RSS feedhttps://ingenioer.au.dk/en/Become an engineer in the city of Aarhus starting either summer or winter. You can become a civil engineer in 5 years or a graduate engineer in 3½ years.en-gbFri, 29 Mar 2024 06:31:52 +0100Fri, 29 Mar 2024 06:31:52 +0100TYPO3 EXT:newsnews-76781Wed, 27 Mar 2024 08:22:00 +0100Digital twins to make manufacturing industries more resilient to unforeseen events.https://ingenioer.au.dk/en/current/news/view/artikel/digital-twins-to-make-manufacturing-industries-more-resilient-to-unforeseen-eventsForce majeure, war, blocked trade routes, pandemics. Unforeseen breakdowns in the global supply chain caused by sudden events make manufacturing industries vulnerable. A new international research project will now attempt to deal with the issue. In March 2021, the 400-metre-long container ship Ever Given was wedged across the Suez Canal for six long days when its bow struck the canal bank. The nearly week-long involuntary blockade of one of the world's most important trade routes was very costly for global trade.

The incident came on top of the Covid pandemic and less than a year before the war in Ukraine, both of which also caused serious supply problems for European manufacturing industries. And it highlights the vulnerability of global supply chains to what at first was just force majeure, and the delays cost businesses a fortune all over the world.

Tackling such challenges to businesses is the central focus for the pan-European research project, ACCURATE, which brings together researchers, small and medium-size businesses, global businesses, and NGOs to make industries more resilient to unforeseen disruptive events. The EU's research and innovation funding programme, Horizon Europe, is funding the project with DKK 45 million (EUR 6 million).

"Unforeseen events such as power blackouts, earthquakes, geopolitical tensions, war and ships wedged across trade routes are a huge problem for manufacturing, as the industry relies on free, uninterrupted trade to keep the wheels in motion," says Associate Professor Devarajan Ramanujan from the Department of Mechanical and Production Engineering at Aarhus University, and head of the Danish part of the project.

He continues:

"The aim of our project is to simulate, in real-time, the impact of both natural and man-made disruptions – on entire manufacturing ecosystems – so that businesses can become more robust and get the critical support they need in difficult situations to adapt their processes and restore trade networks and industrial systems. These aspects are critical for European manufacturing companies so they can stay ahead of how to move on as quickly as possible and build resilient supply chains, while becoming more sustainable and circular."

To realize these ambitions the project will create so-called multi-level digital twins to make a complete simulation of industrial value chains from the individual machine on the factory floor to entire supply chains.

“These digital twins will give researchers insight into the consequences of a single disruptive event in a single factory for the entire value chain. The simulations will be combined into advanced decision-support tools that can be adopted by manufacturing companies and their supply networks to become more resilient.”, says Assistant Professor Rami Mansour from the Department of Mechanical and Production Engineering at Aarhus University.

Associate Professor Jalil Boudjadar from the Aarhus University Centre for Digital Twins, which is managed by the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, explains:

"There will always be disturbances. Perhaps there’s a fire in a factory somewhere. Perhaps there’s a power cut. Or perhaps there’s a local or a more regional event like an earthquake. A complete simulation of the system will help us understand and plan for such disturbances in advance and minimise their impact. We’ll be able to simulate and analyse events and build resilience into everything from production lines to individual manufacturing processes. Furthermore, ACCURATE will enable swift adaptation of logistics and production planning to mitigate the impact of such varying external conditions with the goal to maintain high sustainability, circularity, and resources utilization efficiency.”

He continues:

"When an unforeseen event occurs, our digital twin platform can help assessing the impact, identify mitigation options and analyse these options to find out the costs for production, sustainability, the environment, the bottom line and a number of other performance indicators. In this way, we can create intelligent, interconnected production networks."

The ACCURATE (Achieving Resilience Through Manufacturing as-a-service, Digital Twins, and Ecosystems) project was launched in December 2023 and will run for three years. The project is a collaboration between Airbus, Continental, Software Imagination & Vision, Enginsoft, Tronico and DeltaDao, the NGO Institute of Entrepreneurship Development, and the research institutions Institut Mines-Télécom, Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Engineering, HWR Berlin and Aarhus University.

At Aarhus University, the ACCURATE project involves Associate Professor Devarajan Ramanujan and Assistant Professor Rami Mansour from the Department of Mechanical and Production Engineering and Associate Professor Jalil Boudjadar from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.


