The PhD program in Electrical engineering includes the following specializations:
· High voltage and insulation technology
· Power system and automation
· Power electronics
· New technology in Electro-technics
Objectives and Qualification Profile
The study serves as a preparation to scientific work in the area of electrical engineering. It provides a scientific education at international level and empowers graduates to provide international standard standalone research services in the relevant technical area.
Study Year
The academic year of Wuhan University (WHU) is divided into a summer term and a winter term. The summer term runs from September to January, the winter term runs from February to July. The vacation period starts after the winter term in July and last for two months.
The PhD program starts with the summer term. Every term corresponds to one semester. The program generally lasts for 6 semesters (three years), but is not to exceed six years.
Language
Teaching language is English.
Credits
To obtain a PhD degree, the students are required to earn 14 credits in the Wuhan University Credit System (of which at least 4 are for public required courses and 6 are for other degree courses, the rest credits are for optional courses). There is no fixed amount of credits required each semester. If the students select more courses, they can earn more credits. One credit in the Wuhan University Credit System corresponds to 18 hours of classes.
Publication Requirement
The basic publication requirement for a PhD degree is two journal papers indexed by EI or SCI, with one in a journal indexed by SCI.
PhD Thesis and Defense
A written thesis must be submitted and be defended in a colloquium.
1) A qualified PhD supervisor of Wuhan University will supervise the PhD Thesis.
2) A thesis proposal must be submitted at least one year before the defense. A committee (includes at least 5 members, with at least 3 PhD supervisors) will review this proposal to determine if the subject is appropriate and whether the topic is relevant to the field of study. If the committee does not see any value in the chosen topic, the thesis topic will not be approved.
3) A status report must be submitted to the supervisor every three months after thesis work begins. The status report must provide a summary of the work that has already been done, and must give an outlook on the anticipated outcome together with a schedule for the time until submission.
4) Assigned reviewers will review the PhD Thesis. After a positive review, the thesis must be defended in a doctoral colloquium at WHU.
Guidelines for Research Proposal and Thesis
The thesis proposal must clearly describe the research project to allow the committee to assess the relevance and quality of the proposal. It must be structured according to the following items:
· Title
· Introduction and problem description
· Literature review
· Research questions
· Objectives
· Methods and data used/needed
· Significance and innovative aspects of the research
· Work plan
· References
The introduction and problem description introduce the problem area, explains the background, and lets the reader understand the problem context. The literature review discusses the major existing literature in the problem area and helps to identify research gaps. The research questions should logically follow from the introduction and literature review and state clearly formulated questions. The objectives follow the research questions and clearly state what the project wishes to achieve, i.e., what will be the major outcomes of the research. An explanation of the methods used to perform the research and to achieve the objectives as well as the data used or needed for the research will be described. A statement about the significance and the expected innovation of the intended research results should be included. A work plan and references conclude the proposal.
The PhD thesis must be written in English and must be structured according to the following items:
· Front matter containing
- Title page
- Abstract
- Acknowledgements
- Glossary (if needed)
- Table of contents
- List of tables
- List of figures
· Introduction (addressing the following points)
- Problem description
- Literature review
- Research questions
- Objectives
- Methods and data used/needed
- Description of thesis structure (chapter contents)
· Main chapters
- Chapters describing the subject area, study area, and data
- Chapters describing the topic and methods
- Chapters describing the (new) research approach, results, and critical discussion of results
· Summary and conclusions
· Back matter containing
- References
- Author’s curriculum vitae
- Appendices (optional)
- Attachments (if needed)
Curriculum
The curriculum of the PhD program in electrical engineering consists of four mandatory courses with 8 credits and optional courses with a total of 6 credits of which two courses with a total of four credits are predefined for each specialization. A total of 14 course credits are required for a successful completion of the program. The following table lists the courses of the program.
| Courses | Credits |
Degree Courses | Public Required Courses | Comprehensive Chinese | 2 |
A Survey of China | 2 |
General Required Courses | Research Methodology and Scientific Writing | 2 |
Seminar (Notes of Modern Science and Technology) | 2 |
Research Required Courses | Smart Grid | 2 |
Optional courses | Major Optional Courses | External Electric Insulation | 2 |
Advanced Power Network Analysis | 2 |
Modern Power Electronic Technology | 2 |
Course Description
Comprehensive Chinese
This course is specifically designed for international students without basic knowledge of Chinese. This course includes lessons for Chinese Pinyin, strokes of Chinese characters, Chinese words, phrases and grammar. Upon successful completion of the course, students should be able to handle basic Chinese communication and reading skills. The course grade depends on mid-term exam, final exam, classroom tests and assignments.
