Polar Night Energy Invests in Research and Development – The Aim Is to Improve Energy Storage Sizing Algorithms

Ville Kivioja has started as a lead scientist at Polar Night Energy. His task is to improve the sizing algorithm for heat storage and to develop the operation of heat storages. Kivioja’s work is part of the Post Docs in Companies program.

We are happy to announce that Ville Kivioja has joined Polar Night Energy as a lead scientist.

His main goal is to develop and improve our sizing algorithms. We expect that this process can be optimised so that the system will at the same time reach more accurate and realistic results, require less computational resources and be much easier to use.

– The algorithm should be so fast and easy to use that any Polar Night Energy employee could use it directly in customer meetings, says Ville Kivioja.

The goal is therefore to create a so-called black box that would work without the user having to know how the algorithm works. The algorithm would automatically calculate the characteristics and budget of the customer’s heat storage based on the input data provided.

Kivioja’s another important task is to improve the design of the heat storage system as a whole. Although we have already designed working heat storage systems, those designs can be revised for improvements on the efficiency and also for new applications that can fit the needs of different customers.

– I think that my research can easily lead to ideas on how to optimize the design of the heat storage. Even a small improvement in performance can be crucial because the margins in the energy sector are small, says Kivioja.

PoDoCo helps companies to hire young doctors

Polar Night Energy hired Kivioja through Post Docs in Companies program. He has a PhD in Mathematics from the University of Jyväskylä.

– I first studied theoretical physics before changing to mathematics for my master’s and doctorate. I was especially interested in particle physics and cosmology, but somehow pure mathematical methods won me over.

Kivioja already knew about Polar Night Energy but never actually thought about coming to work for the company before hearing about the PoDoCo program.

PoDoCo is a joint initiative of Finnish universities, industry and foundations. The aim of the program is to promote academic research supporting long term competitiveness and strategic renewal of Finnish companies, and the employment of young doctors in industry.

– Polar Night Energy’s mission is interesting, meaningful and inspiring. That’s the reason I joined the company. A huge thanks also to the PoDoCo program and the Wihuri Foundation. Without them, this would not be possible, says Kivioja.

And in case you are wondering, Kivioja’s favourite equations are the Einstein field equations.