Individual Project List-Energy Programme 15-16

8/18/2019 Individual Project List-Energy Programme 15-16

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School of Energy, Environment and Agrifood

nergy rogramme

Individual Project List

2015-2016


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1. Experimental assessment of the wave field perturbation in the case of a

foil operating near a water surface in calm waters, regular and irregular

waves; Application to tidal energy and novel marine vehicles

Supervisor: Dr Florent Trarieux Co-Supervisor: Dr Maurizio Collu

As in project title

2. Experimental investigation of the performance of foils near the water

surface; Application to tidal energy and novel marine vehicles

Supervisor: Dr Florent Trarieux

Co-Supervisor: Dr Maurizio Collu

As in project title

3. Experimental survey, analysis and calibration of the regular and irregular

wave field of the newly commissioned Cranfield wave tank; Application

to the Protean Wave Energy Platform (PWP). Part 1: Reference case

without model


Co-Supervisor: Dr Joao Amaral-TeixeiraCompany Name: Protean Wave Technology Ltd

As in project title

4. Experimental survey, analysis and calibration of the regular and irregular

wave field of the newly commissioned Cranfield wave tank; Application

to the Protean Wave Energy Platform (PWP). Part 2: with fixed Suezmax

tanker


Co-Supervisor: Dr Joao Amaral-Teixeira

Company Name: Protean Wave Technology Ltd

As in project title


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5. Comparison of full scale performance data (Cp, Ct) of the DeltaStream

seabed mounted tidal energy demonstrator with tank tests data.


Co-Supervisor: Dr Joao Amaral-TeixeiraCompany Name: Tidal Energy Ltd

As in project title

6. Analysis of tank test data of yaw moments of the DeltaStream 15

diameter "MC" turbine


Co-Supervisor: Dr Joao Amaral-TeixeiraCompany Name: Tidal Energy Ltd

As in project title

7. Prediction of Corrosion Fatigue Crack growth Behaviour in Structural

Steels using Finite Element Simulations

Supervisor: Dr Ali Mehmanparast

An important issue to be considered in the remaining life assessment of offshorefoundations is the characterisation of fatigue crack growth behaviour in these structures.The aim of this project is to develop a novel finite element technique (e.g. XFEM, AdaptiveRemeshing, K/J Domain Integral) to predict fatigue crack gorwth behaviour of structuralsteels in both air and seawater

8. JIC Fracture Toughness Finite Element Modelling for a Range of Metallic

Materials


Co-Supervisor: Dr Mehdi Yasaee

JIC Fracture toughness tests are often performed on C(T) and SEN(B) fracture mechanicsspecimen geometries. The aim of this project is to investigate the dependency of JIC fracturetoughness value on the specimen geometry and dimensions (e.g. crack length and thickness)by performing finite element analyses. The FEA model will be validated through comparisonwith the experimental data available on parent material.


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9. Feasibility Study of the Use of Renewable Energy for Water Treatment


Co-Supervisor: Dr Irene Carra

There is an increasing need to improve drinking water quality worldwide, so it is vital to findcost-effective sources of energy to reduce OPEX in different treatment steps. With the rapidincrease in the number of offshore and onshore wind farms around the world, renewableenergy resources can potentially provide the energy required for drinking waterapplications. The aim of this project is to investigate the feasibility of using wind energy toreduce water treatment electricity costs. The student is expected to analyse the energyabsorbed from an onshore and an offshore wind farm, and perform a financial analysis of the effectiveness of these resources to provide electricity for a water treatment works.

10. A Numerical Study of Crack Paths using Finite Element Granular Mesh

Structures


Finite element techniques have been widely used to predict the crack initiation and growthbehaviour of materials under different loading conditions. An important issue which has notbeen considered in the majority of these models is the influence of grain structure on thecrack propagation behaviour of polycrystalline materials. The aim of this project is toinvestigate the sensitivity of intergranular creep crack growth behaviour to the material

microstructure

11. Techno-Economic Feasibility Analysis of Renewable Wind Energy

Resources and Technologies in a Practical Case


Co-Supervisor: Dr Mahmood Shafiee

With growing interest in the development of new onshore and offshore wind farms in manyparts of the world it is crucial to ensure the feasibility of projects either in terms of

technological acquisition and physical installation or return of economic investment. Manyof the feasibility analysis approaches used in the renewable energy industry sector arerestricted only to either “technical” or “economic” considerations, which may lead toinaccurate conclusions. This project aims to establish a techno-economic framework toidentify the most appropriate renewable wind energy solutions (including type of installations--onshore or offshore, geographical locations for installation, size and capacity,configuration--horizontal or vertical axis, condition monitoring systems, etc.). The proposedframework will be tested on a practical case and the results will be compared with thoseobtained from available tools in the wind energy industry.


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12. Prediction of Shape Function and Fatigue Crack Initiation in SLIC Project

Specimens using Finite Element Simulations


SLIC project aims to redefine international standards by suggesting a new fatigue designcurve for offshore wind monopile structures. The aim of this project is to characterise thecrack growth behaviour in large scale S-N specimens employed in the SLIC project testprogramme, using finite elemtn simulations.

13. CFD study on a dense periodic array of vertical-axis wind turbines

Supervisor: Dr Takafumi Nishino

Co-Supervisor: Dr Pierre-Luc Delafin

One of the challenges in wind farm design is how to improve the overall performance of multiple wind turbines. Recent studies have suggested that a dense array of Vertical-AxisWind Turbines (VAWT’s) has a potential to achieve a much higher power density (i.e. powerper unit land area) compared to typical (existing) wind farms using Horizontal-Axis WindTurbines. In this study you will perform 3D Unsteady RANS CFD of one or two VAWT’splaced near the bottom of a tall but horizontally small computational domain, with doublyperiodic boundary conditions for the horizontal ends of the domain, to investigate theperformance of a dense periodic array of VAWT’s.

14. CFD study on the aerodynamic interaction of simplified horizontal-axis

wind turbines

Supervisor: Dr Takafumi Nishino

Company Name: Uniper (formerly E.ON Technologies)

A key problem in many wind farm optimisation tools currently used in the industry is thatthe aerodynamic interaction of turbines cannot be predicted accurately. This is essentiallybecause these optimisation tools do not solve the full Navier-Stokes equations (in order tokeep the computational time short enough to examine hundreds of possible turbine arrayconfigurations). In this study you will perform 3D RANS CFD of two or three simplified windturbines (porous discs) placed near the bottom of a tall and wide computational domain.The objective is to investigate the interaction of two or three turbines with various relativepositions and, hopefully, develop an analytical or empirical model of this interaction effectthat can be applied to industrial wind farm optimisation tools. You may also have a chanceto work on real wind farm data provided by Uniper.


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15. CFD study on the influence of turbine near-wake mixing on wind farm

efficiency

Supervisor: Dr Taka Nishino

Company Name: Uniper (formerly E.ON Technologies)

One of the uncertainties in the prediction of wind farm efficiency comes from how thecomplex turbulent wake behind each turbine is modelled. In this study you will perform 3DRANS CFD of one or two actuator discs placed near the bottom of a tall but horizontallysmall computational domain, with doubly periodic boundary conditions for the horizontalends of the domain, to predict the efficiency of “aligned” and “staggered” arrays of windturbines. A novel near-wake turbulence model recently developed by Nishino and Willden(2014) will be used to arbitrarily change the characteristics of turbine near-wake mixing andthereby assess their influence on the farm efficiency. You may also have a chance to work

on real wind farm data provided by Uniper.

16. CFD study on a vertical-axis turbine with active pitch control



The efficiency of vertical-axis turbines is usually limited due to the inherent variation of theblades’ angle of attack, i.e. the blades cannot always work at their optimal angle of attack.Previous studies have shown that reducing the angle of attack in the upstream half of theturbine by active pitch control leads to an increase in the turbine power. In this study youwill examine the coupling of pitching laws in the upstream and downstream halves of theturbine to further increase its efficiency, using 2D Unsteady RANS CFD. Since this is a 2Dstudy, the results of this study will be relevant to both wind and tidal turbines.

