Research Grants Awarded While at Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, USA

1.      NUTC - Freight Optimization and Development in Missouri - Waterways and Ports Module, University Transportation Centre, period: June - December, 2007, $10,600 (Co-PI, Venayagamoorthy).

2.      Freight Optimization Study - Waterways and Ports Module - period: June - December 2007, $21,200 (Co-PI, Venayagamoorthy).

3.      NSF CAREER: REU Supplement - Scalable Learning and Adaptation with Intelligent Techniques and Neural Networks for Reconfiguration and Survivability of Complex Systems - period: June - August 2007, $6,000, ECCS #0348221  (PI, Venayagamoorthy).

4.      SENSORS: REU Supplement - Approximate Dynamic Programming for Dynamic Schedulingand Control in Sensor Networks, National Science Foundation, period: June. 2007 - August 2007, $6,000, ECCS #0625737 (PI, Venayagamoorthy).

5.   UMSAEP: Bio-Inspired Techniques for the Optimal Control of Power Systems, Missouri University of Science and Technology South African Education Program,period: January- December 2007 $5,000 (PI, Venayagamoorthy). 
 
6.   IREE - NSF CAREER: - Scalable Learning and Adaptation with Intelligent Techniques and Neural Networks for Reconfiguration and Survivability of Complex Systems, period: September, 2006 - September, 2007, $25,000, ECCS #0348221 (PI, Venayagamoorthy).
 
7.   STTR-Navy: Fault Diagnostics, Prognostics, and Self-Healing Control, period: September, 2006 - September, 2007, $45,089 (PI,Venayagamoorthy).
 
8.   SENSORS: REU Supplement - Approximate Dynamic Programming for Dynamic Scheduling and Control in Sensor Networks, National Science Foundation, period: June - August 2006, $ 6,000, ECCS #0625737 (PI, Venayagamoorthy).
 
9.   NSF CAREER: REU Supplement - Scalable Learning and Adaptation with Intelligent Techniques and Neural Networks for Reconfiguration and Survivability of Complex Systems, period: June - August, 2006, $ 6,000, ECCS #0348221 (PI, Venayagamoorthy).
 
10.   Planning visit to Mexico: Intelligent Techniques to Operation, Control and Diagnosis of Power Plants and Power Systems Including Facts Devices, National Science Foundation, starting date: November, 2005, $ 6,501, (PI- Ronald Harley (Georgia Tech) Co-PI, Venayagamoorthy), OISE #0519161. (This is travel grant and since the amount is small, no subcontract is made to UMR but Venayagamoorthy’s travel is covered by Georgia Tech).

This Americas Program award will support a planning visit proposal from Dr. Ronald Harley of the Georgia Institute of Technology and Dr. Ganesh K. Venayagamoorthy of the Missouri University of Science and Technology-Rolla. The researchers intend to meet with Mexican colleagues Dr. Edgar Sanchez and Dr. Arturo Messina at the Centro de Investigaciones y Estudios Avanzados de IPN (CINVESTAV-IPN) in Guadalajara, and to use the facilities of the Electric Research Institute in Cuernavaca, in order to plan future complementary research aimed at increasing the scope and impact of their current work in neurocontrol of power systems. The collaboration should allow the further analysis and validation of intelligent control algorithms developed by the U.S. side, using the Mexican side's unique laboratory and simulation systems. The work could lead to improved stability of the electric power grid, thus reducing the possibility of unexpected large power black-outs, and its consequences to society. This, together with the early diagnosis of impending faults in large rotating generators and motors, will increase the reliability and productivity of energy production and usage, resulting in lower environmental impacts and improved productivity. Aside from the intellectual exchanges, the collaboration with their Mexican colleagues will lead to broader impacts in the area of student exchanges, coursework, and the involvement of females and minorities in the project.
 
11.   UMSAEP: Computational Intelligence Techniques Applied to Modeling Herbivore Plant Interactions in African Savannahs, period: January - December, 2005, $5,000 (PI, Venayagamoorthy).
 
12.   US-Army STTR: Fielded Agent-based Geo-Analysis Network (FAGAN), period: August, 2004 – February, 2005, $45,000 (Co-PI, Venayagamoorthy).

13.   Neural Network Based Wide Area Coordination and Local Control of Elements in a Large Complex System, National Science Foundation ECCS #0400657,period: August, 2004 – July, 2007, $ 230,000 (Co-PI, Venayagamoorthy).

Many, many researchers have called out for new systems to manage the nation's infrastructure networks which would be adaptive, self-healing, integrated and intelligent. This project is a unique effort to make those words literally true, by scaling up new approaches to computational intelligence so as to provide greater performance, robustness and foresight in the control of electric power grids. The work will build on prior successes of the PIs, as described, for example, in www.eas.asu.edu/~nsfadp, in which intelligent control allowed generators to stay up and running in the face of disturbances three times as large as what forces a generator shutdown, under the previous best control schemes. It will explore new ways of scaling up to larger systems, involving multiple generators and advanced power switching components, to be managed in an integrated, optimal fashion. It will use power grids as a testbed for truly general concepts of intelligent systems, and of adaptive management of complex systems.

