ISSN 0409-7467 CSIRCSIR NEWSNEWS Progress, Promise and Prospects VOL 61 NO 17 & 18 SEPTEMBER 2011 CONTENTS CMERI Developed AUV-150 Ushers in a New Era in Underwater Robotic Research NEIST organized National Seminar on, Plants in Diabetes NGRI Organizes International Workshop on, Deep Scientific Drilling to Study Reservoir Triggered Earthquakes at Koyna, India Golden Jubilee Lecture Series Held at NEIST, Jorhat CIMAP Bags Krishi Sansthan Samman 2011 Award website: http://www.csir.res.in R&D HIGHLIGHTS further complicated by the presence of significant surface currents, which resulted in considerable drift after the deployment of the AUV at sea, where it was to perform a set of seven operational tests. Two functional tests comprising two functional soak tests, besides launching, retrieval and tracking system deployment were needed to be carried out, followed by five sub-sea tests targeted towards the fulfillment of specified depth The CMERI AUV team posing beside the system qualifications and overall system functionality. and leak, withstanding at various DVL, Depth sensor and Altim These tests commenced on 13 July depths. exhibited functional consistency and 2011. From July 13 to July 16 the integrity. diving depth of the AUV-150 was Depth corrections could be carried increased in stages, when it could reach out with an accuracy of Thrusters were operational. Efforts consecutive depths of 35.79m, 0.1~0.7 m. were made to keep AUV-150 in 79.96 m and 119.95 m, all well within Specified depth of 150 m was position at various depths and the estimated time in spite of the adverse achieved as ensured from relevant perform surge operations with weather conditions. Finally, on 17 July sensor data. heading corrections to follow a 2011 AUV-150 reached a depth of predefined mission. 150 m. Significant underwater tracking was done with USBL Positioning Minor problems were faced in Different tests were carried out, recording video frames from the which are summarized as follows: System and acoustic communication whenever AUV-150 was within underwater camera attached with Endurance in extreme rough sea the acoustic range, thereby reflecting AUV-150. environments (with recorded sea- various significant mission Underwater terrain data was logged states of 4 and above) could not be parameters, and further verifying the successfully by Side Scan SONAR. ascertained. Surface operations success of sub-sea operations. Data logging from the Forward were almost impossible due to high The presence of strong sub-sea Looking SONAR (FLS) was also sea states and presence of high currents, however, kept AUV-150 successful, as verified from mission surface waves. out of its acoustic ranges most of log files. AUV-150 suffered from the time. The successful sea trial of considerable drifts due to the Satisfactory CTD profiling could be AUV-150 marked a momentous entry into the annals of robotic research in presence of high surface/sub-sea performed resulting in good India and marked the beginning of a currents. observations for variations in more ambitious underwater robotic conductivity, salinity and Sub-sea pressure hulls did not programme for venturing to 3000 m of temperature at different depths. spring any leakage. AUV-150 ocean depth, to be taken up during the exhibited considerable roll stability On-board sensors like PHINS, 12th Five Year Plan period. SEPTEMBER 2011 195 R&D HIGHLIGHTS IIP, Dehradun Excels in Pinch Analysis Pinch Technology: A Tool for Energy Conservation The key to maximizing energy efficiency is in capturing and To help reduce local environmental emission reusing of waste heat within the processes and total sites, Update or modify process flow diagrams cutting the need for additional heating and cooling, thereby Determine opportunities for Combined Heat and Power eliminating some equipment as well as savings in hot and cold (CHP) generation utilities. Pinch analysis is a systematic procedure, based on fundamental thermodynamic principles (First and Second Law Application Areas of Thermodynamics), that guarantees finding the best possible Pinch analysis has been successfully used across the solution. The prime objectives of pinch analysis are to achieve full spectrum of chemical process industries, namely, Oil financial saving and green environment by better process heat refining; Petrochemicals; Fertilizers and Pesticides; Polymers integration. This is achieved by maximizing the process-to- and Fibres; Pulp and Paper; Food Processing and Distilleries process heat recovery and reducing the external utility load. and Breweries. In any pinch analysis problem, a well-defined pinch analysis procedure (Table:1) is followed. Additional activities such as re-simulation and data modification are required as the analysis proceeds. Table 