Professor Xin Zhang
Department of Automatic Control and Systems Engineering
Professor in Control and Power Systems


+44 114 222 25619
Full contact details
Department of Automatic Control and Systems Engineering
Amy Johnson Building
Portobello Street
Sheffield
S1 3JD
- Profile
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My research is about electrical power and energy systems. Currently, I hold the prestigious UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship and EPSRC New Investigator Award. My research experience covers power system control, planning and operation, digital power systems, cyber-physical system modelling and co-simulation, smart grid and renewable energy, and transport electrification (land-air transport) with grid integration.
I lead the Sheffield Control and Power Systems Laboratory. This $5M+ research lab attracted the major research council grants including EPSRC Future Leaders Fellowship, EPSRC-UKRI Innovation Fellowship, as well as industrial support of Rolls-Royce, National Instruments, Texas Instruments, Siemens, ALSTOM, Turbo Power Systems, Chroma, Yokagawa, OPAL RT, etc.
My industrial experience (2011-19) was gained from National Grid ESO as the GB Electricity System Operator, where I was professionally trained as a power system engineer in planning and real-time operation, mainly in the GB Electricity National Control Centre. My specific industrial expertise includes power system modelling and operational tools development for energy balancing and system security, and real-time transmission network control. Previously I worked at Cranfield University as a directly appointed Senior Lecturer (2019-21) and Brunel University London (2021-23).
- Qualifications
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- PhD in Electrical and Electronic Engineering (2010), The University of Manchester
- MSc (distinction) in Electrical Power Engineering (2007), The University of Manchester
- B.Eng in Automation, Control Science and Engineering (2006), Shandong University
- Research interests
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My research is interdisciplinary across power, energy and digital aspects of system engineering. My primary research interest is in power systems, with wider research interests of cyber-security, machine learning, digital twins and their applications in power & energy industry.
Broadly, I investigate net-zero energy networks as critical infrastructure, integrating transport, information and communications, renewable, storage and hydrogen. I address energy resilience and flexibility challenges across Energy Theme.
- Power system planning, operation and control (transmission, distribution, microgrid, renewables)
- Cyber-physical system modelling and co-simulation (networked system control, power, energy, communications, transport)
- Laboratory research platforms, hardware and facilities for simulation and control of power grid (real-time digital simulators, power electronics, intelligent computing)
- Transport electrification (electric vehicle / aircraft charging, transport-energy nexus)
- Publications
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Journal articles
- Techno-economic assessment of wireless charging systems for airport electric shuttle buses. Journal of Energy Storage, 64, 107123-107123.
- Towards reservation-based E-mobility service via hybrid of V2V and G2V charging modes. Energy, 268, 126737-126737.
- Self-Dispatch of Wind-Storage Integrated System: A Deep Reinforcement Learning Approach. IEEE Transactions on Sustainable Energy, 13(3), 1861-1864.
- Connection Between Damping Torque Analysis and Energy Flow Analysis in Damping Performance Evaluation for Electromechanical Oscillations in Power Systems. Journal of Modern Power Systems and Clean Energy, 10(1), 19-28.
- Aviation-to-Grid Flexibility Through Electric Aircraft Charging. IEEE Transactions on Industrial Informatics, 18(11), 8149-8159.
- Fast Resilience Assessment of Distribution Systems With a Non-Simulation-Based Method. IEEE Transactions on Power Delivery, 37(2), 1088-1099.
- Reactive coordinated optimal operation of distributed wind generation. Energy, 218, 119417-119417.
- Techno-economic design of energy systems for airport electrification: A hydrogen-solar-storage integrated microgrid solution. Applied Energy, 283, 116374-116374.
- Economic-Effective Multi-Energy Management Considering Voltage Regulation Networked With Energy Hubs. IEEE Transactions on Power Systems, 36(3), 2503-2515.
- Reactive Power Optimization in Integrated Electricity and Gas Systems. IEEE Systems Journal, 15(2), 2744-2754.
- A multi-disaster-scenario distributionally robust planning model for enhancing the resilience of distribution systems. International Journal of Electrical Power & Energy Systems, 122, 106161-106161.
- Energy performance and life cycle cost assessments of a photovoltaic/thermal assisted heat pump system. Energy, 206, 118108-118108.
- Mobile Emergency Generator Planning in Resilient Distribution Systems: A Three-Stage Stochastic Model With Nonanticipativity Constraints. IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid, 11(6), 4847-4859.
- Sequential Disaster Recovery Model for Distribution Systems With Co-Optimization of Maintenance and Restoration Crew Dispatch. IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid, 11(6), 4700-4713.
- A Fixed-Point Based Distributed Method for Energy Flow Calculation in Multi-Energy Systems. IEEE Transactions on Sustainable Energy, 11(4), 2567-2580.
- Slope-Based Shape Cluster Method for Smart Metering Load Profiles. IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid, 11(2), 1809-1811.
- An Explicit Formula Based Estimation Method for Distribution Network Reliability. IEEE Transactions on Power Delivery, 35(4), 2109-2112.
- Robust Optimization-Based Energy Storage Operation for System Congestion Management. IEEE Systems Journal, 14(2), 2694-2702.
- Optimal CHP Planning in Integrated Energy Systems Considering Network Charges. IEEE Systems Journal, 14(2), 2684-2693.
- Agent-Based Coordinated Operation Strategy for Active Distribution Network With Distributed Energy Resources. IEEE Transactions on Industry Applications, 55(4), 3310-3320.
