+ CETHIL – Energy and Thermal Engineering

Specialised in thermal and energy engineering, CETHIL is one of the only laboratories in the world that deals continuously with such a wide range of scales of length and temperatures: from nanostructures to buildings, and from liquid helium to combustion and ice slurry.






The applications of the varied works performed by the research teams focus on sectors such as electronics, nuclear engineering, aeronautics and aerospace, automobiles, buildings and renewable energies.

• 42 teacher-researchers
• 40 PhD students  
• 10 post-doctoral students
• 15 engineers and technicians
• 70 international publications /year
• 70 conferences/year
• 1 patent /year
• TO €1.2 M

See its technological skills

ADAPTED KNOWHOW

Its expertise in modelling, the experimental characterisation of heat transfers and energy optimisation, and reducing consumption, allow the teams to respond to the following problems:      
 

• Understanding the physics of heat transfers by predicting and controlling them (convection, conduction, radiation, phase changes) and their coupling which includes electronics, engines, boilers, energy conversion systems (thermodynamic cycles), brakes, batteries, thermal barriers, etc. and measuring radiation properties, determining exchange coefficients, modelling complete systems, and more.

• Heat in complex systems and their energy efficiency (buildings, cooling systems, engines and combustion chambers, photovoltaic systems, etc.) and processes governed by heat transfers, notably processes for forming polymer and composite materials. These activities address the sectors of construction (dynamic management), transport (air, land), industry, processes, especially forming materials, etc., and are applied to  automobile air-conditioning, storage systems for buildings, analysing innovative thermal / photovoltaic systems, etc.

TECHNICAL RESOURCES

Simulation software
COMSOL, StarCCM+, EES, TRNSYS and dynamic and static thermal simulation software, adapted to multiphysics problems, energy systems and buildings.

Leading edge facilities

• STIL confocal microscope
• NTMDT scanning probe thermal microscope,
• Park-Thermomicroscope – scanning probe microscope,
• Thermal and high speed cameras,
• Spectrometry systems,
• PIV and LDA systems for velocimetry,
• Climatic chamber 10m³ (-25 / 40°C)

Platforms

• Minibat Cell: full scale thermal analysis of buildings
• Generic heat pipe test platform
• Scanning probe thermal microscopy platform

REPUTATION & DISTINCTIONS

CETHIL’s members participate in many national and international projects:
• Institut Carnot: Ingénierie@Lyon
• Labex: Smart Cities, Equipex: SISE MANUTECH and IDEX: IDEEL
• FUI ▪ FONDATHERM – high energy efficiency buildings ▪ OSOTHO - optimisation and simulation of the thermal treatment of tools ▪ CLIMAIRIS – bus air conditioning
• European: ▪ QUANTIHEAT – micro and nanothermal measurement and characterisation methods at European scale ▪ PRIMAE - future packaging for on-board electronics in aeronautics ▪ OPERA4FEV - eco-design, design, assembly, production of next generation electric batteries.

They regularly gain distinctions and prizes from the FEDSM (ASME), the Société Française de Thermique, the IBPSA and the Société Française de Génie des Procédés, publish in the most prestigious scientific journals and invest in the (joint) organisation of reputed congresses: International Heat Pipe Conference 2012, Congrès Français de Thermique 2014, Eurotherm 103 (Micro and nano heat transfer), IBPSA (International Building Performance and Simulation), Congrès SF2M Sud Est (Société Française de Métallurgie et de Matériaux).