Uni of Adelaide to partner Mitsubishi for sensing solutions

Friday, 31 March 2017

The University of Adelaide will develop novel very high temperature sensors for global industrial giant Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, the University announced today.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and the University have signed contracts for collaborative research by the University’s Institute for Photonics and Advanced Sensing (IPAS) to develop unique optical fibre based ultra-high, multipoint temperature sensors that will enhance the efficiency of their power generation systems.

IPAS and the University’s School of Physical Sciences are renowned for the development of light-based technologies, including optical fibre sensors, for a range of biomedical, defence, environmental and industrial sensing.

“Mitsubishi came to Adelaide looking for global research partners and decided our ultra-high temperature optical fibre sensors would provide a unique opportunity to better understand and improve their world leading power generation systems,” says Professor Mike Brooks, Acting Vice-Chancellor and President at the University of Adelaide.

“The University of Adelaide is honoured to be working with such a giant of industrial engineering and manufacturing as Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.”

Last year IPAS worked with 68 different local and international companies to develop novel breakthrough technologies to help them improve manufacturing and business processes.

“Application of IPAS technologies to date has been largely focused on local South Australian companies – helping them grow their business and retain jobs,” says Professor Andre Luiten, Director of IPAS.

“This new collaboration represents international recognition for the quality of the research and development we are doing, and the difference these emerging disruptive technologies like photonics can make to businesses’ bottom lines.”

“This new collaboration surely brings new technology to sensing of the hot parts of the product of MHI. This will lead to improvements in our product power, and a new business opportunity,” says Dr Fukagawa, the general manager of the heat transfer research department, from Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

The Mitsubishi contract will build on the technology that IPAS developed with SJ Cheesman for deployment at the Nyrstar Polymetalic Smelter at Port Pirie. This provided novel temperature sensors that can withstand furnace temperatures, enabling processes within the environment of the smelter to be monitored for the first time enabling increased efficiency and significant reductions in energy use.

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