Enhancement of process modelling and simulation evaluation by deploying a test for assessment and feedback individualisation

This paper demonstrates a novel approach for a computer-based course assessment. A test is introduced in which computers are deployed. This significantly contributes to the enhancement of the marking consistency, individual performance distinction and feedbacks, and widen the questions range for computer-based modules. The proposed test method, for the first time, uses the simulation files marking for individualised evaluation purposes. The methodology has successfully been implemented in practice for three modules including Process Simulation (CE2105), Advanced Process Simulation (CE4023), and Process Computation (CE3021) at Aston University (UK) over three academic years, from 2016 to 2019. The effectiveness of the proposed approach has been evaluated using several factors, including final marks, consistency multiple academic years, and mark distribution. In contrast to the common teamwork assessments, individualised feedback became possible. While ASPEN has been used for CE4023 and CE2105 tests, MATLAB has been applied as the computation platform for CE3021 module. This reveals the applicability of different software in proposed methodology. The number of students in the cohorts studied was from 52 to 204, demonstrating the applicability of the method for various cohort sizes. Even though the methodology has been demonstrated based on the chemical engineering discipline modules, it allows digitalising the delivery and assessment of a wide range of simulation techniques in many disciplines.     

Use of a smartphone-based Student Response System in large active-learning Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics classrooms

Smartphones are a promising tool as student response systems (SRS) for interactive teaching due to their widespread diffusion. Here, the main purpose is to assess the efficacy of smartphone-based SRS in large classroom settings of undergraduate Thermodynamics, as representative of engineering courses requiring high-level cognitive skills for problem solving. Four sets of multiple-choice questions were presented during the course. Overall, the results refer to 1055 students between control and SRS classes, each corresponding to a3 years period.One of the main results of this work is the strong linear correlation between the average questionnaire score and the final exam grade (R² = 0.91). A similar correlation, although with a lower value of R², is already found in the first questionnaire, thus showing the SRS high predictive power of class performance. The results of this study provide guidance for a quantitative use of smartphone-based SRS in teaching basic disciplines. The SRS monitoring capability allows early detection of struggling students, thus paving the way to personalized tutoring and improved student engagement in active learning practices. This approach is especially important in emergency situations, such as the SARS-Cov-2 pandemic, when distance learning is widely adopted, and remote interactive tools are highly needed.     

碳中和背景下配电网差异化节能降耗潜力评估分

为了提高配电网差异化节能降耗效果，解决现有潜力评估方法存在的应用性能差的问题，提出碳中和背景下配电网差异化节能降耗潜力优化评估方法。根据配电网的空间结构，构建相应的等值电路模型。在该模型下，从设备损耗和运行附加损耗2个方面计算配电网的损耗量。根据损耗量计算结果，确定配电网差异化碳中和节能降耗方式。从静态和动态2个角度设置潜力评估指标，通过指标数据处理、指标权重求解等步骤，得出配电网差异化节能降耗潜力的综合量化评估结果。将设计潜力评估方法应用到配电网的差异化节能降耗改造工作中，能够有效降低配电网的实际线损量、降低区域损耗费用，并具有较高的应用价值。     

Data requirements for improving the Quantitative Risk Assessment of liquid hydrogen storage systems

Quantitative Risk Assessment (QRA) supports the development of risk-informed safety codes and standards which are employed to enable the safe deployment of hydrogen technologies essential to decarbonize the transportation sector. System reliability data is a necessary input for rigorous QRA. The lack of reliability data for bulk liquid hydrogen (LH₂) storage systems located on site at fueling stations limits the use of QRAs. In turn, this hinders the ability to develop the necessary safety codes and standards that enable worldwide deployment of these stations. Through a QRA-based analysis of a LH₂ storage system, this work focuses on identifying relevant scenario and probability data currently available and ascertaining future data collection requirements regarding risks specific to liquid hydrogen releases. The work developed consists of the analysis of a general bulk LH₂ storage system design located at a hydrogen fueling station. Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA) and traditional QRA modeling tools such as Event Sequence Diagrams (ESD) and Fault Tree Analysis (FTA) are employed to identify, rank, and model risk scenarios related to the release of LH₂. Based on this analysis, scenario and reliability data needs to add LH₂-related components to QRA are identified with the purpose of improving the future safety and risk assessment of these systems.     

No-Reference Video Quality Assessment using novel hybrid features and two-stage hybrid regression for score level fusion

This paper presents a novel No-Reference Video Quality Assessment (NR-VQA) model that utilizes proposed 3D steerable wavelet transform-based Natural Video Statistics (NVS) features as well as human perceptual features. Additionally, we proposed a novel two-stage regression scheme that significantly improves the overall performance of quality estimation. In the first stage, transform-based NVS and human perceptual features are separately passed through the proposed hybrid regression scheme: Support Vector Regression (SVR) followed by Polynomial curve fitting. The two visual quality scores predicted from the first stage are then used as features for the similar second stage. This predicts the final quality scores of distorted videos by achieving score level fusion. Extensive experiments were conducted using five authentic and four synthetic distortion databases. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method outperforms other published state-of-the-art benchmark methods on synthetic distortion databases and is among the top performers on authentic distortion databases. The source code is available at https://github.com/anishVNIT/two-stage-vqa.     

