Facilities

Our research activities in the fields of micro-turbomachinery components and cycles, basic and applied heat transfer, and measurement techniques development is supported by range of laboratory equipment. These capabilities are also available to provide service to the industry and other academia members upon demand:

Experimental Infrastructure
  • Custom Atlas Copco ZT315-8.6-50VSD Screw Compressor – capable of continuously delivering up to 0.9 kg/s of air at pressure ratio of up to 1:7, while operating in closed loop with inlet pressure in the range of 0.3-1 bar.
  • Capstone C65 ICHP Micro-Turbine – CHP unit capable of delivering 65kW electric power and recovering 120kW of heat. Used towards studies of optimal dispatch and smart-grid control.
  • Phoenix Dynamometer 280kW Eddy Current Absorber – coupled with high-speed Cotta transmission with gearbox ratio of 22.5:1. The system is capable of sustaining torques of 60Nm at 45,000RPM and 30Nm at 90,000RPM (currently under commissioning).
  • ABB 315kW 3,000RPM Motor with ABB ACS880 Speed Controller.
  • Micro-Turbine Test Facility – includes continuous closed-loop hot transonic cascade, capable of characterizing the aero-thermal performance characteristics of turbine profiles and cooling schemes (currently in final stages of assembly); and continuous closed-loop hot rotating rig, capable of gauging the performance of an entire turbine stage (currently in advanced stages of design).
  • Heat Exchanger Test Facility – allows for evaluation of aerothermal performance (including the effect of acoustic excitation) for various compact heat exchangers. The rig features 24kW OSRAM electric heater, pre-polarized free-field microphone (with high temperature pre-amplifier), separate mass flow controllers for cold and hot side sides, and temperature / pressure drop acquisition system.
  • Aero-Acoustic Wind Tunnel Facility – used for studying novel heat exchanger geometries. Features interchangeable side wall for pressure distribution measurements via Scanivalve DSA3217 Pressure Scanner and thermal performance measurement via liquid crystal thermography.
  • Micro-Engine Test Facilities – allow for performance studies for small-to-medium scale gas turbine engines with thrust ratings of up to 2000N.
Measurement and Calibration Capabilities
  • FLIR SC7600 MWIR Camera (InSb Sensor) – the camera is mounted on high-precision X-Y-Θ system, which allows movement of 300mm, 300mm and 360 degrees respectively. The system also includes AST CALsys 500 Black Body, suitable for temperature range of 50-500 ºC.
  • Particle Image Velocimetry System – includes IDT Y7-S1 High Speed Camera, LaVision Aerosol Generator and AMTRON LS453 Laser Diode System.
  • Zeiss Comet Led 2 3D Scanner – maximal resolution of 18 μm (at field-of-view of 45 mm).
  • Polytec Laser Vibrometer System – VFX-1-120 sensor head and VibroFlex Connect controller with sampling frequency up to 500 kHz.
  • Keyence TM-040 Optical Micrometer Set – measurement range of 0.3-40 mm, measurement accuracy of ±2 µm.
  • Ossila Four-Point Probe System – measurement of sheet resistance within 100 mΩ/□ – 10 MΩ/□ range, resistivity and conductivity.
  • Hot-Wire Probe Manufacturing and Calibration Facility – the laboratory has all necessary tools needed to manufacture, repair and calibrate custom-made hot-wire anemometry probes. The capabilities include AA Lab Systems AN-1003 CTA Anemometry System, Orion Pulse 150i Micro Pulse Arc Welder and Microscope, transonic heated calibration jet, electroplating station and ultrasound cleaning bath.
  • Sensor Calibration Services – in addition to hot-wire calibrating jet, the laboratory also has high-precision pressure gauge system, heated oil bath and 1000Hz acoustic calibrator that provide calibration capabilities for pressure transducers, thermocouples and microphones respectively.
Manufacturing Capabilities
  • Doosan DVF5000 5-Axis CNC Milling Machine with FANUC 31iMB5 Controller
  • Leybold UNIVEX 400 Physical Vapor Deposition System – the system is equiped with a 480 x 420 x 550 mm3 vacuum chamber and is suitable for both RF/DC sputtering and electron beam evaporation. Maximum powers are: RF Sputtering – 600 W, DC Sputtering – 1000 W, E-Beam Evaporation – 6 kW.
  • Balancing facilities:
    • West Coast WCB-30 Bench Balancing Rig for medium-scale rotors (rotor weight up to 13.6kg, balance speed range of 500-2500RPM).
    • Balance Master HD-1 Dynamic Balancing system for small scale rotors (rotor weight up to 1kg, balance speed range of 500-50000RPM).
  • Additive Manufacturing Capabilities:
    • PT+A Metal/Ceramics FDM System – Renkforce FDM printer, instrumented for metal and ceramic filaments and set of ovens for printed part post-processing. Features build volume of 170 x 290 x 185 mm3.
    • LC PRO Liquid Polymer 3D Printer – DLP printer, features build volume of 470 x 240 x 340 mm3 and layer thickness of 50 micron.
    • Ultimaker S5 Pro FDM Printer – twin extrusion system, features build volume of 330 x 240 x 300 mm3 and materials station.
    • AnyCubic Chiron FDM Printer – features build volume of 400 x 400 x 450 mm3.
    • 2 Prusa i3 MK3S Printers – features simultaneous printing from 5 spools, soluble supports, build volume of 250 x 210 x 210 mm3.
  • Marking and Engraving Laser
Numerical Capabilities
  • Design, Simulation and Analysis – the laboratory staff is skilled with a range of cutting-edge design, simulation and analysis tools and provides CAD service as well as numerical analysis in ANSYS, FLUENT, FloEFD, FloMASTER, GasTurb, AxSTREAM, KISSsoft, KISSsys and COMSOL Multiphysics.

To obtain quotations for the available laboratory services, please contact us.