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Original title in Czech: Energetické inženýrstvíFaculty: FMEAbbreviation: D-ENE-PAcad. year: 2021/2022
Type of study programme: Doctoral
Study programme code: P0713D070005
Degree awarded: Ph.D.
Language of instruction: Czech
Accreditation: 18.2.2020 - 18.2.2030
Mode of study
Full-time study
Standard study length
4 years
Programme supervisor
doc. Ing. Pavel Rudolf, Ph.D.
Doctoral Board
Chairman :doc. Ing. Pavel Rudolf, Ph.D.Councillor internal :prof. Ing. Jiří Pospíšil, Ph.D.prof. Ing. Jan Jedelský, Ph.D.doc. Ing. Jaroslav Katolický, Ph.D.doc. Ing. Zdeněk Jegla, Ph.D.Councillor external :Ing. Milan Kořista, Ph.D.
Fields of education
Study aims
The aim of the doctoral study in the suggested programme is: • Training of creative highly educated workers in the field of energy engineering and closely related engineering fields, who will be prepared to work in research and development in industrial companies, research institutes and organizations in our country and abroad. • To enable the doctoral student to develop talent for creative activities and further development of a scientific or engineering personality. To ensure the development of his ability to process scientific knowledge in the field of study and related fields. • Graduates will be able to do independent scientific work, especially in the field of applied but also basic research. • The doctoral student is guided not only to gain knowledge in the field studied, but also to its further development. • The focus of the study is primarily on basic and applied research in the following areas: design, development and operation of energy and fluid machines and equipment, combustion, environmental engineering, process engineering, fluid mechanics, thermomechanics. • The graduate has a very good knowledge of field theory and modern approaches in the field of computational and experimental modeling. • The graduate has skills and abilities in the field of publishing and sharing R&D results in Czech and especially English.
Graduate profile
• The profile of the graduate corresponds to the current state of scientific knowledge in the field of energy engineering and allows him to further develop research in the field. • The graduate is a creative personality capable of independent and team scientific work, has sufficient skills for the preparation, implementation and management of R&D projects. • The graduate is able to transfer results between basic and applied research and collaborate in multidisciplinary international scientific teams. • During the study, the doctoral student will gain broad knowledge and skills in the field of fluid flow, heat transfer, design and operation of energy machines, equipment and systems. • It is assumed that graduates will find employment as R&D workers in academic research organizations or in research institutes and departments of applied research of industrial enterprises in the Czech Republic and abroad, in ordinary and senior positions.
Profession characteristics
The graduate of the doctoral study programme in Energy Engineering will be prepared for independent and team R&D work in the academic environment, research organizations or research departments of industrial companies in the field of energy, both domestic and foreign. The graduate will have a comprehensive view of current challenges and problems in the field of energy and will be able to respond by analysing the issue, design of appropriate models or technical measures and equipment. Therefore, they will be a suitable candidate not only for positions in the field of R&D, but also in public administration, consulting companies or managerial positions of companies focusing on energy.
Fulfilment criteria
See applicable regulations, DEAN’S GUIDELINE Rules for the organization of studies at FME (supplement to BUT Study and Examination Rules)
Study plan creation
The rules and conditions of study programmes are determined by: BUT STUDY AND EXAMINATION RULES BUT STUDY PROGRAMME STANDARDS, STUDY AND EXAMINATION RULES of Brno University of Technology (USING "ECTS"), DEAN’S GUIDELINE Rules for the organization of studies at FME (supplement to BUT Study and Examination Rules) DEAN´S GUIDELINE Rules of Procedure of Doctoral Board of FME Study Programmes Students in doctoral programmes do not follow the credit system. The grades “Passed” and “Failed” are used to grade examinations, doctoral state examination is graded “Passed” or “Failed”.
Availability for the disabled
Brno University of Technology acknowledges the need for equal access to higher education. There is no direct or indirect discrimination during the admission procedure or the study period. Students with specific educational needs (learning disabilities, physical and sensory handicap, chronic somatic diseases, autism spectrum disorders, impaired communication abilities, mental illness) can find help and counselling at Lifelong Learning Institute of Brno University of Technology. This issue is dealt with in detail in Rector's Guideline No. 11/2017 "Applicants and Students with Specific Needs at BUT". Furthermore, in Rector's Guideline No 71/2017 "Accommodation and Social Scholarship“ students can find information on a system of social scholarships.