17. CFD study of aircraft aerodynamics: Wing-body junction flow



The current configuration of commercial aircraft (Airbus, Boeing, etc.) employs a centralcylindrical body on which wings are fixed. This configuration leads to the development of a“horseshoe” vortex at the junction between the body and a wing. This vortex affects bothlift and drag of the aircraft and also modifies the wings’ stall characteristics. This type of flow can also be seen in many other applications, such as wind turbines, submarines andaerofoils in a wind tunnel. In this study you will use 3D RANS CFD to analyse such a wing-body junction flow and then modify the junction shape to reduce the effects of junctionvortices on the aerodynamic characteristics of the wing. The CFD simulations will use thegeometry of the NASA Common Research Model (CRM) aircraft.


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18. Advanced slug control with large time delay in valve manipulation

Supervisor: Dr Yi Cao

Multiphase slug is a challenge faced by oil and gas industry. Slug control is an efficientapproach to deal with this challenge. Based on our field trial experience, chock valves usedfor slug control normally is of large size and associated with large time contants and delaysin thei manipulation. This causes some difficulty to slug control. In the project, traditionalSmith predictor will be adopted to deal with this problem. The solution will bedemonstrated through OLGA simulation.

19. Injectable Venturi for slug control


Injectable Venturi is a new invention by Cranfield. This project sees to apply this device toslug mitigation. The concept will be demonstrated through experiment using the multiphasefacility in the PSE Lab.

20. Pseudo Spiral Tube on topside platform for slug mitigation


Pseudo Spiral Tube (PST) was an invention by Cranfield for pasive slug mitigation. Originally,it was installed at the riser base. However, this limited its application due to the difficulty of subsea installation involved. This project investigates the slug mitigation capability of a PSTby installing it on topside of a platform through experiment using the multiphase facility inthe PSE Lab.

21. Inferential slug control using new flow measurement


Inferential Slug Control (ISE) is a new invention by Cranfield. It uses multiple measurementavailable on the platform for slug control. In this project, various measurements potentiallysuitable for ISC will be reviewed and a particular measurement available in the PSE LAb willbe adopted and tested through experiment using the multiphase facility in the PSE LAb.

22. Self-optimizing control of wind turbine generators


Co-Supervisor: Maurizio Collu


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Wind turbine generator operation has to be adjusted based on current wind speed. Thisproject will review current practice and its optimality under various conditions. Then, a self-optimizing control strategy will be proposed based on the review and tested throughsimulation.

23. Condition monitoring for PSE Multiphase Flow Facility


Recently, the PSE Multiphase Flow facility suffered from some oil spilt due to fault operatingconditions. Efficient condition monitoring tool is urgently required to be installed on thesystem so that similar incident can be prevented in future. This project is going to applyprocess condition monitoring techniques we developed recently to this facility to test theapplicability and effectiveness of these techniques.

24. Experimental investigation of the response of metal foam sandwich

panels in fatigue

Supervisor: Dr S Yiatros

Co-Supervisor: Dr Ali Mehmanparast

Company Name: EU Project INSIST

This project entails the experimental investigation of different metal foam sandwich panels

in fatigue testing. The student will have the opportunity to research the literature, workwith a novel material component, investigate its durability experimentally and proposeapplications for this material in the offshore sector

25. Experimental investigation of the response of metal foam sandwich

panels in fatigue, subjected to a corrosive environment




This project entails the experimental investigation of different metal foam sandwich panelsthat have been subjected to corrosive conditions in fatigue testing. The student will havethe opportunity to research the literature, work with a novel material component, design anexperiment for subjecting the panels in a corrosive environment and investigate theirdurability experimentally.


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26. Modelling of metal foam sandwich structures for offshore wind using FE




This project entails the use of experimental data and literature to create a model in ABAQUSand simulate the response of metal foam sandwich structures. The student will then applythis model for special components in an offshore wind or oil and gas structure.

27. Investigation of SHM strategies for metal foam sandwich panels in

offshore applications

Supervisor: Dr S YiatrosCo-Supervisor: Dr A Kolios


This project entails the study of the literature and analysis of experimental data to proposesuitable SHM techniques for offshore applications of metal foam sandwich panels.

28. Conceptual and preliminary design of a SPAR floating support structure

for a 10MW Vertical Axis Wind Turbine

Supervisor: Dr M Collu

Co-Supervisor: Dr T Nishino

Company Name: VertAx

The main aim of this project is the conceptual and preliminary design of a floating supportstructure for a given 10 MW offshore Vertical Axis Wind Turbine. Starting from the rotorgeometry and the inertial characteristics of a given 10MW VAWT, and the characteristics of a given offshore site (Buchan Deep, approx. 25-30 km off the coast of Peterhead inAberdeenshire), the students will need to perform a conceptual design first and then apreliminary sizing of a SPAR floating support platform. The final output should comprise butnot limited to: definition of geometrical, inertial, aerodynamic, and hydrodynamiccharacteristics of the proposed FOWT, estimation of the capital cost (only for the floatingsupport structure), and a comparison against the HAWT FOWT proposed for the same siteby Statoil.


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29. Further development and analysis of the mooring dynamics modelling

approach for the aero-hydro-mooring coupled model of dynamics for

VAWT

Supervisor: Dr M ColluCompany Name: University of Maine (USA)

Since 2011, the OREE centre has been developing a coupled model of dynamics for floatingvertical axis wind turbines called FloVAWT. The code has been validated at module levelagainst experimental data and verified against code-to-code comparisone exercises, hasbeen utilising a in house code for the mooring system dynamics.The National Renewable Energy Laboratory in USA (NREL) has recently issued the newversion of FAST, a coupled model of dynamics for offshore floating HAWT, and thanks to itsmodular structure it is possibe to adopt the FAST mooring dynamics module (MoorDyn) and

integrate it with FloVAWT. The main aim of this projec is therefore the integration of theMoorDyn module of FAST into FloVAWT, followed by its verification and, if possible, itsvalidation. The candidate will gain an in depth knowledge of the state-of-the-art coupledmodel of dynamics tools (HAWT and VAWT) as well as in depth knowledge of the mooringsystem dynamics.

30. A systematic comparison of floating support structures for offshore wind

turbines


A number of concepts proposed have been proposed as floating support structures foroffshore wind turbines. Some overview documents have been issued presenting their maincharacteristics, but at present there are no documents systematically classifying thesestructures, comparing and contrasting their characteristics.The main aim of this thesis will be to conduct a review of the main important floatingsupport structures proposed, and to analyse them in order to be able to propose a set of evaluation criteria against which the platforms can be marked and ranked. The student willgain an in depth overview of the state of the art of floating support structure for windturbines technology, as well as developing an understanding of their main characteristics.

31. Investigation of simple, low aspect ratio 3D planforms in ground effect

using vortex-lattice methods


Company Name: Collaboration with Cranfield Centre for Aeronautics/SATM

This project will utilise open source VLM codes to analyse and compare low Mach, highReynolds number turbulent flows over a range of angles of attack and height above ground

for various simplified geometrical planforms. The aim is to assess the performance of thevarious shapes in close proximity to a ground plane. Once a brief review of the suitablity of


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software alternatives has been completed, test cases covering quasi-static conditions likelyto be experienced in ground effect flight and transient phases will be modelled. The projectdeliverables will include assessment of the relevant aerodynamic coefficients for the testedconfigurations.

32. A review and comparison of contol-oriented, simplified coupled model of

dynamics for offshore floating wind turbines


Company Name: University of Stuttgart

In the recent years a number of high-fidelity, advanced coupled model of dynamics foroffshore floating wind turbines have been developed, focusing on being able to estimate thedynamic response and loads acting on the floating wind turbine systems for certification

purposes.Nonetheless, often these are used as "black-box", i.e. it is not easy to gain an understandingof the dynamics of these systems: a simplified model, less accurate but more robust andallowing a better understanding of the dynamics would be an ideal design tool for theconceptual and preliminary phases of the design, since they are much quicker.The aim of this project is to perform a literature review on simplified model fo dynamics forFOWT, comparing and contrasting their characteristics, in order to propose a referencesimplified coupled model of dynamics.

