Energy Systems and Thermal Processes MSc

• Dr Ali Nabavi

During this module you will gain an in-depth understanding of the fundamentals of heat transfer and practical tools for solving heat-transfer problems and the design of heat-transfer equipment.

• Modes of heat transfer. Conduction: Thermal conductivity. The differential heat-conduction equation. One-dimensional, steady‑state conduction. Two-dimensional, steady‑state conduction. Transient heat conduction.
• Convection: Forced and free convection. The convective heat‑transfer coefficient. Fluid flow and the boundary‑layer concept. Turbulence. Boundary‑layer equations. The conservation equations. Boundary-layer equations. Analytical and integral solutions of boundary-layer equations. Analogy between heat and momentum transfer. Dimensional analyses of convective heat transfer.
• Empirical and practical relations for forced convection: Flows over flat plates. A cylinder and a sphere in cross flow. Tube bundles in cross flow. Forced convection in packed beds. Forced convection inside tubes and ducts.
• Empirical relations for Natural convection: Vertical planes and cylinders. Horizontal cylinders. Horizontal plates. Inclined surfaces. Spheres. Enclosures. Channels between parallel plates. Combined natural and forced convection.
• Thermal radiation: Physical mechanism. Intensity of radiation and emissive power. Irradiation. Blackbody radiation. Radiation properties of surfaces. Radiation exchange between surfaces. Radiant energy transfer through absorbing and emitting media.
• Boiling heat transfer: Fundamentals of boiling heat transfer. Pool boiling. External forced-convection boiling. Internal forced-convection boiling. Pressure drop in forced-convection boiling systems.
• Condensation heat transfer: Mechanisms of condensation. Film condensation. Dropwise condensation.
• Case studies:  Application of numerical techniques for solving a one‑dimensional, transient conduction problem with radiative and convective boundary conditions. Steady‑state analysis of a combined conduction, convection and radiation Heat transfer problem.

On successful completion of this module you should be able to:

• Critically evaluate the principles governing the transfer of heat and apply a range of techniques, tools and skills to analyse and solve typical engineering problems.
• Formulate appropriate procedures/strategies for solving complex problems and making sound judgements in the absence of complete data.
• Critically evaluate and analyse energy flows in complicated systems and design heat-transfer equipment.

• Dr Ali Nabavi

This module provides an understanding of the fundamentals of operation, configuration and characteristics of thermal energy systems. You will also learn how to apply these for the design of energy-efficient furnaces and boilers, as well as the key implementation issues of various types of power plant.

 

• Fuels and thermal conversion processes: primary solid and liquid fuels. Carbonisation of solid fuels. Thermodynamic equations. Dissociation and chemical equilibrium. Process efficiency, emission control and standards,
• Furnaces and boilers: types of furnaces and classification. Heat transfer in furnaces, efficient furnace and boiler design. Boiler efficiency and part-load operation and its maintenance,
• Overview: World electricity demand and generation. Fuels. Environmental impacts,
• Steam power plants: Thermodynamic principles. Fuels. Steam power generation cycles,
• Gas turbine and combined-cycle power plants: Gas turbine engines and performance. Gas turbine cycles. Combined-cycle power plants,
• Diesel- and gas-engine power plants: Diesel engines. Fuels. Emission control. Heat recovery systems,
• Nuclear power generation: Basic nuclear physical processes (fission and fusion). Nuclear fuels. Types of reactors. Safety considerations in the nuclear industry. Developments in nuclear fusion. Decommissioning problems of nuclear sites. Nuclear waste disposal systems,
• Fuel cells: Definition and principles of operation. Losses and efficiency. Possible fuels. Fuel-cell technologies and applications (alkaline fuel cells, molten carbonate fuel cells, phosphoric acid fuel cells, solid oxide fuel cells, and regenerative fuel cells),
• CHP systems: CHP schemes (micro-scale CHP systems, small scale CHP systems, large scale CHP systems including district heating schemes). Application of CHP systems for the provision of heating, cooling and electric power. Selection criteria of CHP prime-movers. Integration of CHP systems into site services. Feasibility analysis of CHP schemes using spreadsheets/software tools. Case study (site appraisal for CHP scheme and evaluation of economic and environmental viability),
• Advanced power plants: geothermal plants and its applications. Solar thermal enhanced designs and new materials. Innovative SCO2 cycles to operate at higher temperatures, bringing higher energy output.

