MEMBER NEWS: RGU academics win group project award from the Institution of Mechanical Engineers

June 16, 2021
MEMBER NEWS: RGU academics win group project award from the Institution of Mechanical Engineers

Courtesy of the Press & Journal.

Five engineering students at the Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen have won a top award.

Jack Durkacz, Ryan Chan, Ethan Fong, Hamish Gillies, and Thomas Mullan have been honoured by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) for a paper on energy development and power systems.

They showed their research at the seventh International Conference on Advances in Clean Energy Research, and won best presentation on the day.

The group designed and built a cluster turbine arrangement using computational fluid dynamics modelling to optimise the turbine design.

In addition, they made use of the wind tunnel facilities at RGU to validate and test the findings.

Fifth year student Mr Durkacz said: “We decided on this project as we saw an opportunity to work on an area which contributed to the renewable energy sector.

“The majority of the research for wind energy has been with regards to horizontal axis wind turbines, whereas this project looked to develop vertical axis wind turbines by harnessing the synergistic abilities when clustered together, leading to enhanced efficiencies.

“The world is starting to realise that the energy demand needs to be met by a range of different sources, so we see the development of varying forms of renewable technology as important for the future.”

The cluster turbine design developed by students was able to create increased efficiencies compared to a standalone isolated turbine.

Vertical turbines can be clustered together in much closer proximity than horizontal counterparts, leading to development of power density qualities.

Dr Sheikh Islam, academic strategic lead at RGU’s engineering school said the award from IMechE showed not only the group’s hard work, but their “determination to tackle a topical problem” in innovative ways.

Read the article on the Press & Journal website here.

Get in touch

AREG is the original energy transition organisation, working on behalf of members to empower the energy supply chain and champion its expertise. Please get in touch if you have any questions or would like to find out more about membership.

Contact Us
“

AREG has played an important role in the growth of Scotland’s renewable energy sector, engaging the supply chain and developing the European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre. However, we are only at the very beginning of the transition that AREG was established to both lead and support so there are still opportunities for companies to get into the constantly evolving renewables supply chain. We look forward to continuing our work together as renewables builds on its place as Scotland’s main source of power, and as we seek to deliver real change in the crucial areas of heat and transport.

Scottish Renewables
“

Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce has worked closely with AREG since its formation. The recent progress in the developments of offshore wind projects by Equinor and Vattenfall are as a result of the work of the group over many years. The north-east is known as the oil and gas capital of Europe. At the Chamber, we believe the region must evolve its position to being recognised as the energy capital. Whilst hydrocarbons will continue to be essential in driving our economy for years to come, the generation of renewable resources will play an increasingly important role in providing cost-effective power, innovative development and economic growth.

Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce
“

The enthusiasm and dedication of the early group that would become AREG was fundamental in us choosing to launch All-Energy in Aberdeen. The first tiny show was held in 2001, and AREG’s Chairman at the time, Jeremy Cresswell, played such an active role that I often describe him in terms such as All-Energy’s ‘midwife’. All-Energy is now the UK’s largest renewable and low carbon energy exhibition and conference in terms of number of attendees, space booked, and number of exhibiting companies. As AREG became firmly established, their presence and support for the event grew spectacularly over the years. We thank them most sincerely for their invaluable input.

All-Energy
“

Vattenfall has forged a strong working relationship with AREG through the development of the European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre. AREG has worked tirelessly on behalf of the North East and it can take enormous credit for the growth of sustainable energy in the region and the path it has cleared for the region to capture further investment.

Vattenfall
“

Aberdeen City and Shire is emerging as a key location for renewables by successfully transferring its world-class oil and gas expertise into the sector and AREG has done much to advance this through a broad range of initiatives. It has acted as a catalyst in driving further investment in the local economy by engaging with companies, Government, public bodies and existing projects and we have been pleased to support their efforts. Scottish Enterprise will continue to engage with AREG as we increase Scotland’s use of renewable energy.

Scottish Enterprise