SOFC-model: Modelling and optimization of SOFC cells in the agroindustry sector
Engineering for the Information Society and Sustainable Development
Dr. Ainhoa Alonso Vicario
https://energia.deusto.es/people/members/ainhoa-alonso-vicario/
DeustoTech (www.deustotech.eu) is a private non-profit institution of the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Deusto for applied research in new technologies. Since 2005 DeustoTech mission is to support the ICT activity in business and society through research, the development of technologies, innovation and knowledge transfer. We focus our activity around TRLs 2-7 and articulate it into four applied fields: Industry, Mobility, Energy and Society, having a fifth, the Chair of Applied Mathematics, as a transversal activity and support for the previous four. We are characterized for working with data of heterogeneous nature, throughout its life cycle and in compliance with ethical principles and humanists who define the University of Deusto. The Host Research Unit counts with a consolidated team leading research in environmental sector, including sustainability, resource efficiency and circular economy.
We are looking for a candidate with a Science bachelor or engineering with knowledge on modelling techniques based on the use of artificial intelligence.
We would also appreciate recognisable experience in research tasks (collaborations with scientific groups, participation in international conferences, publication of research articles, etc.).
- Information Sciences and Engineering (ENG)
- Environmental Sciences and Geology (ENV)
Some crops as tomatoes have a strong demand on energy as they have to keep the temperature around 20-23 ºC. This mean that in winter they need to heat (normally using oil boilers) and in summer to cool especially in the south of Spain (normally using an industrial heat pump) . Moreover, they also have some relevant electric loads to keep the optimal points in radiation and humidity, lumps and water pumps, respectively. In overall the energy demand supposes over 50% of the total costs of the greenhouse. So, the optimization of the energy demand will have a huge impact in the food costs as well as to improve the food security of some parts of Europe. On the other hand, small producers have a lack of competitiveness due to high cost of this technologies. So, alternative more efficient and low costs distributed technologies will contribute to the rentability of this sector.
In this context, the aim of this thesis proposal is to analyse the benefits and possibilities of using SOFC cells as a more efficient and sustainable decentralised and integral solution for the agroindustry sector. To this end, artificial intelligence techniques will be used to model and optimize the SOFC cells according to the needs of the greenhouse considering aspects such as: costs of the energy and crops, degradation of the cell or the environmental impact.
EXCELLENCE OF THE HOST RESEARCH UNIT
Sorrosal, G., Irigoyen, E., Borges, C.E., Martin, C., Macarulla, A.M., Alonso-Vicario, A. Artificial neural network modelling of the bioethanol-to-olefins process on a HZSM-5 catalyst treated with alkali (2017) Applied Soft Computing Journal, 58, pp. 648-656.
Kamara-Esteban, O., Sorrosal, G., Pijoan, A., Castillo-Calzadilla, T., Iriarte-Lopez, X., Macarulla-Arenaza, A.M., Martin, C., Alonso-Vicario, A., Borges, C.E.
Bridging the Gap between Real and Simulated Environments: A Hybrid Agent-Based Smart Home Simulator Architecture for Complex Systems (2017) Proceedings – 13th IEEE International Conference on Ubiquitous Intelligence and Computing
Kamara-Esteban, O. Pijoan, A., Alonso-Vicario, A., Borges C.E. On-demand energy monitoring and response architecture in a ubiquitous world (2017) Personal and Ubiquitous Computing, 21, pp 537-551
Sorrosal, G., Borges, C.E., Holẽa, M., Macarulla, A.M., Martin, C., Alonso-Vicario, A. Evolutionary dynamic optimization of control trajectories for the catalytic transformation of the bioethanol-to-olefins process using neural networks (2016) GECCO 2016 Companion – Proceedings of the 2016 Genetic and Evolutionary Computation Conference, pp. 133-134.
Ruiz, P., Sorrosal, G., Borges, C.E., Macarulla, A.M. Modelling a biomass boiler using an artificial neural network (2016) 28th European Modeling and Simulation Symposium, EMSS 2016, pp. 296-302.