Exploring the feasibility of green hydrogen production using excess energy from a country-scale 100% solar-wind renewable energy system

When planning large-scale 100% renewable energy systems (RES) for the year 2050, the system capacity is usually oversized for better supply-demand matching of electrical energy since solar and wind resources are highly intermittent. This causes excessive excess energy that is typically dissipated, curtailed, or sold directly. The public literature shows a lack of studies on the feasibility of using this excess for country-scale co-generation. This study presents the first investigation of utilizing this excess to generate green hydrogen gas. The concept is demonstrated for Jordan using three solar photovoltaic (PV), wind, and hybrid PV-wind RESs, all equipped with Lithium-Ion battery energy storage systems (ESSs), for hydrogen production using a polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) system. The results show that the PV-based system has the highest demand-supply fraction (>99%). However, the wind-based system is more favorable economically, with installed RES, ESS, and PEM capacities of only 23.88 GW, 2542 GWh, and 20.66 GW. It also shows the highest hydrogen annual production rate (172.1 × 10³ tons) and the lowest hydrogen cost (1.082 USD/kg). The three systems were a better option than selling excess energy directly, where they ensure annual incomes up to 2.68 billion USD while having payback periods of as low as 1.78 years. Furthermore, the hydrogen cost does not exceed 2.03 USD/kg, which is significantly lower than the expected cost of hydrogen (3 USD/kg) produced using energy from fossil fuel-based systems in 2050.     

Trade-off study between risk and benefit in safety devices for hydrogen refueling stations using a dynamic physical model

As hydrogen refueling stations become increasingly common, it is clear that a high level of economic efficiency and safety is crucial to promoting their use. One way to reduce costs is to use a simple orifice instead of an excess flow valve, which Japanese safety regulations have identified as a safety device. However, there is concern about its effect on refueling time and on risk due to hydrogen leakage. To clarify the effect, we did a study of model-based refueling time evaluation and quantitative risk assessment for a typical refueling station. This study showed that an orifice is an effective alternative safety device. The increase in refueling time was less than 10%, based on simulations using a dynamic physical model of the station. Neither was there a significant difference in the risk between a configuration with excess flow valves and one with an orifice.     

Digital twin-based analysis of volumetric error mapping procedures

The evaluation of the volumetric accuracy of a machine tool is an open challenge in the industry, and a wide variety of technical solutions are available in the market and at research level. All solutions have advantages and disadvantages concerning which errors can be measured, the achievable uncertainty, the ease of implementation, possibility of machine integration and automation, the equipment cost and the machine occupation time, and it is not always straightforward which option to choose for each application. The need to ensure accuracy during the whole lifetime of the machine and the availability of monitoring systems developed following the Industry 4.0 trend are pushing the development of measurement systems that can be integrated in the machine to perform semi-automatic verification procedures that can be performed frequently by the machine user to monitor the condition of the machine. Calibrated artefact based calibration and verification solutions have an advantage in this field over laser based solutions in terms of cost and feasibility of machine integration, but they need to be optimized for each machine and customer requirements to achieve the required calibration uncertainty and minimize machine occupation time.This paper introduces a digital twin-based methodology to simulate all relevant effects in an artefact-based machine tool calibration procedure, from the machine itself with its expected error ranges, to the artefact geometry and uncertainty, artefact positions in the workspace, probe uncertainty, compensation model, etc. By parameterizing all relevant variables in the design of the calibration procedure, this simulation methodology can be used to analyse the effect of each design variable on the error mapping uncertainty, which is of great help in adapting the procedure to each specific machine and user requirements. The simulation methodology and the analysis possibilities are illustrated by applying it on a 3-axis milling machine tool.     

Non-keyhole Friction Stir Welding for 6061-T6 Aluminum Alloy

A novel non-keyhole friction stir welding technique was proposed to weld the butt joint of 6061-T6 aluminum alloy with the thickness of 6 mm. A sound joint was obtained by this technique, simultaneously eliminating the flash, shoulder mark and keyhole defects. The sleeve directly affected zone (SDAZ) and the sleeve indirectly affected zone (SIAZ) were divided into the joint according to the plunging position of the hollow sleeve. The lack of root penetration defect was avoided when the plunging depth of the hollow sleeve was only 4.2 mm, because the hollow part inside the sleeve improved the material flow below the sleeve. An S-shaped line was left at the SIAZ, and the height of it had the minimum value of 1.47 mm at 20 mm/min. Whether the failure location of the joint was in SIAZ/SDAZ or the heat-affected zone (HAZ) depended on the height and bonding strength of the S-shaped line. The joint fracture location changed from the SIAZ/SDAZ at 35 mm/min to the HAZ at 20 and 30 mm/min. The maximum tensile strength of 224.3 MPa was obtained at 30 mm/min which was 73.7% of that of the base material. The fracture surface morphology exhibited the typical ductile fracture.