1: Steps of Pinch Analysis Data extraction Data consistency check (software, simulations, practical experiences) Selection of ΔT min. value based on experience/general practice Generation of Composite Curves (Fig.1) Determining of optimum ΔT min. using ΔT min. vs Cost Figure 1: Hot and Cold Composite Curves Diagram (Fig.2) Generation of final Composite Curve Plus-minus Principal Applications Composite Curves are used to estimate the minimum Generation of Grand Composite Curve (Fig.3) energy (hot & cold utilities), area and number of heat Heat Exchanger Network exchanger units required. Utility placement and optimization Benefits of Pinch Analysis Following are the benefits of Pinch Analysis: Ability to set energy and capital cost target for individual process or entire production site ahead of design. Lower energy consumption, due to better process heat integration. Lower energy cost, due to lower consumption as well as shifting load from higher to lower cost utilities Debottlenecking of boiler/cooling tower and refrigeration system capacity Figure 2: T min vs Cost Diagram 196 CSIR NEWS R&D HIGHLIGHTS CSIR Hamsa Developed by NAL, Bangalore National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL), Bangalore has developed an air propelled ferry system, CSIR Hamsa, to access difficult terrains such as marshy land and water. Hamsa, with a likely tag of Rs. 4 lakh, can be used for eco-tourism, fishing, Figure 3: Grand Composite Curve leisure, geometrics, law enforcement, besides search and rescue operations. Grand Composite Curve (GCC) is used to select appropriate level of The ferry is named after the utilities to meet the energy requirement. mythological bird, which does not fly but In pinch analysis area, Indian Institute of Petroleum (I IP), Dehradun moves in land and water. It is a self- has got immense expertise and has already carried out a large number of propelled multi-terrain vehicle, which depends primarily on air thrust for projects. propulsion. “In India, over 400 million people live along the coastline and water bodies IIP’s Major Pinch Analysis Projects like rivers, lakes, shallow water regions of which many are filled with weeds. The air ferry can be used in a wide variety of Projects Benefits Achieved applications where access is a problem,” said Dr. S. Selvarajan, NAL scientist and Crude Distillation Unit’s For the same hot utility consumption, Project Leader. (CDU’s) preheat train, CDU’s throughput could be increased Hamsa has undergone trial runs at IOCL, Guwahati from 1 MMTPA to 1.3 MMTPA Ulsoor Lake and can be custom-built with different hull designs. One of the models is Delayed Coker Unit’s 4715 MMkcal a six-seater Parisil-boat, an all terrain preheat train, IOCL, energy savings per annum vehicle, which operates on a Simonini mini Guwahati aero engine. Another model is a three- seater, which can be used for clearing weeds Crude Distillation Unit’s For the same hot utility consumption, and for rescue operations in lakes and rivers. preheat train, Reliance CDU’s throughput could be increased The third model is based on the Indian Industries Ltd., Jamnagar by 30M3/hr coracle. Called water auto, it is a basic coracle which can be rendered very stable Lube Extraction Unit, Hydrodynamic debottlenecking of by attaching ‘strap-on out triggers.’ It would HPCL, Mumbai Solvent Recovery Circuit (SRC) cost around Rs 10,000 per unit. “Coracles are banned in Karnataka after many capsizing furnace for proposed unit capacity of incidents. However, with the strap-on out 48M3/hr from 36M3/hr triggers, the coracle is unsinkable. Discussions of CSIR scientists are on with FCC Unit at IOCL Furnace duty saved by the State Government for enhancing the Refinery, Panipat 1.26 MMkcal/hr applications of this unique vehicle. SEPTEMBER 2011 197 R&D HIGHLIGHTS India Hopes to Fly Indigenous International Forum 90-Seater Aircraft in Five Years for Aviation Research India hopes to test fly its first indigenously developed 90-seater Director General, CSIR has approved the regional transport aircraft in the next five years. According to the proposal for NAL to be a member of International DG-CSIR, Prof Samir K. Brahmchari, the 90-seater RTA will be Forum for Aviation Research (IFAR), which developed as a Team India initiative led by National Aerospace Laboratory (NAL), Bangalore, which could also see some global connects and represents leading worldwide participation. A Committee headed by former ISRO Chairman, aerospace research organizations and responds Dr G. Madhavan Nair has submitted a feasibility study to CSIR in to political, economic and public demands as an this regard. independent advisor. IFAR aims on focusing global The Committee, which had top bureaucrats and aerospace research topics such as climate