Faculty Profile - Thomas J. Parker

Research Engineer
National Electric Energy Research, Testing & Applications Center

Mailing Address:
5351 Kennedy Road
Forest Park, GA 30297
Phone: 404.675.1876
Fax: 404.675.1885
Email:

Biography

Mr. Parker is a Senior Research Technologist at Georgia Tech's National Electric Energy Research Testing and Applications Center (NEETRAC) where he currently works in the Electrical Section as the Lead Engineer for Medium Voltage Testing. He worked at Georgia Power Company for 22 years in the areas of distribution engineering and operations, substation operations and SCADA systems, and T & D research at the Georgia Power Research Center. He came to Georgia Tech in 1996 when Georgia Power Company transferred its' research facilities to form NEETRAC, a n electric energy focused research and testing consortium consisting of electric utilit y and manufactur ing members .

As Lead Engineer for Medium Voltage Testing, Mr. Parker is primarily responsible for conducting a variety of industry standard and custom test programs on cable, connectors, joints, and terminations for low and medium voltage applications. He has also been involved with testing other components such as instrument transformers, HV line switches and various line monitoring equipment. He typically serves as Principal Investigator on several NEETRAC Baseline projects at any given time and, in that capacity, coordinates work with NEETRAC members, staff, and academic faculty to complete research and testing projects. He has serve d in several leadership roles in industry technical organizations and continues to be involved with standards development / revision, particularly with the Insulated Conductors Committee of the IEEE Power Engineering Society.

Mr. Parker attended Southern Technical Institute (originally a part of Georgia Tech and now Southern Polytechnic State University) where he earned a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering Technology degree in 1973.

Research Interests

Nondestructive Evaluation of Underground Distribution Systems
Accelerated Aging and Life Prediction for Underground Cable and Accessories
Partial Discharge Detection and Evaluation
Acoustic Emission Technology

Distinctions & Patents

Professional Engineer, State of Georgia, 1982 - Present.
ASTM Committee F-18 Award of Appreciation (1995)
Chair, ASTM Task Group on Test Methods Using Acoustic Emission Technology (1990-1995)
Chair, ASTM Task Group on In-Service Integrity Using Acoustic Emission Technology (1990-1995)

Selected Publications

Parker, Thomas J., and Hampton, R. Nigel, “Impact of Filled-Strand Conductor on Connector Temperatures for Medium Voltage Joints,” JiCable '11 - 8th International Conference on Insulated Power Cables, Vol. 1, pp. 725 – 730, 19 – 23 June 2011, Versailles, France.
Hall, David E., Black, W. Z., and Parker, T. J., "Transient Thermal Performance of Line Traps," IEEE Transactions on Power Delivery, Vol. 11, No. 1, pp. 197-209, January 1996.
Jerrell, Jeffery W., Black, W. Z., and Parker, T. J., "Critical Span Analysis of Overhead Conductors," IEEE Transactions on Power Delivery, Vol. 3, No. 4, pp. 1942-50, October 1988.
Parker, T. J., "Acoustic Emission Testing of Insulated Aerial Lift Equipment," IEEE/PES Digest of the Second International Conference on Live-Line Maintenance, pp. 10.19-20, Chicago, Illinois, September 1980.

Last revised on October 11, 2011