Assessment of the design of cooling towers
Energy saving through smart monitoring
October 1, 2016
A more efficient wiring system for aircrafts
September 1, 2016October 2016
On behalf of Districlima, the Centre for Industrial Diagnostics and Fluid Dynamics (CDIF UPC) has assessed potential configurations of cooling towers for installation at its Tànger Energy Production Plant, in the heart of the 22@ technology district of Barcelona. This is the second of the Districlima energy production plants, and was designed to meet peaks in demand in the network that are not covered by the Forum plant. Using computational fluid dynamics (CFD), CDIF UPC evaluated aspects of the configuration and operation of the towers, including the total capacity of thermal dissipation in their final position on the roof of the building.
In addition, CDIF UPC studied the effect of extraction of ventilation air from the Tànger plant on the operation of the cooling towers. Likewise, the interaction of the plume of hot, humid air from the towers on neighbouring buildings was assessed. It was found that the plume generated by the chosen configuration did not present a risk of interaction with the adjacent buildings; in other words, there were no problems of condensation on façades or thermal comfort issues for its occupants.
Related Projects
- The Technological Development Centre for Remote Acquisition and Data Processing Systems (SARTI) at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya - BarcelonaTech (UPC) participates in the SEASLAG project, which contributes to measurement and test systems to assess the characteristics of the biomaterials developed in the project, to regenerate marine ecosystems. This material incorporates byproducts from the metal and agrifood industries.
- The research group Barcelona Fluids & Energy Lab (IFLUIDS) and the Centre for Technological Innovation in Static Converters and Drives (CITCEA) of the UPC participate in the European project H-HOPE, which is focused on the development of solutions to produce clean energy based on water sources that have still not been exploited, such as pipes and water channels.
- Combining agricultural activity and the production of solar energy by means of photovoltaic panels is the aim of SYMBIOSYST, a project promoted by a consortium of 16 European partners including the UPC. As part of this project, technological tools will be developed to contribute to generating clean energy for the agricultural sector in Europe.
- The production of biogas through anaerobic digestion has been increasing exponentially in Europe in recent years. This is because it can be produced locally and has a clear positive effect on waste recycling, the generation of clean energy, sustainable development or climate action. In this context, the FertiLab project was launched, with the participation of researchers from the Department of Agri Food Engineering and Biotechnology (DEAB) of the UPC.
