Dosent / Lecturer:
Prof Frank Dinter
Fakulteit / Faculty:
Engineering
Email:
frankdinter@sun.ac.za
Tel:
+27 21 808 4024
Office:
K420
Departement / Department:
Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering
Afdeling / Division:
Design & Mechatronics / Mechanics / Thermo fluids / Renewable Energy
Navorsingsveld / Research field:
Solar energy, Solar Thermal Energy (STE), Concentrating Solar Power (CSP), Thermal Energy Storage (TES),
Solar heat for industrial applications
Algemene beskrywing van navorsingsveld:
General description of research field:
The Solar Thermal Energy Research Group (STERG) does the following research:
- System analysis for solar power plants (line and point focused with different Heat Transfer Fluids)
- Solar technology comparison including simulation, evaluation and optimization
- Detailed analysis of solar power plant components (collector-, receiver-, storage, cooling-systems)
- Scenario development for country specific power supply with CSP technology
- Industrial heat applications with solar energy from hot water up to 900 °C
- Prototype development of receivers, storage systems and other CSP components
Lys van onderwerpe/List of topics:
MEng
MEng
(Structured)
(Research)
1. What may a CSP plant cost in the future? (Technology and cost evaluation
for CSP plants)
X
PhD
Funding
(amount of bursaries
/degree eg. 2x PhD)
X
(Maybe, to be discussed)
2. Operation strategies of CSP plants with storage in SA (Technical and
economical evaluations for CSP plants for the South African demand
structure)
3. Different system and subsystem optimization in CSP power plants
(Development of cost reduced components and their impact on energy
production costs)
4. Simulation of an optimized receiver for Fresnel collectors (A new secondary
reflector system should be developed and designed with Ray tracing
software)
5. 200m high towers for CSP plants – challenges and solutions (Solar towers
have big challenges during construction period with weather, especially wind
and gusts. How to make building sites saver and construction time schedules
reliable? for mechnical and civil engineers)
6. Parabolic Trough system with molten salt as HTF – challenges and solutions
(This project should look for benefits, challenges and solutions for molten salt
and its evaluation)
7. Fresnel system with molten salt as HTF – challenges and solutions (Fresnel
should be cheaper than troughs collectors, so this project should compare
Fresnel and troughs and evaluate benefits, challenges and find solutions)
X
X
(Maybe, to be discussed)
X
X
(Maybe, to be discussed)
X
X
(Maybe, to be discussed)
X
X
(Maybe, to be discussed)
X
X
X
X
(Maybe, to be discussed)
8. Design and construction of an air receiver for the STERG test facility (STERG
has built a receiver test facility with a thermal capacity of 30 kW. For this a
simple air receiver with pressureized air should be designed and built.
9. Simulation of Matching RE with the South African electricity production
(How can RE contribute to the current electricity system of Eskom?
Simulation of Wind and Solar plants (PV and CSP+storage) to have a sound
symphony between demand and production)
10. Potential of Solar Process Heat for South African Sugar Mills (Perform solar
thermal system simulations for promising processes including different future
scenarios. Direct Working together in a team of solar and process engineering
researchers and the sugar mill industry)
X
X
(Maybe, to be discussed)
X
X
X
X
Spesifieke voorvereistes / Specific requirements:
The range of topics is quit wide to suit for interested candidates.
Math and physics are always helpful; construction experience is also for some items useful.
X
X
(Maybe, to be discussed)
(Maybe, to be discussed)
available