What degree programme types may have preceded
The newly proposed doctoral study programme in Energy Engineering is being created as a new one within the institutional accreditation of the field of education "Energy". It follows on from the bachelor's degree in the specializations of the bachelor's study programme in Energy and the subsequent master's degree programmes in Energy and Thermofluid Engineering and Process Engineering. It is an education combining solid theoretical foundations in applied mechanics, design of power machines, design and operation of power systems, knowledge and skills in computational and experimental modelling in the field of power engineering and applied fluid mechanics and thermomechanics. In the case of applicants from other faculties or universities, it is necessary that they master the above-mentioned disciplines at the level taught in these programmes.
Issued topics of Doctoral Study Program
The use of water in the landscape has become a major problem of lowland areas in recent years. The problem is not always the lack of water, but especially its capture, storage and subsequent use. The cost of watering for irrigation could be reduced by using modern techniques, multifunctional equipment and installing smart pumps in piping systems. The research and solution would deal with the analysis of the possibilities of existing utility water distribution networks and the design of new variants using modern technologies of water transport and storage.
Tutor: Fialová Simona, doc. Ing., Ph.D.
Research of the solutions of the fluid flow of immiscible and multicomponent liquids. From this point of view, the research of liquids composed of two (or more) mutually immiscible components is a new emerging area. These liquids represent new materials, which can be utilized as lubricants, liquid seals or as fluid media in biomechanical devices. The immiscible liquids in question consist of two (or more) liquid and/or solid components (liquid-liquid or liquid-solid phases). The solid phase is represented by the particles dispersed in a carrying fluid. Their interaction with the outer environment is effected by their chemical substance, surface coating, and can be influenced by external fields. The investigation of the problem of immiscible liquids started some years ago and soon it was evident that it will have a great application potential.
Active flow control is focused on influencing of the flow to suppress undesired phenomena like boundary layer separation, vortices etc. It is a current trend in aircraft or automotive aerodynamics. Goal of PhD study is exploring ways of cavitation suppression in hydraulic machines (e.g. by water injection) to extend their operating range. Research will be performed using both computational and experimental modeling.
Tutor: Rudolf Pavel, doc. Ing., Ph.D.
Computer simulations of engineering systems including heat and mass transfer often require the inverse identification of thermophysical properties and/or initial and boundary conditions from the transient thermal behaviour of such systems. The work is focused on the utilisation of advanced mathematical methods, e.g. neural networks and artificial intelligence, to the solution of inverse heat and mass transfer problems. The topic is involved in currently solved research projects (thermal energy storage and steelmaking), and another research project closely related to this topic is being prepared.
Tutor: Klimeš Lubomír, doc. Ing., Ph.D.
Synergy of hydrodynamic cavitation and plasma discharge is the basis for successful device CaviPlasma whose founding idea comes from department of fluid engineering. Effectivity of the device for water disinfection has already been verified on removal of different biological and chemical contaminants. However a whole range of open questions remain (e.g. how the mutual interaction between cavitation and plasma occurs) and new ideas how to improve efficiency emerged. It is a very attractive multidisciplinary topic with high innovation potential.
Toroidal vortexes or vortex rings are one of the very stable forms of vortex filaments. Vortex rings appear very often in fluid flows, but they are not visible. There is a lot of experiments in the web which visualize vortex rings and show their interesting behavior. The aim of this thesis will be to find a mathematical or numerical solution of vortex ring movement in fluids. If it is possible, then the mutual interaction of two vortex rings will be solved.
Tutor: Štigler Jaroslav, doc. Ing., Ph.D.
Fractal geometry is based on self-similar shapes and is very frequent in nature (e.g. plant leaves). Therefore it is suggested to use the fractal geometry for design of fluid devices and elements, where it might lead to decrease of pressure losses and pulsations, extension of the operating range or to enhancement of mixing. Research within the PhD thesis will be extension of previous successful application of fractal geometry at our department (design of fractal orifices) and will exploit both computational simulations and experimental modelling.
Vapor condensation in case of gas-vapor heat transfer fluids increases the intensity of convective heat transfer. The PhD thesis will aim at the study of this phenomenon, in particular with respect to moisture condensation in heat exchangers with moist air as the heat transfer fluid.
Tutor: Charvát Pavel, doc. Ing., Ph.D.