1. H2020 – WASTE WASTE4THINK (Moving towards Life Cycle Thinking by Integrating Advanced Waste Management Systems) – GA 688995. UDEUSTO coordinates this project with the main objective of moving forward the current waste management practices into a circular economy motto, demonstrating the value of integrating and validating several eco-innovative solutions that cover all the waste value chain.
2. Biotrans: Herramientas de Nueva Generación para la Intensificación de Procesos de Transformación de Biomasa. Basic and Applied Research Grants from the Basque Government.
3. W2.0E-Tools to design management strategies for waste-to-energy in the Basque Country (Saiotek program, Basque Government): Deusto developed different tools to design waste management strategies in the Basque Country.
4. H2020 – GREENSOUL (Persuasive Eco-awareness for User Engagement through Networked Data Devices). H2020 – EE – GA 696129: UDEUSTO develops and tests a set of persuasion mechanism to reduce the energy consumption in public buildings.
5. H2020 – ATELIER (AmsTErdam BiLbao cItizen drivEn smaRt cities) – GA 864374. UDEUSTO will, apart of on carry on several actions to foster energy efficiency and the deployment of renewable energy energy sources, perform the environmental monitoring of the project. INTERDISCIPLINARY COLLABORATION
The thesis proposal follows an interdisciplinary approach:
– Chemical Engineering: design of novel processes for the generation of renewable energy. Experts from NTUA and Graz University will also collaborate in this area
– Mathematics and Computer Science: Technological innovation through the use of Artificial Intelligence and Mathematical simulation tools. The main researchers of DeustoTech have a broad experience on soft modelling, robust simulation, etc. Experts from ICS will also collaborate in this area
– Distributed Generation: The participation of DeustoTech Research Unit in several projects related to the field, and the relationships established with several energy utilities and experts in agroindustry will encourage the efforts and pursue the fulfillment of the objectives. Their viewpoint will be specially important to assess the impact of this research on agroindustry sector.
This interdisciplinarity makes it also specially relevant for the EIP on Raw materials.
A co-direction with the Institute of Thermal Engineering, Graz University of Technology (IWT) will be considered depending on the expertise of the candidate.
The candidate will work on a highly interdisciplinary group where all the previous knowledge will be worked on. The candidate will collaborate with researchers of different background (mathematicians, engineers and chemists) and be in touch with a wide network of institutions from industry sector in order to achieve the objectives of the project in the framework of the AGROSOFC Era-net project. INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION
The proposal will be developed under the project AGROSOFC, a transnational project granted under the ERA-Net Smart Energy System RegSys 2018 call in collaboration with 4 PYMEs and 2 research institutions from Austria and Spain.
This collaboration and research activity will pave the way for the participation in new research projects. Some funding opportunities are:
● H2020 topics, societal challenges: The studies and developments of the PhD proposal can be of interest for their application to the following societal challenges.
○ Secure, clean and efficient energy;
○ Climate action, environment, resource efficiency and raw materials;
Notice that the continuity of the research activity with a H2020 project will be particularly interesting for the replicability of the results in real (or semi-real) conditions and the approximation of the solutions to the market.
● H2020 topics, excellent science: There are several options to apply for these grants since the research activity proposed has an important component of Excellent Science and the the results are expected to be a real breakthrough in the field. These options are:
○ The European Research Council (ERC) through attractive and flexible funding for talented and creative individuals
○ Future and emerging technologies for collaborative research across disciplines on radically new, high risk ideas
○ Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions for excellent and innovative research training as well as knowledge-exchange opportunities
A co-direction with the Institute of Thermal Engineering, Graz University of Technology (IWT) will be considered depending on the expertise of the candidate. INTERSECTORAL COLLABORATION
The research project has a direct relationship with the following key sectors which are also priorities inside the Research and Innovation Strategy (RIS3) of Euskadi:
– Industry 4.0: the industry of the future is going to be characterised by making an efficient use of the resources. In this sense, the use of biofuels is especially important to guarantee the long term health of the sector and minimisation of the environmental impact.
