Design and Process Engineering
· Designing, construction, calculation, technology of manufacturing, technical preparation of manufacturing including assembly and testing,
· Thermal and nuclear power plant devices such as steam and combustion turbines, steam generators, steam power plants and heating plants including nuclear power stations, industrial power engineering and their environmental aspects,
· Water turbines, hydrodynamic and hydrostatic pumps, piping systems, hydroelectric power plants, and pumping stations,
· Machinary and devices for chemical industry, food-stuff industry, and biotechnological treatment lines,
· Construction, modelling and theoretical studies of machines and devices for cutting, forming machines, industrial robots, and manipulators,
· Machine parts and mechanisms, methodology of designing machine elements and working mechanisms of general application with consideration of stochastic qualities of inputs, including the application of special types of machines and devices,
· Cars, vans and lorries, buses, trailers, semi-trailers, and motorcycles,
· Combustion engines for all types of vehicle drives, simulation of combustion engine thermomechanical systems, dynamics of driving gear, engine accessories, ecology,
· Machines and devices for in-plant handling of material and handling between operations, for the mining and transport of building materials, for passenger conveyance in buildings,
· Aerodynamic calculation and designing, flight mechanics, fatigue and durability of aircraft constructions, aeroelasticity of aircraft,
· Quality of machine industry production.

1. Cogeneration from biomass and wastes

   Cogenearation represents a powerful tool for increase in effectiveness of primary, renewable sources as well as alternative fuels. The doctoral work focus on techno-economic analysis of implementation different cogeneration concepts in the field of utilization biomass and wastes for energy production within complex systems. The following tasks will be solved: " Evaluation of available concepts for power production utilizing heat released by biomass and waste combustion. The efficiency, operational cost and investaments are taken into consideration " Energy balances and economic evaluation of cogeneration system applications in systems for biogas from sewage sludge utilization in technologies of different capacities " Evaluation of environmetal benefits provided by cogeneration

   Tutor: Stehlík Petr, prof. Ing., CSc., dr. h. c.

2. Combustion of vegetable oils - experiments and modelling

   The work will focus on the combustion of several renewable liquid fuels, namely vegetable oils. It will include analysis of measured data and computational modelling with emphasis on parameters important in the design of industrial burners and combustion chambers, namely local heat loading of the walls. The experimental work will employ stochastic methods to analyse variability, stabilisation and repeatability of data. The results will include highly reliable measured data and methodologies for computational modelling of combustion, validated by the experimental data.

   Tutor: Hájek Jiří, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

3. Experimental research of the combustion of liquid fuels

   The work will focus on the combustion of liquid fuels and combined combustion of liquid fuels with stabilisation by gas. The fuels will include liquid waste fuels and "clean" liquid fuels producing low pollutant emissions. An important part of the work will consist of analysing physical-chemical fuel properties. The core of experimental work will be combustion tests in a large-scale combustion chamber. The activities of the doctoral student will further include the planning and preparations of experiments, data collection and analysis, with emphasis on data relevant for the practise. Outputs of the work will also include extensions to a knowledge base, the development of which is already under way.

   Tutor: Hájek Jiří, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

4. Grate combustion of biomass - modelling and experiments

   The objective of the doctoral study is primarily the creation of a software application enabling the modelling of biomass combustion in a fixed bed. The program will be created in MATLAB environment including graphical user interface. The target is to simulate combustion of biomass on a grate and tuning of models using data available from the literature, experiments or from industrial units. Further work will focus on extending a database of physical and chemical biomass properties. Attention will be given also to the development of laboratory equipment for the research of the grate combustion of biomass.

   Tutor: Hájek Jiří, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

5. Influence of biodegradable materials disintegration on biogas production in the process of anaerobic fermentation

   (i) study and research of anaerobic fermentation of biodegradable waste processing (ii) experimental statements of disintegration conditions (temperature, pressure, digestion time) for substrates prior to fermentation process in order to reach maximul biogas yield (iii) energetic and material balance of disintegration and anaerobic fermentation process and overall evaluation with respect to practical applications

   Tutor: Jícha Jaroslav, doc. Ing., CSc.

