Efficiency, environmental protection, technology development

The Energy Audit & Pollutant Monitoring Research Laboratory works across four areas — research, technology, technical and engineering services (field and software-based), and international and educational activities — and acts as a bridge between university and industry. It is directed by Dr. Mohammad Hasan Khoshgoftar Manesh and Dr. Mojtaba Babaelahi, and comprises two specialised research units.

ResearchTechnologyTechnical & engineering servicesInternational & educational

Integrated efficiency & sustainability

Lower energy intensity in industrial, commercial and residential facilities through simultaneous thermal and electrical audits, thermographic loss detection, and solutions based on thermodynamic and economic optimization.

Comprehensive environmental protection

Continuous monitoring, control and reduction of carbon footprint and pollutants — stack gases and industrial water and wastewater quality — using advanced analysers.

New, decision-driven technologies

Localising advanced energy systems, such as polygeneration and hybrid renewables, by combining experimental data with numerical modelling.

University–industry link

A platform to commercialise research results, offer field diagnostics (predictive maintenance) and create tangible value for industry nationally and internationally.

Measure, model, assess, optimize, prototype

Measureemissions, combustion, electrical power, temperature, pressure, humidity, water quality

Modelprocess, power, renewables, desalination, buildings and utilities

Assessenergy, exergy, economics, environment, LCA, risk and reliability

Optimizeoperating conditions, system design, energy savings and emission cuts

PrototypeMFC, MDC, HDH, AD, PTC, PV and clean-tech pilot devices

Measurement and analysis instruments

A portable instrument set for field energy audits, pollutant monitoring and water and wastewater analysis.

Industrial flue-gas analyser

Testo ⁠ · Germany

Combustion tuning, pollutant and stack-emission monitoring, boiler and furnace audits, gas-turbine and engine diagnostics (O₂, CO, NO/NOx, CO₂).

Portable power analyser

Tektronix PA ⁠ · USA

Electrical energy audits, motor and equipment consumption analysis, power-quality screening and verification of saving measures.

Pressure, temperature & humidity logger

Testo ⁠ P⁠ · Germany

Long-term logging of pressure, temperature and humidity for HVAC, industry and power applications.

Gas & water pressure meter

Testo ⁠-⁠ · Germany

Gas and water line pressure checks, leak and pressure-drop diagnostics, HVAC and utility verification.

Thermal imaging camera

Hti HT-⁠

Detection of heat losses and hot spots in electrical and mechanical equipment, and thermal leak detection.

Lux meter

DT-⁠A

Light-intensity measurement for lighting and building audits.

UV-Vis spectrophotometer

UVISNM⁠ · Iran

Measures UV-visible absorption and converts it to concentration through calibration curves — nitrate, phosphate, colour and COD in water and wastewater, and MFC/MDC monitoring.

Nano spectrophotometer

Nano Mabna

Water and wastewater quality assessment, MFC/MDC effluent monitoring, pollutant concentration and environmental sample screening.

Sound-level meter (dB)

SPL

Sound-pressure-level measurement for environmental noise assessment.

USB temperature / pressure / RH logger

UT⁠ · China

Short and medium-term measurement campaigns, laboratory monitoring and HVAC audits.

Water-quality analyser

JENWAY · Iran

pH, EC/TDS, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, ORP, temperature, salinity and colorimetric indicators for water, wastewater and desalination monitoring.

Request an audit or measurement

Contact us for field and laboratory services.

Contact

Industrial and national projects

Completed and ongoing work for public-sector and industrial clients.

Partners and collaborators

Selected publications from both research units

Advanced technologies, from knowledge to product

The unit was established to develop advanced technologies in renewable energy, hydrogen systems, process optimization, artificial intelligence and multigeneration systems. Its main aim is to deliver innovative solutions, carry out flagship national and international projects, transfer technical know-how to the country’s key industries and develop technology products at the frontier of knowledge.

Technology products

Design and development of software and hardware products based on emerging technologies.

Services to industry

Specialised technical, engineering and consulting services to the energy, power, oil, gas, petrochemical, steel and mineral-processing industries.

International collaboration

Research services and technology development at international level with leading universities in Spain, China, South Korea, the UK and Canada.

MFC and MDC: laboratory-built clean-water and bioenergy systems

Prototype and product-development portfolio

Commercialisation direction: wastewater recovery, clean water, renewable heat and power, and low-grade heat-to-power technologies.

Selected laboratory publications

A selection from the laboratory’s ⁠ papers and reports.

Two divisions, one energy chain

Our work is organised in two divisions. The Power Division converts thermal energy into power in combustion and non-combustion systems; the Energy Division covers resources, storage and efficiency.

Power Division

Power Division

Power Division بخش توان

Internal heat transfer (combustion): reciprocating engines, turbine engines and power plants; and external heat transfer (non-combustion): heat exchangers, Stirling engines and enclosures.

Gas Turbines & TurbomachineryTurboshaft & Aero EnginesThermal & Combined-Cycle Power PlantsBottoming Cycles & Heat RecoveryStirling Engines & CryocoolersHeat Exchangers & Thermal Management

Energy Division

Energy Division

Energy Division بخش انرژی

Renewable (solar, wind, hydro, geothermal, biomass) and non-renewable resources, energy storage, multigeneration systems and energy efficiency in buildings and industry.

Solar EnergyWind, Geothermal & BiomassMultigeneration, Hydrogen & DesalinationEnergy Storage

Converting heat into power

Six core research areas of the Power Division, from turbomachinery to heat exchangers.