Contact

Associate Professor Devarajan Ramanujan
Department of Mechanical and Production Engineering, Aarhus University
Mail: devr@mpe.au.dk
Tel.: +45 93508848 

Assistant Professor Rami Mansour
Department of Mechanical and Production Engineering, Aarhus University
Mail: ramimansour@mpe.au.dk
Tel.: +45 93508867

Associate Professor Jalil Boudjadar
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Aarhus University
Mail: jalil@ece.au.dk

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Faculty of Technical SciencesAU EngineeringDepartment of Electrical and Computer EngineeringDepartment of Mechanical and Production EngineeringJesper Bruun Petersen17115241201711524120
news-76675Fri, 15 Mar 2024 18:39:44 +0100High number of quota 2 applicants for engineering degree programmes at AUhttps://ingenioer.au.dk/en/current/news/view/artikel/mange-kvote-2-ansoegere-til-ingenioeruddannelserne-paa-aarhus-universitetAarhus University is once again experiencing a surge of quota 2 applicants to its engineering degree programmes.Aarhus University has received 448 first-choice applications for the university's engineering degree programmes. The preliminary figures are good reading for Finn Borchsenius, vice-dean at the Faculty of Technical Sciences:

"We’re continuing to see a great interest in our engineering programmes, and we hope that we can offer study places to the vast majority of applicants," says Finn Borchsenius.

The numbers reveal a huge interest in IT-related engineering programmes and civil and structural engineering programmes.

In the summer of 2023, AU Engineering admitted 1,177 new engineering students and had to reject qualified applicants for the first time in its history.

A popular university

Aarhus University has received more than 7,000 first-choice applications (12 per cent more than last year). The figures for the total number of quota 2 applications and the break-down by degree programme will be available early next week on AU’s press website.

Applicants who apply via quota 2 are not just assessed on their final grade point average, but also on their educational and professional experience, motivation and voluntary activities.

The application deadline for quota 1 is 5 July 2024.

All applicants will be notified on 26 July 2024 if they have been offered a place.

 

 

 

 

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AU EngineeringDepartment of Biological and Chemical EngineeringDepartment of Civil and Architectural EngineeringDepartment of Electrical and Computer EngineeringDepartment of Mechanical and Production EngineeringKim Harel17105243841710524384
news-76510Thu, 07 Mar 2024 08:14:00 +0100Methanol project might pave the way for a carbon-neutral fishing industryhttps://ingenioer.au.dk/en/current/news/view/artikel/methanol-project-might-pave-the-way-for-a-carbon-neutral-fishing-industryThe Danish fishing industry is facing large climate taxes to contribute to the green transition. A new pilot project will now identify the possibilities of converting existing fishing vessels into carbon-neutral methanol-operated vessels. Methanol could be the carbon-neutral alternative to the diesel that fuels fishing vessels today. The use of methanol as fuel is developing rapidly, and in September 2023, the Danish container shipping company Maersk launched a new era for global shipping with the world's first methanol-operated containership.

A new development project, which has received DKK 10.1 million (EUR 1.4 million) from the EU and the Danish Fisheries Agency, will now explore whether the fishing industry can follow the same path. This is the message from Associate Professor Jens Brusgaard Vestergaard from Aarhus University's Department of Mechanical and Production Engineering, who is heading the project called Methanol in the Fishing Industry.

"The fishing industry is under pressure from the green transition, and the industry has already implemented measures to reduce carbon emissions. The next step is the engine and the fuel, where we really see an opportunity to reduce the industry's climate footprint, and this is why we’re launching this project that has the potential to reduce emissions from fisheries significantly," he says and continues:

"The time is right, because if the shipping industry stakes everything on methanol, developments will get moving. This will create a large-scale infrastructure for green methanol that ensures security of supply and a realistic alternative to diesel in terms of price. Therefore, now is the time to step up a gear to show that existing fishing vessels can be converted into carbon-neutral methanol-operated vessels, so that we aren’t suddenly faced with having to pay high taxes that could have been avoided."

New taxes and export opportunities

Already from 2025, the fishing industry will be facing high carbon taxes following the tax reform agreed between the Danish government and other political parties back in 2022.

According to the Danish Pelagic Producers Organisation (DPPO), the agreement means that the industry will be subject to taxes of up to DKK 900 million in the period 2025 to 2030. That is why it is urgent to develop competitive alternatives to the diesel that fuels fishing vessel today, and which – most importantly – are cost-effective and can be used by existing vessels without compromising on operations and safety.