On successful completion of this module you should be able to:

• Critically evaluate the fundamentals and laws governing energy conversion and appraise various fuels and their characteristics.
• Assess the operation of furnaces and boilers based on a fundamental understanding of the governing laws, and debate issues influencing the design/selection of furnaces and boilers and future trends.
• Debate issues related to the performance of conventional power-generation plants and identify appropriate routes for improving energy-utilisation efficiency.
• Assess the need of a particular industrial/commercial site for a CHP system, identify the appropriate systems and undertake design, sizing and economic analyses.
• Critically review technologies employed for advanced power generation systems (Geo-thermal, solar thermal, SCO2 cycle) and it’s applications.

• Dr Ali Nabavi

Design of optimum thermal and energy storage systems is one of the key prerequisites to enhance the performance and efficiency of conventional and future energy systems.

This module aims to enable you to combine and apply the principles of heat transfer, thermodynamics and fluid mechanics in the design and optimisation of commercial thermal systems. In addition, the module introduces you to a wide range of challenges and opportunities in waste heat recovery and energy storage, and provides practical approaches and solutions to enhance the system efficiency.

Heat exchanger Design and Operation

• Heat exchangers: classification, theoretical principles and design of recuperative systems (effectiveness, NTU and capacity ratio approach for parallel-, counter- and cross-flow configurations), series cross‑flow arrangements, regenerative heat exchangers (intermittent and continuous systems), pressure‑loss assessment, heat‑exchanger optimisation (optimal pressure drop and surface area to maximise economic returns),
• Process integration: heat-exchanger network, utility systems, fundamentals of pinch analysis and energy analysis.

Waste Heat Recovery and Thermal Storage

• Waste‑heat recovery: sources of waste heat, heat recovery for industrial applications, energy density considerations, economics of waste-heat recovery,
• Thermal storage: principles and application to hot and cold systems, storage duration and scale, sensible and latent heat systems, phase-change storage materials, application to source and load matching.

Refrigeration and Air Conditioning

• Application of refrigeration and air conditioning.
• Vapour-compression refrigeration systems: simple systems, multi-stage compressor systems, multi-evaporator systems,
• Refrigerants: halocarbon refrigerants, CFC alternatives, refrigerant-selection criteria,
• Refrigeration compressors: reciprocating compressors, rotary screw compressors, scroll compressors, vane compressors, centrifugal compressors,
• Absorption refrigeration: the absorption process, properties of fluid-pair solutions, the basic absorption cycle, double-effect systems, advances in absorption-refrigeration technology,
• Psychrometry and principle Air-conditioning processes: psychrometry, heating, cooling, humidification and dehumidification processes.

On successful completion of this module you should be able to:

• Analyse and design heat exchangers, competently applying the principles of heat transfer, thermodynamics and fluid mechanics,
• Construct optimised heat exchanger networks by applying principles of process integration,
• Recognise and debate  the issues related to the efficient use of thermal energy and appraise  techniques and technologies employed,
• Design and analyse the performance of refrigeration and air conditioning systems.

• Dr Patrick Verdin

This module introduces you to the CFD techniques and tools for modelling, simulating and analysing practical engineering problems with hands on experience using commercial software packages used in industry.

