On Monday, December 05, 2022, Prof. Dr. Sina Ober-Blöbaum (Numerics and Control) and Prof. Dr.-Ing. Henning Meschede (Power Systems Engineering) held their inaugural lectures in lecture hall O1. Prof. Dr. Peter Schreier, Dean of the Faculty of Computer Science, Electrical Engineering and Mathematics welcomed the audience at the beginning of the event and introduced both of them.
Prof. Dr. Sina Ober-Blöbaum started first with her lecture on "Geometric numerical methods in simulation and optimal control of dynamic systems". She explained why it is essential to include characteristic properties such as the geometry of the system in order to increase both the efficiency of computational methods and the quality of an approximated solution. In her talk, she first introduced variational integrators. This is a special class of structure-preserving integrators that inherits geometric properties of the system (such as conservation of energy, symplecticity, and momentum mappings induced by symmetries) to the numerical solution.
In addition to the construction and analysis of high-order variational integrators, extensions of these integrators for different classes of systems are presented. Ms. Ober-Blöbaum showed how dissipative systems can be modeled and simulated variationally using fractional derivatives, how multirate integrators are constructed for systems with dynamics on different time scales, and how symplectic methods are used for the numerical solution of optimal control problems. In addition, it was shown how symmetries in the dynamical system can be exploited to solve optimal control and planning problems in a particularly efficient way. In particular, recent results on connections between symmetries in dynamical systems and turnpike properties of the optimal control problem were presented.
Ms. Ober-Blöbaum received her PhD in applied mathematics from the Paderborn University in 2008. From 2008 to 2009, she was a postdoctoral researcher at the California Institute of Technology, CA, USA, before returning to the Institute of Mathematics at the Paderborn University as an assistant professor from 2009 to 2015. Prior to her appointment at Paderborn, she was Associate Professor of Control Engineering at the Department of Engineering Science and Tutorial Fellow in Engineering at Harris Manchester College, University of Oxford, from 2015 to 2020.
Afterwards, Prof. Dr.-Ing. Henning Meschede gave a lecture on "Integrated, regenerative energy systems as the basis of a sustainable economy". Since October 2020, the new endowed professorship for research and development of integrated, sustainable energy systems enriches the faculty. He previously completed his doctorate and conducted research at the University of Kassel, where he was already responsible for coordinating research collaborations with companies in the energy sector and leading research in the field of energy data. After a professional stay in the energy industry, he followed the call to the Paderborn University.
In his lecture, Professor Meschede will present the contribution that integrated, sustainable energy systems can make in the fight against climate change and in the sustainable use of resources. In particular, anthropogenic climate change is strongly influenced by our daily use of fossil fuels and the associated greenhouse gas emissions. In addition to the energy industry, fossil fuels are used primarily in industry to generate process heat, in households for space heating, and in transportation. An essential key to reducing greenhouse gas emissions is a successful energy transition in all these sectors. Integrated, sustainable energy systems are characterized by much more than the replacement of fossil power plants with photovoltaics and wind turbines. Based on current and future energy requirements, Professor Meschede used the example of the electrification of process heat to show that energy efficiency, sector coupling and flexibility are central components of integrated energy systems. By taking a holistic view of the different aspects of energy demand, energy demand and energy supply, solutions can contribute to a more sustainable economy. For Mr. Meschede, one thing is certain: "Energy from renewable systems will be the primary energy of the future.
