A sustainable energy future depends on transitioning the U.S. electric power system to a cost-effective, resilient, and reliable energy supply, while decarbonizing energy production and use. This project will exploit the simultaneous proliferation of data generated from ubiquitous sensing and control systems and the increasing use of decentralized (often renewable) energy resources to accelerate energy-technology innovation. Harnessing this data revolution requires the convergence of a range of energy-sector stakeholders and disciplines. To meet the challenge and future workforce needs, this National Science Foundation Research Traineeship (NRT) award to The Ohio State University will train the next generation of energy innovators to work across disciplines to drive energy-technology and energy-policy innovations. Energy sector partners will join multidisciplinary teams of faculty and graduate students to create a high-functioning and inclusive innovation ecosystem using Ohio State's campus as a real-world test bed. The project anticipates training eighty (80) PhD students, including thirty-two (32) funded trainees, from diverse fields such as public policy; computer science; environmental economics; materials science; geography; and electrical and computer, environmental, and industrial and systems engineering.
The NRT EmPOWERment project leverages the power of use-inspired research and innovation as a training environment, bringing practitioners together in a team-building environment. Trainees will develop their innovation and collaborative abilities through a trans-university graduate interdisciplinary specialization that delivers integrated training in data science, energy system modeling, economics, business, behavioral science, policy, and law. A student community of practice will provide continuity through collaborative activities, mentoring, and support for retaining students (especially students from traditionally underrepresented groups) and prepare students to thrive in a variety of careers. Open to all graduate students in any field, the specialization and community of practice will use permanent institutional mechanisms to expand the NRT program's impact and to encourage the contribution of diverse perspectives (e.g., other STEM fields, law, business, medicine). The project leverages a 50-year university-industry partnership to support energy research, operations, and campus sustainability, providing trainees with concrete opportunities to develop 1) novel digital and physical components such as batteries, materials, and algorithms; 2) integrated assessment, optimization, and predictive modeling capabilities for future scenarios (e.g., economic, environmental, and social); and 3) new policies, educational mechanisms and business strategies. In addition to driving energy technology and policy innovations, EmPOWERment will study its own processes, evaluating the effectiveness of this convergent design in helping students achieve partner-specified learning outcomes and build their own capacities for innovation.
The NSF Research Traineeship (NRT) Program is designed to encourage the development and implementation of bold, new potentially transformative models for STEM graduate education training. The program is dedicated to effective training of STEM graduate students in high priority interdisciplinary or convergent research areas through comprehensive traineeship models that are innovative, evidence-based, and aligned with changing workforce and research needs.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
