Dr Weiqi Hua PhD, MIEEE,MIET

Dr Weiqi Hua

Department of Electronic, Electrical and Systems Engineering
Assistant Professor in Energy Systems

Contact details

Email
w.hua@bham.ac.uk
View my research portal
Address
School of Engineering
Department of Electronic Electrical and Systems Engineering
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT
UK

Dr Weiqi Hua is an Assistant Professor in Energy Systems with the Department of Electronic, Electrical and Systems Engineering at the University of Birmingham (U.K.) since 2023. He took postdoctoral positions at the University of Oxford (U.K.) and Cardiff University (U.K.). He received his Ph.D. degree from the University of Durham (U.K.) in 2020, co-funded by Hyundai Motor Company and Durham Research Doctoral Scholarship. He was the visiting researcher to the Hellenic Telecommunications Organisation (OTE), Greece in 2019, and visiting researcher to the Chinese Academy of Sciences, China in 2018 and 2019.

Dr Hua is the founder of Energy Digits. In 2023, Dr Hua earned a distinguished spot on the Forbes 100 Most Influential Chinese, an accolade that acknowledges his contributions to research and knowledge transfer in the fields of energy and low-carbon futures. He has edited the book ‘Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence Technologies for Smart Energy Systems’, and published a chapter ‘Microgrids and Local Energy Systems’. His research has contributed to the written evidence (DHH0053) of UK Parliament discussions on heat decarbonisation.

His research interests include:
i) energy system modelling and optimisation,
ii) renewable energy integration,
iii) digitalisation, digital twin, and machine learning for energy system analytics,
iv) energy policy and economics,
v) Local energy markets and peer-to-peer energy trading.

Dr Hua is an Editorial Board Member of Applied Energy, and Editorial Board Member of Oxford Open Energy. He served as the Lead Guest Editor for the Special Issue on the topic of Blockchain based local energy market in IET Smart Grid, Guest Editor for the Special Issue on the topic of digitalisation of energy systems in Oxford Open Energy, and Guest Editor for the Special Issue on the topic of energy-water nexus in Water.

Dr Hua has been appointed as the regional chair for the 8th International Conference on Power and Renewable Energy, sessional chair for CEN2023 Applied Energy Symposium, 2023 International Conference on Resource Sustainability, IEEE SmartGridComm 2018, and IEEE International Smart Cities Conference 2017. He was a technical program committee (TPC) member for IEEE SmartGridComm 2020, IEEE International Smart Cities Conference 2021, and IEEE SmartGridComm 2023. 

Dr Hua has served as a member of the equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) Committee, the Athena Swan SAT working group, and Representor of the Publicity Committee at the University of Birmingham.

Dr Hua has undertaken research projects collaborating with academia and industries, including:
i) “Clean Heat Streets”, BEIS Heat Pump Ready.
ii) “Analytical Middleware for Informed Distribution Networks (AMIDiNe)”, EPSRC.
iii) “Maximising Flexibility through Multi-Scale Integration of Energy System (MISSION)”, EPSRC.
iv) “Integrated Heating and Cooling Networks with Heat-Sharing-Enabled Smart Prosumers”, EPSRC.
v) “Virtual Power Plant for Interoperable and Smart Islands (VPP4ISLANDS)”, European Commission - Horizon 2020.
vi) “Distributed Leger Technology-Enabled Distribution Network Operation (DeDSO)”, UK Network Innovation Allowance.
vii) “Solid Wall Insulation Innovation”, ERDF and Durham County Council.
viii) “Testing and Evaluating Sophisticated Information and Communication Technologies for Enabling a Smarter Grid (TESTBED)”, MSCA-RISE-2016.

Qualifications

  • PhD in Engineering, University of Durham, 2020.
  • MSc in New and Renewable Energy, University of Durham, 2017

Biography

Dr Weiqi Hua is an Assistant Professor with the Department of Electronic, Electrical and Systems Engineering at the University of Birmingham (U.K.) since 2023. He took postdoctoral positions at the University of Oxford (U.K.) and Cardiff University (U.K.). He received his Ph.D. degree from the University of Durham (U.K.) in 2020, co-funded by Hyundai Motor Company and Durham Research Doctoral Scholarship. He was the visiting researcher to the Hellenic Telecommunications Organisation (OTE), Greece in 2019, and visiting researcher to the Chinese Academy of Sciences, China in 2018 and 2019.