6. Integration of Cracking and Refining Reactors

   The work will focus on the integrated hydrocracking and hydrotreating reactors and give insight on the advantageousness of such integration. The work will involve analysis of on site measured data resulting in computational modelling with emphasis on key process parameters important in the design of such reactors integration. The on site analysis work will employ methods to analyse key process parameters variability, stability and repeatability of measured data. The results will include highly reliable measured data and methodologies of computational modelling of key process parameters validated by the plant real data.

   Tutor: Stehlík Petr, prof. Ing., CSc., dr. h. c.

7. Life-cycle assesment of some energetic-utilizable wastes.

   The work will be focused on study and solution of the assesment and identification of several categories of solide waste life cycle (LCA) with the energy utilisation. Based on this, the recommendation for the design of technologies with the high potential of waste energy development will be done. Technical-economic analysis of mentioned technologies and its combinations and possibilities is expected.

   Tutor: Jícha Jaroslav, doc. Ing., CSc.

8. Optimal control of continuously cast process of steel

   The objective of the assignment will be to obtain new findings concerning transfer phenomena during crystallization and cooling of concast significantly rectangular-profile steel slabs inside a caster. It will be necessary to establish a dynamic model of the transient temperature field that will analyse the process and in real time, or even shorter. This model will contain a program for scanning all real operational parameters. On the interface of this program, the calculation of the temperature field of the slab will be confronted with the operational parameters that are measured on-line. After determining the limit values of the decisive output parameters, a system will be set up for the control of the caster depending on the current state and recommended limit values. The model is to be integrated into the information system of the concasting technology at EVRAZ VÍTKOVICE STEEL, a.s.

   Tutor: Štětina Josef, prof. Ing., Ph.D.

9. Problems of heat exchangers damage in industrial practice

   (i) Bibliographic search in the field of heat exchangers operating life control in an industrial practise. A case study of the problem from a process engineer point of view. (ii) The analysis of partial causes of damaging and reciprocal combines of partial causes. (iii) Design of methods for appraisal of heat exchangers damaging in operation conditions and for control of maintenance, repairs and revisions. (iv) Verification of designed methods.

   Tutor: Jegla Zdeněk, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

10. Reducing of gas pollutants with the aid of catalytic treatment

    Potential PhD student is going to focus on testing of several types of catalysts (dispersed, monolithic, attached to filtration materials, etc.). Utilizing experimental equipment, he/she is going to research efficiency of elimination several types of polluting substances, such as nitrogen oxides (NOx) and dioxins/furans (PCDD, F) in dependence to a type of catalyst. Estimated load of work: " Testing the efficiency of new experimental unit " Carrying out of experimental measurements " Data collection from several experimental items of equipment " Modelling of technology for catalytic eliminations " Creation of software " Service os experimental unit

    Tutor: Jegla Zdeněk, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

11. Reducing of pollutants with the aid of filtration or catalytic filtration

    Potential Ph.D. student will focus on testing of several filtration materials such as textile, ceramics, materials with spread catalytic coating, etc. Experimental equipment will be utilized in detecting efficiency in neutralizing harmful substances such as solid polluting substances (SPS), nitrogen oxides (NOx), dioxins, furans (PCDD/F). Ph.D. student could also utilize this equipment in testing of dry cleaning of flue gases, i.e. dosage of sorbents into flue gas (waste gas) stream and subsequent fixation of saturated sorbents on filters. This method could help in decreasing the amount of acid components (SO2, HCl, HF) and heavy metals. Estimated work load within the Ph.D. studies: · Testing new experimental filtration units · Carrying out experimental measurements at Brno University of Technology as well as in practice · Collection of data from several experimental measurements · Filtration technology modelling, catalytic filtration and clean drying · Creation of software · Service of experimental unit

    Tutor: Bébar Ladislav, doc. Ing., CSc.

12. Reduction of energy intensity in specific processes

    The objective of the doctoral project is to implement a sophisticated approach for optimization in the specific field of professional laundry care. The following tasks will be solved: " Development of methodology for energy intensity evaluation " Systematic approach for experimental and operational data acquisition and their subsequent processing and utilization for mathematical modelling " Development of new computational tool aimed at optimization of the process regarding energy consumption and other operational costs. " Case studies.

    Tutor: Stehlík Petr, prof. Ing., CSc., dr. h. c.