A survey of China
This course aims to make international students recognize China comprehensively, profoundly and correctly. It lays the foundation of some Chinese encyclopedia of knowledge for international students, and enhances their knowledge of Chinese territory, history, politics, economy, culture, diplomacy, technology, education and so on. The course grade depends on assignments, attendance and course paper.
Seminar (Notes of Modern Science & Technology)
Doctoral students are required to attend at least 15 academic reports given by domestic and overseas well-known experts and scholars. Students must write a report including notes and discussion about the lecture after each attendance. The course grade depends on the submitted reports.
1.
Course title | Research Methodology and Scientific Writing |
Credits | 2 |
Course description | This course helps students develop critical thinking and academic writing competencies. Students in this course will learn how to formulate research questions, conduct literature review, write a proposal, engage in independent studies, and publish research articles in peer-reviewed journals. Research design skills are also taught in the course to enable students to develop concrete quantitative and qualitative methods related to their own research topics. This course will help students to develop a research strategy for completing their thesis. Students are expected to improve their writing skills, especially those concerned avoiding plagiarism in literature review. Students will produce a research proposal using analytical and critical skills learned in this course. This proposal will establish a foundation for subsequent research of enrolled students. |
Course objectives | The general aim of this course is to help students to Improve critical thinking and reading skills, enabling students to develop their own research hypothesis and questions; Have a general understanding of the research process and be able to perform their intended studies; Learn how to write a well-structured, acceptable research articles for peer-reviewed journals in GIS and remote sensing; Acquire necessary skills to deliver oral presentations; Prepare themselves for future research experiences. |
Course methods | The format of this course will be mixture of lecture and seminar discussion, and oral presentations. Students are encouraged to participate in classroom discussion and share their own research ideas via oral presentations. Writing assignments and problem solving labs related to reading and writing tasks will be arranged as well. |
Course assessment | Students are expected to complete a research proposal and present their own proposals in class. Research proposal: 50% of final grade; Oral representation: 30% of final grade; Class attendance: 20% of final grade. |
Readings | Copies of PowerPoint slides and selected research journal papers |
Prerequisites | None |
Lecturers |
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2.
Course title | External Electric Insulation |
Credits | 2 |
Course description | There are many causes of power system interruption. Breakdown of self -restoring air insulation is one of the most frequent. Electric power systems are carefully designed to withstand mechanical forces associated with wind and ice loads. The mechanical design specification, fully developed in standards, gives good results in climates with a wide range of icing risks. There is no equivalent quantitative, standards – based design process for electrical insulation performance in the same conditions. |
Course objectives | After completing this course the students should be able to c have the following knowledge and ability: ·Pollution deposits, temperature and wetting condition on Power system insulators ·Contamination on Power system insulators ·Icing Flashovers |
Course methods | Lectures are not less than 50%, mainly by teachers who take turns to teach knowledge points. Two class satisfaction quiz. English literature review, including searching for literature, reading literature, submitting literature reading report, reading three English literature with different contents and points and submitting a report during the course.
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Course assessment | |
Reading | Electronic library: IEEE, Springer and Wiley |
Prerequisites | The students need the course preparation power system and high-voltage technology |
Lecturer |
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3.
