PhD studentship - Fireside Corrosion and Protection of Heat Exchangers in Advanced Power Systems. £15,600 p.a. plus fees*

School of Applied Sciences

Cranfield University

Supported by EPSRC and industrial sponsorship, a studentship of up to £15,600 p.a. plus fees* is available

This PhD studentship is aimed at supporting the development of higher efficiency power generation systems that use steam to generate electricity. The successful student will evaluate the fireside corrosion performance of the latest heat exchanger materials (as well as more conventional materials) in operating environments anticipated within advanced power systems using biomass co-firing and/or oxy-firing combined with high temperature heat exchangers/ steam systems. Corrosion exposure tests will be carried out in specialised controlled atmosphere laboratory scale furnaces; deposition tests will be carried out in pilot scale combustion test rigs. The performance of the materials will be determined using advanced analytical facilities including: optical microscopy/image analysis, scanning electron microscopy/energy dispersive x-ray analysis, x-ray diffraction, etc. It is anticipated that the student will become involved in the development of models for the lives of the heat exchanger materials based on their fireside corrosion performance, as well as evaluating the potential for protective coating systems to be used to extend these lives.

This PhD project forms one part of the EPSRC SUPERGEN initiative that is focused on ‘Powering The Future’. Cranfield University was one of four UK university research groups that were selected to take part in the SUPERGEN consortium on ‘Conventional Power Plant Lifetime Extension’ that started in July 2004 and is supported by a group of industrial companies including Alstom Power, Siemens, Doosan Babcock, Rolls Royce, E.ON and RWE npower. The consortium has recently had its funding renewed for a further four year programme of work that will start in July 2008 and will be focused towards ‘Lifing of High Efficiency, Low CO2 Emission Power Plant’. Cranfield’s activities within this consortium are related to the high temperature oxidation, corrosion and protection of components, including heat exchangers and gas turbines.

The student will work within the growing multi-disciplinary team of Cranfield University’s ‘Energy Technology Centre’. The Energy Technology Centre is active in researching materials selection and performance, gas cleaning processes and the use of solid fuels (including renewable and waste fuels) in advanced power processes. Particular strengths of these research activities are the evaluation of the high temperature oxidation and corrosion behaviour of materials, and the development of component life models.