Student research opportunities
Chemical equilibrium and kinetics for supercritical water gasification.
Project Code: CECS_744
This project is available at the following levels:
Engn4200, Honours, Summer Scholar, Masters
Keywords:
thermodynamics, chemistry, engineering, modelling, simulation
Supervisor:
Dr John PyeOutline:
The process of supercritical water gasification is proposed as part of a more energy-efficient way to convert biomass (agricultural waste, energy crops, etc) into high-value fuels.
In this project, we will build chemical equilibrium and kinetics models that make use of published data to predict the yields of a gasification system using open-source software. The goal to make these calculations safe and reliable (and shareable) for use in further system design/research in the future, such as for solar-power biomass gasification concepts.
Goals of this project
Exhance the existing FPROPS software (http://ascend4.org/FPROPS) to the point where it can be used for calculation of chemical equilibrium calculations.
Demonstrate above with a range of sample problems.
Reproduce published results with above software.
Implement models of chemical kinetics for supercritical gasification of glucose.
Extend models to model a range of more complex biomass feedstocks.
Requirements/Prerequisites
Strong programming background, preferably with experience of the C language.
Distinction or better grades in thermodynamics subject(s) (ENGN, PHYS or CHEM).
Background Literature
L Guo, C Cao and Y Lu, 2010. "Supercritical Water Gasification of Biomass and Organic Wastes", http://is.gd/dFoH1T
Links
Link to Guo paper (PDF)FPROPS
