[dropcap]“N[/dropcap]ow in the light of global warming and reducing our environmental impact, we all need to find a more efficient way to use energy,” stated SFU Mechatronics Systems Engineering associate professor Majid Bahrami, who was recently recognized among the 2016 Canada Clean50 in the category of research and development.
The members of the Canada Clean50 are considered leaders in sustainable development who have made a measurable impact with their work.
Bahrami is the director of the Laboratory for Alternative Energy Conversion (LAEC), located at SFU Surrey. The lab focuses on sustainable cooling, thermal management, and fuel cell materials.
The LAEC is also responsible for training over 70 students in sustainable energy research. Research in the lab is conducted primarily for members of a relevant industry who are interested in sustainable energy.
Bahrami elaborated on the role that industry plays in the LAEC: “At the moment we are working with 15 different companies, providing them with the information they need. This ranges from testing, material characterization, modeling, prototyping, and fuel solution. Basically the lab is run like a startup company.”
This approach is successful, according to Bahrami, because his students gain industry-related experience throughout their schooling, and are therefore more likely to secure better jobs. The direct connection with industry also allows for a fast integration of these green technologies.
One such technology is the LAEC’s atmospheric water generator. This was created with sustainable water in mind. Bahrami noted, “This can be used in a variety of locations where there are no other water sources available.” These could be areas hit by natural disaster, areas where the aquifers have been depleted, and even arid climates where no other water is available. It works by sucking in air and extracting the moisture.
The current model can produce 20 to 30 litres of water per day, but it is scalable up to 100,000 litres per day. “It’s expensive water,” Bahrami added, “but atmospheric water is the most sustainable water you can get.”
Another example is the adsorption refrigeration system, which generates cooling without using electricity. According to Bahrami, it uses abundant low-grade heat, temperatures that are below 100 degrees Celsius, to start the cooling process. Not only does this technology avoid the energy costs of cooling, but it avoids the use of harmful refrigerants that act to deplete the ozone layer.
The team has developed yet another eco-friendly technology in collaboration with local electronics manufacturer Alpha Technology. It is a cooling system within an enclosure for telecommunication provision systems, which are used for the provision of wireless internet and cell phone service. The cooling system regulates what is termed ‘parasitic power,’ which is required for the cooling system.
Bahrami explained, “We reduced the environmental impact of these telecommunication system enclosures by 15 per cent. In a nutshell, we are removing all the parasitic power required for cooling this system.” This “parasitic power” refers to the energy wasted through the heating and cooling of various moving parts.
Bahrami holds the Canada Research Chair in Alternative Energy Conversion Systems, a government program geared to keep Canada on the cutting edge of research and development. As chair, reducing our environmental impact through practical innovations is important to him. “With the Paris convention, we are going to commit to at least 30 per cent GHG (greenhouse gas) reduction, it’s a Herculean task.”
Herculean it may be, but the efforts of Majid Bahrami and the students at the LAEC have earned them a place among Canada’s Clean50.
