We’re delighted to announce the recipients for the UNSW Digital Grid Futures Institute’s 2024 Seed Funding Program.
In 2024, our application pool showcased a diverse array of talent from various UNSW Schools and Faculties, with lead investigators representing all career stages. Out of the many outstanding submissions, 13 projects have been selected for funding due to their alignment with our Institute’s impact themes, their foundation in interdisciplinary research, and their potential for tangible outcomes.
This year's seed funding supports a wide range of outputs, from documentary clips and open-source tools to knowledge-sharing events and white papers, all aimed at advancing DGFI's mission to enable the electrification of society towards a smart, sustainable future.
Discover more about this year’s projects below, and congratulations again to all recipients!
Digital Grid Futures Institute Seed Funding Recipients 2024
Mirjam Wiedemann (School of Aviation): Exploring energy and grid barriers for net zero air and road travel
Innovations in electric road and air transport are advancing, yet the impact on electricity demand and grid capacity, especially at regional airports, is not fully understood. Facing the shift towards net-zero emissions, there's a pressing need to evaluate the energy infrastructure required to support this transition.
This project, in collaboration with two regional NSW partners, will investigate these requirements by analysing energy usage data and forecasting future demands. It aims to identify key challenges in energy supply for electric transport and propose potential solutions, contributing to the sustainable advancement of electric travel.
Hua Chai (School of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications): Empowering Future Leaders
This project focuses on building a sustainable energy workforce by creating a mentor network in collaboration with university, industry, and government partners for students interested in the energy sector.
Additionally, it aims to initiate Australia’s first Student Energy chapter, providing a platform for students to forge strong communities and make a lasting impact. This effort seeks to spark deep interest in energy systems among students, encouraging them to explore related careers and shaping a generation of informed, motivated innovators for the energy transition.
Adam Fish (School of Arts and the Media): Building Climate Resilience after Cyclone Jasper for the Wujal Aboriginal Community with a Solar Microgrid
How can we enhance climate resilience in First Nations communities through the renewable energy industry and technology? How do we ensure those most vulnerable to the negative impacts of climate change in Australia aren’t left out of policy conversations and decisions?
These are questions that Adam Fish’s project seeks to address. The planned documentary exhibition centres on the Wujal Aboriginal Community and aims to highlight the risks of climate vulnerability facing Australia’s First Nations and Torres Strait Islander people, stimulating policy reform and public support for financing and establishing local renewable microgrids in rural and Indigenous areas.
Check out some of Adam’s previous work in this space in this article on The Conversation: ‘First Nations people must be at the forefront of Australia’s renewable energy revolution’.
Qigejian Wang (School of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications): Energy Efficient Integration of High-accuracy Localization in High-speed 6G Wireless Networks
The rapid evolution of artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT) is escalating the demand for unprecedented data transfer speeds. Enter 6G wireless technology, which leverages the terahertz spectrum to offer speeds up to 1 terabit/s, and introduces capabilities beyond fast communication, such as precise object localisation needed for IoT.
Traditionally, these tasks require separate systems, increasing power consumption. Qigejian Wang’s project proposes a streamlined solution by integrating high-accuracy localisation with high-speed communication within a single terahertz system. This approach promises significant cost and energy savings in the development of future 6G networks, merging efficiency with functionality.
Maryam Bostanara (Research Centre for Integrated Transport Innovation): SOLAR-EV Nexus: Exploring Electric Vehicle Ownership and Sustainable Energy Choices in Urban Dwellings
This project aims to explore the complex relationship between the rise of electric vehicle (EV) adoption and the increasing trend of households opting for solar energy systems. Utilising sophisticated machine learning techniques and detailed agent-based simulations, Maryam and her team will forecast how EV ownership could shape future demands for solar energy.
Maryam’s project looks to reveal the motives behind solar energy adoption among electric vehicle (EV) owners, offering insights into sustainable urban growth. The findings will be published in a white paper and are expected to guide stakeholders on the evolving patterns of energy use and supply, contributing to the vision of creating environmentally friendly, sustainable cities.
Grace Gardiner (School of Social Sciences): Energy Poverty in the Pacific: developing a Gender Equality, Disability and Social Inclusion analytical approach
Working alongside Pacific stakeholders, this project aims to tackle energy poverty in the Pacific region through a Gender Equality, Disability and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) lens. It will culminate in a white paper that offers guidance for future research and policy-making efforts.
This is a timely project when considering the Australian Government's development of a GEDSI approach, complementing emerging international best practices in energy and gender.
Alexander M. Hynd (School of Social Sciences): Devising a new Green Energy Statecraft for Australia’s energy, economic and environmental security
The success of Australia’s green energy transition will depend as much on political leadership and successful public policy reform as it does on technological innovation.