33. Integration of an unsteady 2D vorticity aerodynamics code in theCranfield University aero-hydro coupled model of dynamics for VAWT


Co-Supervisor: Dr M Borg (DTU Wind, Denmark)

Company Name: DTU Wind Energy

Since 2011, the OREE centre has been developing a coupled model of dynamics for floatingvertical axis wind turbines called FLoVAWT. The code, validated at module level againstexperimental data and verified against code-to-code comparisone exercises, has been

utilising a double multiple streamtube approach to model the aerodynamics of the verticalaxis rotor. There have been some studies showing that, even if this approach is reliable forconventional configuration, can be limited and should be sobstituted by other approaches.This thesis will focus on the integration of a vortex aerodynamic model developed for VAWTinto FLoVAWT, with comparison of the performance of the two codes.


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34. Effect of second-order hydrodynamics on floating vertical axis wind

turbines


Co-Supervisor: Dr M Borg (DTU Wind, Denmark)Company Name: DTU Wind Energy

Since 2011, the OREE centre has been developing a coupled model of dynamics for floatingvertical axis wind turbines called FLoVAWT. This project will involve the development of numerical models in the MATLAB/Simulink environment to implement sum- and difference-frequency second order hydrodynamic wave forces within the FloVAWT integrateddynamics design tool. A semi-submersible case study shall be considered, with particularattention paid to low-frequency global platform excitation and potential interactionbetween aerodynamic forces and high-frequency wave forces. This project includes the

following topics: Global motion performance analysis of floating wind turbines, Potentialflow theory and second order hydrodynamics

35. A review and comparison of mooring systems for offshore floating SPAR

wind turbines - application to large scale models for open sea tests


Co-Supervisor: Prof Felice Arena (NOEL), Italy

Company Name: Mediterranera University of Reggio Calabria – NOEL (Natural Ocean

Engineering Lab)

Cranfield University has started a collaboration with the NOEL (Natural Ocean EngineeringLab) of the University for Reggio Calabria for the design, manufacturing and experimentaltesting of a floating offshore wind turbine (HAWT - SPAR) at a relatively large scale.The main aim of this thesis will be a literature review of the mooring systems for offshorefloating wind turbines, focusing on SPAR configurations, in order to deliver a review report,where also the main advantages and disadvantages of each mooring system will bediscussed. This will be followed by the proposal of an optimum mooring system for thealready built SPAR scale model that i currently being tested in NOEL. The student will be co-supervised by academics and PhD students of the Italian university.

36. Microwave-assisted hydrothermal liquefaction of microalgae

Supervisor: Dr B Fidalgo

Microalgae have gained increasing interest as feedstock for biorefinery due to the highgrowth rate and composition (high content in lipids and other valuable chemicals).Microalgae feedstock also contents high moisture in composition. For that reason,hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) is considered a suitable conversion technology for thisbiomass since the energy required for drying the sample is reduced significantly. HTL is a


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thermal decomposition process which converts wet biomass into a liquid fuel, usuallyreferred as biocrude. The process runs under subcritical water at moderate temperatureand pressure. On the other hand, microwave heating has been shown to improve productquality and quantity, reduce processing time, and ultimately increase the overall efficiencyof different processes (from chemical synthesis to drying). In the case of HTL, microwave

heating has been used as pretreatment method to aid cell disruption of the microalgae andenhance the overall performance during the conversion stage. However, microwave-assisted HTL has been barely investigated. In this project the feasibility of microwave-assisted HTL of microalgae will be investigated. The effects of various reaction conditions(temperature, time, addition of catalysts) will be investigated and compared to dataobtained from conventionally-heated HTL.

37. Co-pyrolysis of biomass and oil sand

Supervisor: Dr B FidalgoCo-Supervisor: Z Li (Advisor)

Oil sand, also known as tar sand or bituminous sand, is a complex mixture of quartz sand,clay, water, and heavy bitumen, with small content in metals. Although oil sand deposits canbe found throughout the world, the largest reservoirs are in the Athabasca area in northernAlberta, Canada. On the other hand, biomass is recognized as a renewable resource forenergy production and is abundantly available around the world. Biomass can be convertedinto biofuels via different thermal, biological and physical processes. Among thethermochemical conversion processes, fast pyrolysis has recently attracted interest in order

to produce liquid fuel. Pyrolysis of carbon-based materials such as coal, biomass, and oilshale to yield char, oil, and gas products has been extensively studied. The aim of thisproject is to study the co-pyrolysis of biomass and the oil sand, and recommend optimatechnology and set of operating conditions. Current processes and potential process flowdiagram will be assessed by literature review. The proposed process will be then simulatedusing Aspen plus. A general techno-economic analysis may be included.

38. Hydrothermal gasification of sewage sludge

Supervisor: Dr B FidalgoCo-Supervisor: Z Li (Advisor)

Sewage sludge is a by-product generated from the process of sewage treatment inwastewater treatment plants. The rapidly increasing amount of produced sewage sludge hasraised growing concern recently. Sewage sludge is a waste with risks to human health andenvironment, and it requires proper management in compliance with the law. Hydrothermaltreatment consists of the conversion of biomass in water at high temperatures andpressures. Depending on the operating conditions (temperature, pressure, reaction time),different primary and secondary reactions take place giving rise to a set of different

products. The aim of this project is to study the hydrothermal gasification of sewage sludge,and recommend the technology and operating conditions for an optimum process. The


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potential process flow diagram will be established after detailed literature review and theprocess model will be developed using Aspen plus. A general techno-economic analysis willbe included.

39. Production of H2-rich gas from steam gasification of biomass with in situCO2 removal


Co-Supervisor: Z Li (Advisor)

The Absorption enhanced gasification (AEG) has been proposed by various authors for theproduction of H2-rich gas product from biomass. Steam gasification of biomass uses steamas gasifying agent and yields a medium caloric product gas mainly consisting of H2, CO, CO2,CH4 and H2O. The removal of CO2 at high temperatures and/or pressures is mainly aimed to

generate hydrogen rich gas from solid and gas fuels. AEG process consists of a dual fluidizedbed system which involves two fluidized bed chambers. In the first chamber, gasificationoccurs while a sorbent for in-situ removal of CO2 at high temperature and/or pressure isadded. The spent absorbent is then regenerated in a subsequent stage. Given its highcontent in H2, the product gas can be used for a wide range of applications which covers theconventional combined heat and power production, operation of fuel cells, conversion intoliquid fuels or generation of synthetic natural gas and hydrogen. The aim of this project is todevelop a model of an absorption enhanced gasification process using Aspen plus. Thepotential process flow diagram will be established after detailed literature review and ageneral techno-economic analysis will be obtained.

40. CFD modelling of hydrothermal gasification of sewage sludge in a

fluidized bed reactor


Co-Supervisor: Z Li (Advisor)

Sewage sludge is a by-product generated from the process of sewage treatment inwastewater treatment plants. The rapidly increasing amount of produced sewage sludge has

raised growing concern recently. Hydrothermal treatment consists of the conversion of biomass in water at high temperatures and pressures. Due to the high moisture content of the sewage sludge, hydrothermal liquefaction may be an option for converting this wasteinto high-value gas. The aim of this project is to develop a CFD model to describe the fluiddynamics and reactions occurring during hydrothermal gasification of sewage sludge in afluidized bed reactor using Ansys Fluent.


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41. Finite element and stress analysis of Rotary valve

Supervisor: Dr M Gourma

The rotary valves are used to regulate the flow of material from one chamber to another.They are used under severe conditions of pressure and temperature in various fields (suchas: mining, oil& gas, Chemical). The object of this project is the analysis of variousgeometries in terms of stress distributions, modal analysis at given rotating speed.

42. CFD: Thermo-fluid modelling of CO2 mixture, transport and

depressurisation


The transport of CO2 between the point of capture and the point of storage take place athigh pressures. The CO2 is then in a supercritical (Liquid-like) state. During plannedmaintenance or failure, the pipe can be depressurized. The change in pressure leads tophase change in CO2 resulting in severe cooling of the pipe (since the supercritical CO2 hashigh cooling potential). If the temperature becomes low enough, the pipe material maybecome brittle, causing rupture and damage. The objective here is to is to model themixture flows with various volume fractions and equation of states to see their influence onthe pipe cooling

43. Anaerobic digester: CFD modelling of gas and Non-Newtonian fluid indigester


Anaerobic digestion converts the energy stored in organic materials into biogas. Adequatemixing of the liquid inside an anaerobic digester provide uniform environment for maximumdigestion. The objective is the simulation of flowing non-Newtonian liquid in vertical columnis injected with gas bubbles. The gas injection is needed to ensure maximum mixing.

