Feasibility study | EPFL Graph Search

A feasibility study is an assessment of the practicality of a project or system. A feasibility study aims to objectively and rationally uncover the strengths and weaknesses of an existing business or proposed venture, opportunities and threats present in the natural environment, the resources required to carry through, and ultimately the prospects for success. In its simplest terms, the two criteria to judge feasibility are cost required and value to be attained. A well-designed feasibility study should provide a historical background of the business or project, a description of the product or service, accounting statements, details of the operations and management, marketing research and policies, financial data, legal requirements and tax obligations. Generally, feasibility studies precede technical development and project implementation. A feasibility study evaluates the project's potential for success; therefore, perceived objectivity is an important factor i

Extension of miniature neutron scintillators features in CROCUS: novel acquisition scheme and extended flux range

Colin Rochat

The goal of this work was the improvement of the capabilities of a miniature neutron detector, for easing its use, and extending its range of applicability. Firstly, the Red Pitaya STEMlab 125-14 was the object of an exploratory study in order to propose an alternative method to the two current acquisition electronics based on photon counting, using analog and digital means. The study allowed to establish a new methodology based on the direct use of the SiPM pre-amplifier output, requiring the hypothesis that neutron events can be discriminated directly by pulse amplitude. It was first tested in the low neutron flux of the CARROUSEL facility, and the results were compared to the analog electronics. The agreement in count rate, spectrum, and linearity demonstrates the validity of this new methodology. Moreover, its application in CROCUS allowed demonstrating that it is working in reactor condition up to a flux of 1.13∗108 s−1cm−2. Secondly, an array of six miniature neutron detectors with different sensitivities was designed and tested. The qualification study in CARROUSEL allowed to show that all detectors behave normally, and that the sensitivity of the detectors increases as a function of the scintillator’s volume at low neutron flux, as expected. The conclusion is limited by the knowledge in effective dimensions of each scintillator. In a first experiment in CROCUS using the same setup, including digital threshold (50), a loss of linearity was observed simultaneously for all detectors at a power ofabout 4W(i.e. 7∗107s−1cm−2). As the cause was expected to be a higher gamma background, the experiment was repeated with a higher threshold (120): consistently with the CARROUSEL test, count rate and loss of linearity depends on the scintillation’s volume. Further studies are needed to conclude on the phenomenon at hand, but since the main parameter for gamma discrimination proved efficient, the gamma contribution increased at higher powers seems a good candidate. In conclusion, the results are globally satisfying for the new methodology with Red Pitaya STEMlab 125-14. However, the experimental campaign of this work was only a feasibility study. The results have to be confirmed with further studies. Moreover, this system could be improved. In particular, it can be adapted firstly for both RF inputs of Red Pitaya and secondly for dynamical measurements. The results of the multi-sized array of miniature neutron detector were also encouraging. However, the behaviour of certain detectors prevent to deduce with certainty some expected trends. Further studies have to be carried out by multiplying the number of detectors of each dimension.

2021

Feasibility study of the production of ethylbenzene via methylation of toluene

Flora Marie Bressieux, Noushin Hadadi, Nasibeh Pouransari

This report reviews recent developments in ethylbenzene (EB) manufacturing technologies and studies in detail the suggested process; Production of Ethylbenzene via Side Alkylation of Toluene by Methanol. The desired amount of ethylbenzene as the product is 303 tonne/day, which finally reduced to 30.21 tonne/day .For this production rate, a 322 tonne/day feed rate containing toluene and methanol was calculated to reach to 99.2% of purity. Chapters 1 through 3 provide an introduction to ethylbenzene and different feasible process for producing of this chemical. A detailed consideration of the process of producing ethylbenzene by toluene and methanol is presented in chapter 4. The use of computer software in process design as well as simulation and calculation parts are described in chapter 5 followed by a discussion on human health, environmental and safety aspects of the main products in chapter 6. The various costs involved in industrial processes, cost estimation, cost accounting and other subjects dealing with economics are covered both qualitatively and quantitatively in chapter 7 and finally, a discussion and conclusion on report writing in chapter 9.

2009

Semantically Enriched Industry Data & Information Modelling: A feasibility study on Shop-floor Incident Recognition

Damiano Nunzio Arena, Dimitrios Kyritsis, Apostolos Perdikakis

Knowledge modelling at industrial level consists an importunate activity nowadays due to the ceaseless advances in technologies and standards applied as well as the extensive amount of unrelated real-time and historical data at shop-floor level. A Common Interface Data Exchange Model (CIDEM) is hereby introduced towards unifying continuously produced data from heterogeneous and distributed information sources - on different levels and granularities - into a shared vocabulary that can unobtrusively communicate with industrial standards and protocols (i.e. B2MML, gbXML, MIMOSA). For further enhancing the information model a conceptual definition is employed leading to a semantically enriched model which enables more understandable high level knowledge diffusion. This model has been applied to various industrial applications, one of the most important being industrial safety, through incident recognition.

IEEE2016

Extension of miniature neutron scintillators features in CROCUS: novel acquisition scheme and extended flux range

Colin Rochat

2021