This project directly addresses a set of relevant problems faced by Australian policymakers: how to reduce reliance on fossil fuels as an energy source and as an export industry; how to build new green industries to replace them; how to navigate the region’s great power rivalry; and how to navigate the state-led green energy strategies of our most important economic and energy partners – Japan, South Korea, and China.
Shukla Poddar (School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering): REAP - Renewable Energy Assessment & Projection
Addressing the challenge of integrating renewable energy efficiently, the ‘Renewable Energy Assessment & Projection (REAP)’ project aims to identify optimal locations for renewable energy installations across Australia, for both solar and wind.
By considering a range of climate change scenarios to make its predictions, REAP will offer insights to facilitate risk management, guide investment decisions, and enhance the resilience and sustainability of Australia's energy infrastructure amidst the transition to renewable sources.
Elnaz Irannezhad (Research Centre for Integrated Transport Innovation): Development of an Open-Source Web-based Strategic Planning Tool for Decarbonising the Heavy Vehicle Sector
As Australia's biggest energy user and a major source of greenhouse emissions, the transport sector faces significant challenges, especially in making heavy vehicles more eco-friendly. Despite advancements in electric passenger vehicles, the transition for heavy transport lags due to complex supply and demand dynamics that current planning often overlooks.
This project aims to bridge this gap with a prototype decision support system (DSS) designed to test various decarbonisation strategies. Using a System Dynamics approach, it integrates key factors like energy supply, the shift towards greener freight fleets, and the economics of owning hydrogen and electric trucks, tailored to Australia's unique freight demands. This tool will enable governments to fine-tune policies and investments for the future, focusing on the strategic placement of charging and refuelling stations to support a greener, more efficient transport network.
Shan Jiang (School of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications): OPENSAT: Open-source Power Electronics Networks Stability Analysis Tool
Facing stability challenges in power systems due to grid interactions with inverter-based resources (IBRs), this project promises an innovative solution: the OPENSAT toolbox. Traditional Electro-Magnetic Transient (EMT) simulations are often too slow and unable to cover all grid scenarios. This project’s approach utilises model-derived information for a quicker, more comprehensive evaluation of system stability under various conditions.
OPENSAT will offer an open-source platform for power system stability analysis with a focus on network-wide IBR impacts. Designed for power system operators, developers, and manufacturers, it aims to simplify stability assessments without sacrificing depth or accuracy, facilitating the design of stable, renewable power networks.
Rebecca Green (ADA Innovation Hub): Making Good Media
Making Good Media established a pilot production model in DGFI’s 2023 Seed Funding program, with plans to expand it through two new projects in 2024.
The first project, in collaboration with Prof. Natalie Taylor and Arya Shinde, will adapt their 2023 research on electric vehicle (EV) chargers into a compelling media story. The second will explore the challenges major industry players face in shifting to renewable energy and the resulting media narratives.
Making Good Media intends to present an appealing vision of a renewable future, moving beyond the traditional climate debate driven by fear or data, to connect more effectively with audiences.
Sirojan Tharmakulasingam (School of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications): Synthetic Household Load Profile Modelling with Machine Learning: Estimating Potential Savings from Solar Adoption
This project leverages AI and machine learning to break down Australian household energy use into clear components like seasonal trends and daily habits, factoring in weather effects and random fluctuations.
By analysing household data, it aims to create synthetic load profiles mirroring energy usage across different household types and climates. The findings, including models and algorithms, will be shared on an open-source GitHub repository, serving government, industry, and researchers. Additionally, these models will enhance the SunSPOT tool, improving its ability to predict solar energy savings for households. This effort not only refines load profile analysis but also supports more accurate solar savings estimations, contributing to smarter energy decisions.
Kam-Fung Cheung (School of Information Systems and Technology Management): Enhancing cybersecurity in renewable energy power systems
Facing escalating cyber threats in the renewable energy sector, this project seeks to secure power systems against potential attacks. Aiming to examine the architecture of renewable energy networks using synthetic grids such as the S-NEM2300 model, this project will identify critical assets and their connections to develop targeted, cost-effective defence strategies tailored to mitigate identified vulnerabilities.
Kam-Fung Cheung’s project responds to the urgent need for enhanced stability and security as the demand for renewable energy surges. By pinpointing and addressing cyber risks, it will help ensure the reliable and secure advancement of renewable energy technologies, safeguarding the future of energy infrastructure.
Support beyond funding
UNSW Digital Grid Futures Institute offers more than funding. We help connect our Seed Fund recipients to our network of industry and government contacts, facilitate internal and external collaborations where relevant, and help guide researchers and academics looking to translate their projects into real world applications.
The diversity of support we offer helps drive change in the real world and create impact with these projects. Get in touch to learn more!
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