Speakers

Michael Tse received the BEng degree with first class honors and the PhD degree from the University of Melbourne, Australia, in 1988 and 1991, respectively. He has held a Chair Professorship since 2005, and is currently a Chair Professor of Electrical Engineering at City University of Hong Kong with which he concurrently holds the position of Associate Vice-President (Innovation) and Director of Academy of Innovation. His research interests include network applications, nonlinear systems, power electronics, and smart power distribution. He has been awarded a number of research and invention prizes, including the IEEE CASS Charles A. Desoer Technical Achievement Award 2022, Best Paper Prizes from IEEE and other journals, Gold Medals (with Jury’s Commendation) in International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva (2024, 2013, 2009), IFIA Best Invention Prize and Gold Medal with Jury’s Commendation in Asia Exhibition of Innovations and Inventions 2023, Grand Prize and Gold Medal with Jury’s Commendation in Silicon Valley International Invention Festival 2019, and prizes in other international invention exhibitions. He has been appointed to honorary professorship and distinguished fellowship by several Australian, Canadian and Chinese universities, including Melbourne University, RMIT University, University of Western Australia, University of Calgary, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, etc. He was selected and appointed as IEEE Distinguished Lecturer in 2005, 2010 and 2018. He serves and has served as Editor-in-Chief of IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems II (2016-2019), IEEE Circuits and Systems Magazine (2013-2016), and a few other journals. Since 2021, he has served on the Editorial Board of the IEEE Proceedings. He has also served on a number of IEEE committees including the IEEE Fellows Committee and the IEEE Awards Committee. He is a panel member of the European Research Council. Locally, he serves or has served on a number of government committees and grant panels. He is an IEEE Fellow (elected 2005) and an IEAust Fellow (2009).

Title: The Evolving Power Grid Towards a Greener Future

Abstract: As prompted by the increasing use of renewable sources and the quest for higher performance in the control of power conversion, the use of power electronics in generation and distribution systems has increased significantly in recent years,. Interactions of power electronics systems and conventional synchronous machines' dynamics would inevitably cause stability and robustness concerns, which can be understood from the conventional control viewpoint and the coupling effects among interacting dynamical systems of varying stability margins (or transient performances). In this talk, we discuss the various circuits and systems problems of power electronics penetration into power grids and the implications on the continuous evolution of the power grids.

Tony Wood is the Director the Energy and Climate Change Program at Grattan Institute. Before that he worked at Origin. From 2009 to 2014 he was also Program Director of Clean Energy Projects at the Clinton Foundation, advising governments in the Asia-Pacific region on effective deployment of large-scale, low-emission energy technologies. In 2008, he was seconded to provide an industry perspective to the first Garnaut climate change review. In January 2018, Tony was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia in recognition of his significant service to conservation and the environment, particularly in the areas of energy policy, climate change and sustainability. In October 2019, Tony was elected as a Fellow to the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering.

Professor Dennis Y.C. Leung, received his BEng (1982) and PhD (1988) from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Hong Kong. Professor Leung is now a full professor and ex-Head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering specializing in environmental engineering and renewable & clean energy. He has published more than 370+ peer reviewed SCI journal papers.  His current h-index is 96 with total citations > 49K. He is one of the top 1% highly cited scientists in the world in energy field since 2010 (Essential Science Indicators) and named as Highly Cited Researcher by Clarivate Analytics from 2017-2022. He was awarded the Advanced Materials Laureate by International Association of Advanced Materials in 2024. Professor Leung has delivered more than 90 keynote and invited lectures in international conferences.

Title: Enhancing Environmental and Energy Performance in Maritime Operations Through Photocatalytic Technology

Abstract: Fouling is a prevalent issue in seawater, as it involves the accumulation and growth of microorganisms like barnacles and tubeworms on submerged objects. To prevent fouling on surfaces underwater, antifouling paints are typically applied to boats, yachts, and seawater cooling gates. This not only enhances the speed of ships but also improves the efficiency of water-cooled air conditioning systems. In this speech, I shall first discuss the general materials used for fouling protection and their limitations. Furthermore, advanced photocatalytic technology that can effectively control the growth of microorganisms on yacht hulls and seawater gates will be introduced. By utilizing special photocatalytic coatings, the need for frequent removal of deposited microorganisms is minimized, reducing maintenance costs and improving fuel efficiency. Towards the end of the talk, the prospects of applying these photocatalytic materials to control antifouling on other marine structures will be explored.

Prof. Minxiao Han, Director of Institute of Flexible Electric Power Technology in  North China Electric Power University (NCEPU). He was a joint Ph.D student with NCEPU and Queen’s University of Belfast, U.K., and a post-doctorial researcher at Kobe University, Japan. He is an IET Fellow and Vice-Chairman of IEEE PES AC/DC system China branch committee. He has been the leader in projects consigned by National Nature Science Foundation of China, National Educational Ministry, and enterprises. He has four published books and more than 100 refereed publications in journals and conferences. His research interests are the applications of power electronics in power system including HVDC, FACTS, power conversion and control.

Title: The Concept and Research of Converter-based Grid

Abstract: Electric power system with renewable energy in the leading role is evolving with essential change of grid morphology. Electric power is integrated to the grid through converters which increase the proportion of power electronics in power system. Converter-based grid (CBG) will be reached when converter-based power generation replaces synchronous machine to build the grid frequency and voltage. This paper aims to discuss the concept, constitution and operation of CBG, and the future development prospect of CBG is also put forward.

Dr. Eric Hu, received his basic professional degree of Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical) from the Zhejiang University, China in 1984. He was majored in thermal power station technologies. After graduation, he proceeded to Beijing Solar Energy Research Institute for the degree of Master of Engineering (energy technology). Two and a half years later, he started work with the same institute as a research engineer for another three years. In January 1990, Eric was granted a French government scholarship to undertake the Doctor of Engineering program in Energy Technology Division at the Asian Institute of Technology in Bangkok Thailand. He obtained the doctoral degree (D.Eng in Energy Technology) and came to Australia at the end of 1992. Eric worked as a lecturer and senior lecturer in Thermodynamics and Fluid Mechanics at Gippsland School of Engineering, Monash University until 1999 when he joined the School of Engineering and Technology at Deakin University. He was promoted to Associate Professor in 2005 at Deakin University. He starts with the School of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Adelaide, as Associate Professor in Sustainable Energy Engineering, in Feb 2009.
Dr. Eric Hu has been working in sustainable  energy engineering areas, including energy efficiencies for industrial process, solar thermal applications eg. heating, cooling and power generation, CO2 emission reduction for power stations and low energy desalination etc. He has published over 300 academic papers with H-index of 46 and over 7500 citations.

Title: Thermal Diode Tank (TDT) Enhanced Heat Pump Systems