I am an experienced academic with research and teaching experience of nine years as a Lecturer/Assistant Professor and four years as a Research Post-Graduate. I have also worked as a Post-Doctoral Research Associate on multiple projects. Currently, I am working as a Senior Teaching Fellow at Imperial College London. I am a Senior Member of IEEE (SMIEEE), a Fellow of The Higher Education Academy (FHEA), a Chartered Engineer (CEng) registered with the Engineering Council UK, and a Professional Engineer registered with Pakistan Engineering Council.
I received BSc (Honours) in Electrical Engineering from the University of Engineering and Technology (UET), Lahore, Pakistan. I received a gold medal from the Prime Minister of Pakistan on the 19th Convocation of UET Lahore for securing the first position in Electrical Engineering specialisation in Power Systems. I received my master’s degree in Electrical Power Engineering from UET Lahore. During my master’s studies, I was an Erasmus Mundus (EURECA) exchange student at the University of Paderborn, Germany. I received my PhD in Electrical Engineering from Imperial College London. I was funded by the Commonwealth Scholarship for his PhD studies.
I have won several staff awards for outstanding contributions at Imperial College London (2020, 2021). I was awarded the prestigious Commonwealth Scholarship to undertake my PhD studies (2013). I got the highest teaching evaluation in the department at UET Lahore (2012). Also, I was awarded a Gold Medal by the Prime Minister of Pakistan for securing 1st position in Electrical Engineering specialization in Power Systems (2010).
The details of my teaching and research are given below:
Teaching:
I am currently working as a Senior Teaching Fellow in the Electrical and Electronics Engineering Department, Imperial College London. I joined the department as a Strategic Teaching Fellow in October 2017 and became a Senior Teaching Fellow in August 2020.
In my current role as a Senior Teaching Fellow at Imperial College London, I have been teaching both theory classes and laboratory sessions. I have also been conducting oral/written examinations, supervising master’s theses, and group projects. I am supervising a PhD student. I am also working with the department’s IT and the educational team to contribute to the development of the departmental IT strategy and policy. I am trying to lead the technology-driven teaching in my department. I am responsible for all the online exams on WiseFlow. I am also leading the VLE (Blackboard) management for the whole department. I try to act as a bridge between the academics in my department and the Educational Technology team. I have taken several initiatives in the last three years, like conducting midterm tests on Wiseflow, using video demonstrations to facilitate laboratory teaching, training the education office staff on conducting the exams on Blackboard during the College closure due to the pandemic, training GTAs, and helping other members of staff with the VLE. I am also currently developing a module that is 100% online.
I lead the remote teaching organization during the COVID-19 pandemic. I designed remote and virtual laboratories. I have won several departmental awards like Inspiration Award, Teamwork Award and Collaboration Award for outstanding contribution to teaching and learning during the pandemic. I was also nominated for President’s Award for Excellence (Student Experience).
As an active member of the Curriculum Review Team at Imperial College London, I conducted interviews of all the faculty members of EEE the department to build a curriculum map by determining the learning outcomes of all modules. This curriculum map highlighted the links between different modules based on their learning outcomes which were vital for revising the curriculum. I have been actively involved in curriculum revision to transform teaching and learning pedagogy using modern technology. I have also recently finished my PG Cert in University Learning and Teaching. I focused on modules related to digital learning, and assessment and feedback as I am mostly involved in these activities in the department. I am also working as an external examiner for Teesside University.
Previously, I have worked as a Lecturer/Assistant Professor at the Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Engineering and Technology (UET), Lahore, Pakistan. I joined UET Lahore as a Lecturer in September 2008 and became an Assistant Professor in December 2012. I worked there until September 2013. I have also worked as a Graduate Teaching Assistant at Imperial College London.
Research:
Currently, I am supervising a PhD student. His PhD project focuses on solving the weak-grid instability problem which poses a threat to the sustainable operation of futuristic power systems. The research aims to build system models and subsequently design optimal control parameters on both AC and DC sides of VSC that ensures smooth operation of the power system. The research also targets to design a coordination strategy among multiple converters to provide highly reliable power operations and market participation.
I have worked as a Post-Doctoral Research Associate at Queen Mary University, London on two different research projects. The first project focused on developed control strategies for autonomous control of AC/DC microgrids with energy storage and power electronic compensators for voltage and/or frequency control. It involved the investigation of reduction in energy storage requirements of AC/DC microgrids in the presence of power electronic compensators. It also involved a study on the coordination of power electronic compensators in a distribution system.
The second project involved the development of a multi-physics sensor array for power electronic converter prognostics. The aim was to create a sensing platform to quantify the health status of power electronic modules with electric vehicle drive systems, using an array of multi-physical sensors to generate a spatially sparse IMAGE of measurements. This IMAGE consisted of temperature, electrical quantities (V, I, Z), mechanical displacement (wire bond movement/device deformity) at different time scales. There were four partner universities and two industrial partners in this project. I also provided guidance and supervision to PhD students working in the group. I have published several papers in high impact factor journals and international conferences.
I worked on a PhD under the supervision of Dr Balarko Chaudhuri, at Control and Power Group, Imperial College London. During my PhD, I work on the development of an integrated approach to voltage control and demand response in distribution networks by autonomous control of power electronic compensators to increase the number of renewable energy units in power systems. It involved the modelling of distribution systems, distributed generation, and electric vehicles. I studied the effects of high penetration of renewable generation and electric vehicles in a distribution system, and how system parameters can be controlled by using distributed power electronic converters (with or without battery storage).
My current research interests include distributed voltage control, demand response, renewable energy integration in distribution networks, and smart grids.
| Get in Touch | Visit Me |
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| Professional Email: z.akhtar@imperial.ac.uk Personal Email: zohaibakhtarkhan@gmail.com Office: +44 (0)20 7594 6310 Mobile: +44 (0)7425 308292 Click here for other ways to get in touch | Room 401 EEE Building, South Kensington Campus Imperial College London, SW7 2AZ London, United Kingdom Click here for directions |