Cavitation, i.e. local inception of vapor bubbles due to low pressure, can occur during operation of hydraulic machines. Consequent condensation (collapse) of the bubbles generates strong pressure pulses, which cause erosion of the machine surface. Goal of the PhD study is to create description of the vapor bubble behavior and then predict locations of the erosion and its intensity, i.e. to set up a cavitation erosion model. Model will be mainly based on numerical solution of Rayleigh-Plesset equation and CFD simulations, which describes change of the bubble radius in variable pressure field. Model will be experimentally validated in hydraulic lab of our department on exp. circuit for cavitation erosion testing and in collaboration with material engineers.
The topic will address the description of processes in the fluidized bed of combustion plants with a focus on the correct handling of fluid and thermal processes. The solution will use numerical modeling using control volume methods. The acquired knowledge will allow to create a more accurate computational model of a fluidized bed.
Tutor: Pospíšil Jiří, prof. Ing., Ph.D.
The subject of the study is an atmospheric gas multi-jet burner used for balloon flying. These burners have been developing slowly for decades and the old and proven concept today does not meet the requirements for a comfortable flight. The problem areas are in particular: to reduce water condensate from the air on the fuel exchanger tubes, black flame burnout, poor air access, Radiant heat reduction, flame geometry requirements with respect to the application, Noise reduction These are a number of conflicting requirements that require a systematic approach and a sufficient understanding of the problem. The work will include a theoretical analysis and create a mathematical-physical model of processes, including experimental verification (description, system identification) and modeled first one burner segment), later or the entire burner. Experimental and mainly simulation methods will be used in the development. The doctoral student has a task - describe phenomenologically relevant phenomena, quantify relevant quantities (by measurement, calculation) - propose promising solutions with regard to efficiency and technical, economic, legislative and other constraints. The topic has full technical and material support, especially laboratory equipment, technology and material for experiments. Partial financial support of the student from the project is expected. The topic is related to one or more existing or submitted projects and is solved in cooperation with the company BALÓNY KUBÍCEK spol. s r.o. It is assumed that several months of internship abroad, participation in technical seminars and presentations at conferences.
Tutor: Jedelský Jan, prof. Ing., Ph.D.
Separation and gas cleaning applications that are based on liquid sorbents rely on efficient mass transfer in gas-liquid contactors. Liquid atomization is frequent method of increasing the interfacial area in processes where mechanical, thermal or chemical interaction of the liquid with surrounding gas takes place. Several atomizer types (pressure-swirl and twin-fluid atomizers, multi-nozzle plate, or flat-jet arrays) have been proposed and installed in spray towers particularly for CO2 capture with absorption using alkanolamine solutions and aqueous ammonia. The maximization of the interfacial area is the universal primary requirement in gas–liquid absorptive mass transfer operations. For spray scrubbing, the atomizer should produce a uniform spray with drop diameters small enough to generate large interfacial area and at the same time large enough to prevent excessive entrainment. The available literature does not answer what spraying methods suits these aspects best. Several strategies will be studied for uniform film/droplets production and mass transfer enhancement between gas and liquid phases. The main target will be reduction of the spray polydispersisty with selection of the most competitive atomization technique and its further development in line with modification of liquid rheology (non-Newtonian liquids, organic additives). Enhancement of the turbulent mixing process via external field force (ultrasonic irradiation induction, vortex flow in the spray tower) are additional options. Sensitivity of the CO2 capture process to the above aspects will be studied. The topic has full technical and material support, especially laboratory equipment, technology and material for experiments. Partial financial support of the student from the project is expected. The topic is related to an existing or submitted project. The possibility of several months of internship abroad, participation in technical seminars and presentations at conferences is expected.
The scope of research and development within the doctoral study will consist in exploring the possibilities of separation of atmospheric oxygen for the combustion of solid fuels.
Tutor: Baláš Marek, doc. Ing., Ph.D.
Thesis will focus on a digital image processing of video sequences captured during hydraulic phenomena. Watching the cavitation of inlet vortices and similar phenomena, which could be caught with a high-speed camera, will be the main part of the work.
Tutor: Habán Vladimír, doc. Ing., Ph.D.
The subject of the development of complex model the whole process the steelworks ie. The electric furnace through the secondary metallurgy to the continuous casting ie. After the material flow. In order to simulate and optimize the process. It is believed the use of software MATLAB / Simulink and SimEvent.
Tutor: Štětina Josef, prof. Ing., Ph.D.
