Power Engineering Courses:

The Electrical and Computer Engineering Department offers most of the courses which are at the heart of power engineering. Other departments involved are the Mechanical, Materials and Aerospace Engineering Department, and the Stuart School of Business.

Please select a course from menu to see a course description, prerequisites, and credit hours.

Course Descriptions:

ECE 319: Fundamentals of Power Engineering
Review of three phase circuit analysis. Principles of electromechanical energy conversion Fundamentals of the operation of transformers, DC machines, synchronous machines, induction machines, and fractional horsepower machines. Introduction to electronic motor drives. Introduction to power network models. The per unit system. Newton-Raphson power flow. Symmetrical three phase faults. The laboratory includes the operation, analysis, and performance of transformers, motors, and generators. The laboratory experiments also involve the use of PC based software applied to power engineering analysis and design. Prerequisites: ECE 213, ECE 214, PHYS 221. (3-0-3)

ECE 411: Power Electronics
Power electronic circuits and switching devices such as power transistors, MOSFETs, SCRs, GTOs, IGBTs, and UJTs are studied. Their applications in AC/DC, DC/DC, DC/AC, and AC/AC converters as well as switching power supplies are explained. Simulation mini-projects and lab experiments emphasize power electronic circuit analysis, design, and control. Prerequisites: ECE 311 (3-3-4)

ECE 412: Electric Motor Drives
Fundamentals of electric motor drives are studied. Applications of semiconductor switching circuits to adjustable speed drives, robotics, and traction are explored. Selection of motors and drives, calculating the ratings, speed control, position control, starting, and braking are also covered. Simulation mini-projects and lab experiments are based on the lectures given. Prerequisites: ECE 308, ECE 311, ECE 319 (3-3-4)

ECE 419: Power Systems Analysis
Transmission systems analysis and design. Large scale network analysis using Newton-Raphson load flow. Unsymmetrical short-circuit studies. Detailed consideration of the swing equation and the equal-area criterion for power system stability studies. Prerequisites: ECE 319. (3-0-3)

ECE 420: Analytical Methods in Power Systems
Fundamentals of power systems operation and planning, power system dynamics and control. Design of reliable power systems, power systems security analysis, optimal scheduling of power generation, estimation of power system state. Economic operation of power systems with consideration of transmission losses. Prerequisites: ECE 309. (3-0-3)

ECE 505: Applied Optimization for Engineers
Principles of optimization for practical engineering problems, linear programming, nonlinear unconstrained optimization, nonlinear constrained optimization, dynamic programming. Prerequisite: B.S. degree in engineering, math or science, or permission of instructor. (3-0-3)

ECE 540: Reliability Theory and System Implementation
Basic probability and modeling techniques on component, subsystem and system levels. MTBF, MTTR and downtime. Hardware, software and cost considerations. Switching systems. Multicomputer and memory configurations. Prerequisites: ECE 308 and ECE 475 or MATH 475. (3-0-3)

ECE 550: Power Electronic Dynamics and Control
Modeling and analysis of solid-state switching circuits, parallel module dynamics, multi-converter interactions, resonant converters, feedback control, stability assessment, reduced parts converters, integrated structures, programmable switching regulators, digital switch-mode controllers, and power electronic converter-on-a-chip development. Prerequisite: ECE 411 (3-0-3)

ECE 551: Advanced Power Electronic Converters
Advanced power electronic converters, techniques to model and control switching circuits, resonant converters, multilevel converters, Pulse-Width-Modulation (PWM) techniques, soft switching methods, and low-voltage high-current design issues are studied. Single-phase and multiphase, controlled and uncontrolled rectifiers and inverters with different operating techniques and their design and control issues are explained. Prerequisites: ECE 411 (3-0-3)

ECE 552: Adjustable Speed Drives
Fundamentals of electric machines, basic principles of variable speed controls, field orientation theory, direct torque control, vector control of AC drives, induction machines, switched reluctance and synchronous reluctance motors, permanent magnet brushless DC drives, converter topologies of DC and AC drives, and sensorless operation. Prerequisites: ECE 411 (3-0-3)

