CAREER: Optimal Integration of Flexible Data Centers in Power Systems via Quantum Dynamics

This NSF CAREER project aims to develop a quantum–classical optimization framework to improve the integration of data centers into power systems. The project will bring transformative change by enabling power systems and data centers to coordinate their operations more efficiently, helping ensure a stable and affordable power supply as hyperscale data centers expand over the next decade. This will be achieved by modeling how data centers can flexibly adjust their energy use, developing advanced optimization tools, and exploring new quantum computing approaches to address complex operational challenges. The intellectual merit of the project includes advancing optimization theory and algorithms for integrating flexible data centers into power systems, overcoming key limitations of existing classical methods, and establishing foundations for new quantum-enabled optimization techniques. The broader impacts of the project include supporting more cost-effective and reliable power grid operations, accelerating energy-efficient data center deployment across the United States, and preparing students with interdisciplinary skills at the intersection of power systems, optimization, and quantum computing. This project addresses the technical challenge of co-optimizing power system operations and data center flexibility under uncertainty. It develops: (1) new mixed-integer linear and convex optimization models that capture the spatiotemporal flexibility of data centers within security-constrained unit commitment; (2) hybrid quantum–classical optimization frameworks that embed quantum subroutines based on quantum dynamics within classical decomposition methods to solve large-scale problems; and (3) adaptive quantum evolution techniques that improve convergence and robustness through optimized Hamiltonian scheduling. By combining advanced mathematical modeling and innovative algorithm design, the project paves the way for a more reliable, affordable, and resilient power grid. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. NSF Award ID: 2541996 | Program: 01002627DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT | Principal Investigator: Lei Fan | Institution: University of Houston, HOUSTON, TX | Award Amount: $500,018 View on NSF Award Search: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/show-award/?AWD_ID=2541996 View on Research.gov: https://www.research.gov/awardapi-service/v1/awards/2541996.html