Pradeep Shenoy with adviser P. T. Krein This research develops a new paradigm in energy conversion for solar photovoltaics (PV). PV installations try to produce as much energy as possible over the life of the system to be more cost effective. Unfortunately, conventional energy conversion architectures are forced to make a tradeoff between maximum power […]
Final Preparations for the 2011 Solar Decathlon
Stanton T. Cady A solar-powered, energy efficient home has been completed by students at the University of Illinois for the 2011 Solar Decathlon Competition. The 2011 competition will be the fifth Solar Decathlon since the Department of Energy held the inaugural event in 2002. The Solar Decathlon challenges 20 collegiate teams to design and build […]
Solar Decathlon Pre-Competition Update
Stanton Cady with adviser Alejandro Domínguez-García The 2011 University of Illinois Solar Decathlon entry, the modular Re_Home designed to be quickly constructed after a tornado in the Midwest, won seventh place overall in the US Department of Engineering competition in Washington, DC. The Re_Home: Re_act, Re_spond, Re_consider, Re_build, Re_invest and Re_newable team was led by […]
Transfer printing of flexible hybrid inductor-capacitor filters via pre-etched silicon-on-insulator substrate
PhD student Liang Pang with Advisor K. Kim, Thin Film and Charged Particle Research Laboratory Flexible microelectronics and integrated circuits have important applications in paper-like displays, conformable skin sensors, and other smart systems. The transfer printing method is generally applicable for fabricating flexible electronics. It uses wet etching to remove sacrificial layers and transfers the […]
Design and Modeling of Hybrid Power Systems for Mobile Refrigeration in Delivering Truck Applications
Yue Cao with adviser P. T. Krein This industry-based project develops a hybrid power system model for mobile refrigeration applications to be used by the R & D team at Ingersoll Rand/Thermo King. The engine-powered system works as follows: an engine shaft drives an ac generator feeding an ac-dc rectifier, to a stabilized dc bus, […]
Development of Integrated Design Tool for Optimal Electro-Thermal Mechanical Design of Inverter-Dedicated Induction Machines
Professors J. R. Mayor and R. G.Harley with Chad Bednar, Georgia Institute of Technology The overall goal of this research program funded through the Grainger CEME collaborative network is to create a multi-physics based design tool that integrates thermal, electromagnetic and mechanical design modules for optimal design of inverter-dedicated induction machines. Inverter-fed induction machines (IFIM) […]
System-Based Design of a Grid-Tie Motor/Generator Set and Drive
Professors Ted Brekken and Annette von Jouanne, Oregon State University, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Wallace Energy Systems and Renewables Facility, Corvallis, OR This Grainger collaborative network student funding is directed toward the system-based design of a grid-tied 50kW doubly-fed induction machine (DFIM) and drive for adding inertia and stability to microgrids. In this design, […]
A Highly Efficient Domain Decomposition Method Applied to 3-D Finite Element Analysis of a Switched Reluctance Motor
Wang Yao with advisers J. M. Jin and P. T. Krein An ideal computer-aided design tool (CAD) for electric machines could (1) model the complex geometry and various material properties of a machine and (2) provide accurate results in a reasonable amount of time. Popular CAD tools, including finite element analysis (FEA) compromise on one […]
Electric Machine Capabilities: A Thermal Approach
Veysel (Tutku) Buyukdegirmenci with adviser P.T. Krein Our research goal is to understand the maximum short-term capabilities of electrical machines and investigate control methods to achieve them. Electric machine capabilities and limitations cannot be understood only through electrical specifications and nameplate data, because redundancy is included in the design. In order to obtain a thorough […]
Design Strategies for Inverter-Controlled Induction Machines
Matthew Magill with Adviser P.T. Krein Common machine configurations for both synchronous and asynchronous systems utilize an integral number of stator slots (Ns) per phase. Although the number of stator slots per pole per phase can be fractional, the requirement for equal winding patterns in each phase, and hence equal voltage generation, creates a design […]