• Introduction to CFD & thermo-fluids: introduction to the physics of thermo-fluids, governing equations (continuity, momentum, energy and species conservation) and state of the art computational fluid dynamics including modelling, grid generation, simulation, and high performance computing. Case study of industrial problems related to energy, process systems, offshore engineering, and the physical processes where CFD can be used,
• Computational engineering exercise: specification for a CFD simulation, requirements for accurate analysis and validation for multi scale problems, introduction to turbulence & practical applications of turbulence models, introduction to turbulence and turbulent flows, traditional turbulence modelling,
• Advanced turbulence modelling: introduction to Reynolds-averaged Navier Stokes (RANS) simulations and large-eddy simulation (LES),
• Practical sessions: fluid process problems are solved employing the widely-used industrial flow solver software FLUENT. Lectures are followed by practical sessions on single/multiphase flows, heat transfer, to set up and simulate a problem incrementally.  Practical sessions cover the entire CFD process including geometric modelling, grid generation, flow solver, analysis, validation and visualisation.

On successful completion of this module you should be able to:

• assemble and evaluate the different components of the CFD process,
• explain the governing equations for fluid flows and how to solve them computationally,
• compare and contrast various methods for simulating turbulent flows applicable to mechanical and process engineering,
• set up simulations and evaluate a practical problem using a commercial CFD package,
• design CFD modelling studies for use in industrial design of complex systems.

• Dr Joy Sumner

This module provides an in-depth applied knowledge for different thermal energy systems to help spur the next industrial revolution for improving efficiency, reducing water consumption and efficient way of utilising waste heat streams. During this module you will learn how to develop these integrated schemes and play an important role in thermodynamic modelling, data collection, analysis, and prediction of the performance and control of these advanced/applied thermal systems.

• Thermodynamic simulation tool selection: ASPEN Plus, Thermoflex, Ebsilon, MATLAB, EES and/or combination of these software packages,
• Modelling of heat source: Coal-fired boilers, solar field, biomass incinerators and nuclear reactors, and its typical steam conditions, thermal energy storage etc.
• Power block configuration for large Rankine cycle: Steam generators, Steam turbine, condenser, pumps, Deaerators, super heaters, pre heaters, heat exchangers, Control valves etc. Introducing the concept of Exergy and how it can be used to understand how processes can be made more efficient for large Rankine steam cycle,
• Cooling technologies for heat rejection: Once through cooling, wet cooling towers, Dry cooling towers, Hybrid cooling systems, Versatile coolers, Cold Thermal Energy Storage (cTES) systems, PCM storage, Water consumption calculations,
• Integration of components and systems: Integration of detail component model into global model (of heat source, power block and cooling systems), Design vs Off Design analysis,
• Waste heat recovery systems: Absorption chiller simulations, de-humidification calculations, desalination model development (Multi-effect distillation, Membrane distillation),
• Dynamic model: Transient simulation, Annual performance of the developed thermal energy system,
• Economics of thermal energy systems: Economic models for thermal energy systems, CAPEX and OPEX, Levelized cost of energy (LCE) calculations.

On successful completion of this module you should be able to:

• Critically evaluate the detailed thermodynamics of different thermal energy processes,
• Articulate the details of thermodynamic modelling of different energy sources, power blocks, cooling technologies and waste heat from thermal systems to drive desalination and absorption systems,
• Assess the integration of these thermal sub system components into whole plant configuration for design and off-design scenarios,
• Propose appropriate routes for improving energy-utilisation efficiency and its trade-offs,
• Investigate the economic and environmental impacts of the proposed technologies.

The importance of technology leadership in driving the technical aspects of an organisation's products, innovation, programmes, operations and strategy is paramount, especially in today’s turbulent commercial environment with its unprecedented pace of technological development. As demand for ever more complex products and services has become the norm, one of the challenges for today’s manager is to deal with uncertainty, to allow technological innovation and change to flourish, whilst also remaining within planned parameters of performance. This module helps to develop your understanding of management processes within an organisational context, so that when you seek employment you are equipped with both the extensive subject/discipline knowledge and the ability to relate it to a management context.