Dr Hua is the founder of Energy Digits. In 2023, Dr Hua earned a distinguished spot on the Forbes 100 Most Influential Chinese, an accolade that acknowledges his contributions to research and knowledge transfer in the fields of energy and low-carbon futures. He has edited the book ‘Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence Technologies for Smart Energy Systems’, and published a chapter ‘Microgrids and Local Energy Systems’. His research has contributed to the written evidence (DHH0053) of UK Parliament discussions on heat decarbonisation.

Dr Hua is an Editorial Board Member of Applied Energy, and Editorial Board Member of Oxford Open Energy. He served as the Lead Guest Editor for the Special Issue on the topic of Blockchain based local energy market in IET Smart Grid, Guest Editor for the Special Issue on the topic of digitalisation of energy systems in Oxford Open Energy, Guest Editor for the Special Issue on the topic of market design for low-carbon multi-energy system in Frontiers in Energy Research, and Guest Editor for the Special Issue on the topic of energy-water nexus in Water.

Dr Hua has been appointed as the regional chair for the 8th International Conference on Power and Renewable Energy, sessional chair for CEN2023 Applied Energy Symposium, 2023 International Conference on Resource Sustainability, IEEE SmartGridComm 2018, and IEEE International Smart Cities Conference 2017. He was a technical program committee (TPC) member for IEEE SmartGridComm 2020, IEEE International Smart Cities Conference 2021, and IEEE SmartGridComm 2023. 

Dr Hua has served as a member of the equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) Committee, the Athena Swan SAT working group, and Representor of the Publicity Committee at the University of Birmingham.

Dr Hua has undertaken research projects collaborating with academia and industries, including:

i) “Clean Heat Streets”, BEIS Heat Pump Ready.

ii) “Analytical Middleware for Informed Distribution Networks (AMIDiNe)”, EPSRC.

iii) “Maximising Flexibility through Multi-Scale Integration of Energy System (MISSION)”, EPSRC.

iv) “Integrated Heating and Cooling Networks with Heat-Sharing-Enabled Smart Prosumers”, EPSRC.

v) “Virtual Power Plant for Interoperable and Smart Islands (VPP4ISLANDS)”, European Commission - Horizon 2020.

vi) “Distributed Leger Technology-Enabled Distribution Network Operation (DeDSO)”, UK Network Innovation Allowance.

vii) “Solid Wall Insulation Innovation”, ERDF and Durham County Council.

viii) “Testing and Evaluating Sophisticated Information and Communication Technologies for Enabling a Smarter Grid (TESTBED)”, MSCA-RISE-2016.

Teaching

LM Renewable Energy Systems Integration

Postgraduate supervision

i) Digitalisation of Energy Systems.
ii) Energy System Modelling.

Dr Hua is interested in supervising doctoral research students in the following areas:

  • Energy system modelling and optimisation.
  • Renewable energy integration.
  • Digitalisation, digital twin, and machine learning for energy system analytics.
  • Energy policy and economics.
  • Local energy markets and peer-to-peer energy trading.

Dr Hua is interested in supporting PhD applications with other funding sources, e.g., industries, university, or self-funded.

Research

i) energy system modelling and optimisation;
ii) renewable energy integration;
iii) digitalisation, digital twin, and machine learning for energy system analytics;
iv) Local energy markets and peer-to-peer energy trading.

