Young researcher award for best innovation in measurement technology

press release by the FZD research center published on Sept 16th, 2009

Dr. Marco Jose Da Silva, scientist at the research centre Forschungszentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (FZD), developed a new sensor that leads to significant advances in flow investigation. On September 18th he will receive the Measurement Technology Award 2009 awarded by the Arbeitskreis der Hochschullehrer für Messtechnik AHMT (Working Group of University Professors in Measurement Technology). The prize will be conferred during the 23rd Symposium on Measurement Technology at Bremen University, Germany. The AHMT Prize is awarded for excellent dissertations in the field of measurement technology.

Dr. Marco Jose Da Silva

The Measurement Technology Award 2009 goes to Dr. Marco Jose Da Silva.

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The newly developed capacitance wire-mesh sensor - the main achievement of Dr. Da Silva's dissertation - has already passed its first test case successfully by generating clear images of a gas-oil two-phase flow, which is commonly found in oil exploration. Hitherto, scientists were not able to visualise the flow of mixtures with organic substances (e.g. gas and oil) in such a detailed way.

The new sensor is the successor of the conductivity wire-mesh sensor invented at the FZD more than ten years ago which was designed to investigate flow mixtures with an electrically conducting phase such as water. Flows with organic fluids, which are extremely weak conductors, could not be fully investigated although they occur in a variety of industrial processes such as in oil exploration and production or in chemical process engineering. While the first generation wire-mesh sensor is based on the measurement of the electrical conductivity, the new sensor developed by Dr. Da Silva measures the electrical capacitance which is unique for each fluid and can be fast and accurately measured by the sensor. Thus, the different phases of complex flows of arbitrary fluid mixtures can be quantified and investigated.

The new sensor is made of an electrode grid consisting of several wire electrodes spanned over the cross section of a pipe or vessel at a distance of a few millimetres. The structure of the flow can be measured with high temporal and spatial resolution (up to 10,000 images per second and 2 mm, respectively). In addition to the capacitance wire-mesh sensor, during his dissertation, Dr. Da Silva also developed two other sensors for special applications, for instance to investigate the flow behaviour inside a fluid coupling.

Besides the three innovative imaging sensors – the scientific core of his work – numerous publications in relevant journals, many conference paper contributions as well as four patents are also a result of the dissertation of Dr. Da Silva. His achievements go well beyond the normal extent of a dissertation, which the young researcher accomplished in a relatively short time of 3.5 years.

Further information:
PD Dr. Uwe Hampel / Dr. Marco Jose Da Silva
Institute of Safety Research
Forschungszentrum Dresden-Rossendorf
Tel.: 0351 260 - 2772 / 3067

Media contact:
Dr. Christine Bohnet
press and public relations
Bautzner Landstr. 400, 01328 Dresden
Tel.: 0351 260 - 2450 oder 0160 969 288 56
Fax: 0351 260 - 2700