44. Sand Erosion: CFD Modelling of erosion in hot gas pipes due to sand

presence


Estimation of sand erosion in gas lines is necessary for protecting and designing pipelines. Inorder to predict erosion caused by sand particles in hot gas lines, simulations with variousparticle sizes and turbulent gas temperature will be carried out in 90 Degre elbow. Two

existing erosion models (OKA and E/CRC) will be tested and compared with data.


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45. Sand Transport in single phase system: Modelling Sand transport in liquid


During oil and gas production, accumulation of sand particles in pipelines poses operationalchallenges to facilities and leads to downtime losses. The objective of this project is modelsand and water flows in V shaped line, in order to predict minimum continuous transportconditions, the study of the effect of viscosity of the phase carrier on these conditions aswell as the distribution of sand particles.

46. CFD modelling of the combustion in the burner/rig


Co-Supervisor: Dr J Sumner

The rotary valves are used to regulate the flow of material from one chamber to another.They are used under severe conditions of pressure and temperature in various fields (suchas: mining, oil& gas, Chemical). The object of this project is the analysis of variousgeometries in terms of stress distributions, modal analysis at given rotating speed.

47. The experimental study of physical properties of liquid/liquid mixtures

involving non-Newtonian crude

Supervisor: Dr L Lao

Non-Newtonian crude, a fluid with properties that differ from those of Newtonian fluids,extensively exists in oil and gas industry. The multiphase flows involving non-Newtonianhave posed a challenge to the industrial, however they have not been well studied. Theobjective of this project is to experimentally study the fundamental physical properties of the non-Newtonian crude/water mixture. The tasks include the bench tests with regard tothe sheer stress-sheer rate characteristics of the mixture, at different temperatures andwater cut values. The results from this experimental investigation is expected to be used forthe further study on the flow behaviours of liquid/liquid flows involving non-Newtonianfluids.

48. Behaviours of Two Phase Flows in Up and Down Vertical Pipes


Gas liquid annular flows in vertical pipes are very common in power and chemical plants.Previous research has been mostly limited to upward flows in small diameter pipes (i.d.100 mm are rare. The objective of

the research is to investigate the behavior of gas liquid flows in downward and upwardpipes. The student will initially carry out literature survey on the annular flows in different


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conditions. The analysis on the available experimental data such as pressure, film thicknessand phase distribution in a vertical upward and downward gas/liquid flow, will then beconducted. It is expected a better understanding about the flow behavior in vertical largescale pipes, and improved correlations for predicting the flow behaviours can be developed.

49. Assessments of Minimum Sand Transportation Conditions in Multiphase

Pipeline


Co-Supervisor: Wei Yan (Petrofac Engineering and Production Service)

Sand management in multiphase oil and gas pipelines is vital to prevent productioncurtailing and maintain mechanical integrity of pipeline and surface treatment facilities.Three main aspects involved are: (1) Sand Erosion Control (2) Assurance of Sand

Transportation and (3) Sand Monitoring. This research project focuses on the assessmentsof sand minimum transport conditions in a typical subsea oil and gas pipeline. It consists of two stages: (1) Conduct a literature review of the current available methods for predictingsand transportation conditions in pipeline (in particular for multiphase flow systems) and (2)Perform comparisons of those prediction methods against the available experimental/fielddata. As a engineering design practice, those comparisons will be done in an excelworkbook, interacting with standard Flow Assurance design tools (i.e. Pipesim or OLGA).

50. Data Mining to Extract Multiphase Flow Parameters


Co-Supervisor: Prafull Sharma

The design of oil production pipelines involves evaluation of flow lines subject to multiphaseflow of oil, water, and gas, where oscillations in pressure, temperature, and phaseconcentration typically occur. The identification of flow patterns along with estimation of parameters such as slip velocity, gas fraction, friction factors etc is essential for design of production equipment and flow assurance. The objective of this project is to use datamining methods on an existing database of mutliphase flow measurements to extract flowparameters.

51. Wetgas Measurement using Clamp-On Sensors


Co-Supervisor: Prafull Sharma

In recent years, wet gas flow measurement is becoming increasingly important in gas/oilfields, offshore process and petrolchemical industries. Clamp-On measurement technologieshave been gaining importance due to ease of installation and logistics. This project will

investigate measurement of liquid film thickness variation on the pipe wall under wetgasconditions using clamp-on sensors as gamma densitometer and microwave sensor


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52. Ultrasonic Flow Measurement for Boiler Tubes


Co-Supervisor: Dr Jeff Evemy, Mr Stan Collins

Company Name: Jeff Evemy Bouquesque Designs Ltd

Based on initial research by Prof. M L Sanderson [1] a prototype flow measurement systemwas developed and has been tested in the Process Systems Engineering laboratory atCranfield (PSE). An identical system is installed at the Brunner Island power station and hasprovided useful data. It is necessary to develop the software systematically on theprototype installed at Cranfield and evaluate its performance. Whilst the system at Brunneris at several hundred bar and several hundred Kelvin the indications are that it appears torun in an identical way. There are no indications that results obtained from the system atCranfield cannot be applied directly to Brunner. It is hoped that the results gained from thisproject at Cranfield will help to redesign the system being tested at Brunner. The Objectivesand scope of the MSc project are therefore:1. Confirm reliability and repeatability of hardware installation at Cranfield.2. Develop a methodology for testing and calibration of results.3. Investigate relationship between set-up parameters and performance.4. Investigate impact of hardware improvements on performance.5. Analyse and compare with simulated scenarios.6. Determine changes in software necessary to compensate.7. Evaluate algorithm improvements and document software.

53. A review on a type of instability in gas-liquid systems


From the industries to the nature mother, there is a type of instability widely exists ingas/liquid systems. Roughly speaking this type of instability is featured as periodic pressurebuild-up phase and blowout phase. For example, severe slugging in low rate oil/gas flows inpipeline-riser system, where due to the liquid blockage in the lower part of the system (e.g.riser base), the pressure is building up due to the gas production from the reservoir andliquid column increased. This process will continue until the gas penetrates into the liquid

column leading to the liquid blockage being pushed out in a accelerated manner, and finallythe gas (indeed with mixed liquid) blow out. Similarly a geophysical phenomenon, namelysubglacial eruption in the situation of the ice capped volcano.The objective of this study, is to carry out an extensive literature review on this type of phenomenon, and identify the key factors which linked to the characteristics of theinstability. The key variables are to identify which would be recommended to describe theprocess of the phenomenon.


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54. Optimum design of crack arrestors in structural members

Supervisor: Amir Chahardehi

Co-Supervisor: Dr A Mehmanparast

The aim of the project is to design the optimum size and shape for crack stopper holes forstylised geometries including cylindrical braces with and without welds. The analysis entailsapplication of handbook solutions, finite element analysis and optimisation of the shape fordominant loading modes. A further fatigue assessment on the design should also beperformed, using industrially accepted design codes, to demonstrate the fitness of thesolution. The analytical design should then be ratified by practical consideration of thelimitation of cutting and grinding methods. The outcome of the project will benefitindustrial applications, by providing stylised solutions with little need for modification in realsituations. Applications range from offshore oil and gas installations and wind through tobridges and infrastructure.

55. Analysis of the local stress concentrations and their effect on integrity of

welded components



The stress concentration factor (SCF) in structural details has a profound impact on the life

of structures and its knowledge enables accurate estimation of the stresses and thereforeremaining life of the structure. This also guides the physical extent of inspections that maybe required, periodically, to ensure fitness of the component. Standard solutions currentlyexist, to determine these SCFs at the weld toe and are routinely used in design and analysis.However, the current parametric equations for SCFs at welds consider only the highest SCFthat occurs in the weld, ignoring the secondary SCFs that might occur and ignoring whichcould lead to inaccuracy in design and inadequate structural capacity. The aim of thisproject is to quantify these concentration factors, using FE and analytical methods inparametric form, and to demonstrate their effect in longevity of welds through stylisedexamples. Immediate applications include offshore renewable and oil&gas structures, shiphulls, and the outcome of the work may be used in updating current national andinternational standard codes.