Power Division · ⁠

Gas Turbines & Turbomachinery

Aerothermal design of gas-turbine components and on/off-design performance analysis — from centrifugal compressors to micro gas turbines for cogeneration.

• Centrifugal compressors, volutes and variable-geometry diffusers
• Mass-flow and power control with inlet guide vanes
• Compressor and turbine performance maps
• Micro gas turbines for CHP and urban use
• FGM rotating discs in gas turbines
• Thermal behaviour of CGT and CTG configurations

Key paper: M.A. Babazadeh, M. Babaelahi, M. Saadatfar —

Proc. IMechE Part C, ⁠

GasTurbGSPNREC ConceptCFturbo

Power Division · ⁠

Turboshaft & Aero Engines

Design, troubleshooting and improvement of helicopter turboshaft and small turbine engines, focusing on air, oil and power-transmission systems.

• Engine inlet and air-management systems
• Lubrication and oil-cooling systems
• Main-rotor gearbox lubrication
• Turboshaft engine and main-rotor modelling
• Troubleshooting, overhaul and efficiency maps
• Hydrodynamic air bearings

TurboshaftGearboxAir bearings

Power Division · ⁠

Thermal & Combined-Cycle Power Plants

⁠E assessment, dynamic simulation and multi-objective optimization of steam, gas and combined-cycle plants — from solar hybridization to carbon capture.

• Energy, exergy, economic and environmental analysis
• Solar hybridization of gas and steam plants
• Post-combustion CO₂ capture in coal-fired plants
• Dynamic simulation, control and risk assessment
• Construction and start-up cost estimation
• Consulting for small private power plants

Key paper: E. Mofidipour, M. Babaelahi —

Energy Conversion and Management⁠, ⁠

EbsilonThermoFlexCycle Tempo

Power Division · ⁠

Bottoming Cycles & Heat Recovery

Converting low-grade and waste heat from plants and industry into power, cooling and fresh water.

• Organic Rankine (ORC) and Kalina cycles
• Industrial waste-heat recovery (e.g. cement)
• LNG cold exergy in gas turbines
• LNG boil-off gas re-liquefaction
• Pinch analysis and heat integration
• Emergy and sustainability analysis

Key paper: E. Rafat, M. Babaelahi —

Energy Conversion and Management⁠, ⁠

ORCKalinaLNG

Power Division · ⁠

Stirling Engines & Cryocoolers

From widely used thermal models to the design and build of Stirling engines, refrigerators and solar dish–Stirling systems.

• Simple-II, modified PSVL and polytropic models
• EPSETM model with van der Waals effects
• Dish–Stirling and micro-gas-turbine hybrids
• Stirling cryocoolers and refrigeration cycles
• Machine-learning optimization
• Novel heat-transfer fins and regenerators

Key paper: M. Babaelahi, H. Sayyaadi —

Applied Energy⁠, ⁠

StirlingCryocoolerGP / ML

Power Division · ⁠

Heat Exchangers & Thermal Management

Thermo-hydraulic design and optimization of heat-transfer equipment using numerical models, analytical solutions and genetic programming.

• Helically grooved/finned tubes in shell-and-tube units
• Plate and plate-fin exchangers with nanofluids
• Inter-coolers for three-stage geared compressors
• FGM-fin heat sinks and heat pipes
• Thermoelectric devices and MHD generators
• Entropy-generation minimization

Key paper: M. Babaelahi, S. Sadri, O. Al-Jaberi —

Chemical Engineering Science⁠, ⁠

HTRIFluentCOMSOL

Resources, hybrid systems & efficiency

Optimal use of renewable and non-renewable resources and their integration with power-generation systems.

Energy Division · ⁠

Solar Energy

Concentrated solar power and photovoltaic-thermal systems — from heliostat-field design to dynamic simulation and plant control.

• Solar towers and heliostat fields
• Parabolic troughs and a ⁠ MW solar steam plant
• Dish–Stirling and high-flux nanofluid collectors
• PV/T systems and PCM panel cooling
• Solar multigeneration systems
• Dynamic simulation and control

Key paper: S.S. Razavian, M. Babaelahi —

International Journal of Energy Research, ⁠

CSPPV/THOMER

Energy Division · ⁠

Wind, Geothermal & Biomass

Variable and firm renewables combined — hybrid systems for continuous supply and remote-area deployment.

• Wind-farm feasibility across climates
• Hybrid wind-turbine / gas-turbine systems
• Solar–geothermal hybrids for power and water
• Life-cycle assessment (LCA)
• Biomass polygeneration for power, H₂ and heat
• Off-grid systems

Key paper: M. Babaelahi, M.H. Ghiasi —

Process Integration and Optimization for Sustainability, ⁠

GeothermalBiomassLCA

Energy Division · ⁠

Multigeneration, Hydrogen & Desalination

Co-producing electricity, heat, cooling, hydrogen and fresh water to maximise exergy efficiency.

• CCHP and cogeneration cycles
• Green hydrogen in solar systems
• MED, MSF and RO desalination
• Integrated Rankine, ORC, Kalina and absorption cycles
• Bayesian and metaheuristic optimization
• Exergo-risk assessment

Key paper: M.J. Shabani, M. Babaelahi —

International Journal of Hydrogen Energy⁠, ⁠

CCHPH₂MED / RO

Research & industry projects

Selected publications

⁠ papers related to the unit’s research areas, out of ⁠ publications, in five thematic groups.