– Energy: The energetic sustainability in Europe needs to tackle to specific points: the sustainable use of energy and the smooth transition towards renewable energy sources. The investigation in biofuels will be directly affecting the Europeans way of living across different sectors.
In particular, it will be developed under the framework of the AGROSOFC Era-net project in collaboration with several PYMEs and research institutions:
• 4ward Energy Research GmbH
• VTU Energy GmbH (VTU)
• Reiterer & Scherling GmbH (RSG)
• Inkoa Sistemas S.L. (Inkoa)
• Institute of Thermal Engineering, Graz University of Technology (IWT)
Yes, as it will be developed under the framework of the AGROSOFC Era-net project in collaboration with several PYMEs. IMPACT
The main results expected are:
• To develop models and tools to analyze the flexibility of coupling different subsystems within the agricultural sector
• To contribute to increase energy efficiency by integrating SOFC technology as an alternative more efficient, decentralized and flexible in the agribusiness sector
• To contribute to reduce the CO2 emissions generated in the sector
• To contribute to reduce the production costs with the objective of improving food security in Europe
• To contribute to increase competitiveness of the PYMEs in the agroindustry sector
The results will be presented to relevant stakeholders as:
• Utilities
• Producers
• Civil associations
• Research community
• Firms, engineerings and consultancy companies INNOVATION
Approximately 50-60% of production costs in the agricultural industry are due to the needs of energy and heat. In terms of greenhouse gas emissions this sector represents more than 10% of the total emissions generated. This research proposal seeks to reduce the consumption of electricity and heat by 10% through the coupling of loads using Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) and decision support tools that allow optimizing both their use and more efficient integral management along with other energy vectors. INCLUSION
One of the University of Deusto key duties is to be fully aware of problems within the institution itself and the society we belong to. For this reason, the project will include specific steps to boost integration and real equality of opportunity for men and women with specific support needs. Timely specific action is required to enable them to enter higher education in equal conditions and ensure their full integration in the university community. DeustoTech, as one of its institutions, is included into this service of social action and inclusion. The main aims consist of achieving full normalisation, equal opportunities and gradually adopting the steps needed to ensure that the University of Deusto is an inclusive educational institution. Furthermore, the University of Deusto provides them with guidance and support on the transition to the labour market jointly with special job centres and companies at large.
Sorrosal, G., Irigoyen, E., Borges, C.E., Martin, C., Macarulla, A.M., Alonso-Vicario, A. Artificial neural network modelling of the bioethanol-to-olefins process on a HZSM-5 catalyst treated with alkali (2017) Applied Soft Computing Journal, 58, pp. 648-656.
Kamara-Esteban, O., Sorrosal, G., Pijoan, A., Castillo-Calzadilla, T., Iriarte-Lopez, X., Macarulla-Arenaza, A.M., Martin, C., Alonso-Vicario, A., Borges, C.E.
Bridging the Gap between Real and Simulated Environments: A Hybrid Agent-Based Smart Home Simulator Architecture for Complex Systems (2017) Proceedings – 13th IEEE International Conference on Ubiquitous Intelligence and Computing
Kamara-Esteban, O. Pijoan, A., Alonso-Vicario, A., Borges C.E. On-demand energy monitoring and response architecture in a ubiquitous world (2017) Personal and Ubiquitous Computing, 21, pp 537-551
Sorrosal, G., Borges, C.E., Holẽa, M., Macarulla, A.M., Martin, C., Alonso-Vicario, A. Evolutionary dynamic optimization of control trajectories for the catalytic transformation of the bioethanol-to-olefins process using neural networks (2016) GECCO 2016 Companion – Proceedings of the 2016 Genetic and Evolutionary Computation Conference, pp. 133-134.
Ruiz, P., Sorrosal, G., Borges, C.E., Macarulla, A.M. Modelling a biomass boiler using an artificial neural network (2016) 28th European Modeling and Simulation Symposium, EMSS 2016, pp. 296-302.