56. Towards a rapid quantification of likelihood of failure in load-carrying

components


Assessment of fracture in structural compoents has traditionally been performed using

deterministic methods, where the inputs to the analysis are expressed as single valueparameters. In reality, inherent variability in the material properties, loading conditions,


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and failure criterion, all contribute to add uncertainties to the assessment. Therefore theapproach in most industries has been to opt for conservative inputs, leading to resultswhose degree of conservatism might be difficult to quantify. It is however usually requiredthat a certain target probability of failure is demonstrated. The other end of the analysisspectrum is the fully-fledged proabibilistic (or more appropriately, statistical) analysis where

all the possible varibilities are included in the assessment, leading to cumbersome andexpensive calculations. An optimum solutions in some cases may be to adopt a semi-proababilistic approach, by use of partial safety factors (PSFs), calibrated based on theexpected probability of failure and other considerations such as type of flaw. The aim of this project is to provide an update to the currently exisitng PSFs which are used in standardcodes, to include the loading mode and flaw type for stylised cases. The results havewidespread application in relevant industries, and could be used to update currentlypublished values in national and internation standard codes.

57. Accurate integrity assessment of welded components containingembedded defects



Embedded flaws are a possible occurrence in welds, and are currently assessed usingbounding, and at times overly conservative methods. This could have a real cost implicationin integrity management of sturcutures with thick welded sections. The aim of this projectis to provide a baseline for the caluclation of crack driving force (stress intensity factor - SIF)

in embedded defects, bringing together existing literature content and additional numericalmodelling. Typical stress gradients encountered in welded structures should be used asdefault, and the SIF solutions for these and likely additional loading modes should ideally bepresented in the form of parametric equations, and possibly a generic 'weight function'.Immediate application of the developed solutions would be in welded thick sections such asoffshore monopiles and other components where current standard methods of assessmentlack resolution. The result of the work could also help the update and development of national and international structural integirty standard codes.

58. Risk-based insoection of offshore welded components


Co-Supervisor: Dr A Kolios

The aim of the project is to assess the application and suitability of current best practice inrisk-based setting of inspection intervals in offshore monopiles and jacket structures. This isan ambitious undertaking and currently there is a degree of pragmatism practiced amongrelevant industries, with rigorous analytical solutions proving highly expensive and complex.The objective of the work is to establish the sensitivity of the outcome to variation in initial

assumptions.


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59. Hybrid power cycles to utilise low-grade heat

Supervisor: Dr I Sher

Low grade heat is hard to utilise for power generation, even as a complementary energysource. Hybrid power cycles are a promising method of exploiting a low temperature heatsource along with a high temperature one. The method has many advantages, howeverfaces some challenges in its flexibility between the low and high grade sources, and itsoverall efficiency.The objective of the project is to explore that method. At first, a literature survey of available designs should be conducted, followed by thermodynamic modelling andconceptual design of a hybrid thermodynamic cycle, which will be analysed forperformance, improvement directions, and feasibility. Analysis for a specific low grade heatsource, e.g. solar, waste, etc. could be conducted.

60. Drag reduction by soluble polymeric additives


The phenomenon of turbulent drag reduction by diluted soluble polymers (Tom’sPhenomenon) has been known for over 60 years now. It is applied in many closed-loopsystems, to cut pumping power. However, as a result, convective heat-transfer coefficient isalso reduced (if applicable to the system).There has been an extensive research effort to model this phenomenon, however, a definiteexplanation is yet to be offered. The objective of this project is to examine different fluidmodels (rheological) for possible modelling in a commercial CFD software. A thoroughliterature survey of the phenomenon and its applications should be conducted, followed byCFD implementation of selected models, comparison to published results, and depends onprogress, a possible example-system case-study.

61. Enhancing heating-systems performance using drag reducing additives


Polymeric additives (to flowing liquids) are well known to reduce drag in turbulent flow(Tom’s Phenomenon). However, as a result, convective heat-transfer coefficient is alsoreduced. Polymeric additives have nevertheless been used in many heating systems (like themunicipal heating grid in Prague, for example) to reduce pumping costs.The objective of the project is to study the overall merit of those polymeric additives inenhancing performance of heating systems (by means of a modelling and analysis), and toestimate its feasibility in some heating systems case-studies (to be chosen/defined bystudent).


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62. Electro-chemical coolers for small-scale refrigeration


Electro-chemical cooling is produced by applying electrical current to certain electro-chemical cells. The technology has a high potential in small-scale applications, for examplein cooling of electronic devices, or mobile mini-refrigerators (in some medical equipment),mostly because of its possible miniature size, simplicity, and fast response capability.The objective of the project is to explore that technology. Following a previous preliminarystudy, a literature survey on available technologies and their background will be followed bymodelling of the process (thermodynamics of chemical equilibrium, heat transfer) andinvestigating the controlling parameters for a recommended conceptual design, which canbe specified for application/s of choice.

63. Absorption refrigeration cycles for special applications


Absorption cycles are an alternative to compression cycles in refrigeration. They consumeless power, but require a heat source. That makes them useful in applications where heat isreadily available, and/or power consumption is to be minimised. For example, absorptionrefrigeration cycles are very useful in areas without a reliable electrical-grid. Anotherpossible application is in motor-vehicles, where air-conditioning is required, and waste heatis largely available. This solution can cut overall fuel consumption in cars, by utilising theengine’s waste heat for refrigeration, reducing direct power consumption by that system.The objective of the project is to explore that option. A literature survey of availabletechnologies will be followed by an analysis of the different variations of absorptionrefrigeration cycles. Modelling of the different technological variations would provideinsight into the important parameters in conceptual designs, and should result inconclusions regarding its feasibility.

64. Bio-Diesel Internal Combustion Engines


The use of bio-diesel as fuel for internal combustion engines is a prominent venue in abalanced energy mix, however, some special issues with these fuels arise in the processes of an ICE, such as fuel injection and combustion. Some of these issues are due to bio-diesel'shigher sensitivity to temperature variation, larger variation in properties, and degradation.The study will include a literature review of state-of-the-art research in this area, to identifythe key issues, and to analyse and/or model some of these parametric effects, possiblyamounting to construction of a tool for bio-diesel selection and performance prediction.


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65. Study of a power generation scheme for a specific geographical region


A techno-economical feasibility study will be carried on a possible, student-suggested,energy generation/use scheme (solar, waste, biomass, etc.) in a specific region, chosen bythe student. A literature review on relevant technologies for that scheme will be conducted,relevant data for the chosen region will be collated and analysed, followed by a technicalanalysis (can possibly involve modelling, if needed) and an economical evaluation to reach aconclusion on feasibility (can also include a prototype design if appropriate).

66. Energy markets analysis and forecasting


This study will look into the energy markets, e.g. energy related stock prices, energycommodities prices etc., and any occuring relevant correlations between them. The studywill try to discover whether any such useful correlations, or any other intrinsic correlations,can serve to facilitate forecasting of energy sector markets behaviour in the near or midtimescale.

67. Parametric Modelling and Fatigue Damage Assessment of Offshore Wind

Turbine Support Structures

Supervisor: Dr A Kolios

Co-Supervisor: Dr Lin Wang

Company Name: APL

This project aims to carry out parametric modelling and fatigue damage assessment of offshore wind turbine support structures subjected to combined wave- and wind-inducedloadings. A parametric FEA (finite element analysis) model of offshore wind turbine supportstructures will be developed using ANSYS software. The hotspots of the support structures

will be identified using the parametric FEA model. The ‘rain-flow counting algorithm’ will beused to reduce the complicated realistic loading history into a set of simple ‘stress reversals’that can feed into the Palmgren-Miner rule in order to assess the fatigue damage of thestructures. Parametric study will be performed to study the effects of each designparameter on the fatigue damage of the structures.


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68. Structural Optimisation of Offshore Wind Turbine Support Structures

based on Finite Element Analysis and Genetic Algorithm


Co-Supervisor: Dr Lin WangCompany Name: APL

This project aims to develop a structural optimisation model of offshore wind turbinesupport structures based on FEA (finite element analysis) and GA (genetic algorithm). A FEAmodel of offshore wind turbine support structures will be developed using ANSYS software,and the results from the FEA model will be validated against either published experimentaldata or available data in the literature. The FEA model will be then coupled with GA todevelop a structural optimisation model of offshore wind turbine support structures,minimising the mass of the structures with multi-criteria constraints.

