Rate My Professor Furong Li

Professor Furong Li is a Professor of Power Systems in the Department of Electronic & Electrical Engineering at the University of Bath, where she has led power network research for over 20 years. She holds the National Grid Electricity Distribution / Royal Academy of Engineering Research Chair in Open, Agile and Scalable Whole-energy System Modelling, focusing on developing an open, scalable model to enhance data access, financial incentives for energy use, and network management for decarbonisation. Previously recognized as a Royal Society Wolfson Research Merit Fellow (2013-2018) and EPSRC Advanced Research Fellow, she earned her Bachelor of Engineering and Doctor of Engineering in Electrical Engineering from Hohai University, with her doctorate on Optimal Operation of Electrical Power Systems with Genetic Based Algorithms (1996). Her career at Bath includes progression to Reader in Electrical Power & Energy Systems and leadership roles such as Deputy Director of the Centre for Sustainable Energy Systems and involvement in centres like the Centre for Doctoral Training in Decarbonisation of the Built Environment.

Furong Li's research develops fundamentally new economic concepts, analysis tools, algorithms, and theories for electrical systems to incentivise sustainability, efficiency in energy generation, transmission, and consumption. Key strands encompass assessing alternative energy sources like wind, solar, and biomass alongside storage for sustainable mixes; evaluating dynamic interactions across the energy supply chain with market incentives, regulations, and policies; and devising market strategies for flexible transmission systems accommodating renewables and responsive demand. Impacts include pioneering long-run incremental cost (LRIC) pricing, demonstrated in an Ofgem study projecting £200 million savings, leading UK distribution companies to adopt economic pricing models; and quantifying benefits of autonomous regional active management systems (AuRA-NMS) for networks like Scottish Power's Aberystwyth 33kV, reducing losses and curtailment. She contributes as Editor for IEEE Transactions on Sustainable Energy since 2015 and co-authored reports for the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero on energy data sharing. Her work has garnered over 4,700 citations across 190 publications, influencing UK and international power sector advancements toward net zero goals.