- Electric vehicles in smart grid: a survey on charging load modelling. IET Smart Grid, 2(1), 25-33.
- Wide area inter‐area oscillation control system in a GB electric power system. The Journal of Engineering, 2019(16), 3294-3300.
- Reactive power operability of distributed energy resources for voltage stability of distribution networks. Journal of Modern Power Systems and Clean Energy, 7(4), 851-861.
- Identifying the correlation between ambient temperature and gas consumption in a local energy system. CSEE Journal of Power and Energy Systems, 4(4), 479-486.
- Modeling the development of low current arcs and arc resistance simulation. IEEE Transactions on Dielectrics and Electrical Insulation, 25(6), 2049-2057.
- Power to gas: addressing renewable curtailment by converting to hydrogen. Frontiers in Energy, 12(4), 560-568.
- Clean energy consumption of power systems towards smart agriculture: roadmap, bottlenecks and technologies. CSEE Journal of Power and Energy Systems, 4(3), 273-282.
- Model reduction strategy of doubly-fed induction generator-based wind farms for power system small-signal rotor angle stability analysis. Applied Energy, 222, 608-620.
- Impact analysis of electricity supply unreliability to interdependent economic sectors by an economic-technical approach. Renewable Energy, 122, 108-117.
- The Development of Low-Current Surface Arcs Under Clean and Salt-Fog Conditions in Electricity Distribution Networks. IEEE Access, 6, 15835-15843.
- Comparison analysis on damping mechanisms of power systems with induction generator based wind power generation. International Journal of Electrical Power & Energy Systems, 97, 250-261.
- Synthetic Inertia Control Strategy for Doubly Fed Induction Generator Wind Turbine Generators Using Lithium-Ion Supercapacitors. IEEE Transactions on Energy Conversion, 33(2), 773-783.
- Reducing model complexity of DFIG-based wind turbines to improve the efficiency of power system stability analysis. Energy Procedia, 142, 971-976.
- Stability and energy of low current surface discharges on wet surfaces. IEEE Transactions on Dielectrics and Electrical Insulation, 19(6), 2055-2062.
- Increased energy in stable dry-band arcs due to length compression. IEEE Transactions on Dielectrics and Electrical Insulation, 17(2), 473-480.
- Aging of Polyethylene ADSS Sheath by Low Currents. IEEE Transactions on Power Delivery, 25(2), 947-952.
- Load Frequency Control Based on Equivalent-input-disturbance Method for Isolated Small Hybrid Power System. DEStech Transactions on Environment, Energy and Earth Sciences(iceee).
- Chance-constrained optimal dispatch of integrated electricity and natural gas systems considering medium and long-term electricity transactions. CSEE Journal of Power and Energy Systems.
- Optimal Sizing of Cascade Hydropower and Distributed Photovoltaic Included Virtual Power Plant Considering Investments and Complementary Benefits in Electricity Markets. Energies, 12(5), 952-952.
- Modeling agricultural load based on crop evapotranspiration and light integration for economic operation of greenhouse power system. CSEE Journal of Power and Energy Systems.
Conference proceedings papers
- Study on the Impact of Aviation Electrification on Voltage Deviation of the GB Transmission System. 2022 57th International Universities Power Engineering Conference (UPEC), 30 August 2022 - 2 September 2022.
- A MULTI-AGENT MICROGRID ENERGY MANAGEMENT SOLUTION FOR AIR TRANSPORT ELECTRIFICATION. The 10th Renewable Power Generation Conference (RPG 2021)
- DESIGN AND OPERATION OF SOLAR-HYDROGEN-STORAGE INTEGRATED ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGING STATION IN SMART CITY. CIRED 2021 - The 26th International Conference and Exhibition on Electricity Distribution
- Agent-based Operation Strategy for Active Distribution Network Considering Energy Storage and Flexible Load. 2018 IEEE Industry Applications Society Annual Meeting (IAS), 23 September 2018 - 27 September 2018.
- Modelling of low current surface discharges using PSCAD. 2011 Electrical Insulation Conference (EIC)., 5 June 2011 - 8 June 2011.
- Modelling of dry-band discharge events on insulation surfaces. 2010 IEEE International Symposium on Electrical Insulation, 6 June 2010 - 9 June 2010.
- Behaviour of low current discharges between water drops. 2009 IEEE Conference on Electrical Insulation and Dielectric Phenomena, 18 October 2009 - 21 October 2009.
- Ageing of an ADSS Cable Sheath on a 132kV Overhead Transmission Line. 2008 Annual Report Conference on Electrical Insulation and Dielectric Phenomena, 26 October 2008 - 29 October 2008.
- The Impact of System Voltage on the Ageing of All-Dielectric Self-Supporting Cables on Overhead Lines. Conference Record of the 2008 IEEE International Symposium on Electrical Insulation, 9 June 2008 - 12 June 2008.
- Techno-economic assessment of wireless charging systems for airport electric shuttle buses. Journal of Energy Storage, 64, 107123-107123.
- Grants
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Funder: UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Future Leaders Fellowship (MR/W011360/1)
Project: Digitalisation of Electrical Power and Energy Systems Operation
Role: PI; Value: £1.8 million; Period: 2022 – 2026
Funder: EPSRC New Investigator Award (EP/W028905/1)
Role: PI; Value: £481k; Period: 2022 – 2025