University of Arkansas Engineering Students Take First Place in Design Contest

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Two 2008 electrical engineering graduates took first place in Texas Instruments’ University Analog Design Contest. Derik Trowler and Bret Whitaker will split the $10,000 prize money. The students competed against teams from more than 16 universities.

The winning design involved a scaled-down, grid-connected battery energy storage system capable of bidirectional operation. In the discharge mode, the system draws energy from the batteries and supplements the grid. In the charge mode, the system draws energy from the grid and charges the batteries.

A full-scale battery energy storage system like this would allow for peak energy needs to be met from the batteries. Batteries are recharged at night when off-peak energy can be generated at a lower cost. The stored energy is then injected back into the grid during the peak demand periods. This allows power plants to operate on a more predictable output profile and prevents unnecessary and costly power generation during the peak periods.

In addition to decreasing the cost of power production, the energy storage system can improve power quality, prevent brown-outs and help decrease the need for costly upgrades to power substations.

This project was funded by American Electric Power.