Projects

Selected research projects I have led or participated in, grouped by theme. Within each theme, ongoing and recent projects come first; older work is collected in the Earlier projects section at the bottom. For broader group activities, see METU PowerLab.

Electric machines for renewables

Direct‑drive and modular generators for wind, hydro, and wave energy — including superconducting topologies. Multi‑MW FEA design (electromagnetic, thermal, structural) and prototype validation.

2022-2024 EGEN, EÜAŞ EGEN – Design and Manufacturing of a 44 MVA Hydroelectric Generator: Funded by EÜAŞ to upgrade units at the Sarıyar Hydroelectric Power Station. New generators are locally designed by METU and manufactured by EÜAŞ; the aim is to modernize the generators and maximize efficiency while minimizing installation cost.
2021-2023 Aselsan UGES Design of a 4.3 MW Squirrel‑Cage Induction Generator for a Wind Turbine: FEA design and optimization (electromagnetic, thermal, structural) of a six‑phase SCIG with copper rotor ring. The prototype is manufactured by AEMOT and to be installed in a wind turbine by Aselsan in 2025.
2020-2022 DANIDA, Denmark WindFlag – Feasibility Analysis of Offshore Wind Power Plants in Turkey: Funded by the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs (DANIDA). The project specified the potential of large‑scale offshore wind in Turkey, assessed production capacity considering grid connection, and identified short‑ and long‑term grid effects. Project budget: €380.000.
2017 ASELSAN UGES Feasibility analysis and design of a 2.5 MW direct‑drive wind‑turbine generator: Techno‑economic comparison of generator technologies and detailed electromagnetic, structural, and thermal optimization of a direct‑drive generator using FEA. Project budget: 87.000 TL.
2015 Newton Fund Mobility Grant Design of a superconducting wind turbine prototype.
2014–2016 TUBITAK 2232 Design of modular and fault‑tolerant generators for direct‑drive wind turbines.

Power electronics with SiC & GaN

High‑efficiency converters from kW to hundreds of kW: PV string inverters, hybrid PV with storage, EV charger front‑ends, wireless power transfer, and grid‑side power quality systems.

2021-2024 Tübitak MAM Development of a 125 kW, 1500 V Photovoltaic String Inverter: National project funded by TUBITAK 1004; ODTÜ‑GÜNAM is the project coordinator. Our team is responsible for the 3‑level MPPT boost converters with SiC transistors. Eight MPPT converters feed a 125 kW NPC inverter. The boost converter achieved 99.5% efficiency; the inverter will be commercialized by TUBITAK‑MAM.
2021-2024 Tescom Development of a 5 kW Hybrid PV Inverter with Battery Storage: National project funded by the TUBITAK 1004 programme. A PV inverter with storage for domestic users; charge optimization and generation forecast algorithms developed. Prototypes will be commercialized by Tescom.
2020-2022 Newton Fund COMSA – Community‑based Off‑grid Ultra‑efficient Microgrid to Revive Water‑food Security in Agriculture: Partners UCL, KCL, METU, Ankara University. Microgrid and irrigation systems for rural areas using PV, wind, and hybrid energy storage. Project budget: £100.000.
2020-2022 TUBITAK 1001 Development of a 1 kW SiC, Modular Wireless Power Transfer System for Synchronous Machines: Modular WPT system to increase the reliability of synchronous generators for wind turbines as a viable alternative to high‑cost permanent‑magnet generators. Project budget: 420.000 TL.
2018-2019 USTDA METU Smart Campus Project: The only funded project from the USTDA Smart Cities 2016 call. Feasibility analysis of roof‑top PVs, electric shuttle bus, electric bike network, smart LED lighting, and CHP facilities for METU campus. Project signed in September 2017. Project budget: $830.000.
2017-2018 EnerjiSA – H2020 Pattern Recognition in Power Systems: EPR Project — pattern recognition for fault detection and predictive maintenance. METU’s work packages: synthetic inertia in wind turbines for power‑system stability, and distribution‑level power quality anomaly detection. Total project budget: €2.400.000.