Other activities

  • Editorial Board Member of Applied Energy.
  • Editorial Board Member of Oxford Open Energy.
  • Attendee of COP28 in Dubai.
  • Guest Editor for Special Issue "Digitalisation and Digital Twins for Low Carbon Energy Systems" in  Oxford Open Energy.
  • Guest Editor (Lead) for Special Issue "Blockchain Technologies Empowering Peer-to-Peer Trading in Multi-Energy Systems: From Advanced Technologies Towards Applications" in IET Smart Grid.
  • Guest Editor for Special Issue "Low-Carbon, Zero-Carbon and Negative-Carbon Wastewater Treatment Technology and Operation Strategies" in Water.
  • Technical Program Committee (TPC) Member of IEEE SmartGridComm 2020.
  • TPC Member of IEEE International Smart Cities Conference 2021, Track 1: Smart Transportation.
  • Chair on the Session of Intelligent Energy Uses and Energy Efficiency, CEN2023 Applied Energy Symposium, Ningbo, China.
  • Chair on the Session of Operation and Integration of Electric Vehicles in Smart Grid, IEEE SmartGridComm 2018, Aalborg, Denmark.
  • Chair on the Session of Smart Energy Systems, IEEE International Smart Cities Conference 2017, Wuxi, China.
  • Reviewer for Journals: IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid, IEEE Transactions on Power Systems, IEEE Transactions on Industrial Informatics, IEEE Transactions on Sustainable Energy, IEEE Transactions on Energy Markets, Policy and Regulation, IEEE Transactions on Emerging Topics in Computational Intelligence, IEEE Access, Energy, Applied Energy, Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, IET Renewable Power Generation, IET Generation, Transmission & Distribution, Applied Sciences, Sustainability, International Journal of Energy Research, Sustainable Energy, Grids and Networks, Energy and AI, Advances in Applied Energy, CSEE Journal of Power and Energy Systems, Journal of Cleaner Production, Mathematics, Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments, Frontiers in Energy, Sustainability, World Electric Vehicle Journal, Electronics, Sensors, EURASIP Journal on Wireless Communications and Networking, Journal of Risk and Financial Management, Engineering Reports, Complexity.

Speaking Engagements

  • "Digital Analytics for Informed Distribution Networks", MSc in Energy Systems, University of Oxford, UK, 2023.
  • "Virtual Power Plants: Trends and Opportunities", Alibaba Group, China, 2023.
  • "Digitalisation and Digital Twin for Energy Systems", IEE, Chinese Academy of Science, China 2023.
  • "Pathway to the Net Zero GB Energy System", School of Energy and Power Engineering, Beihang University, China, 2022.
  • "Local Energy Market and Peer-to-Peer Energy Trading", School of Energy and Power Engineering, Chongqing University, China, 2022.
  • "Renewable Energy, Blockchain, Artificial Intelligence enabling Future Energy Systems'', Eton College, Science Society, 2022.
  • "Peer-to-Peer Energy Trading: Barriers and Opportunities", Dutch Seminar on Digital Energy, Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica (CWI) Amsterdam, Netherlands, 2022.
  • "Peer-to-Peer Energy Trading", MSc in Energy Systems, the University of Oxford, 2022.
  • "A Blockchain Based Peer-to-Peer Trading Scheme Coupling Energy and Carbon Markets",  Department of Engineering Research Day, University of Durham, 2019.
  • "Scientific Innovation and Regulatory Support in Achieving Low Carbon Energy Systems", UK Summer School, China University of Geosciences, 2019.
  • ''Energy Market Transitions Towards Prosumers Era'', Institute of Electrical Engineering, Chinese academy of sciences, 2018
  • "Carbon Emissions Reduction Technologies for Future Energy Systems", Department of Engineering Research Day, University of Durham, 2017.

Publications

Recent publications

Book

Sun, H, Hua, W & You, M 2023, Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence Technologies for Smart Energy Systems. 1st edn, Chapman and Hall/CRC. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003170440

Article

Ma, T, Pei, W, Yang, Y, Xiao, H, Tang, C & Hua, W 2024, 'A coordinated operation method of wind-PV-hydrogen-storage multi-agent energy system', Global Energy Interconnection, vol. 7, no. 4, pp. 446-461. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloei.2024.08.001

Abdelaziz, S, Sparrow, S, Hua, W & Wallom, D 2024, 'Assessing long-term future climate change impacts on extreme low wind events for offshore wind turbines in the UK exclusive economic zone', Applied Energy, vol. 354, 122218. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2023.122218