69. Normalisation Framework for Structural Health Monitoring Data


Co-Supervisor: Maria Martinez (advisor)

Company Name: RWE

This project relates to the Structural Health Monitoring Systems that are currently beinginstalled in Offshore Wind Turbines enhancing their availability and optimising revenues.

However, the necessary frameworks for processing and utilising in a profitable way the hugeamount of data that Structural Health Monitoring Systems collect from offshore locationshave not been developed yet and constitute one of Industry’s biggest concerns at themoment. Data normalization is a crucial process for these framework’s development, whichconsists in separating changes in sensor readings caused by damage, from those caused byvarying operational and environmental conditions. This project aims to develop anormalisation framework suitable to be applied to real Structural Health Monitoring dataobtained from offshore wind turbines.

70. Techno-economic assessment of the scaling of a waste treatment system


Co-Supervisor: Dr Dawid Hanak / Dr Tosin Onabanjo

Company Name: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

This project is part of the Nano-membrane toilet that currently runs at Cranfield funded bythe Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation with the aim to design a domestic scale sanitationsystem for developing countries. This is a high impact endeavour and this MSc project willbuild on work already taking place for the evaluation of the energy and mass balance on adomestic system scaling it up to a community scale system, investigating the technical and


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economic issues that the larger scale brings, performing a thorough techno economicmultidisciplinary assessment to explore the concept’s potential viability.

71. RAM analysis for the certification of domestic scale sanitation systems


Co-Supervisor: Dr Dawid Hanak

Company Name: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

This project is part of the Nano-membrane toilet that currently runs at Cranfield funded bythe Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation with the aim to design a domestic scale sanitationsystem for developing countries. The team at Cranfield is particularly interested to build aframework towards certification of its unit according to international standards andprocesses. For the purpose of this project, a thorough review of existing applicable

standards will take place, followed by a detailed system break down and qualitativereliability assessment (FMEA, HAZOP analysis). Deliverable of the project after investigatingsimilar technologies will be a generic framework for effective implementation of RAManalysis towards certification of similar systems.

72. A multi-disciplinary risk-based review of energy storage systems


Co-Supervisor: Dr Tosin Onabanjo / Dr Dawid Hanak

This project aims to perform a market analysis and technology classification on existing anddeveloping energy storage solution. After a comprehensive review of the existing literature,technologies identified will be classified based on fundamental criteria (ie scale, applicationetc), highlighting the maturity level and applicability potential of different availableconcepts. Following, a PESTLE approach will be adopted to identify stakeholder across thesix core market sectors as well as related risks. A framework for prioritisation of risks will bedeveloped in the form of a generic tool, employing relevant decision support systems, suchas TOPSIS (Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution) or similarsuitable methods, with a relevant extension to account for uncertain inputs to the analysisand account for various scenarios and degree of confidence in individual assessment.

73. Thermodynamic modelling of phase transformation of trace element in

biomass samples during thermochemical biomass to energy conversion

Supervisor: Dr Y Jiang

Co-Supervisor: Dr P Longhurst

Company Name: EPSRC

Thermochemical biomass to energy conversion technology plays an integral part of the UKand the EU renewable energy development strategy. Previous studies carried out by


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Cranfield researchers showed biomass of plant origin often contain heavy metalcontaminants which will subsequently cause hot-corrosion of facilities and toxic gaseousemissions during thermochemical process. Using extensive biomass composition databaseECN Phyllis containing analytical results of samples collected across the world, one aim of the project is to use statistical method to study the concentration distributions of high

profile metal contaminants (to be identified in the project) and identify the concentrationrange of these metals most likely to be fund in typical biomass feedstocks. These results willthen inform thermodynamic modelling based on chemical equilibrium calculations tosuggest optimised thermochemical operational parameters to minimised gaseous elementalemissions.

74. Cost-Effective Operation and Maintenance (O&M) of Deep-water

Offshore Wind farms

Supervisor: Dr M Shafiee

Company Name: Energy Industry

Many offshore wind farms are planned to be built in deep-sea locations (50+ meters) due tohigh wind resources. In this line, reducing operation and maintenance (O&M) costs isnecessary to make deep‐sea offshore wind projects viable. This project aims to present a

framework for the development of cost-effective inspection, repair and maintenance (IMR)strategies and policies for deep‐sea offshore wind turbines.

75. End-of-Life and Decommissioning of Offshore Energy (Oil and Gas / Wind)Facilities



As the Offshore energy industry reaches maturity, the issues of end-of-life anddecommissioning management of offshore (oil and gas, wind energy) facilities andstructures are becoming more crucial. To date, there have been a very limited number of decommissioning projects across the UK. Each of these projects has had different issues todeal with and has undergone a learning process. This study aims to collect the experiencesgained by actual decommissioning projects, thus contributing to the transfer of knowledge/experience within the subsea oil and gas and offshore wind energy industries. Aframework is proposed to identify and analyse the issues which need to be considered whendeveloping end-of-life strategies as part of offshore energy decommissioning programme.


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76. Reliability/Risk-Centred Inspection (RCI) for Offshore Renewable Energy

Structures



Reliability/Risk-centered inspection (RCI) is an indispensable methodology used to identifythe inspection and maintenance intervals of offshore energy assets on the basis of "failurecriticality". Currently, a large number of researchers and practitioners have shown theirinterests in applying the RCI analysis to marine renewable energy structures. Thesestructures are exposed to harsh weather, high wind loadings, corrosion effects and fatiguehazards which may lead to structural failure. In this project, an RCI tool/techniquege ispresented for marine renewable energy structures taking into account various deteriorationand damage processes.

77. Collisions Damage Assessment in the Offshore Energy Industry



Collisions between ships or between ships and offshore facilities are increasingly simulatedwith numerical methods predicting the structural damage. This project presents an efficientnumberical model for damage analysis of collision incidents in the offshore oil fields and/or

offshore wind farms. In order to calculate the collision damage, several factors e.g. type of material of structure, type of ship, ship speed, traffic, navigation routes, and layout of thefield will be taken into account.

78. Reliability Estimation of Offshore Energy (Oil and Gas / Wind) Facilities in

Arctic Environment



The offshore oil and gas industry is currently moving into the arctic region. In theseenvironments, the climate is harsh but the potential profits from future expansion are huge.The harsh arctic conditions may have a negative impact on the reliability and avaiability of the oil and gas facilities. This project focuses on reliability estimation of the oil and gasfacilities operating in arctic environments. It identifies important arctic factors influencingthe reliability performance and discusses how these may impact the reliability of thefacilities. Finally, a fault-tree analysis and a reliability-block diagram approach are used toestimate the reliability of safety critical elements.


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79. Assessing the CO2 Impact of new Steels in the UK Railway Network


Company Name: Network Rail / TATA Steel

Railway transport currently contributes around 1% of the UK’s CO2 emissions. An effecientway to reduce these emissions is to use new grades of steel for rail tracks. This project aimsto investigate the CO2 impact of new rail steels and develop a traffic-dependent numericalmodel to estimate the material, process and transport emissions associated withconstruction, inspection, repair and maintenance and end-of-life activities. Several grades of steel are considered and some required data will be provided by industry.

80. CFD Model for Predicting the Conditions for Suspending and Transporting

Sand in Multiphase Pipelines

Supervisor: Dr P Verdin

Co-Supervisor: Dr N Heywood

Company Name: BHR

The ability to understanding sand behaviour in multiphase pipelines is crucial to predictinghow to avoid potential erosion or partial or complete blockage of the pipeline. Thethreshold velocity, marking the point when sand transport begins and might accumulate asa stationary dune, and the considerably higher flow velocity required for all the sand to be

carried in suspension are the typical extreme conditions to be understood in sandmanagement. The work will include developing a 2D CFD model and mechanistic modellingtechnique to investigate the suspension and transport of sand through a liquid flowline andmay also possibly look at erosion around a pipe bend. The aim will be to use CFD to modelthe suspension/transportation under different sand loading/fluid flow conditions andcompare this with data that is publically available or that has already been gathered byCranfield University.

81. CFD Study of Oil-Water Multiphase Flow Mixtures in a Blind-T


During multiphase fluid transport, oil and water mixtures can be poorly mixed, especially atlow Reynolds number. These poor mixtures can affect both the transmission efficiency of the fluids and negatively affect the accuracy of watercut measurement. Experiments havebeen conducted in Cranfield University to study the oil-water flow pattern in a blind-T. Theaim of the project is to build a 2D CFD model able to capture the flow bahaviour in the pipeand in the T-junction under various flow conditions and validate the results with theavailable experimental data. Time permitting, a 3D model will also be developed to obtainmore realistic results.


