Scholarship overview
Degree level
Postgraduate doctoral
Value
Full Tuition Fees (Home rate), 4 year bursary (UKRI London rate + £4000 pa industry top-up) and RTSG
Number of awards
1
Academic year
2026/2027
Tuition fee status
Home
Mode of study
Full time
Available to
Prospective students
Application deadline
26/08/2026
Additional information
Available to applicants in the following departments
- Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Eligibility criteria
Applicants should have a first-class Master’s degree (or equivalent) in any field of engineering, physics or mathematics. The ideal candidate would alsohave a background in Electrical and Power Engineering, and Control Systems. They should be highly motivated individuals with a keen interest inconducting interdisciplinary research. Students must also meet the eligibility requirements for postgraduate studies at Imperial College London.
Please note: This scholarship is available to new entrants only. Students already studying the course are not eligible.
Application process
Please choose Electrical and Electronic Engineering Research Program and Control and Power Research Group, then indicate Dr Giordano Scarciotti asa potential supervisor when making the application.
The application should include a covering letter (explaining your motivation, relevant background and evidence of excellence in academic studies) and your CV. Once you have applied, email the application number “APPxxxxxxxxx” to Dr. GiordanoScarciotti.
For queries regarding the application process, please contact eee.pgadmissions@imperial.ac.uk.
Closing Date: Open until filled
Additional information
A PhD Studentship titled “Modelling and Control of Harmonic Phenomena in Renewable Energy”
Position Summary:
Applications are invited for a PhD studentship to be undertaken at Imperial College London (Control and Power Research Group, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering).
This studentship is funded by an EPSRC Industrial Doctoral Landscape Award (IDLA) and industrial partner EDF – specifically EDF power solutions UK&I and EDF R&D UK. EDF power solutions UK&I is a major renewable energy company, with more than 14 GW of renewables projects in planning and development. With a portfolio of 42 sites across the UK, including onshore, offshore, battery and solar, EDF power solutions UK&I is providing some of the much needed new affordable, low carbon electricity in the UK. EDF R&D UK delivers research and innovation to all business units and subsidiaries of EDF.
The project will be supervised by Dr. Giordano Scarciotti (Imperial - Academic Supervisor), Dr James Wylie (EDF power solutions – Industrial Supervisor), and Dr Roberto Moreira (EDF R&D UK – Industrial Supervisor). As part of the project, the student will have the opportunity to visit and work closely with the industrial supervisors at EDF offices (in London) and benefit from their mentoring and supervision.
Summary of Project:
The increased penetration of renewables is a vital part of the energy transition, however the growth of inverter-based resources (IBRs) such as solar and wind generation can introduce complexity and disrupt the coherency of classical generators, giving rise to unexplained phenomena. Renewable developers are facing a challenge around grid compliance when connecting renewable projects to the transmission network. Specifically, despite harmonic studies reporting no problems, subharmonics appear unexpectedly in the interconnected system. The fact that these subharmonics are not detected by the studies highlights that there is a knowledge gap between the current understanding of the power grid and the complex behaviour caused by the introduction of IBRs.
Without the ability to understand and estimate harmonics at the design and procurement phases, renewable developers are having to rely on costly ad-hoc solutions, such as filters. This project aims to investigate the causes of these subharmonic phenomena from a systems and control point of view, develop new models that can capture these behaviours, and potentially design control methods to alleviate their effects.
Objectives:
The objectives of the projects are:
Explain what causes the appearance (and sudden disappearance) of harmonic behaviours.
Explain why these phenomena are not correctly captured by current models and simulation studies.
Incorporate these identified causes into new harmonic studies.
Develop control solutions to eliminate these subharmonics.
Determine the key factors that impact grid compliance (including and beyond harmonics) and develop mitigating actions.
Novelty and Expected Outcomes:
This project addresses a critical knowledge gap in understanding and mitigating subharmonic phenomena arising from the increased penetration of IBRs into power systems. By developing advanced nonlinear modelling techniques and innovative algorithms, the project will uncover the root causes of subharmonic behaviours and integrate these insights into improved harmonic studies. Novel control solutions will be devised to eliminate subharmonics, ensuring grid compliance, and enhancing system reliability.
The expected outcomes include a fundamental advancement in the theory of subharmonic behaviours, validated through realistic case studies with EDF, and practical methodologies for renewable grid connections. These contributions will help minimise financial losses for renewable developers, streamline compliance processes, and support the transition to net-zero energy systems by improving the operational stability of future grids.
Why Join This Project?
Joining this project offers the unique opportunity to tackle cutting-edge challenges in modelling of renewable energy integration, a critical field driving the global transition to net-zero. You will work at the forefront of power and nonlinear systems research, developing innovative solutions to address subharmonic phenomena that impact grid compliance and renewable energy deployment.
Giordano Scarciotti leads the “Modelling, Analysis and Control of compleX systems” (MAC-X) lab and is an expert in control theory and nonlinear systems. He is a member of the Control and Power Group and the recipient of several awards, including the IEEE Transactions on Control Systems Technology Outstanding Paper Award 2023. He is a member of several international technical committees and has served as the Chair of the National Organising Committee of multiple conferences. He maintains an outreach YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@Prof_Gio
The research will take place in the Control and Power group, a research group constituted of 9 power system academics, 8 control engineering academics and more than 100 PhD students and post-docs. ARWU ranked Imperial in 2025 as 3rd in the world (1st in Europe) in "Automation and Control", and 5th in world (1st in Europe) in "Energy Science and Engineering".
Collaborating with world-class researchers at Imperial’s top-ranked Control and Power group, and with industry leaders like EDF, you will gain invaluable expertise in nonlinear modelling, control systems, and real-world applications. You will also have the opportunity to visit and work at EDF premises in London, experience real-world business challenges and benefit from a collaborative, multidisciplinary network of engineers.
This project provides a pathway to impactful contributions in both academia and industry, preparing you for a career shaping the future of sustainable energy systems.
Funding:
This PhD studentship is jointly funded by the EPSRC and EDF and it has nationality restrictions as follows.
Home fee status students will enjoy a fully funded scholarship including salary and fees. This includes an EPSRC rate stipend of approximately £22,780 per year (tax-free) plus £4000 per year (tax-free) top-up from industry for four years, in addition to economic support for research expenses, travel to collaborators, conferences, and a secondment at EDF.
Non-Home fee status students (i.e. Overseas fee status) will be considered only in exceptional cases as the scholarship does not cover Overseas fees. In this case, the applicant will need to fund the difference in fee cost between Home and Overseas, either with an additional scholarship or by being partially self-funded.
The student must start by the first day of the 2026/27 academic year (26 September 2026).
Duties and responsibilities
The responsibilities include studying the relevant literature, defining the research problems based on the project descriptions, conducting independent research, regularly reporting progress and results in both oral and written format, collaborating with other team-members, and writing reports/papers of the research outcomes when appropriate.
The successful candidate will be based at the Control and Power Group at Imperial College London but will have the opportunity to visit EDF to attend meetings and undertake a secondment at their premises (in London).
Contact
If you have any additional questions, please contact us at g.scarciotti@imperial.ac.uk.