HILT CRC industry internship with 1414 Degrees

• Intern: Razieh Rezaei
• PhD project: Application of packed beds for thermal energy storage
• Supervisor: Professor Maziar Arjomandi, Adelaide University

HILT-supported PhD candidate Razieh Rezaei recently completed an industry internship with 1414 Degrees, applying her research in heat transfer and fluid mechanics to the company’s SiBox® thermal energy storage technology.

SiBox stores renewable electricity as high-temperature heat for industrial use. Razieh’s internship focused on understanding how airflow within the system could be redesigned to improve heat transfer while reducing the energy required to circulate the heat-transfer fluid.

A key challenge was finding the right balance between improved heat transfer and pressure loss. Designs that increase heat transfer can also increase resistance to fluid flow, requiring more energy to circulate the fluid and potentially reducing the overall efficiency of the system. Razieh investigated design modifications aimed at improving thermal performance without imposing excessive pressure losses.

The work closely aligned with her PhD research, which examines how controlling fluid flow through heat exchangers can improve thermal performance

For Razieh, working directly with an industry technology developer highlighted factors that extend beyond laboratory performance.

“Industry looks beyond technical performance. Every design decision must also consider manufacturability, cost, reliability and commercial viability,” she said.

Improving thermal energy storage could have significant implications for industries such as steel, cement and manufacturing, which require large quantities of high-temperature process heat. More efficient systems could reduce energy losses and operating costs while making renewable electricity a more practical source of industrial heat.

According to 1414 Degrees Executive Chairman Dr Kevin Moriarty, the collaboration demonstrated the value of connecting industry engineering challenges with university research capabilities.

“Hosting Razieh provided an opportunity to bring specialist academic expertise into our technology development program and examine an important aspect of SiBox performance in greater depth,” Dr Moriarty said.

“Razieh’s work has helped strengthen our understanding of the relationship between heat transfer and pressure losses within the system. These insights can inform our ongoing work to optimise the thermal performance and efficiency of SiBox as the technology develops.”

– Dr Kevin Moriarty, Executive Chairman, 1414 Degrees

Razieh said the internship reinforced her interest in undertaking research with a direct pathway to practical application. She hopes to continue working at the intersection of research and industry, applying thermal-fluid engineering to energy efficiency and industrial decarbonisation challenges.