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THE MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMIC ENGINEERING
LABORATORY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF BOLOGNA Faculty
of Engineering, Viale Risorgimento 2, 40136 Bologna
(Italy) Ph:
051 - 209 3587; Fax: 051 -
585700 / 209 3588 E-mail:
francesco.negrini@mail.ing.unibo.it Established in March 1977 (D.R. 743, March 3rd, 1977) Director Staff
Collaborators |
Aims
and Activities
The
activity of the MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMIC ENGINEERING
LABORATORY is
aimed to the study of the industrial applications of
magneto-hydro-dynamics (MHD) and superconductivity (SC), with particular
care for the energy-managing systems. In the past the Laboratory staff
have developed an experimental activity on a system made of a shock tube, a cryogenic magnet and a
MHD
generator, designed and realized within the Laboratory. Later on, the
activity was mainly devoted to the modeling of MHD generators and to the
methods for the design, construction, and performance optimization of the
electrical devices utilizing superconductors. Now days we have developed
innovative competences in the following fields: ·
Analysis
e Synthesis of superconducting magnets,
with reference to the problematic present in the design, construction and
operation of “high field” superconducting magnets devoted to MHD generators,
SMES systems, NMR
devices, etc. We have studied both systems utilizing metallic LTC (Low
Critical Temperature) superconducting materials and ceramic HTC (High
Critical Temperature) superconducting materials; ·
Magnetic
Levitation systems Modeling with
particular reference to the design of flywheels for the energy storage.
For what concerns the “magnetic bearing” particular attention has been
devoted to the study of the optimal magnetization
techniques; ·
Design
of systems for the storage of the electrical energy:
we have studied the optimal design of micro-SMES systems with functions of
UPS and active filter utilized for the improvement of the “Power
Quality”. A new "Force Balanced" design
has been investigated; · Electromagnetic
Processing of Materials (MHD applied to
metallurgy):
with reference to the Continuous Casting lines, we have studied the
control of the shape of the free surface of the liquid metal in the mold
and the magnetic separation of the inclusions; ·
Magnetic
Separators:
with reference to the combusted gas emitted by industries, we have studied
the process for the abatement of the ultra-fine solid particles by the use
of the High Gradient Magnetic Separator (HGMS) and the Open Gradient
Magnetic Separator (OGMS); ·
Current
Distribution inside superconducting
cables:
the study has been devoted in particular to determine the a.c. losses and the ramp-rate
limitation of the current sustainable from the superconducting coil in the
charging phase and/or the distortions of the induction field produced by
the current non-uniformities. From 1989 till to 1995 the
Magnetohydrodynamic Engineering Laboratory has
been the Center of the National Coordination of the Sub-Project
“Superconducting Magnets” of the CNR (National Research Council of Italy)
Finalized Project “Superconducting and Cryogenic Technologies”
(Su.Cry.Tec.). During this activity, in which was involved some of the
main Italian electromechanical industries and four university groups, the
final
design and the
construction of a rectangular saddle
magnet (active length 2 m, maximum field on the axis 5 T, stored
energy 62 MJ) to be utilized in a 30 MW MHD pilot power plant, has been
carried out. The employed technology (superconducting cable CICC
of the kind Copper/NbTi contained in a steel conduit and cooled with
supercritical helium) was innovative regarding those used for the magnets
built in the world until then and, above all, can be utilized without
modifications for the construction of magnets having the dimensions
required from the industrial plants. The designed prototype magnet is at
the moment in the Ansaldo Superconduttori laboratories in Genova (see the cryostat). From its beginning the MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMIC ENGINEERING LABORATORY has developed, and still maintains, scientific co-operations with many Research Agencies in Italy and abroad: Recently, we have started a Research
Project on the efficient use of the electrical energy, produced by
alternative sources, through
Direct Current superconducting systems. This project foresee the
experimental realization in the laboratory of a prototype system made of a
200 kJ SMES system, of a Superconducting Fault Current Limiter (FCL), and
of a HTC superconducting cable for the transmission of the Direct Current (see the
Applied
Superconductivity Laboratory Web site). |
Organized
International Conferences
- International Workshop
on Fossil Fuel Fired MHD Retrofit of Existing Power Stations, Roma, 27-28
January 1986. - International School on
MHD Engineering, Bologna, 1989. - 2nd International
Workshop on Fossil Fuel Fired MHD Retrofit of Existing Power Stations,
Bologna, 21-23 March 1990. - International Workshop
on MHD Superconducting Magnets, Bologna, 13-15 November
1991. - International Liaison
Group on MHD Electrical Power Generation Meeting - CNR Roma,
1992. - 2nd International
Workshop on MHD Superconducting Magnets, Genoa, 11-12 December
1994. - International Meeting
on MHD Technologies, Genoa, 13-14 December 1994. - Summer Course 1998 on
"SUPERCONDUCTING MATERIALS: ADVANCED IN TECHNOLOGY AND APPLICATIONS", 29
June - 10 July, 1998, "CNR Conference Center" - Bologna, Italy.
- International
Conference on "MHD POWER GENERATION AND HIGH TEMPERATURE TECHNOLOGIES",
12-15 October, 1999, Beijing, PRC |
Ultimo aggiornamento il 21/10/2003