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IRP EE-TFRC

Electromechanical Conversion
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International Research Partnership: Electrical Engineering - Thai French Research Center
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photo of a wall of a building where are some offices of the IRP

Electrical Engineering – Thai French Research Center (EE-TFRC) is an international research laboratory collaborated with King Mongkut’s University of Technology North Bangkok (KMUTNB), Thailand, and Université de Lorraine (UL), France supported by Lorraine Université d’Excellence (LUE).

The scientific topics of this project are Hydrogen as an energetic vector, Electric drives for e-mobility, and Isolated electrical networks and micro-grids.

Main Topics
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Hydrogen as an energetic vector
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To decarbonize the industry and transportation sectors responsible for global warming, the use of hydrogen generated through the water electrolysis process coupled with renewable energy sources (RES) is an attractive and promising alternative.

Indeed, the hydrogen gas has a high energy mass density, and it can be recovered in various industrial applications (refineries, steel industry, production of ammonia and fertilizer, etc.) but also supply a fuel cell to produce electrical energy and if necessary thermal energy in cogeneration.

Moreover, the production of “green” hydrogen by electrolysis of water is encouraged to replace the steam reforming of CO2-emitting natural gas. Currently, the proton exchange membrane PEM electrolyzer technology is the most suitable for coupling to intermittent energy sources because it makes it possible to respond more quickly than the alkaline electrolyzer to sudden variations in power.

The power electronic conversion system is a challenging issue in the hydrogen production systems supplied by RES in terms of enhancing the efficiency of conversion energy to hydrogen. Because the behavior of RESs are strong intermittent characteristics and the DC voltage level is quite high (>100V). However, the PEM electrolyzer needs to supply a very low DC voltage (<10V).

The main issues of this topic are,

  • The development of new topologies power converter with control algorithm for the PEM electrolyzer application.
  • The study PEM electrolyzer modeling (i.e., static, and dynamic model).
  • Performance optimization of the hydrogen production system.
  • The increase in lifespan by limiting degradation of PEM electrolyzer.

Electric drives for e-mobility
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This topic aims to improve propulsion trains in hybrid or electric vehicles in the context of decarbonized mobility or low CO2 emissions.

Research into the energy efficiency and safety of converter-electric machine assemblies for urban electric transport requires innovation on topologies of high-efficiency, low-cost electric machines as well as the static converters that supply them. The development of new control laws allows the improvement of yields and/or operational safety.

This theme is in strong interaction with the other two in the sense that it can use a fuel cell as a source of energy in addition to batteries.

Isolated electrical networks and micro-grids
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The objective of this topic is to develop models, methodologies, and tools to analyze, understand and control the phenomena to which electrical systems are subject in stationary low-power micro-grids and micro-grids—on-board networks dedicated to transport applications.

The skills related to power electronics, energy management, and the dynamic stability of microgrids.

Two scientific hard points are to be raised for the development of such networks, namely the management of energy flows in microgrids with complex structures (mesh microgrids, DC-AC hybrid microgrids, etc.) as well as their static and dynamic stability.

Common Topics
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  • Power electronics: Circuits & Control
  • Fuel cell & Electrolyzer
  • Electrical Machine Design
  • Energy Storage Devices
  • Electric Vehicle
  • Observer
  • Optimization
  • Nonlinear System
  • Fuzzy Logic

 

More info on EE-TFRC website