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82. CFD Study of a Non-Newtonian Fluid


Co-Supervisor: Dr L Lao

This project is related to the one proposed and supervised by Dr Liyun Lao on experimentalwork to be carried out on non-Newtonian fluids, however on the modelling side of theresearch. CFD techniques will be used to study the physical properties of a non-Newtonianand water mixture for different temperatures and water cuts. The geometry (yet to bedefined at this stage) and the mesh will be created with IcemCFD and the flow solutionobtained with the commercial CFD software FLUENT. If possible, numerical results will becompared to experimental results obtained under the same conditions.

83. Study of Parameters Influencing Ice formation in Pipelines


Under cold conditions, any water present in a pipe can freeze and generate a blockage. Thiscan lead to a bust of the pipe and a leak. The objective of this research project is to evaluatethe influence of the water and ice properties (viscosity, density, specific heat...) duringfreezing. A CFD model will be created (mesh generated with IcemCFD, flow solution withFLUENT) to study the ice accretion in pipe of different sizes. The solidification modelembedded in FLUENT will be used for this study.

84. CFD Study of Oil-Water Separation


The liquid/liquid hydrocyclone is one of the most advanced oil/water separation devicesavailable. It is used in a large number of industries, wherever wastewater is generated withan oil or fat content. The objective of this project is to perform a literature review onexisting devices and build an oil/water CFD separator model. The mesh will be created withIcemCFD and the flow solution obtained with FLUENT. Simulated results will be compared toavailable data from the literature.

85. CFD Study of a Multiphase Flow Through a Double Elbow and Contraction

Pipe System


Double elbow and contraction systems are widely used in industrial applications. The prime

objective of this CFD-based project is to study the behaviour of a liquid-gas flow underdifferent flow conditions in i.) a 2in, section consisting of two successive 90deg elbows, and


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in ii) the double elbow system followed by a pipe restriction. The mesh will be generatedwith the commercial IcemCFD mesh generator and the FLUENT flow solver. A 2D model willbe considered first. Time permitting, a full 3D model will be built and used in simulations.

86. Utilising Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) to improve Carbon Capture and

Sequestration (CCS) in Gas Turbines burning natural gas.

Supervisor: Dr H G. Darabkhani

To enhance the level of CO2 in the flow gases of a combustor for carbon capture purposesone of the techniques is to recirculate a percentage of the exhaust gases to the maincombustion chamber called Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR). In oxy-firing or oxygen richcombustion it also helps to control the high temperature of combustion process itself toimprove durability of maintenance of the boiler materials. On a test rig exhaust gas (i.e. not

separated CO2) will be re circulated, but there will be provision to inject O2 and restore theO2 balance and hence enable the simulation of recirculating pure CO2. The inlet gascomposition will be measured using gas analysis to quantify the EGR ratio being evaluated.The system needs to be designed to start on air and will be gradually transferred to exhaustgas recirculation. As the exhaust gas is introduced into the inlet the thermodynamiccharacteristics of the working fluid will change. The presence of CO2 will affect combustorperformance due to its different thermodynamic properties. Engine emissions will beevaluated to characterise the effect on them of the EGR ratio; this can also be modelledusing chemical kinetics or process modelling software (e.g., Aspen Plus, gProms, Chemkin).The project consist of process modelling using any of the above mentioned processmodelling software (preferably Aspen Plus) and also executing some experimental work in arig recently commissioned 100 kW gas fired membrane rig in SEEA, to validate thesimulation work. This research will help the power generation market to decide on CO2capture strategy in gas fired power plants.

87. Integration of HAT system concepts with CO2 capture and sequestration

technology in combustion system of gas turbines


‘Wet’ gas turbine cycle technologies (including Humid Air Turbine (HAT) cycle) integratedwith CO2 capture and sequestration technology promises clean and efficient distributedpower generation. The range of configurations possible with these higher performancetechnologies combined with CCS has not yet been fully explored and a detailed study is nowappropriate. Knowledge of the basic processes in the cycles, and the parameters needed fordesigning the most crucial components of the wet cycle systems also needs to be morecompletely investigated. The aim of this work project is to study the capability to assess theperformance of wet cycles. This approach enables a wider range of system configurations tobe explored than to date and improves the potential for finding efficient and optimised gasCO

2 capture systems. Initially, wet cycle layouts needs be defined and preliminary

performance analyses and thermodynamic investigations has to be carried out for a 100 kW


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output size. Key issues such as water recovery and water quality requirements for differentcycles and natural gas composition need to be addressed from literature. The systemprimary simulation/modeling investigation (e.g., e.g., Aspen Plus, gProms, Chemkin) cangenerate preliminary system designs specifying configuration and cycle for a range of plantsizes and applications. The investigation will establish specifications for key plant

components and provide initial off-design operation estimates aimed at an earlyunderstanding of potential transient behaviour ‘Wet’ gas turbine cycle integrated with CO2capture and sequestration technology. A 100 kW gas-fired membrane rig in SEEA canprovide the validation experimental data for the simulation work.

88. Study of State of the Art in Micro Combined Heat and Power (mCHP)

Systems for Domestic Applications (in the UK and Worldwide)


Combined heat and power (CHP) is the simultaneous production of heat and electricity froma single source, close to where they are to be used. This means that the heat and electricitygenerated can be used in the building extremely efficiently because there is no energywastage or loss during transportation to another site. Although large scale CHP boilers havebeen available for many years for commercial use, micro combined heat and power (alsoknown as Micro-CHP, mCHP or domestic CHP) is a relatively new technology - generatinglow cost, low carbon electricity for use in the home while providing heating and hot water.The Government's Micro-generation Strategy has identified Micro-CHP as one of the keytechnologies to offer a realistic alternative to centrally generated electricity. The Feed-in

Tariff gives funding to organisations and households that use these technologies. ThereforeMicro-CHP systems are now emerging on the market worldwide and in the UK. This thesis islooking thorough analysis of the operational micro-CHP systems for residential use (e.g.,Micro-CHP boilers). Data analysis should cover a range of commercially availabletechnologies for Micro-CHP systems including Gas engines, Stirling engines, Fuel cells andgas turbine technologies as well as renewable sources like solar and bio-fuel burnt systems.A comprehensive literature review of the state of art in Micro-CHP generation systemsneeds to be carried out including the technical challenges, risk assessment and cost analysisof these systems which also includes installation and maintenance costs.

89. Study of the Feeding Systems for Pressurised Combustion/Gasification

Processes


The overall objective of this project is to review available, reliable and efficient systems forcontinuous feeding of solid fuels (e.g. biomass, coal and/or waste) to high-pressureenvironments. Many practical combustion devices operate at high pressures to increasethermodynamic efficiency and decrease their physical size. In particular in the solid fuel

combined heat and power (CHP) system with a gas turbine core it is important to have ahigh pressure fuel feeding system in place. This type of feeding system will enhance the


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commercial viability of high-pressure gasifiers and combustors operating on solid fuels byincreasing the efficiency of the plant as a whole. Finally a feeding system should beidentified to demonstrate reliable feeding of commercially available coal/biomass fuels (e.g.,wood pellets, cereal co products, torrefied spruce pellets, coal grains) in a high pressurecombustor up to 10 bar. This system will give us an insight into solid fuel CHP system that

can burn directly a specific type of solid fuels in a high pressure combustor before feedingthe high pressure combustion gases directly to a turbine system for electricity generation indomestic applications.

90. An investigation into a biofuel micro combined heat and power (m-CHP)

system for domestic applications.


Biomass would sustainably contribute between a quarter and a third of the future globalenergy mix (IEA Bioenergy 2009). The project proposes the feasibility study and design andperformance evaluation of a biomass version of a micro CHP boiler to be utilised infactories, small industries, farms and off-grid homes. Utilising biomass fuels is one of themost readily available solutions to reduce the carbon footprint as biomass fuels areconsidered a renewable source of energy and close-to-zero-emission fuel sources. The aimof this project is to investigate the state of art in development of the mCHP systems with


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92. Life Cycle Assessment of Cranfield’s energy policies

Supervisor: Dr A Williams

Co-Supervisor: Dr S Wagland

The university wishes to reduce its environmental impact, which is mainly focussed on directgreenhouse gas emissions (GHGE). The student will investigate these, particularly the use of biomass fuels and combined heat and power and consider approaches to reducing energydemand. The study will take a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) view and include impacts beyondGHGE alone. The study will include a comparison of GHG accounting by standard companyapproaches with the fuller LCA approach.

