On 26 June, a special lecture was held at the EN:lab building of the Department of Energy by Prof. G. Kumar Venayagamoorthy, professor at Clemson University (USA) and IEEE PES Distinguished Lecturer. The initiative was part of the Doctoral Programme in Electrical Engineering, coordinated by Prof. Marco Mussetta.

Prof. Venayagamoorthy gave a lecture entitled “Distributed AI for Modern Power Systems” offering an in-depth overview of the potential of distributed artificial intelligence in modern electrical networks. The topic is highly topical, given the growing presence of renewable sources, the evolution towards increasingly complex smart grids, and the introduction of flexible loads and storage systems, such as electric vehicles.

During his talk, the professor explained how distributed artificial intelligence technologies can help ensure the stability, reliability and efficiency of contemporary electrical systems, which are increasingly characterised by bidirectional flows and high variability of energy resources.

G. Kumar Venayagamoorthy is Duke Energy Distinguished Professor of Power Engineering at Clemson University and director of the Real-Time Power and Intelligent Systems Laboratory. He is also a Fellow of the IEEE, IET and SAIEE, as well as a Distinguished Lecturer for four IEEE societies. With over 600 scientific publications and more than 25,000 citations, he is an international reference point for research on artificial intelligence applied to electrical systems.

The Department of Energy would like to thank Prof. Venayagamoorthy for his valuable contribution and the Faculty of the Doctorate in Electrical Engineering for making this important educational opportunity possible.