[en] The first part of this research thesis describes radio-frequency quadrupolar (RFQ) cavities in terms of electrostatic and electro-dynamic properties. It describes the construction of a RFQ four-wire model which leads to a differential equation describing the cavity electromagnetic behaviour. The operator spectral theory allows the eigenvalue problem to be solved. An experimental methodology applied to this cavity is presented, and experimental studies are reported with a good correlation between the model resonance modes and measurements performed on the mock-up. The second part reports the development of a mathematical formulation based on the perturbation of line parameters of the previously developed model. This allows the assessment of mechanical defects and of tuning piston control

[en] This research thesis deals with the modelling and numerical resolution of problems related to plasma physics. The interaction of charged particles (electrons and ions) with electromagnetic fields is modelled with the system of unsteady Vlasov-Maxwell coupled equations (the Vlasov system describes the transport of charged particles and the Maxwell equations describe the wave propagation). The author presents definitions related to singular domains, establishes a Helmholtz decomposition in a space of electro-magnetostatic solutions. He reports a mathematical analysis of decompositions into a regular and a singular part of general functional spaces intervening in the investigation of the Maxwell system in complex geometries. The method is then implemented for bi-dimensional domains. A last part addressed the study and the numerical resolution of three-dimensional problems

[en] As the systematic study of tritium and oxygen-18 concentrations in surface and underground waters revealed evidence of some circulation modalities, and as it appears that the greatest uncertainty concerned the assessment of infiltration, this research thesis aims at precising this parameter by using isotopic method from the metre scale (lysimeter) to the kilometre scale (drainage basin). The notion of infiltration encompasses all the processes which govern the downward movement of meteoric water through the non-saturated zone towards the saturated zone. After having described the different types of water present in the soil, and their properties and characteristics, the author reports the study performed at the metre scale (parameters affecting evapotranspiration, computed and measured evapotranspiration), and then the study performed at the kilometre scale (presentation of the drainage basin, hydro-climatology, isotopic study of infiltration and flow over this basin)

[en] This research thesis addressed the fundamental issues of kinematics of lakeside waters. The author investigated vertical movements of waters related to lakeside thermodynamics, as well as the large horizontal circulations related to lake renewal (the mixing of lakeside and fluvial waters is an aspect of that). He also studied the notion of renewal time for a lake by determining the distribution of stay times of water molecules in a lake

[en] This paper deals with the economic analysis and evaluation of various energy saving measures in the building sector, focusing on a domestic detached house in Greece, i.e. in a typical Mediterranean climate. In order to detect the energy saving measures that, in addition to energy benefits, can also provide economic profits, the study examines the following measures: all kinds of insulation; upgrading of the heating system; use of thermal solar systems; upgrading of lighting; upgrading of electric appliances; upgrading of the cooling system. The economic evaluation methods used for ranking the energy saving measures are the Net Present Value, the Internal Rate of Return, the Savings to Investment Ratio and the Depreciated Payback Period. It has been found that amongst the most effective energy saving methods are the upgrading of lighting, the insulation of the roof of the building and the installation of an automatic temperature control system.

[en] In this paper, 3-D numerical analysis of the porous disc line receiver for solar parabolic trough collector is presented. The influence of thermic fluid properties, receiver design and solar radiation concentration on overall heat collection is investigated. The analysis is carried out based on renormalization-group (RNG) k-ε turbulent model by using Therminol-VP1 as working fluid. The thermal analysis of the receiver is carried out for various geometrical parameters such as angle (θ), orientation, height of the disc (H) and distance between the discs (w) and for different heat flux conditions. The receiver showed better heat transfer characteristics; the top porous disc configuration having w = d_i, H = 0.5d_i and θ = 30^o. The heat transfer characteristic enhances about 64.3% in terms of Nusselt number with a pressure drop of 457 Pa against the tubular receiver. The use of porous medium in tubular solar receiver enhances the system performance significantly.

[en] Main characteristics of gaseous yield from steam gasification have been investigated experimentally. Results of steam gasification have been compared to that of pyrolysis. The temperature range investigated were 600-1000 °C in steps of 100 °C. Results have been obtained under pyrolysis conditions at same temperatures. For steam gasification runs, steam flow rate was kept constant at 8.0 g/min. Investigated characteristics were evolution of syngas flow rate with time, hydrogen flow rate and chemical composition of syngas, energy yield and apparent thermal efficiency. Residuals from both processes were quantified and compared as well. Material destruction, hydrogen yield and energy yield is better with gasification as compared to pyrolysis. This advantage of the gasification process is attributed mainly to char gasification process. Char gasification is found to be more sensitive to the reactor temperature than pyrolysis. Pyrolysis can start at low temperatures of 400 °C; however char gasification starts at 700 °C. A partial overlap between gasification and pyrolysis exists and is presented here. This partial overlap increases with increase in temperature. As an example, at reactor temperature 800 °C this overlap represents around 27% of the char gasification process and almost 95% at reactor temperature 1000 °C.

[en] In this study, seven different empirical equations are employed to estimate the monthly average daily global solar radiation on a horizontal surface for provinces in the different regions of Turkey, using only the relative duration of sunshine. Daily global solar radiation and sunshine measurement data collected for the provinces of Turkey are obtained from the Turkish State Meteorological Service. The regression constants of the new models developed in this study are found for the provinces of Turkey, as well as that of some models given in the literature. In order to indicate the performance of the models, the statistical test methods of the mean bias error (MBE), mean absolute bias error (MABE), mean relative error (MRE), root mean square error (RMSE) and correlation coefficient (r) are used.

[en] In this paper, we perform Simulated Annealing (SA) algorithm for optimizing size of a PV/wind integrated hybrid energy system with battery storage. The proposed methodology is a heuristic approach which uses a stochastic gradient search for the global optimization. In the study, the objective function is the minimization of the hybrid energy system total cost. And the decision variables are PV size, wind turbine rotor swept area and the battery capacity. The optimum result obtained by SA algorithm is compared with our former study's result. Consequently, it is come up with that the SA algorithm gives better result than the Response Surface Methodology (RSM). The case study is realized for a campus area in Turkey.

[en] In this paper the development of a new laboratory prototype for the emulation of a photovoltaic (PV) field is presented. The proposed system is based on a DC/DC step-down converter topology and allows to obtain the solar array I-V curves, taking into account the environmental changes in solar irradiance and cell temperature. The DC/DC converter control strategy is deduced by using a comprehensive mathematical model of the PV field whose parameters are obtained from the knowledge of: (a) maximum power point data, measured when the PV plant power converter is running, (b) open circuit voltage and short-circuit current, measured off-line. This approach allows the most accurate representation of the PV source. Computer simulations and experimental results demonstrate that the proposed circuit acts as a highly accurate and efficient laboratory simulator of the photovoltaic array electrical characteristics both in steady state and transient conditions. Partial shading and fluctuating conditions can be reproduced too. Moreover the dynamic behaviour of the proposed laboratory emulator is suitable to its effective connection to power electronic interface to the utility or to load through a DC/DC boost converter.