University engineering students have won awards at national and international competitions for their research on electricity.
The students are part of the Advanced Power Engineering Research Center (APERC), a new program headquartered in the Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering in the WVU College of Engineering and Mineral Resources. APERC develops technologies for the reliable delivery of electricity to homes, businesses and industries at an affordable price. Under the direction of Dr. Ali Feliachi, APERC combines the talent of faculty researchers and graduate students from disciplines across campus such as electrical and mechanical engineering and economics.
Less than two years old, the center is already producing students capable of beating the finest in their field as judged by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). IEEE is the leading authority in electric power and other technologies. The organization sets many of the standards that govern the power industry today.
Padmanbhan Srinivasan won first prize for his research paper,”Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell Dynamic Model for Distributed Generation Control Purposes,”at the 2002 IEEE North American Power Symposium, held in Tempe, Ariz., Oct. 14. His paper was co-authored by professors Ali Feliachi of the LaneDepartment and John Sneckenberger of the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department. Srinivasan is pursing a masters degree in mechanical engineering.
APERC s Kourash Sedguisegarchi won third place in the poster competition at the IEEE Power Engineering Society 2002 Summer Meeting in Chicago last July. His poster was entitled”Dynamic Modeling and Analysis of a Grid-connected Solid Oxide Fuel Cell.”Kourash is working toward his doctorate degree in electrical engineering under the direction of Feliachi.
Fuel cells convert chemical energy into electricity without all the air pollution typical of other power generation systems. Many hurdles remain before fuel cells become the source of choice for electricity, Feliachi said. One of those hurdles involves running fuel cells in a manner that will allow them to be connected to the transmission and distribution networks that deliver electricity to homes, businesses and industries. Srinivasan and Sedguisegarchis work helps to shed light on that problem, he added.
The new research center in which these students work is the result of funding won in a U.S. Department of Energy EPSCoR competition. EPSCoR is the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research. The DOE program supports teams that offer the promise of becoming ranked among the top research professionals in energy disciplines. The U.S. DOE EPSCoR program in West Virginia is coordinated by the NationalResearchCenter for Coal and Energy at WVU . For more information about APERC s EPSCoR research, visithttp://wv-doeepscor.nrcce.wvu.edu.