•  Theorisation, modelling and numerical simulation of HDH schemes implementing devices derived from the field of cooling and refrigeration, to improve the evaporative capacities of non-pure water and to increase the recovery of pure water.
• Development and numerical simulation of physical models representing the process of evaporation of non-pure water in air streams.

 

Some publications:

• Rocchetti, Socci; Theoretical and numerical assessment of an enhanced Humidification-Dehumidification desalination system based on Indirect Evaporative Cooling and Vapour Compression Refrigeration; Applied Thermal Engineering, Elsevier; 2022. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1359431122001569

• Rocchetti, Socci; Impiego di tecnologie di raffrescamento per dissalazione a umidificazione-deumidificazione; Ecomondo (Rimini, Italy); 2021. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/363539368_Impiego_di_tecnologie_di_raffrescamento_per_dissalazione_a_umidificazione-deumidificazione

Cavitation is defined as a phenomenon of formation, growth, and collapse of microbubbles or cavities, occurring in a few milli- to microseconds at multiple locations in the reactor and thus releases large magnitude of energy in a short span of time when liquid enters into the low-pressure region, and subsequently these cavities attain a maximum size under the conditions of isothermal expansion. In the successive compression cycle, an immediate adiabatic collapse occurs, resulting in the formation of supercritical state of high local temperature and pressure, known as hot spot.
In the last decade, cavitation technique has been extensively studied, and it has been successfully applied for the various physical, chemical, and biological processes. This novel technique not only produces the desirable transformation but also reduces the total processing cost and is found to be more energy efficient than many other conventional techniques. Cavitation offers immense potential for the intensification of various physical and chemical processes in an energy efficient manner  in this sense the Thermo group, coordinated by professor Adriano Milazzo, deals with the study and development of numerical models for the study of cavitating phenomena. The research group deals with:

• The optimization and development of cavitating devices to be included in industrial processes through the use of numerical simulation coupled with optimization algorithms (openFoam, Python).
• The study of non-stationary phenomena that are involved in cavitation, in particular the behavior of the liquid-vapor interface and the shedding phenomena of cavitating clusters, using a high fidelity LES (large eddy simulation) approach.

• • Optimisation of cooling systems through the implementation of dehumidifying sections based on advanced desiccant materials (Metal-Organic Frameworks).
  • Optimisation of cooling systems using free cooling and biomimetic technologies such as evaporative cooling (traditional version or Maisotsenko thermodynamic cycle).
  • Design of energy-efficient data centres cooling systems.
  • Design of heating/cooling systems based on local renewable sources, such as groundwater heat pumps.
  • Thermodynamic analysis of buildings, in the context of the realisation of Near Zero Energy Buildings (NZEB) and the spread of energy communities.

Some publications:

• Socci, Zuffi, Aiello, Rocchetti, Fiaschi; Utilisation of groundwater heat pumps for the decarbonisation of heating and cooling sector: the analysis of an Italian case study; ECOS 2023 (Las Palmas, Spain);2023;https://www.proceedings.com/content/069/069564-0262open.pdf
• Rocchetti, Lippi, Socci, Gullo, Khorshidi, Talluri; Metal-Organic Framework Adsorbent Materials in HVAC Systems: General Survey and Theoretical Assessment; Energies, MDPI; 2022. https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/15/23/8908
• Rocchetti, Socci, Pierazzuoli; Solutions for efficient and environmental friendly cooling of data centers; IBPSA Building Simulation Conference 2021 (Bruges, Belgium); 2021. https://publications.ibpsa.org/conference/paper/?id=bs2021_30930

• • Study and optimization of techniques for air disinfection (UV-C lamps).
  • Modeling of contagion phenomena in indoor environments.
  • Optimisation of the distribution of airflows in indoor environments.

Some publications:

• Vaccaro, Milazzo, Talluri; A proposal for a non-flammable, fluorine-free, CO2-based mixture as a low TEWI refrigerant; International Journal of Refrigeration, Elsevier; 2023; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijrefrig.2023.11.022

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