Research in the area of power generation has recently focused on flexibility and efficiency improvement of large-scale energy resources by means of the utilization of small and dynamic cogeneration units, decentralized energy resources, or systems using renewable energy resources. The work is focused on the analysis, modelling, and optimization of such systems, which employ innovative thermodynamic cycles with low-temperature heat sources, e.g. transcritical cycles with carbon dioxide or organic Rankine cycles.
Fuel systems of small turbine engines use various methods of fuel supply to the combustion chamber, so there are different fuel nozzle designs, such as pressure swirl nozzles (simplex / duplex), evaporator tubes, spraying rings or airblast nozzles. Fuel nozzles are a very important part of the whole system, their proper function is a must to ensure sufficient engine efficiency and the fuel nozzle requirements are very high. The fuel system must deliver the exact and actually needed fuel amount to the combustion chamber. It is important to ensure good atomization and evaporation of the fuel and its mixing with the air in the entire speed range (engine control range) and especially at start-up. The work aims to classify the fuel nozzles used in turbine engines with a maximum thrust of up to 5000 N (or take-off power up to 600 kW) and to focus on a detailed description of the evaporator system and its modifications. The main subject of the work is the development and testing of the existing evaporator nozzle. The doctoral student will prepare a test stand for nozzle operation, equip it with the necessary sensors and will examine the characteristics of these systems in a given range of operating conditions (eg temperature mapping, determining the control range), assess their suitability for specific purposes and further develop the system with a focus on its problematic aspects. The tasks include: technical research and analysis of published technical solutions, their systematic comparison, evaluation of advantages and disadvantages, range of control parameters and energy requirements, description of design solutions and individual parts, analysis and physical description of their function, design and preparation of test stand for nozzle operation , functional analysis and approximate calculation of energy (heat) balance of the evaporator nozzle The topic has full technical and material support, especially laboratory equipment, technology and material for experiments. Partial financial support of the student from the project is expected. The topic is related to an existing or submitted project. The possibility of a several-month internship abroad, participation in technical seminars and presentations at conferences is expected. The work will be solved within the project and in cooperation with the company PBS Velká Bíteš. The practical part of the work will be carried out in PBS testing laboratories and in BUT laboratories.
Same model for computation of hydraulic losses is used for steady and unsteady flows in numerical modeling. However this approach is very inaccurate when damping is evaluated. Losses can be modeled using the second viscosity, but for high steady velocities its influence should be included into the model.
The aim is to explore the possibilities of using PCMs in the vapor-compression cycles of heat pumps and refrigeration systems in order to increase the energy efficiency of their operating cycles. The possibilities of integrating PCM-based thermal energy storage in the vapor-compression cycles will be explored by computer simulations. The best solutions will be validated experimentally on a lab-scale vapor-compression refrigeration system.
This is a hot issue where the increasing of clarifier efficiency will be solved. The clarifier is a part of the waste water cleaning process. Clarifiers are tanks which are placed at the end of the waste water treatment plants and their task is to remove mass floccules from the water. Some clarifiers, which are currently in operation, have a problem with big mass floccules leakage into the recipient in case of higher flow rates. The aim of this topic is to model the multiphase flow for a particular clarifier tank and suggest new simple modifications to improve efficiency in higher flow rates.
In the interior of hydraulic machines there is vibration of mechanical parts and pressure pulsations in the flowing fluid. These two phenomena can not be separated from one another and must be solved together. At present, there is a frequent approach to determining additional fluid spills in mechanical parts. Methodology for determining these properties will be developed.
The topic is devoted to a detailed evaluation of promising electricity storage systems based on power-to-X technology. The evaluation will focus on the entire life cycle of systems, their realistic comparison and the creation of a balance mathematical model of P2X systems for the correct evaluation of the effectiveness of its use in various energy applications.
The energy requirements of aircraft propulsion will for a long time require high-energy-density resources, ie especially turbine propulsion. The growing demands on the ecology, economics of operation and performance parameters require the continuous development of these devices, better understanding and advanced control of the processes that affect their function. At the workplace, we have long been engaged in research and development of nozzles for spraying aviation fuels into the combustion chambers of turbine engines. After solving the design of the nozzles themselves and the mechanical interaction of the spray with the surrounding gas, it is necessary to deal with other phases of the process, ie fuel evaporation and combustion, including modern trends in turbo engines. The current ambition is to create a workplace that will enable this research and development of advanced jet engines. The doctoral student will solve the preparation of the test equipment, perform experiments on it using modern optical diagnostics and in combination with CFD simulations will contribute to a better understanding of relevant processes. The topic has full technical and material support, especially laboratory equipment, technology and material for experiments. Partial financial support of the student from the project is expected. The topic is related to one or more existing or submitted projects and is addressed in cooperation with PBS Velká Bíteš. The possibility of a several-month internship abroad, participation in technical seminars and presentations at conferences is expected.
