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Report

Teaser, summary, work performed and final results

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - MIGRATE (Research and training network on MIniaturized Gas flow for Applications with enhanced Thermal Effects)

Teaser

Summary

The projectâ€™s background is linked to the fact, that depletion of natural resources combined with the extending footprint of mankind has led to a shift in importance of research and development topics. At present, emphasis is focused on resource efficiency as a primary objective. The European Roadmap of Process Intensification[1] identifies several measures: miniaturization, improved heat transfer, and waste heat recovery. It is a well-known fact that minimization of heat and mass transfer resistances lead to tremendous increase in the related transport capacities. Thus, miniaturized devices will play a key role in future industrial applications and transport systems as well as in the re-design of existing processes that directly impact on the daily life of citizens, ranging from industrial technologies to personal equipment.

However, there are significant gaps in the fundamental knowledge-base for both mass and heat transfer processes in the micro scale. Current research is primarily focused on phase transition or multi-phase flows, with less attention paid to single-phase gas flows. Measurement systems with sufficiently high temporal and spatial resolution to clarify phenomena in micro scale are not available in many cases, and modelling of such processes is exceptionally challenging. Because of this, pre-calculation and design of miniaturized devices is often based on trial-and-error. This is especially the case for heat transfer using gases. While natural convection systems are described clearly and well-understood, forced convection, enhanced micro-scale heat transfer or heat transfer at reduced pressure levels is not well understood. Optimization of gas-based miniaturized devices for thermal applications with regard to pressure losses, materials, microstructure design, modelling and simulation, let alone measurement and control of processes using such devices are not yet present in technological solution portfolios, although there are many applications of such devices.

MIGRATE is intended to address some of the current challenges to innovation that face European industry with regard to heat and mass transfer in gas-based micro-scale processes. A Marie SkÅ‚odowska-Curie ETN innovation training network will be established spanning numerical, experimental, theoretical and applied research experts across academia, large scale industry and high-tech SMEs. Within MIGRATE, 15 Early-Stage Researchers (ESRs) will be trained through projects that will cover different aspects of enhanced heat transfer and thermal effects in gases. The presented publication will provide an overview to the activities within the MIGRATE project, depict planned topics and actions as well as present an outlook to future expectations and perspectives.
The MIGRATE ITN gathers this understanding by bringing together an intersectoral and multidisciplinary collaboration between eleven academic and 6 industrial participants from 10 European countries. The consortium combines and shares expertise to offer training at an advanced level in various sub-topics.

[1] http://efce.info/Working+Parties/Process+Intensification/Discussion+Forum/EUROPIN.html

Work performed

In the MIGRATE project 15 Early Stage Researchers (ESR) were to be recruited in two waves, namely 10 of them before or in April 2016, and 5 before or in September 2016. Due to some recruitment delays, the project, in the first phase, had a slight backlog for the start of the ESR projects of 1 month (ESR15) and up to 7 months (ESR4, ESR11 and ESR13). In almost all cases, the ESR students started their work at the beneficiariesâ€™ site with a comprehensive literature review on their specific topic before going deeper into the experimental and manufacturing parts of their research projects and started documenting their progress in monthly reports and quarterly reports. In addition, they were starting to interact with the consortium, in particular via participating in the MIGRATE networking events and by starting their secondments at other consortium partners\' sites.

A good networking level was reached with the 1st MIGRATE Summer School and Workshop, that were held in Strasbourg, France from June 27 to July 1, 2016, and with the 2nd edition performed between June 26 and 30, 2017, in Sofia, Bulgaria. Whereas only 5 ESRs out of 15 had been already recruited and arrived at their supervision site at the time of the first events, all 15 ESRs recruited within MIGRATE participated in the second edition. While the second workshop had was attended by 49 participants (+ 25% compared to 1st edition), also the outreach spect was enhanced with 16 participants from outside the network (increased by 3 compared to 1st edition).

In terms of the management activities on the general project level, there have been a lot of actions taken. Overall management was performed in general by the team of Network Coordinator and Administrative Coordinator at KIT, Karlsruhe, Germany. On December 8, 2015, the Kick-Off Meeting took place in Eindhoven, where also the creation of the Supervisory Board (SB) and Executive Board (EB), as well as the appointment of an External Expert and the Executive Board. From this date onwards, the management was performed continuously and very softly, through several EB meetings per year (mainly online) and yearly SB meetings. While the EB was discusssing current issues to be solved and preparing decisions these were decided on by the SB members.

Final results

In the MIGRATE innovative training network, the aforementioned challenges with regard to heat and mass transfer in gas-based micro-scale processes are addressed. Different aspects of enhanced heat transfer and thermal effects in gases had been defined to build the research topics of the 15 Early-Stage Researchers (ESRs). The work in the topics addresses current research questions with regard to research and development of sensors, mathematical models, simulations software and miniaturized devices. On the project website, short descriptions of the research topics of the 15 ESR projects are listed to show an overview on the topics and the expected results beyond the current state of the art. On the global project level the ESR research topics are cross-linked with the overall topics of the work package tasks and research groups of MIGRATE. The intersectoral and multidisciplinary collaboration network is supporting the ESRs and consortium to obtain the major project results by offering training and networking to combine the respective sub-topics and to, thereby, enhancing further impacts and implications.