Course title | Advanced Power Network Analysis |
Credits | 2 |
Course description | A course consists of two parts. Part 1 introduces the fundamentals of electric power network analysis, such as network graph theory; network equations; network matrices; formation and modification of Y and Z matrices; spares matrix and spare vector techniques; modified solutions of network equations; transformation, reduction, and equivalence of networks, and piecewise solutions of network equations. Although no practical applications are covered in this part, the content is indispensable to a variety of applications in electric power system analysis. The second part introduces the applications of steady-state analysis of electric power networks, with the focus on load flow and fault analysis. |
Course objectives | After completing the course, the students shall: · understand General methods for network analysis · Network matrices of power systems · Spare techniques in network computations · Modified solutions of network equations · Network transformation, reduction, and equivalence · Piecewise solutions of Large Scale power systems · Special methods for power flow calculations · Special topics of power flow study · Expanded power flow problems · Computer methods for fault analysis |
Course methods | A stimulating and interactive classroom environment is expected based on discussions, presentations, group projects, and individual research, also use special software to explain each topic to students with example and Assignments. |
Course assessment | The course grade depends on students’ performance in class activities, assignments, homework, and final paper/project. |
Reading | Online reading materials and copies of PowerPoint slides |
Prerequisites | To be admitted to this course the students must have successfully completed the following course. · Power System Analysis |
Lecturer |
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4.
Course title | Modern Power Electronic Technology |
Credits | 2 |
Course description | Modern power electronics (PE) devices and circuits are now in widespread use in automotive and non-automotive applications. The purpose of this course is to introduce the key aspects of power electronic circuits, components and design in automotive applications. Topics covered include power semiconductor devices, their characteristics and operation, and their use in power electronics circuits. Techniques for analyzing and designing switch-mode power supplies, DC-DC converters, power rectifiers, static power inverters and universal power supplies are examined, along with electric machines, motors and transformers, and their associated power electronics drive requirements. The course also gives an overview of the electrical power system and power systems analysis, in the context of power electronics applications in automotive platforms. |
Course objectives | Upon completion of this seminar, participants will be able to: i. Identify the components of power electronics and describe their key characteristics. ii. Use various methods to analyze power electronics circuit. iii. Discuss the basic operation, losses and efficiency of the power electronics converter. iv. Describe power electronics circuits used in different applications. v. Relate the practical issues in power electronics circuit design. vi. Explain the application requirements of converters in a given system. vii. Identify the subsystems of the power electronics in different platforms. viii. Identify the passive and active technology requirements to manage the power electronics system thermally. ix. Describe the future power electronics technologies for the upcoming applications. |
Course methods | A stimulating and interactive classroom environment is expected based on discussions, presentations, group projects, and individual research also use special software to explain each topic to students with example and Assignments. |
Course assessment | The course grade depends on students’ performance in class activities, assignments, homework, and final paper/project. |
Reading | Online reading materials and copies of PowerPoint slides |
Prerequisites | None |
Lecturer |
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5.
Course title | Smart Grid |
Credits | 2 |
Course description | Basics of Power Systems: o Load and Generation o Power Flow Analysis o Economic Dispatch and Unit Commitment Problems • Smart Grid: o Definition o Applications o Government and Industry o Standardization • Smart Grid Communications: o Two-way Digital Communications Paradigm o Network Architectures o IP-based Systems o Power Line Communications o Advanced Metering Infrastructure • Demand Response o Definition, Applications, and State-of-the Art o Pricing and Energy Consumption Scheduling o Controllable Load Models, Dynamics, and Challenges o Electric Vehicles and Vehicle-to-Grid Systems o Demand Side Ancillary Services • Renewable Generation: o Carbon Footprint o Renewable Resources: Wind and Solar o Microgrid Architecture o Tackling Intermittency o Stochastic Models and Forecasting Wide Area Measurement: o Sensor Networks o Phasor Measurement Units o Communications Infrastructure o Fault Detection and Self-Healing Systems o Applications and Challenges • Security and Privacy: o Cyber Security Challenges in Smart Grid o Load Altering Attacks o False Data Injection Attacks o Defense Mechanisms o Privacy Challenges • Economics and Market Operations o Energy and Reserve Markets o Market Power o Generation Firms o Locational Marginal Prices o Financial Transmission Rights |
Course objectives | Introduction to the new multi-disciplinary field of Smart Grid. |
Course methods | A stimulating and interactive classroom environment is expected based on discussions, presentations, group projects, and individual research also use special software to explain each topic to students with example and Assignments. |
Course assessment | The course grade depends on students’ performance in class activities, assignments, homework, and final paper/project. |
Reading | Online reading materials and copies of PowerPoint slides |
Prerequisites | Basic knowledge of power systems, basic knowledge of computer and communications networks, and some background in probability and random variables, linear algebra, and convex optimization will be helpful. |
Lecturer |
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*The above information is for reference only.