1. H2020 – WASTE WASTE4THINK (Moving towards Life Cycle Thinking by Integrating Advanced Waste Management Systems) – GA 688995. UDEUSTO coordinates this project with the main objective of moving forward the current waste management practices into a circular economy motto, demonstrating the value of integrating and validating several eco-innovative solutions that cover all the waste value chain.
2. Biotrans: Herramientas de Nueva Generación para la Intensificación de Procesos de Transformación de Biomasa. Basic and Applied Research Grants from the Basque Government.
3. W2.0E-Tools to design management strategies for waste-to-energy in the Basque Country (Saiotek program, Basque Government): Deusto developed different tools to design waste management strategies in the Basque Country.
4. H2020 – GREENSOUL (Persuasive Eco-awareness for User Engagement through Networked Data Devices). H2020 – EE – GA 696129: UDEUSTO develops and tests a set of persuasion mechanism to reduce the energy consumption in public buildings.
5. H2020 – ATELIER (AmsTErdam BiLbao cItizen drivEn smaRt cities) – GA 864374. UDEUSTO will, apart of on carry on several actions to foster energy efficiency and the deployment of renewable energy energy sources, perform the environmental monitoring of the project.
The thesis proposal follows an interdisciplinary approach:
– Chemical Engineering: design of novel processes for the generation of renewable energy. Experts from NTUA and Graz University will also collaborate in this area
– Mathematics and Computer Science: Technological innovation through the use of Artificial Intelligence and Mathematical simulation tools. The main researchers of DeustoTech have a broad experience on soft modelling, robust simulation, etc. Experts from ICS will also collaborate in this area
– Distributed Generation: The participation of DeustoTech Research Unit in several projects related to the field, and the relationships established with several energy utilities and experts in agroindustry will encourage the efforts and pursue the fulfillment of the objectives. Their viewpoint will be specially important to assess the impact of this research on agroindustry sector.
This interdisciplinarity makes it also specially relevant for the EIP on Raw materials.
A co-direction with the Institute of Thermal Engineering, Graz University of Technology (IWT) will be considered depending on the expertise of the candidate.
The candidate will work on a highly interdisciplinary group where all the previous knowledge will be worked on. The candidate will collaborate with researchers of different background (mathematicians, engineers and chemists) and be in touch with a wide network of institutions from industry sector in order to achieve the objectives of the project in the framework of the AGROSOFC Era-net project.
INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION
The proposal will be developed under the project AGROSOFC, a transnational project granted under the ERA-Net Smart Energy System RegSys 2018 call in collaboration with 4 PYMEs and 2 research institutions from Austria and Spain.
This collaboration and research activity will pave the way for the participation in new research projects. Some funding opportunities are:
● H2020 topics, societal challenges: The studies and developments of the PhD proposal can be of interest for their application to the following societal challenges.
○ Secure, clean and efficient energy;
○ Climate action, environment, resource efficiency and raw materials;
Notice that the continuity of the research activity with a H2020 project will be particularly interesting for the replicability of the results in real (or semi-real) conditions and the approximation of the solutions to the market.
● H2020 topics, excellent science: There are several options to apply for these grants since the research activity proposed has an important component of Excellent Science and the the results are expected to be a real breakthrough in the field. These options are:
○ The European Research Council (ERC) through attractive and flexible funding for talented and creative individuals
○ Future and emerging technologies for collaborative research across disciplines on radically new, high risk ideas
○ Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions for excellent and innovative research training as well as knowledge-exchange opportunities
A co-direction with the Institute of Thermal Engineering, Graz University of Technology (IWT) will be considered depending on the expertise of the candidate. INTERSECTORAL COLLABORATION
The research project has a direct relationship with the following key sectors which are also priorities inside the Research and Innovation Strategy (RIS3) of Euskadi:
– Industry 4.0: the industry of the future is going to be characterised by making an efficient use of the resources. In this sense, the use of biofuels is especially important to guarantee the long term health of the sector and minimisation of the environmental impact.
– Energy: The energetic sustainability in Europe needs to tackle to specific points: the sustainable use of energy and the smooth transition towards renewable energy sources. The investigation in biofuels will be directly affecting the Europeans way of living across different sectors.