Liu, W-J, Chiu, W-Y & Hua, W 2024, 'Blockchain-enabled renewable energy certificate trading: A secure and privacy-preserving approach', Energy, vol. 290, 130110. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.energy.2023.130110

Tang, L, Ashtine, M, Hua, W & C.H. Wallom, D 2024, 'Sensitivity analysis of distributed photovoltaic system capacity estimation based on artificial neural network', Sustainable Energy, Grids and Networks, vol. 39, 101396. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.segan.2024.101396

Xiao, D, Lin, Z, Chen, H, Hua, W & Yan, J 2024, 'Windfall profit-aware stochastic scheduling strategy for industrial virtual power plant with integrated risk-seeking/averse preferences', Applied Energy, vol. 357, 122460. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2023.122460

Xiao, H, Pei, W, Wu, L, Ma, L, Ma, T & Hua, W 2023, 'A novel deep learning based probabilistic power flow method for Multi-Microgrids distribution system with incomplete network information', Applied Energy, vol. 335, 120716. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2023.120716

Hua, W, Zhou, Y, Qadrdan, M, Wu, J & Jenkins, N 2023, 'Blockchain Enabled Decentralized Local Electricity Markets With Flexibility From Heating Sources', IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid, vol. 14, no. 2, pp. 1607-1620 . https://doi.org/10.1109/TSG.2022.3158732

Hua, W, Stephen, B & C.H. Wallom, D 2023, 'Digital twin based reinforcement learning for extracting network structures and load patterns in planning and operation of distribution systems', Applied Energy, vol. 342, 121128. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2023.121128

Qiu, D, Wang, Y, Hua, W & Strbac, G 2023, 'Reinforcement learning for electric vehicle applications in power systems: A critical review', Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, vol. 173, 113052. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2022.113052

Hua, W, Xiao, H, Pei, W, Chiu, W-Y, Jiang, J, Sun, H & Matthews, P 2023, 'Transactive energy and flexibility provision in multi-microgrids using Stackelberg game', CSEE Journal of Power and Energy Systems, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 505-515. https://doi.org/10.17775/CSEEJPES.2021.04370

Zhou, Y, Manea, A, Hua, W, Wu, J, Zhou, W, Yu, J & Rahman, S 2022, 'Application of Distributed Ledger Technology in Distribution Networks', Proceedings of the IEEE, vol. 110, no. 12, pp. 1963-1975. https://doi.org/10.1109/JPROC.2022.3181528

Conference contribution

Hua, W, Mullen, D, Wahid, A, Sitabkhan, K & Mason, K 2023, An Overview of Artificial Intelligence for Electric Vehicle Energy Systems Integration. in Artificial Intelligence: ECAI 2023 International Workshops . vol. 2, Communications in Computer and Information Science, vol. 1948, Springer, pp. 178-185, 26th European Conference on Artificial Intelligence, ECAI 2023, Krakow, Poland, 30/09/23. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-50485-3_17

Abdelaziz, S, Sparrow, SN, Hua, W & Wallom, D 2023, Extreme Wind Gust Impact on UK Offshore Wind Turbines: Long-Term Return Level Estimation. in 2023 IEEE Power & Energy Society General Meeting (PESGM)., 10252611, IEEE Power & Energy Society General Meeting, IEEE, 2023 IEEE Power & Energy Society General Meeting (PESGM), 16/07/23. https://doi.org/10.1109/PESGM52003.2023.10252611

Abdelaziz, S, Sparrow, SN, Hua, W & Wallom, D 2023, Future Climate Change Impact On Wind Gust For Offshore Wind Turbines Cut-Out Within The UK Exclusive Economic Zone. in 2023 IEEE Green Technologies Conference (GreenTech)., 10173830, IEEE Green Technologies Conference, IEEE, pp. 10-14, 2023 IEEE Green Technologies Conference (GreenTech), 19/04/23. https://doi.org/10.1109/GreenTech56823.2023.10173830

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