PCB‑stator & integrated motor drives

Axial‑flux PCB‑stator machines, integrated modular motor drives with wide‑bandgap devices, and bespoke actuators for traction and robotics. This is one of the directions also being commercialized through Novator.

2023-2024 Koc Savunma PCB motors for autonomous steering applications: Development of a 50 W PCB motor small enough to fit inside a steering wheel. Position‑controlled for autonomous driving of agricultural vehicles.
2017-2018 TUBITAK 3501 Development of a 7.5 kW Permanent‑Magnet Integrated Modular Motor Drive System: IMMD with the motor and drive integrated into a single package, in several modules for fault tolerance. GaN power devices to reduce size and increase efficiency. Project budget: 177.000 TL.
2016 Andar Servo Design and manufacturing of a brushless PM servo motor.

Special‑purpose actuators & multi‑physics design

Custom electromagnetic devices for applications where a catalog motor or actuator will not do — coupled electromagnetic, thermal, mechanical, and structural design, FEA‑driven optimization, and prototype validation. This capability has been demonstrated across servo actuators, dampers, and large pulsed‑power devices.

2024-2025 Roketsan FEA Analysis and Optimization of an Air‑cored Spherical Actuator for Gimbal Applications: FEA‑based electromagnetic analysis and optimization of an air‑cored spherical actuator targeting gimbal applications.
2022-2024 Aselsan SST Electromagnetic Design and Optimization of a 10 MJ Electromagnetic Launcher – Phase VI: Second phase of the TUFAN project — a 10 MJ prototype suitable for repeated shots, with detailed 3D multi‑physics FEA models (electrical, mechanical force, thermal).
2017-2022 ASELSAN SST Electromagnetic Design and Optimization of a 10 MJ Electromagnetic Launcher – Phase III: 10 MJ TUFAN prototype design and testing, with detailed 3D FEA models for electrical, mechanical force, and thermal characteristics. Project budget: 392.000 TL.
2017-2018 ASELSAN MGEO Design of a high‑performance linear servo actuator and PCB motor: Two high‑performance actuators — linear and axial‑flux permanent magnet — designed and manufactured to be produced domestically. Project budget: 198.000 TL.
2016-2017 ASELSAN SST Electromagnetic Design and Optimization of a 200 kJ–2 MJ Electromagnetic Launcher: Electromagnetic and thermal analyses on the TUFAN railgun project; 3D FEA models for electrical, mechanical force, and thermal characteristics. Project budget: 397.000 TL.
2016 Andar Servo Design and manufacturing of an eddy‑current damper for aerospace application.

Earlier projects

Earlier work from my PhD and post‑doctoral years, kept here for reference.

2016 BAP Design of a Modular Data Acquisition Board.
2013 United Arab Emirates Univ. Design of a 5 kW permanent‑magnet linear generator test rig.
2013 GE Power Conversion Validation of the superconducting generator topology developed during my PhD. GE supplied the superconducting coil and test facilities for the cryogenic tests.
2011–2014 EU FP7 Marina Platform Project — EU FP7 project with 17 industrial and academic partners; full‑time researcher comparing generator topologies and power take‑off systems for combined wave/wind energy platforms.
2011 NGenTec Design consultant: electromagnetic optimization of a 5 MW, 300 rpm medium‑speed permanent‑magnet generator.
2010 NGenTec Design and optimization of a 1 MW, 12 rpm direct‑drive PM generator for a wind turbine. Machine manufactured and successfully tested.
2010 SMART R&D Grant Design and testing of a 25 kW axial‑flux PM generator; experimental evaluation of thermal performance and cooling.
2010 Hayward Tyler Feasibility analysis of a submerged and flooded PM generator — thermal performance, corrosion mechanisms, and fluid drag losses.
2009–2010 NPower Feasibility analysis of direct‑drive PM generators for wave energy converters (Aquamarine Power, AWS Ocean Power) and tidal energy converters (Marine Current Turbines, Scotrenewables). Analytical and optimization tool developed and licensed by the University of Edinburgh.