July 29: Michael Craig, University of Michigan
Michael Craig
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Assistant Professor in Energy Systems, University of Michigan
"Electric Power Systems in a Changing Climate"
View a recording of this talk.
About the Talk: Climate change might impact various components of the bulk electric power system, including electricity demand; transmission; and thermal, hydropower, wind, and solar generators. Most research in this area quantifies impacts on one or a few components and does not link these impacts to effects on power system planning and operations. In his talk, Michael Craig will present his recent collaborations on how climate change will affect bulk power system planning and operations. Those collaborations include quantifying compounding effects of climate change on thermal plant availability, wind and solar resources, and electricity demand in Texas; and optimizing generator investment decisions given atmospheric and hydrological impacts in the Southeast United States.
About the Speaker: Michael Craig primarily researches how to reduce global and local environmental impacts of electric power and other energy systems. In prior work, he quantified the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions reduction potential of new technologies, such as rooftop solar, grid-scale batteries, and carbon capture and sequestration (CCS). He focuses on system-level analysis to understand the deployment potential and operations of new technologies given the constraints and features of the larger system in which they are embedded. Through system analyses, his research also illuminates how the operations and evolution of energy systems respond to new technologies and other factors, e.g. nonstationary environmental conditions induced by climate change. He loves collaborations with other disciplines, and has worked with economists, climate scientists, and others.