PhD student position in "Next-generation battery management systems: adaptive modelling and machine learning"

28 May 2023
Job Information

Organisation/Company

Chalmers University of Technology

Department

Electrical Engineering

Research Field

Engineering » Control engineering
Engineering » Electrical engineering
Mathematics » Applied mathematics
Computer science

Researcher Profile

First Stage Researcher (R1)

Country

Sweden

Application Deadline

18 Jun 2023 - 23:59 (Europe/Stockholm)

Type of Contract

Temporary

Job Status

Full-time

Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme?

Not funded by an EU programme

Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure?

No

Offer Description

The performance and lifetime of battery cells are to a large extent determined by how they are used, which is managed by a battery management system (BMS). At present, they act through more or less fixed constraints on measurable cell-external variables, i.e., current, voltage and temperature, to avoid accelerated aging and risk of thermal runaway. However, the decisive causes of the limitations are internal conditions that cannot be measured. Due to limited computing capacity and poor coupling between the simplistic battery models used and the cell-internal states, this normally results in an underutilization of the cells at the same time as they age prematurely. Previous theoretical studies have shown that a transition to the use of cell-internal constraints provides significant improvements (tens of percent in performance and longevity). The next generation BMS, with greatly improved computational capabilities, opens for use of
both machine learning and more computationally demanding physically based models, with observers connecting the measurements to the critical internal conditions. In this project, you will derive such models, optimal control that uses them, and verify your results in experiments.

The project is part of the Swedish Electromobility Centre, and is a collaboration between Chalmers, Uppsala University, and several industrial partners (Volvo AB, Volvo Cars, CEVT, Epiroc and ABB), with one PhD student employed at Chalmers (i.e., the one under advertisement) and one industrial PhD student, funded by Volvo AB. 

Requirements

Research Field

Engineering » Control engineering

Education Level

Master Degree or equivalent

Research Field

Engineering » Electrical engineering

Education Level

Master Degree or equivalent

Skills/Qualifications

Master's degree, preferably in control, electric power engineering, computer science, engineering physics or similar. Mathematical talent and interest. Fluent in written and spoken English. Previous experience of battery management systems, machine learning and power systems is a merit.

Languages

ENGLISH

Level

Excellent

Additional Information
Benefits

Information about the division and the department:
The position is with the Automatic Control group, comprising about 30 researchers at the division of Systems and Control, which has about 100 employees and is the largest division of the Department of electrical engineering. Aiming for a sustainable world, the group is involved in many research projects on energy savings using automatic control methods. In general, the projects are carried out in collaboration with other research groups, institutes and industry, and often in interdisciplinary constellations. The BMS (battery management system) team, within Automatic Control, is the leading team on BMS research in Swedish academia, with a successful
focus on modelling, estimation and control. For its battery research, the team has received the Volvo Car Technology Award and has published over 40 top tier journal papers and several patents in the area. The working environment is international and characterized by
openness.

Major responsibilities
Your major responsibility is to pursue research in line with the project, publish, and present scientific articles, and take part in discussions. As part of your PhD you will receive further education by courses relevant for your research, research project, automatic control in a wide sense, and your future career. You will also be expected to participate in teaching activities in the field of Automatic Control (up to a maximum of 20%).

 

PhD student salary:

The PhD student position will be full-time employment in Sweden. The salary before the Licentiate degree is 32.5 kSEK per month before tax, and you will get a 5 kSEK increase per month after obtaining it (which is usually conducted in the middle of the project). While the living cost can vary largely for different people, many of our students spend <= 10 kSEK/month in renting a room and food. Additionally, a set of benefits will be associated with the position, such as a pension, insurance, and benefits relating to the family.

Work Location(s)

Number of offers available

1

Company/Institute

Chalmers University of Technology

Country

Sweden

City

Gothenburg

Geofield

Where to apply

E-mail

[email protected]

Contact

City

Gothenburg

Website

http://www.chalmers.se

Street

Chalmersplatsen 4

Postal Code

41296

E-Mail

[email protected]
[email protected]

Phone

+46734017061

STATUS: EXPIRED