In particular, it will be developed under the framework of the AGROSOFC Era-net project in collaboration with several PYMEs and research institutions:
• 4ward Energy Research GmbH
• VTU Energy GmbH (VTU)
• Reiterer & Scherling GmbH (RSG)
• Inkoa Sistemas S.L. (Inkoa)
• Institute of Thermal Engineering, Graz University of Technology (IWT)
Yes, as it will be developed under the framework of the AGROSOFC Era-net project in collaboration with several PYMEs. IMPACT
The main results expected are:
• To develop models and tools to analyze the flexibility of coupling different subsystems within the agricultural sector
• To contribute to increase energy efficiency by integrating SOFC technology as an alternative more efficient, decentralized and flexible in the agribusiness sector
• To contribute to reduce the CO2 emissions generated in the sector
• To contribute to reduce the production costs with the objective of improving food security in Europe
• To contribute to increase competitiveness of the PYMEs in the agroindustry sector
The results will be presented to relevant stakeholders as:
• Utilities
• Producers
• Civil associations
• Research community
• Firms, engineerings and consultancy companies INNOVATION
Approximately 50-60% of production costs in the agricultural industry are due to the needs of energy and heat. In terms of greenhouse gas emissions this sector represents more than 10% of the total emissions generated. This research proposal seeks to reduce the consumption of electricity and heat by 10% through the coupling of loads using Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) and decision support tools that allow optimizing both their use and more efficient integral management along with other energy vectors. INCLUSION
One of the University of Deusto key duties is to be fully aware of problems within the institution itself and the society we belong to. For this reason, the project will include specific steps to boost integration and real equality of opportunity for men and women with specific support needs. Timely specific action is required to enable them to enter higher education in equal conditions and ensure their full integration in the university community. DeustoTech, as one of its institutions, is included into this service of social action and inclusion. The main aims consist of achieving full normalisation, equal opportunities and gradually adopting the steps needed to ensure that the University of Deusto is an inclusive educational institution. Furthermore, the University of Deusto provides them with guidance and support on the transition to the labour market jointly with special job centres and companies at large.
The proposal will be developed under the project AGROSOFC, a transnational project granted under the ERA-Net Smart Energy System RegSys 2018 call in collaboration with 4 PYMEs and 2 research institutions from Austria and Spain.
This collaboration and research activity will pave the way for the participation in new research projects. Some funding opportunities are:
● H2020 topics, societal challenges: The studies and developments of the PhD proposal can be of interest for their application to the following societal challenges.
○ Secure, clean and efficient energy;
○ Climate action, environment, resource efficiency and raw materials;
Notice that the continuity of the research activity with a H2020 project will be particularly interesting for the replicability of the results in real (or semi-real) conditions and the approximation of the solutions to the market.
● H2020 topics, excellent science: There are several options to apply for these grants since the research activity proposed has an important component of Excellent Science and the the results are expected to be a real breakthrough in the field. These options are:
○ The European Research Council (ERC) through attractive and flexible funding for talented and creative individuals
○ Future and emerging technologies for collaborative research across disciplines on radically new, high risk ideas
○ Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions for excellent and innovative research training as well as knowledge-exchange opportunities
A co-direction with the Institute of Thermal Engineering, Graz University of Technology (IWT) will be considered depending on the expertise of the candidate.
The research project has a direct relationship with the following key sectors which are also priorities inside the Research and Innovation Strategy (RIS3) of Euskadi:
– Industry 4.0: the industry of the future is going to be characterised by making an efficient use of the resources. In this sense, the use of biofuels is especially important to guarantee the long term health of the sector and minimisation of the environmental impact.
– Energy: The energetic sustainability in Europe needs to tackle to specific points: the sustainable use of energy and the smooth transition towards renewable energy sources. The investigation in biofuels will be directly affecting the Europeans way of living across different sectors.
