As part of Navy Week in Milwaukee, U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Matthew Pottenburgh, made a stop on Wednesday to the college’s Center for Sustainable Electrical Energy Systems to highlight the Navy’s partnership with UWM on research to advance all-electric ships.
The Navy has funded a large portion of UWM research on electric ships – work that will contribute to a more reliable U.S. electrical grid for everyone, said Rob Cuzner, professor of electrical engineering and center director.
He hosted a tour of the center for Pottenburgh, commander of the U.S. Naval Service Training Command, UWM Provost Andrew Daire, UWM Vice Provost for Research Ali Abedi and Andy Graettinger, associate dean for research at the College of Engineering & Applied Science.
“There’s really not a naval ship that doesn’t have some kind of equipment on them that are specifically related to shipboard electrification,” Pottenburgh said. “And that research begins right here at the University of Wisconsin in Milwaukee.”
Devices for electric ships could curb outages on land and sea
The U.S. Navy wants to move to smaller, all-electric ships because they are more efficient, pollute less and require less maintenance than traditional ships. Shipboard energy systems, when they are out of port, must provide their own power generation. Battery energy storage and unique power and energy conversion and delivery equipment mitigate the possibility of power outages to critical parts of the ship.
Cuzner specializes in devices and components that make up the unique power energy conversion and delivery equipment on ship. The technology that enables all of this is power electronics. Advances in power semiconductors and their application to circuits and devices make it possible to install equipment into electric ships having a smaller footprint.
“What makes UWM unique is our connection to local industry partners who manufacture this equipment and our ability to develop and test this equipment,” Cuzner said. “We can literally scale up systems in size and scope to the level needed to power a ship or any installation.”
As a result, the researchers are gaining insights that not only aid engineers in the design and integration of equipment for ships but also how to help industry partners apply the same technologies needed to modernize the aging on-land electrical grid in the face of rising demand.
Cuzner has been involved in the Navy’s quest for next-generation, all-electric ships for the last decade through UWM’s Center for Sustainable Electrical Energy Systems. His lab’s current funding from the Office of Naval Research and Naval Sea Command stands at $3 million.
What are power electronics?
Electrical systems involve more than power plants generating the current. Energy needs to be stored for use later and distributed to where it’s needed. The current also must be controlled and managed. The voltage must be stepped up or down or modified to be compatible with the existing grid.
The power electronics-based systems that Cuzner is researching and testing accomplish these tasks. They are needed to make the on-land grid “smart,” where all parts of the system communicate in real time, and to integrate renewables sources into the grid.
The lab works with nearly 20 companies, such as Leonardo DRS, Eaton, Rehlko and Watt-EV, to bring these devices to the market for a wide range of applications. Many of those companies hire UWM graduates.
UWM is Wisconsin’s top destination campus for student veterans and the goal of Navy Week activities is to celebrate the military branch’s 250th birthday.