14.   US-Nigeria Cooperative Research: Computational Intelligence Techniques for Reactive Power / Voltage Control of Large Power Systems, National Science Foundation, period: August, 2003 – July, 2005, $ 30,000, INT # 0322894 (PI, Venayagamoorthy).

Venayamagoorthy 0322894 Around the world the demand for electric power is dramatically outpacing available generation and transmission resources. Furthermore, an increasing number of digital users require a higher quality of electricity. Although a number of power system devices are now used to minimize system losses and to improve voltage profiles of the power grid, the response of these power system devices with the existing control is slower than the rate at which changes in the system occur. In this joint project a U.S. scientist from the Missouri University of Science and Technology-Rolla and two Nigerian scientists from Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University will apply computational intelligent techniques to improve the control response of these power system devices, thus decreasing system losses and improving system voltage profiles at all times. This project's research collaboration and educational cooperation will be achieved via faculty and student exchanges between the U.S. and Nigeria. Intelligent coordination of power system devices can improve the quality of service, increase efficiency of the power transmission system, and ultimately decrease the overall production cost. The research findings will have broad application and will contribute to enhancing the operation of electric utilities of both developing and developed countries.

15.   U.S.-Brazil Collaborative Research: Feasibility Studies to Implement Neurocontrollers in Real Time in Brazil, National Science Foundation, period: August, 2003 – July, 2005, $33,500, INT # 0305429 (PI, Venayagamoorthy).

This U.S.-Brazil award will support the collaborative research of Drs. Ganesh K. Venayagamoorthy, Ronald Harley, and Donald C. Wunsch, Missouri University of Science and Technology-Rolla to work with Dr. Nelson Martins, Brazilian Utilities Research Center (CEPEL), and Dr. Djalma M. Falcao, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (COPPE), in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This international team will work to improve the productivity of the existing and future Brazilian power generation and transmission systems using the intelligent control techniques developed by the PIs in an earlier project. CEPEL, the Brazilian national electricity research and development organization, will provide a small-signal stability program for the U.S. team to analyze the Brazilian power system. The Brazilians have already carried out various investigations into finding methods to optimize their power system, and are among world leaders in this regard. This project has the potential to lead to nonlinear controllers for reducing costs of energy and transmission. The U.S. electric power grid is comparable to the Brazilian grid in terms of size and challenges faced. The results of this work will benefit both the U.S. and Brazil.

16.   Swarm Intelligence for Generator Modeling and Control, Missouri University of Science and Technology Research Board Grant, period: June, 2003 - May, 2004, $24,000 (PI, Venayagamoorthy).

17.   SGER: Intelligent Adaptive Control of Flexible Alternating Current Transmission System (Facts) Devices in a Distributed Power Network Containing Turbogenerators, National Science Foundation, period: August 2002 to July 2004, $69,796, ECS # 0231632 (Co-PI, Venayagamoorthy).

"Flexible AC Transmission System" (Facts) devices refer to rapidly switching power semiconductor devices, used in power systems to control the power flow and stabilize voltages. The decentralized nature of their actions may cause deleterious interactions between one Facts device and another, as well as between Facts devices and generators in the system. Currently there is a general lack of understanding as to how to systematically coordinate and stabilize system-wide dynamics via local modulation of the faster Facts devices as well as the slower generators. Nonlinear neurocontrollers offer a solution. This project will evaluate the initial application of neurocontrollers based on different adaptive critic designs to two different types of Facts devices (one at a time) on a multi-machine power system. An SGER form of proposal is chosen because this is preliminary work based on novel ideas, and if successful, the results will be used to generate a regular proposal which will further investigate the interactions between conventionally controlled generators and multiple neurocontrolled Facts devices. The significance of this work lies in: o Research Benefits: Locally placed neurocontrolled Facts devices can provide system wide improved voltage support and stability, thus allowing the entire power system to be operated more efficiently with a smaller stability margin. o Benefits to Society: Economically operated reliable and secure power systems are of national interest. When electricity demand exceeds available supply, it would be beneficial to produce more electrical power per installed Megawatt (and Dollar) of equipment, with the addition of relatively cheap intelligent neurocontrollers.

Research Grants Awarded while at the Durban Institute of Technology, South Africa (1998 to 2001)

1.      NRF THRIP-ESKOM (South Africa) Grant to set up the Real Time Power System Studies  Centre at Durban Institute of Technology (DIT) – 2001/2002, South African Rand 2.5 million (Initial proposal grant holder (PI-equivalent) prior to leaving DIT, Venayagamoorthy) - $227,273.

2.      Continually Online Trained ANNs for Turbogenerator Control, National Research Foundation 
 (NRF, South Africa) grant, August 1998 - July 2001, South African Rand 222,400 (PI,
 Venayagamoorthy) -$27,800.

3.      ANNs in Speech Processing, National Research Foundation (NRF, South Africa) grant, August 1998 - July 2001, South African Rand 168, 000 (PI, Venayagamoorthy) - $21,000.

4.      Speaker Identification using ANNs, Telkom (South Africa) Centre of Excellence grant – 1999 to 2001, South African Rand 480,000, (Co-PI, Venayagamoorthy) - $60,000.

5.   M L Sultan Technikon Research grant & Conference Grants – South African Rand 25,000 (PI,Venayagamoorthy) -$8,333.