This theme will be aimed to multistage pumps (radial-axial), without stator vanes. The stator vanes will be replaced by next counter-rotating impeller. This solution will be applied to runners for low specific speed (radial-axial runners).
Tutor: Haluza Miloslav, doc. Ing., CSc.
The aim of the dissertation is to design an experimental unit for testing different catalysts for selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of nitrogen oxides and subsequent control of the efficiency of nitrogen oxide removal from flue gases for different types of catalysts for different operating conditions. Laboratory verification of the effectiveness of available commercial catalysts for the selective catalytic reduction of NOx, allows the evaluation of the applicability of catalysts in a particular process. Applications of selected kinetic data can be used to design a solution model of a flue gas cleaning block with emphasis on potential future applications. The thesis will combine experimental and theoretical knowledge with requirements from industrial practice. The theoretical results obtained will be used for solving research projects, for case studies, and will be presented at national and international conferences and published in reputable journals.
Tutor: Jegla Zdeněk, doc. Ing., Ph.D.
Outgoing flow from the runner of swirl turbine is rotating flow. The draft tube is able to transform (to pressure energy) meridional velocity only. The regulated installations in the draft tube could increase the efficiency of this type of turbine – transforming rotating component of velocity to meridional component. The aim of this theme is discovering of possibilities of increasing efficiency by computations and experimental way.
The research is targeted to significantly contribute to the EU Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme under grant agreement No 956255, project RESHeat (Renewable Energy System for Residential Building Heating and Electricity Production). The research will target a novel integration and performance of heating/cooling system consisting of sun-tracked PV panels with cooling, solar collectors, heat pumps and possible novel renewable energy sources. The heat and energy storage efficiency in the integrated systems should be considered as well. These activities will study and extend the use of Process Integration methodology, process simulators, mathematical modelling and other advanced computational tools for achieving project goals. They should be integrated with minimising the environmental footprints. In the final stage the reserch should be verified and demonstrated at project partners sites.
Tutor: Klemeš Jiří, prof. Ing. Dr. habil., DrSc., dr. h. c.
The topic is connected to planned projects. The scope of research and development during doctoral studies will be to find ways to obtain pure hydrogen for further use. Waste gases (mine gas, coke oven gas) or gases generated by biomass gasification will serve as a source of hydrogen.
Fluid flow with appearance of vortex structures is integral part of any hydraulic machine operation. In some cases, the vortex flow might be intended phenomenon which might be necessary for proper machine function, in other cases it might be unfavorable phenomenon which might results in machine fatigue. In case that the vortex appearance is accompanied with cavitation inception (mainly due to local pressure decrease below the saturation pressure), then the significant flow dynamics develops and propagates through the whole hydraulic system. The goal of PhD thesis is to study the above mentioned phenomenon with respect to the detailed description of inception and manifestation of cavitating vortex structures. For this purpose, the advanced numerical modeling of multiphase flow will be employed together with validation using experimental measurements.
Utilization of pump as turbine has its reasons mainly regarding to simplicity and economical aspects of implementation for small source of electricity production. The hydraulic pumps are offered in wide range of specifications with expected operating parameters for given location. Operation of pump in reverse mode has its own specifics which might be further developed so that turbine operation might be significantly enhanced. These modifications might be realized easily, but they might be also very complex leading for example to the impeller replacement for new design. The goal of PhD thesis is to carry out an analysis of possible modifications of selected pump for turbine operation and following verification using CFD calculations and experimental measurements. The economic aspects, feasibility and safety will be taken into account with respect to the achievement of maximal efficiency and reliability in broad range of operating regimes.
The research is focused on the turbulent velocity profile for flow between two concentric cylinders. The fluid is moving in direction of cylinder axis. Fluid flow is induced by pressure gradient at the end of cylinders. The ratio of gap between cylinders and the outer cylinder radius is not negligible. The aim of this research is the analytical mean velocity profile derivation for this type of fluid flow. Parameters of this analytical expression will be set up on the basis of numerical fluid flow solution or on the basis of experimental data. Numerical solution will be done for more Reynolds numbers to be able find the dependence of this parameters on the Reynolds number.