In particular, it will be developed under the framework of the AGROSOFC Era-net project in collaboration with several PYMEs and research institutions:
• 4ward Energy Research GmbH
• VTU Energy GmbH (VTU)
• Reiterer & Scherling GmbH (RSG)
• Inkoa Sistemas S.L. (Inkoa)
• Institute of Thermal Engineering, Graz University of Technology (IWT)
Yes, as it will be developed under the framework of the AGROSOFC Era-net project in collaboration with several PYMEs.
IMPACT
The main results expected are:
• To develop models and tools to analyze the flexibility of coupling different subsystems within the agricultural sector
• To contribute to increase energy efficiency by integrating SOFC technology as an alternative more efficient, decentralized and flexible in the agribusiness sector
• To contribute to reduce the CO2 emissions generated in the sector
• To contribute to reduce the production costs with the objective of improving food security in Europe
• To contribute to increase competitiveness of the PYMEs in the agroindustry sector
The results will be presented to relevant stakeholders as:
• Utilities
• Producers
• Civil associations
• Research community
• Firms, engineerings and consultancy companies INNOVATION
Approximately 50-60% of production costs in the agricultural industry are due to the needs of energy and heat. In terms of greenhouse gas emissions this sector represents more than 10% of the total emissions generated. This research proposal seeks to reduce the consumption of electricity and heat by 10% through the coupling of loads using Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) and decision support tools that allow optimizing both their use and more efficient integral management along with other energy vectors. INCLUSION
One of the University of Deusto key duties is to be fully aware of problems within the institution itself and the society we belong to. For this reason, the project will include specific steps to boost integration and real equality of opportunity for men and women with specific support needs. Timely specific action is required to enable them to enter higher education in equal conditions and ensure their full integration in the university community. DeustoTech, as one of its institutions, is included into this service of social action and inclusion. The main aims consist of achieving full normalisation, equal opportunities and gradually adopting the steps needed to ensure that the University of Deusto is an inclusive educational institution. Furthermore, the University of Deusto provides them with guidance and support on the transition to the labour market jointly with special job centres and companies at large.
The main results expected are:
• To develop models and tools to analyze the flexibility of coupling different subsystems within the agricultural sector
• To contribute to increase energy efficiency by integrating SOFC technology as an alternative more efficient, decentralized and flexible in the agribusiness sector
• To contribute to reduce the CO2 emissions generated in the sector
• To contribute to reduce the production costs with the objective of improving food security in Europe
• To contribute to increase competitiveness of the PYMEs in the agroindustry sector
The results will be presented to relevant stakeholders as:
• Utilities
• Producers
• Civil associations
• Research community
• Firms, engineerings and consultancy companies
Approximately 50-60% of production costs in the agricultural industry are due to the needs of energy and heat. In terms of greenhouse gas emissions this sector represents more than 10% of the total emissions generated. This research proposal seeks to reduce the consumption of electricity and heat by 10% through the coupling of loads using Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) and decision support tools that allow optimizing both their use and more efficient integral management along with other energy vectors.
INCLUSION
One of the University of Deusto key duties is to be fully aware of problems within the institution itself and the society we belong to. For this reason, the project will include specific steps to boost integration and real equality of opportunity for men and women with specific support needs. Timely specific action is required to enable them to enter higher education in equal conditions and ensure their full integration in the university community. DeustoTech, as one of its institutions, is included into this service of social action and inclusion. The main aims consist of achieving full normalisation, equal opportunities and gradually adopting the steps needed to ensure that the University of Deusto is an inclusive educational institution. Furthermore, the University of Deusto provides them with guidance and support on the transition to the labour market jointly with special job centres and companies at large.
One of the University of Deusto key duties is to be fully aware of problems within the institution itself and the society we belong to. For this reason, the project will include specific steps to boost integration and real equality of opportunity for men and women with specific support needs. Timely specific action is required to enable them to enter higher education in equal conditions and ensure their full integration in the university community. DeustoTech, as one of its institutions, is included into this service of social action and inclusion. The main aims consist of achieving full normalisation, equal opportunities and gradually adopting the steps needed to ensure that the University of Deusto is an inclusive educational institution. Furthermore, the University of Deusto provides them with guidance and support on the transition to the labour market jointly with special job centres and companies at large.