Statement of Purpose

I am Nikhil Kumar, a Senior Electrical Engineer currently working with Larsen & Toubro at Mumbai Monorail Project. I have completed my Bachelor of Engineering in Electrical Engineering from Delhi College of Engineering (DCE), one of the premier engineering institute of India. A fascination for Science & Technology and keen interest in the ever-evolving world of technology motivated me to take up engineering. I chose to major in Electrical Engineering with an intense urge to delve into this challenging field. During my undergraduate program I learned the fundamentals of Electrical Engineering which together with practical course work reinforced my interest in the same. Today power is becoming a scarce commodity and with so much carbon emissions I realised that there is a need to economise the usage of energy today. Therefore I was driven to take up a course which gives me an understanding of the Electrical field. The practical experience started with building robots in college. From the very beginning I took part in many competitions in which I could use my knowledge as a foundation to make something innovative and different. During my first year of undergraduate studies, I designed line follower robots and participated in IEEE sponsored National Level Robotics competition. The third year of undergraduation was a breakthrough in my life, when I came across a subject of Power Electronics which developed a huge interest in semiconductor technology and Electric drives. Hence I pursued internship at Bombardier Transportation, one of the major transportation firm which deliver rolling stock for DMRC (Delhi Metro Rail Corporation). There I learnt about propulsion and supply system of Bombardier MOVIA Metro cars which facilitated me with the knowledge of application of electric drives in MRTS. At the same time, I was introduced to the world of Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) and Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system by my Prof. Madhusudan Singh. I made sure that I learn the system even though it was completely new for me. As I progressed through understanding of the subject more deeply, I decided to use its application for my final year project on SCADA based energy management and control of three phase load. In this project I interfaced a digital electronic energy meter with SCADA which was connected to PLC machine. Real time Data was used for event logging and subsequent control of three phase load. Energy management was achieved by controlling the speed of induction motor connected to PLC on the basis of load. The project was a huge achievement at undergraduate level as the project was one of a kind. In my final year, I came across a golden opportunity to represent my university in International Future Energy Challenge, 2011. My team and I worked on a problem statement given by IFEC 2011 (International Future Energy Challenge) i.e. to develop a Low power Induction Motor Drive System Supplied from a Single Photovoltaic Panel for Emergency Water Treatment . We presented this project at the final event, held in Rio de Janerio, Brazil under the guidance of Asst. Prof. Vishal Verma. My role was to develop a highly efficient drive by using Vector (decoupled) control. I assumed responsibility to work on Field oriented control so as to improve the dynamic performance of the machine. Since the source was itself of sporadic character i.e. solar panel, a stable operation was needed even in flux-weakening region or partial daylight. For this a mathematical model was developed on Matrix Laboratory (MATLAB). One of the arduous tasks during simulation was tuning of PI controller which was solved by borrowing some ideas from several research papers. Other problems were faced during execution of the hardware part, as proper co-ordination was required between different components of DC-AC converter. This project proved to be a huge learning platform for me as I came across new and various technologies to develop an efficient system which increased my awareness about different drives. The future impact of such model will be extensive as harnessing renewable or clean energy in efficient systems is an urgent need for the human population to equip ourselves to effectively address the present global energy crisis. After graduation I started working for Larsen & Toubro, one of the prominent firms in engineering sector. My internship at Bombardier Transportation developed a huge interest in MRTS which drove me to go for Indias First Monorail project in Mumbai. Currently the project is in execution state. My work profile is related to power system engineering and traction. I have the responsibility to provide DC traction power to rolling stock inverter. Working here has given me an opportunity to develop an understanding of co-ordination between Rolling stock and traction. Here I learnt about the propulsion

system of rolling stock which is indeed working on same drive algorithm i.e. Field oriented Control which has furthered my interest to pursue higher studies in this field. My research interest primarily lies in the field of power electronics and electric drives. Renewable energy sources like solar and wind power offers the potential of sustainable, carbon neutral electricity but pose a technological challenge because of their intermittent character. I believe that research in the field of power electronics will be able to provide efficient solutions to issues such as grid integration of renewable energy resources, efficient lighting systems, and development of regenerative braking in hybrid vehicles. The research in Renewable energy sector, especially on wind energy is growing rapidly in Netherlands. Since wind conditions are more preferable there, lot of Research organizations and institutes are contributing to achieve its goal of generating 15-20% of its electricity by means of wind power in 2020, both onshore and offshore. DUWIND is one such organization of Delft University of Technology, which has five research groups working towards solving problems related to unsteady aerodynamic loads, offshore support structures, electric energy conversion and Grid integration of wind farms. If I were free to select my project, I would like to do my research in Power electronics based AC drives to improve the efficiency of electrical energy conversion during regeneration in hybrid as well as electrical vehicles and to reuse or store the developed energy for further use. As Lot of energy is either wasted as heat or diverted to resistor bank for dissipation. Also I would like to explore various ways of switching techniques by which one can improve drive efficiency.

Henceforth a desire to further expand my knowledge motivated me to pursue graduate studies in Electrical Engineering at Delft University of Technology, Netherlands. TU Delft is one of the top universities in Netherlands having a fine record of academic excellence with expert faculty and research facilities. I believe that being a part of the ongoing research at DUWIND on harnessing wind energy for the potential. Thus, I look forward to begin my research career in Power electronics based alternative energy and drives system where I can provide a valuable input through my perseverance and understanding. I am convinced that admission to the University will be tremendously beneficial to my overall intellectual development. I sincerely hope that I am considered suitably competent to pursue graduate studies in your esteemed university.