The research team at IIT Madras was led by Professor K. Srinivas Reddy, Heat Transfer and Thermal Power Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, IIT Madras with his team member Mr. C. Ananthsornaraj.

The system can be integrated effectively with various process heat applications. This research can help manufacturers and researchers in solar energy make devices with higher efficiency.

However, lower rate of energy generation through solar power is a major roadblock in achieving this target. Technologies such as this one developed by IIT Madras researchers can help meet this target.

Speaking about the application of solar energy to meet energy needs Professor K. Srinivas Reddy said solar energy technology is the most propitious technology for clinching sustainability in the energy domain.

States such as Bihar, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat, among others, have great potential to harness this energy, which can reduce the combustion of non-renewable and polluting sources of energy such as coal and petroleum, he said.

The research team tested the efficiency of this installed system in terms of optical efficiency and thermal efficiency.

Optical efficiency is the amount of energy which is absorbed by the tube over the total energy received by the collector.

Thermal efficiency, on the other hand, is the heat collected over the heat gain by the system. They found that the optical efficiency of the evacuated system is 72 per cent and non-evacuated system is 68 per cent when the heat loss is minimised.

The researchers at IIT Madras further found that the rate at which the heat transfer liquid flows also affected the thermal performance of the system.

When the flow rate of the liquid was higher (0.12kg/second), thermal efficiency was higher (66 per cent for the evacuated system and 64 per cent for non-evacuated system) whereas at the lower flow rate (0.06 kg/second), thermal efficiency was lower (64.3 per cent for evacuated system and 62.1 per cent for non-evacuated system).

Thermal efficiency also varied depending on whether it was sunny or cloudy day. Parabolic Trough Collector (PTC) systems concentrate sunlight onto a small area where it is absorbed and then utilised for heating and subsequently for energy generation.

This system consists of a concentrator/reflector, receiver, supporting structures (pylon, torque tube, mirror supporting arm and receiver support) and tracking unit.

Also read ‘SRM Amaravati student designs cost effective faceshield for protection from COVID-19‘

The concentrator of the parabolic trough collector system receives the solar incident radiation from the sun and reflects it onto the receiver which is placed at the focal line of the PTC system to heat a liquid.

This heated liquid boils water making steam to run turbines and generators for generating electricity. The tubes, which absorb this sunlight from reflectors, have a glass exterior and metal interior holding a heat transfer liquid, which can be molten salt and oil, among others.

To minimise thermal loses, the space between glass exterior and metal interior is maintained at low-pressure conditions, called ‘evacuated receiver system.

About – IIT Madras
Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM) was established in 1959 by the Government of India as an institute of national importance.

The activities of the Institute in various fields of Technology and Science are carried out in 16 academic departments and several advanced interdisciplinary Research Academic Centres.

The Institute offers undergraduate and post – graduate programmes leading to the B.Tech., M.Sc., M.B.A., M.Tech., M.S., and Ph.D., degrees in a variety of specialisations.

IIT Madras is a residential institute with more than 580 faculty and 9,500 students. Students from 18 countries are enrolled here.

IIT Madras fosters an active entrepreneurial culture with strong curricular support and through the IITM Incubation Cell.

IITM has been ranked No.1 in the Overall Institutions category in India Rankings 2019 released by National Institutional Ranking Framework, Ministry of Human Resources Development, Govt. of India.

The Institute has also been ranked No.1 in the Engineering Institutions category in the same Rankings for four consecutive years – 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019.

It was also adjudged as the ‘Top innovative Institution’ in the country in the Atal Ranking of Institutions on Innovation Achievements (ARIIA) 2019 launched by Innovation Cell of MHRD.

Development of this advanced facility is a key demonstration of the research and technical capabilities of IIT Madras and the nation.

Solutions

This is a unique facility that can address challenging problems in Indian ports, waterways and coastal Engineering.

Facility

This facility has been established through the National Technology Centre for Ports Waterways and Coasts (NTCPWC), a centre dedicated for technological innovations and the evolution of new ideas and breakthroughs in the port and maritime sector.

It works as the technology arm of the Ministry of Shipping, Government of India and provides the needful technological support to ports, IWAI and other institutions, say sources from IIT Madras.

Department of Ocean Engineering at IIT Madras

Prof. Prof. K. Murali, Department of Ocean Engineering, IIT Madras, said, this facility will position IIT Madras in international arena as one of the institutes that operates the large scale shallow wave basin for research and industry applications.

We no longer need to depend on technology from other countries for the generation of waves in laboratory, he said.

Initiative

Prof. V. Sriram, also from the Department of Ocean Engineering, IIT Madras, said except a few items that they needed to import due to non-availability, rest of the Shallow Wave Basin was truly a ‘Make in India’ initiative.

It was indigenously developed with most of the fabrications of the wavemaker done within IIT Madras itself, he said.

The entire architecture, communications and designs were made in-house for the operations and sustainability of the facility over the long term, he said.

The facility was conceived with the future government of India initiatives in mind for the new ports and coastal engineering as well as for inland waterways projects, he said.

Prof. Torsten Schlurmann who is also a long-term collaborator at IIT Madras added, that the facility will elevate IIT Madras’ status as a world-class institution for marine science and engineering by facilitating ground-breaking research and international collaboration across a broad range of disciplines.

Fundamental understanding

This state-of-the-art research facility can be used for fundamental understanding as well as for application projects, where the influence of 3D waves on the structures can be critical.

The basin can be used for harbour, coastal, offshore, inland waterways and shallow water manoeuvring-related projects, say sources from IIT Madras.

In these studies, sediment transport – mobile bed modelling, stability of the armour units, hydraulic and hydrodynamic performances, wave impact loading and the determination of the relevant design aspects due to climate change can be ascertained.

Key benefits

The key benefits of this facility include testing of varieties of the coastal structures, post impact analysis of the coastal structures, large solar floating plants, climate change effects and many more.

This large-scale facility is one of its kind in the world with mobile wave maker, thus multiple projects can be carried out parallel, if required.

Planning

With the growing development of new ports in Indian coasts, this indigenous facility will help with the planning and is set to become a crucial tool, say sources from IIT Madras.

With the knowledge gained by creating such a large scale facility, IIT Madras is also set to help other institutes like NITs, IITs and research institutes in India to establish such cutting-edge research centres for their academic and research purposes.

Both waves, current and a combination of these can be generated. As of now, due to the available stroke, velocity limits and basin size, for example, a wave period range from 5 s- 18 s with a significant wave height upto 3m can be easily generated in 1:10 scale or in large scale easily.

The circulation facility around the tank can be efficiently used to generate the currents inside the basin, this will be implemented in the near future.

Scientific support

The NTCPWC gives effective solutions to an extensive range of problems being faced in the industry through scientific support.

It also provides valuable education, applied research and technology transfer in maritime transportation at the local, regional, national and International levels.

Also Read – IIT Guwahati researchers develop great innovative injectable hydrogel