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Head of Electrical and Computer Engineeringiii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank my major advisor, Professor Steven Pekarek, with the utmost sincerity. I would not have entered nor come this far in my graduate studies were it not for his support, guidance and patience. I would also like to thank Professors Sudhoff, Aliprantis, Jiao and Wasynczuk, as they were all contributors to my education in the power and energy field. Next, I would like to acknowledge the many friendly coworkers in the Purdue Power Engineering research group. This group is among the greatest assets of Purdue ECE. I would also like to thank my parents, for their love and for their support of my intellectual pursuits. Finally, I would like to thank my wife, Sally for her love, support and patience during my graduate studies.

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