93. Petrol or diesel: which is better?

Supervisor: Dr A WilliamsCo-Supervisor: Pietro Goglio

Policies based on reducing GHG emissions have supported diesel engines, but otheremissions (e.g. NOx, particles) and higher than from petrol engines. NOx and particles arenotably damaging to health, especially in urban areas, but so is global warming. Life cycleassessment will be used to compare a wide range of impacts and thus to provide a moreinformed comparison than has done before.

94. What’s the cost of a Tweet?


Co-Supervisor: Dr N Ozkan

Tweeting, texting and emails all require infrastructure and electricity to make them work.This generates greenhouse gases and uses non-renewable resources. The increasingexpectation of people to have access to the internet “everywhere” means that wirelessnetworks are very common. Messages are stored on servers, sometimes for years.Infrastructure and electricity both cost someone money, but who pays? The student willinvestigate the energy use and associated environmental (and or economic) impacts of

sending messages. The initial focus will be on emails and the energy use of transmission andstorage. This will require investigating electricity use and traffic, using the university systemas a data source. Approaches to reducing costs and impacts will be investigated.

95. Eat up and stop food waste: right or wrong?


Co-Supervisor: Dr D Parsons

About 30% of food gets wasted in the UK. We make better efforts to eat it and avoid waste,shouldn’t we? Maybe, if we do, we may get more obese and impose more on health


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services. If we have more enlightened food waste management, we can recover energythrough anaerobic digestion. Which is the better approach or is there another?The studentwill investigate the alternatives from at least an environmental perspective, but economicfactors could also be considered.

96. Lifecycle assessment (LCA) of pizza production and consumption


Co-Supervisor: Dr T Hess

The study will deliver a generic cradle to grave LCA of pizza production and consumption.The consumption phase, in particular, will be explored in detail and comparisons will bemade. The quantified environmental impacts will include a minimum of GHGE, energy use,stress weighted water use and water quality impacts. The report will also indicate areaswhere more primary data are needed to evaluate the subject more fully in subsequentstudies.

97. Solar panels, grass and sheep


Co-Supervisor: Dr P Burgess

Solar farms are proliferating. Solar panel arrays let some light through and hence supportreduced grass growth and limited sheep production. Reduced grass productivity mean thatless organic C enters the soil so that the soil C equilibrium will shift and tend to causeemission of CO2 and other GHG, e.g. nitrous oxide. If we assume that existing sheepproduction is displaced and there is continuing demand, it would be replaced elsewhere,with associated impacts. The study will thus quantify the effects of soil C loss and sheepdisplacement on the net balance of GHG benefits from using this source of renewableelectricity.

98. Modelling scenarios for the best use of renewable energy in a domestic

setting

Supervisor: Dr G Drew


This project will look into optimising usage of electricity generated by solar PV in a domesticsetting. The student will have access to a house with a 3.9 kWh solar PV system installedand will determine if it is better to export the electricity generated to the grid or use it. If the householders should use the electricity, recommendations on best uses should beprovided. The second part of the project will use the initial recommendations to modeldifferent socio-economic groups (e.g. 2x adults, 3x children; 2x adults working full time; 1xadult, 1x child) to expand the recommendations


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99. Business development strategies for AD

Supervisor: Dr P Longhurst

Co-Supervisor: Dr Y Jiang

Company Name: Shanks

A n identification and analysis of future options for AD in a market of reducing food wastes,energy price change and land-bank competition

100. Life cycle assessment (LCA) of food waste management scenarios.

Supervisor: Pietro Goglio


Cranfield University catering facilities produce a large amount of food waste which iscurrently transport in a offsite biogas facility in Bedfordshire. The aim of this project is toassess with a life cycle assessment the environmental impacts and energy consumption of the current practice with other scenarios: biogas production on campus and compostproduction on campus.

101. Review of life cycle assessment (LCA) of bioenergy pathways.

Supervisor: Pietro GoglioCo-Supervisor: Dr S Wagland

Across the world, there has been increasing interest toward bioenergy pathways from solidbiomass and several life cycle assessments have been carried out. However, the quality of data sources and the assessment is subjected to a large variation. The aim of this project isto collect and classify in terms of quality the life cycle assessments available for bioenergypathways to identify potential gaps of knowledge and future research perspectives.

102. Multiple subsea cable electromagnetic emissions into the environment

Supervisor: Dr A Gill

Co-Supervisor: FE modelling support

Subsea cables emit electromagnetic fields (EMFs) into the environment. Legislation requiresan understanding of the extent and intensity of these emissions and with the advent of smart grids and multiple device marine renewable energy arrays there is a need tounderstand how EMFs from multiple cables interact with each other and the backgroundearths magnetic field. The project will consider subsea cable characteristics and orientationbetween cables and in relation to the geomagnetic field. we have EMF data measured from


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operational AC and DC cables which we can use to validate some of the modellingundertaken.

103. Multi Criteria assessment of options for subsea cable deployment


Different options for transmitting electricity in marine environments are available based onthe type of electrical current (AC or DC), cable characteristics, placement on or under theseabed, amongst others. In this project you will consider a selection of industry standardcables within different scenarios relating to the environmental and engineeringcharacteristics and conduct an assessment of options using multi-criteria analysis methods.The outputs will provide an assessment of the engineering, environmental pro's and con's toassist in decision making for subsea cable deployment.

104. Wave and tidal device deployment in polar waters - engineering and

environment limiting factors


Company Name: Marine Energy device SME/British Antarctic Survey

Diversification of deployment options for marine wave and/or tidal devices could beimportant for the success of wave and tidal energy initiatives. This project aims to addressquestions linked to finding a small scale renewable energy source for operations in polarwaters, such as those conducted by the British Antarctic Suvey. The polar seas representparticular challenges to deploying and operating devices and this project will look at one ormore device types and undertake an assessment of the challenges, either from anengineering or environmental perspective - depending on he student.

105. Quantifying the extent and variability of marine renewable energy

sources around the UK


The predictability of marine resources (wind, wave and tidal) is vital for competitive energysourcing. Open access datasets will be accessed to quantify the extent and variability of energy sources around the UK (or a specific area/region). The data will be analysed fortemporal variability and determination of confidence in the output data.


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106. Developing the 'environment' topic within environmental critical

elements analysis


Environmental critical element analysis is important for offshore energy companies whenlooking at the risk of failure of particular elements in their operation. The focus is on theproduction and/or maintenance process and the most likely and potentiallydetrimental/dangerous element. The ECE process is arguably one sided as it doesn'tconsider the receiving environment and receptors to any significant extent. This project willextend consideration of post-w

107. Wireless power transfer technology demonstration

Supervisor: Dr P Luk

Co-Supervisor: W Fei

Company Name: TBC

The project concerns the study and development of some prototype for wireless powertransfer applications, including undersea and wireless charging of vehicles.

108. Energy harvestor using nano-materials


Co-Supervisor: W Fei

Company Name: TBC

The main aim of the project is to build a small shoe-embedded energy harvestor prototypeand evaluate the performance.

109. Reconfigurable on-site green research lab for innovation


Company Name: Various

The project is suitable for students who have been involved with the Group Project with thesimilar project title to further develop his/her idea. The aim is to provide design concepts foran on-campus project that provides a live research laboratory for different disciplines, as tobe determined by the student.


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110. Cost and benefit study of storage technologies for PV and renewable

energies


Co-Supervisor: Dr W Fei Company Name: Lark Energy Ltd

This concerns the study of various storage technologies for renewable energies, inparticular, focus will be put on the use of hourly real data of energy input from the PVinstallations supplied by the industry partner.

111. Variability source characterization on agave tequilana waste

Supervisor: Dr A Encinas-Oropesa / Dr V Marchante

Agricultural and industrial by-product fibres from Tequila production have a promisingpotential as a reinforcement/filler source for green composites developments. Finalproperties in green composite ma

Documents

Individual Project List-Energy Programme 15-16