Modelling

Optimal transition of petroleum refineries to achieve decarbonization objectives

Decarbonization of Indian petroleum, petrochemical, and gas processing refineries is essential to achieve national climate change mitigation (greenhouse gas reduction) targets. This will require adoption of technologies such as carbon capture and sequestration and use of blue hydrogen. Selection of the appropriate technology will depend on the decarbonization potential, cost, scalability, and technology readiness level.

Integrated design and control of batch heat exchanger networks

Energy integration in batch processes is tricker, as compared to their continuous counterparts, due to additional time constraints. Previous work has shown that sequential design and control can lead to suboptimal performance during operation. This project aims at developing a simultaneous design and control framework for such networks. 

The project is simulation-based and experience with Matlab/Python will be beneficial.

Battery management system for electric vehicle and drone application

Fire hazard in electric vehicle is one of the key problem that requires immediate attention. One of the way to prevent such fires in battery systems is have a competent battery management system which can predict the potential failure of the battery pack. Battery management system (BMS) consists of battery model, parameters and state estimation algorithms and optimziation toolboxes. Traditionally, circuit based models are being used in these BMS which do not provide physical understanding of the battery systems.

Battery pack design for E-Scooter/Drone/EV applications

Battery pack design for an e-scooter, drone or EV is very interesting problem. With the new e-scooter boom in the market and pending EV boom in India, the need for battery pack design engineers is destined to grow. A battery pack design requires deeper understanding of the workings of a li-ion battery along with their dynamics in a group of batteries. This work consist of both simulation and experimental component.

 

 

Molecular scale understanding of ionic transport and reactions inside a fuel cell and batteries

The focus of this project is on molecular scale understanding of transport processes and reactions in fuel cells and batteries. Student working on this project will learn about state-of-the-art techniques to study determine the mechanism and rate constants for these processes.

Design of robust optimal heat exchanger networks

Heat exchanger networks are designed with an aim of optimal performance at the design steady stage. This does not guarantee that in the presence of unanticipated (temperature, flow, UA) and planned (temperature, flow) disturbances, the designed network will still be optimal. To this end, this project aims at designing a network which will be robust enough to tackle these disturbances while maintaining optimality of operation. Continuous as well as batch heat exchanger networks will be targeted.

Simulating the Dynamics of Particulate Networks

Crude oil is a naturally occurring complex fluid with interesting flow characteristics. For example, crystallisation of high molecular weight hydrocarbons (waxes) occurs at low temperatures. When this happens, and if the particles are large enough in number, they deposit on the walls, slowly blocking the pipeline. This may sometimes also happen suddenly during shut-downs and if not managed properly, the pipeline may need to be abandoned. Prevention and management of blockage is thus a crucial problem for the petroleum industry. 

Design aspects of energy-integrated batch distillation

Distillation is one of the most commonly used as well as the most significant contributor of energy in chemical processing complex. Energy integration can improve the sustainability of the process by reducing utility requirement in batch distillation. However, operation of such columns is challenging. Traditionally, design of such systems is pursued without giving any consideration for operation. In the light of this, this project aims as developing a design framework for such distillation columns to address operational challenges.