The maritime industry association, Danish Maritime, is looking forward to contributing, says Technical Director Valdemar Ehlers:

"The maritime industry in Denmark develops technologies for a broad spectrum of vessel types, and we appreciate being able to contribute technology and knowledge to a project like this. It’s very exciting and important to ensure a good and future-proof green transition of Danish fisheries. We’re already providing new sustainable solutions to this industry and are in close dialogue with them regarding future vessels. A development project like this can also be an export potential for Denmark, because this is a global challenge. Across oceans, developments are going fast, and Danish solutions often make a difference in achieving common goals," he says.

He is backed by the chairperson of the Danish shellfish association Foreningen Muslingeerhvervet, Henrik Nielsen:

"The fishing industry depends on healthy oceans to ensure a sustainable industry in the future. At the same time, we already supply products with a very low carbon footprint compared to other animal foods. But we want to do even better here in Denmark by taking the lead in the green transition," he says.

Energy density causes challenges

One of the major challenges for operating purely on methanol is the energy content of the fuel. Green methanol contains only about half as much energy per kilogram as diesel, which means that vessels must bring twice as much fuel for the same operating period

Space for so much extra fuel calls for creative solutions:

"We have to find space, even though there is none," says Jens Brusgaard Vestergaard and elaborates:

"This is definitely the big hurdle in this project. The methanol engine is already an off-the-shelf product, but everything has to fit into a vessel and work as efficiently as diesel does today, with pumps, systems, etc. So, we need to look at ballast tanks and other areas to find out where we can make room for the extra fuel that is required.”

Valdemar Ehlers agrees with him:

"The ship designers will have to reconsider the design of the vessel and find new and innovative solutions. Operating on a fuel with completely different properties than those of diesel requires changes in many areas. The alternative fuel has other properties e.g. different viscosity, heating value, flash point consequently fire and safety aspects must be dealt with in a different way.  Not only the propulsion system, but also pumps, tank systems and piping systems must be suitable for methanol, and the safety conditions on the vessel must comply with all regulatory requirements. Fishing vessels consume significant amounts of energy. There are many processes on board a vessel: cooling systems, lighting, air conditioning, automatic sorting processes, freshwater generators, winches that pull in nets, etc. There’s a constant need for energy from the engine, and therefore it’s very important that all energy-consuming systems on board are optimised and made more energy-efficient, so that the tank has enough capacity for the energy required by the vessel's various systems during the entire operating period."

Quick solutions for small players

The pilot project will be tested specifically on the fishing vessel M/S Limfjorden, which is a medium-sized vessel of approximately 350 HP. This vessel is representative of the majority of the Danish fishing fleet and will be converted into pure methanol operation.

The conversion includes new fuel tanks and fuel pipes, larger tanks and various measures to reduce the risk of explosion. Before the conversion, however, it must be determined which requirements the Danish Maritime Authority will impose on a vessel converted into methanol operation. In addition to a complete conversion of M/S Limfjorden, the project includes an analysis of the availability of green methanol and expected price developments, a study of the cost-effectiveness of conversion up to 2030, as well as emissions and total carbon impact estimates.

The vessel will be made available by Foreningen Muslingeerhvervet, which sees the cost-effectiveness study as the major focal point of the project:

"The fishing industry – and especially the small players – does not have much time to make the changes needed for the green transition, and we’re already behind. We’re constantly under pressure from taxes, and it’s difficult to finance a sustainable development of vessels if we can only look one season ahead at a time. It’s difficult to switch from diesel to methanol, and I’m sure that there’ll be plenty of expensive lessons to learn, because this is an area with many pitfalls. But if we succeed with this project, we can prove that it can be done, and we really want to show the way for the entire fishing industry and demonstrate that we can make a profit as well," says Henrik Nielsen.

The project, Methanol in the Fishing Industry, was launched in January 2024. The project partners are: Aquamind, OSK Design, OK Energy Solutions, Foreningen Muslingeerhvervet, Hanstholm Fiskeriforening, Danish Maritime and Aarhus University. The project is being headed by the Department of Mechanical and Production Engineering at Aarhus University. The project has received funding of DKK 10.1 million from the EU via the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF) and the Danish Fisheries Agency.


Contact

Associate Professor Jens Brusgaard Vestergaard
Aarhus University, Department of Mechanical and Production Engineering
Mail: jbv@mpe.au.dk
Tel.: +45 41893162

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AU EngineeringDepartment of Mechanical and Production EngineeringJesper Bruun Petersen17097956401709795640