PERSEUS - PhD Candidate in Optimal Hydropower Scheduling using Advanced Machine Learning and Data Analytics

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The Department of Electric Power Engineering (IEL), at the Faculty of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), invites applications for a PhD candidate position in “Optimal hydropower scheduling using advanced machine learning and data analytics”.

In Norway, hydropower is the primary source of electricity, and it accounts for 96% of electricity generation. Due to the long-term reservoir storage constraints in hydropower dominated systems, the resource scheduling should be done for a sufficiently long-time period and with an appropriate representation of uncertainties (such as inflow to reservoirs, wind power generation, demand etc.) Existing hydropower scheduling models face many shortcomings when dealing with such uncertainties.

The IntHydro project aims to develop and demonstrate a new hydropower scheduling tool based on machine learning techniques, which manages the hydropower plants more efficiently and effectively through optimizing water resource management and multi-dispatch between hydropower and variable renewable energy sources.

In this context, the main task of the PhD candidate in the doctoral work will be two-fold. First, to integrate machine learning techniques in different stages of hydropower scheduling models and define comprehensive coupling principles between the strategic and operational modelling. Second, to develop a prototype for fundamental hydropower scheduling that allows modelling of RES on a detailed time scale.

Main supervisor: Associate Professor Jayaprakash Rajasekharan (NTNU).

Co-supervisor: Professor Hossein Farahmand (NTNU).

This PhD project is a part of the PERSEUS doctoral programme : A collaboration between NTNU- Norway’s largest university, 11 top-level academic partners in 8 European countries, and 8 industrial partners within sectors of high societal relevance.

Within PERSEUS we will recruit 40 PhD candidates who want to contribute to a smart, safe and sustainable future. We are looking for highly skilled PhD candidates motivated to approach societal challenges within one of the following thematic areas:

• Big data and AI
• Digital Twins
• Internet of Things
• Extended Reality
• Information and Cyber Security

All participants in the PERSEUS network bring unique and important qualities with them into the doctoral programme. The PERSEUS PhD candidates will have the opportunity to collaborate with researchers in the partner institutions and in other project consortia, and benefit from these collaborative research and education activities.

As part of the PERSEUS team you will work alongside other highly motivated and talented PhD candidates and researchers. You will also have access to the knowledge base, state-of-the-art research infrastructure, and impact orientation of the partners in the team.

In addition to your education and development within the thematic research area, you will gain transferable skills within project development and management, science communication, research ethics, innovation and entrepreneurial thinking, as well as basic university didactics.

As a PERSEUS PhD candidate, you will be employed by NTNU. During your stay, you will do a 2–3 month international stay and a 1-2 month national stay with one of the PERSEUS partners. This will allow you to extend your network within academia and industry, and to learn about your research area from an academic, innovation, and societal perspective.

The duration of the PhD employment is 36 months

Starting gross salary is 501.200 NOK/year (equal to approx. 49.312 EUR/year by the exchange rate of July 2022)

We are looking for PhD candidates from all nationalities, who want to contribute to our quest to create knowledge for a better world. PERSEUS recruits candidates according to the EU’s mobility rule, i.e. applicants cannot have spent more than 12 months in Norway during the last 3 years, be within the first four years of their research careers and not yet be awarded a doctoral degree.

We believe in fair and open processes. All applications will be considered through a transparent evaluation procedure, with independent observers involved.

The position's working place is NTNU campus in Trondheim. You will report to Head of the Department

We look forward to welcome you to the PERSEUS team.