Recently named a finalist in the SA Science and Innovation Excellence Awards for his PhD studies, Mehrdad Aghamohamadi tells us a little about his ground-breaking PhD research, and shared how he’s most himself on the water.
What is your role here at Flinders?
I am a PhD graduate of Flinders University and currently work as a casual academic in addition to my role as an Energy Market Analyst at Cornwall Insight Australia.
During my studies, I was fortunate to be successful in winning a top-up scholarship from CSIRO in addition to my Australian research training program scholarship for my PhD stipend.
After starting my project with CSIRO, I was selected by the CSIRO to represent Flinders University in the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge where CSIRO and Flinders University are the first-tier sponsors. I was the leader for Flinders University in the pitch competition at this event.
This competitive challenge attracts millions of people from around the world and my proposal for the pitch competition was one of the six finalists in this challenge. We ended up losing to a team from Germany, but it was still great to be a finalist in an international challenge.
My thesis was a study on the optimal integration of electric vehicles (EVs) into our energy system in Australia. My research during my PhD studies resulted in a ground-breaking innovative approach to increase the share of renewables in Australia’s energy system while minimizing the effects of volatility that usually occurs with high renewable energy penetration.
This way, we can increase the share of renewables in SA by even more than 70% without any spending on additional costs to ensure the secure operation of the grid at the presence of EVs. Simply put, my study results in much fewer blackouts and disconnections while boosting renewable energy capacity with less operational limitation.
What do you love most about your role?
As an energy market analyst, I have full exposure to market dynamics in both the electricity and gas sectors in Australia. My work is to make sense of these dynamic markets for our clients who are stakeholders and energy developers in Australia. I love it when I can unlock insights from this dynamic environment.
How do you feel about being named a finalist in the SA Science and Innovation Excellence Awards? This is based on my PhD thesis and my achievements during my PhD studies at Flinders University. I believe being among the three finalists for this award is a great achievement, at least for me. I feel humble and grateful for this.
How would you describe yourself in three words?
Ambitious, hardworking and a fast learner.
What are you most proud of?
I have been through a rough patch during my PhD studies and I’m proud that I could manage to still get the most out of it, as well as win the most prestigious awards at Flinders University in many categories such as:
- 2022 Emerging Research Leader – Higher Degree Research (HDR) student award, Flinders University
- 2021 Best HDR Publication of the Year Award, Flinders University
- 2021 Chris Marlin Postgraduate Publication Prize in Computer Science, Engineering and Mathematics, Flinders University
- 2020 Chris Marlin Postgraduate Publication Prize in Computer Science, Engineering and Mathematics, Flinders University
- 2019 Flinders University HDR Conference Poster Presentation Award, Flinders University
The above awards are to acknowledge the achievements of PhD students at Flinders University and are highly competitive. I achieved the Chris Marling Awards two years in a row because of my publications. I also won the best HDR publication because of the impact of one of my publications had in academia in terms of the number of citations and its global impact.
- IEEE PES Innovative Smart Grid Technologies-Asia
- IEEE Energy Conversion Congress and Exposition
- IEEE International Conference on Power Electronics, Drives and Energy
I like outdoor adventures and backyard projects. During holidays and weekends, I usually find myself fishing or camping. I have a boat and I always have an eye on weather conditions to find a good time to go on the sea. Other times, when the weather is not the best for sea adventures, I work on my touring 4WD. Basically that’s where my money goes haha.
The SA Government science excellence award nomination says: Dr Aghamohamadi’s PhD research proposes a model that will help Australia to achieve its 2050 net-zero emission targets by increasing the share of renewables and battery systems. Dr Aghamohamadi’s model removes the limitations for developing additional renewables and battery storage systems, resulting in cheaper electricity, less congestion in the grid, lower reliability events, and lack of reserve notices in the market. It also incentivises investors to invest in renewables, as they have a clearer understanding and certainty around renewable and battery projects.
These contributions would result in saving millions of dollars in operation of the energy market, with the majority of this saving passing on to end users with cheaper electricity. Dr Aghamohamadi’s study shows that investing in energy transition on this scale can improve investment efficiency in Australia’s energy sector, and will contribute to a greener Australia.