ECE 553: Power System Planning
Model development. Interchange capability, interconnections, pooling. Economic generator size and site selection. Concept of reserves, transformers, relays and circuit breakers. Reactive planning AC and DC systems are explored thoroughly from a planning standpoint. Prerequisite: ECE 419. (3-0-3)

ECE 554: Power Systems Relaying
Principles of relay protection for faults on transmission lines and in transformers, rotating machines and other equipment. Use of overcurrent, differential, distance, wire-pilot, carrier-pilot and microwave-pilot relaying systems. Solid-state relays and computer control of relaying. Determination of short-circuit currents and voltages from system studies. Prerequisite: ECE 419. (3-0-3)

ECE 557: Fault-Tolerant Power Systems
Critical fault events in a large power system, sparsity techniques. Contingency screening process. Modeling of local controls in load flow. Adaptive localization method. Injection outage analysis. Security constrained dispatch. LP-based OPF. Real-time security analysis. Dynamic security analysis. Prerequisite: ECE 419.
(3-0-3)

ECE 558: Power System Reliability
The concept of reliability, reliability indices, component reliability, generation capacity reserve evaluation, transmission system reliability, bulk power system reliability, distributed system reliability, reliability modeling in context. Prerequisite: ECE 419
(3-0-3)

ECE 559: High Voltage Power Transmission
Detailed analysis of transmission and distribution systems. Design of high voltage transmission lines and cables, as well as distribution lines. Flexible AC Transmission Systems (FACTS) and high voltage DC links. Prerequisite: ECE 419. (3-0-3)

ECE 560: Power Systems Dynamics and Stability
The transient stability problem, acceleration equations, stability criteria, two-machine and multimachine problems. Perturbation analysis, eigenvalue sensitivity, Liapunov theory and application to power systems stability. Prerequisite: ECE 420. (3-0-3)

ECE 561: Deregulated Power System
Technical, economic, & regulatory issues involved in the deregulation of the power industry. Challenges in decentralized control of power systems. Modifications to unit commitment, economic dispatch, & interchange scheduling, optimal power flow tools to be used by ISO. Price-based scheduling and dispatch of electricity contrasted with traditional cost-based operation. Use of risk management tools such as financial options, futures, & portfolio valuation in power system planning given the new uncertain environment. Prerequisites: ECE 557 or ECE 564. (3-0-3)

ECE 562: Power System Transaction Management
Power interchange transaction management in the deregulated electric power industry. Course topics include: power system security assessment, total and available transfer capability (TTC/ATC), transaction management system (TMS), transaction information system (TIS), "tagging," interchange distribution calculator (IDC), congestion management, transmission loading relief (TLR). Prerequisite: ECE 419. (3-0-3)

ECE 563: Computational Intelligence in Engineering
Introduction to soft computing, fuzzy set theory, neural networks, genetic algorithms, intelligent software agents, comparisons with traditional alternatives, advanced engineering applications. Prerequisite: B.S.E.E. or B.S.C.S. degree. (3-0-3)

ECE 564: Control and Operation of Electric Power Systems
Unit commitment and application of dynamic programming, fuel budgeting and planning, probabilistic production cost modeling, hydrothermal coordination, power system security and application of expert systems, state estimation, optimal power flow, interchange evaluation and power pools, reactive power planning. Prerequisite: ECE 419. (3-0-3)

ECE 591: Research and Thesis for MS Degree

ECE 597: Special Problems

ECE 650: Advanced Topics in Power Systems
Course content is variable and reflects the current trends in power systems. Prerequisite: ECE 419. (3-0-3)

ECE 691: Research and Thesis for Ph.D. Degree

ECE 695 & ECE 696: Doctoral Seminar I & Doctoral Seminar II

Courses

ECE students giving a poster presentation based on their research.

Fall 2002 Courses:

ECE 411
ECE 419
ECE 552
ECE 555
ECE 557

All courses are also offered for remote TV and Internet students through IITV and IIT-Online.

Registration Links:

• Tentative 5-Year Course Plan for 400 and 500 level ECE Classes
• Web for Students: Course Schedule
• IITV
• IIT-Online