Summary
My research revolves around the integration of energy storage, electric vehicles and renewables into urban and rural city infrastructures. I also investigate carbon mitigation pathways with a focus on energy and climate impacts of emerging technologies such as decarbonised liquid fuels.
I am interested in decarbonisation pathways for existing power systems through decentralisation and electric power market reforms where individuals and communities would have greater control over their energy choices.
keywords
- Projects on distributed renewables and energy storage, electric vehicles, and electric power markets.
- Low-carbon electricity and transportation infrastructure planning
- Convex optimisation; Heuristic design and optimisation.
- Machine learning; cluster analysis; numerical models.
- Techno-economic analysis; life-cycle assessments.
BIOGRAPHY
I am currently an Imperial College Research Fellow at the Grantham Institute and the Department of Physics. I was previously at University of California San Diego, where I worked on a range of different projects such as solar resource forecasting using sky imagers, grid-connected performance testing of battery modules, and power system modelling of cities and micro-grids that heavily adopt solar photovoltaics and energy storage systems. I completed my graduate studies at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and University of California San Diego.
POSITIONS CURRENTLY AVAILABLE:
- (Internal) Imperial College students: I supervise BSc, MSc and PhD students from Physics, Electrical Engineering, and Centre for Environmental Policy on a wide range of projects ranging from electric vehicles to sustainable fuels. Please contact me to discuss opportunities.
Project links
Electric Vehicle fleet Optimisation for Lowering Vehicle Emissions: EVOLVE
Science and Solutions for a Changing Planet: SSCP DTP
Selected Publications
Journal Articles
Ortega-Arriaga P, Babacan O, Nelson J, et al., 2021, Grid versus off-grid electricity access options: A review on the economic and environmental impacts, Renewable & Sustainable Energy Reviews, Vol:143, ISSN:1364-0321, Pages:1-17
Moss B, Babacan O, Kafizas A, et al., 2021, A review of inorganic photoelectrode developments and reactor scale-up challenges for solar hydrogen production, Advanced Energy Materials, Vol:11, ISSN:1614-6832, Pages:1-43
Abdulla A, Hanna R, Schell KR, et al., 2021, Explaining successful and failed investments in US carbon capture and storage using empirical and expert assessments, Environmental Research Letters, Vol:16, ISSN:1748-9326
Babacan O, De Causmaecker S, Gambhir A, et al., 2020, Assessing the feasibility of carbon dioxide mitigation options in terms of energy usage, Nature Energy, Vol:5, ISSN:2058-7546, Pages:720-728
Babacan O, Abdulla A, Hanna R, et al., 2018, Unintended Effects of Residential Energy Storage on Emissions from the Electric Power System, Environmental Science & Technology, Vol:52, ISSN:0013-936X, Pages:13600-13608
Babacan O, Ratnam EL, Disfani VR, et al., 2017, Distributed energy storage system scheduling considering tariff structure, energy arbitrage and solar PV penetration, Applied Energy, Vol:205, ISSN:0306-2619, Pages:1384-1393
Babacan O, Torre W, Kleissl J, 2017, Siting and sizing of distributed energy storage to mitigate voltage impact by solar PV in distribution systems, Solar Energy, Vol:146, ISSN:0038-092X, Pages:199-208