• Engineers and Technologists in organisations:
  • the role of organisations and the challenges facing engineers and technologies,
• People management:
  • understanding you, understanding other people, working in teams and dealing with conflicts.
• The Business Environment:
  • understanding the business environment; identifying key trends and their implications for the organisation.
• Strategy and Marketing:
  • developing effective strategies, focusing on the customer, building competitive advantage, the role of strategic assets.
• Finance:
  • profit and loss accounts, balance sheets, cash flow forecasting, project appraisal.
• New product development:
  • commercialising technology, market drivers, time to market, focusing technology, concerns.
• Business game:
  • Working in teams (companies), you will set up and run a technology company and make decisions on investment, R&D funding, operations, marketing and sales strategy,
• Negotiation:
  • preparation for negotiations, negotiation process, win-win solutions.
• Presentation skills:
  • understanding your audience, focusing your message, successful presentations, getting your message across.

On successful completion of this module you should be able to:

• Recognise the importance of teamwork in the performance and success of organisations with particular reference to commercialising technological innovation,
• Operate as an effective team member, recognising the contribution of individuals within the team, and capable of developing team working skills in yourself and others to improve the overall performance of a team,
• Compare and evaluate the impact of the key functional areas (strategy, marketing and finance) on the commercial performance of an organisation, relevant to the manufacture of a product or provision of a technical service,
• Design and deliver an effective presentation that justifies and supports any decisions or recommendations made,
• Argue and defend your judgements through constructive communication and negotiating skills.

• Dr Dawid Hanak

This module aims to introduce you to the modern techniques and computer aided engineering tools for the design, simulation and optimisation of process systems. Via a large share of process simulation and optimisation case studies, the module will enable you to gather the hands-on experience of using the commercial software.

Process Design
• Overview: Conceptual process design. Process flow-sheeting,
• Process synthesis: Overview of a process system. Recycle structure of the flowsheet. Design of reaction and separation systems,
• Process integration: Basic concepts of process integration for heat exchanger network design,
• Process economic analysis: Equipment capital cost estimation. Process profitability analysis.
Process Modelling, Simulation and Optimisation
• Modelling and simulation: Basic concepts of process modelling. General concepts of simulation. Introduction to steady and dynamic process simulation. Introduction to commercial simulation software packages (i.e, Aspen HYSYS) for process flow-sheeting, design and analysis,
• Process optimisation techniques: Basic principles of optimisation. Presentation of a number of industrial case studies (e.g., heat exchanges network synthesis).
Case Studies (PC Lab and Demonstration Sessions)
• A number of process simulation and optimisation case studies will be carried out using Aspen HYSYS and Aspen Plus.

On successful completion of this module you should be able to:

• Formulate strategies to carry out a process design and critically appraise the techniques and major commercial simulation tools for steady and dynamic process simulation,  
• Competently apply the basic principles of process optimisation,
• Design and analyse the performance of a process plant using simulation or optimisation tools.

• Dr Liyun Lao

This modules introduces you to the fundamental concepts, principles, methodologies, and application for the design of advanced control systems for industrial applications.

• System dynamics:
  • modelling of typical physical systems, operating point, linearization, differential equation representation, state space representation of systems, laplace transforms, transfer functions, block diagrams, SISO and MIMO systems, time and frequency domain responses of systems,
• Feedback control:
  • positive and negative feedback, stability, methods for stability analysis, closed loop performance specification, PID controllers, Ziegler-Nichols, self-tuning methods,
• Enhanced controllers:
  • cascade control, feedforward control, control of non-linear systems, control of systems with delay,
• Digital controllers:
  • effects of sampling, implementation of PID controller, stability and tuning,
• Advanced control topics:
  • hierarchical control Kalman filter, system identification, model predictive control, statistical process control, the use of expert systems and neural networks in industrial control,
• Design packages for process control systems:
  • examples including Simulink and MATLAB.
• Case studies:
  • examples will be chosen from a range of industrial systems including mechanical, chemical and fluid systems.

On successful completion of this module you should be able to:

• Evaluate and select appropriate modelling techniques for dynamic systems,
• Formulate control methodologies in feedback, feedforward and cascade loops,
• Recognise and critically appraise the key design tools and procedures for continuous and discrete controllers of dynamic systems.