Date & Time: 
Thu, 03/01/2018 - 11:30am
Speaker: 
Babu Chalamala
Affiliation: 
Sandia National Laboratories
Location: 

Discovery Park F175

Abstract: 

We are on the verge of a major transformation in the electricity infrastructure over the next ten to twenty years. This is driven by the need to modernize an aging infrastructure, make the grid resilient, and the integration of distributed generation on a large scale. As we transition towards a greater role for renewables and distributed generation, addressing intermittency and providing grid operators flexible assets to efficiently manage the grid is critical. Energy storage is essential for the grid of the future and we will begin to integrate energy storage into the grid infrastructure at a scale we have not considered until now. In this presentation, I will present trends and future of grid modernization, role of energy storage in the grid of the future, discuss gaps in technology and implementation of energy storage in the grid infrastructure, and present an overview of current research in grid energy storage.

Babu Chalamala
Biography: 

Dr. Babu Chalamala is Manager of Grid Energy Storage at Sandia National Laboratories. Prior to joining Sandia in 2015, he spent twenty years in the industry, mostly recently as a Corporate Fellow at MEMC Electronic Materials/SunEdison where he led R&D and product development in grid scale energy storage. Before that, he was involved in two startup companies for seven years. He spent early part of his research career at Motorola and Texas Instruments where he made contribution to electronic materials and display technologies. He received a B.Tech. degree in Electronics and Communications Engineering and a PhD in Physics. An IEEE Fellow, he currently serves as Secretary of IEEE PES Energy Storage and Stationary Battery Committee. He is also active in the Materials Research Society, where he served in many leadership roles including service as Co-chair of the 2006 MRS Fall meeting.

Department:

Mechanical Engineering