2023-2024 / UEEN0001-1

Water and energy in urban environment

Duration

26h Th, 26h Pr, 2d FW

Number of credits

 Master of Science (MSc) in Architectural Engineering5 crédits 
 Master of Science (MSc) in Civil Engineering5 crédits 
 Master of Science (MSc) in Geological and Mining Engineering5 crédits 
 Master of Science (MSc) in Geological and Mining Engineering (joint-degree programme with the "Université polytechnique de Madrid")5 crédits 

Lecturer

Pierre Dewallef, Benjamin Dewals

Language(s) of instruction

English language

Organisation and examination

Teaching in the first semester, review in January

Schedule

Schedule online

Units courses prerequisite and corequisite

Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program

Learning unit contents

Water and energy are vital components of a living city. Virtually all human and economic activities in urban environments rely on water and energy supply. In this course, the students will get acquainted to fundamentals of water and energy production, transport and distribution in urbanized areas. They will also be made familiar to topical challenges facing the water and energy sectors (e.g., leakage detection) and the interplay between water and energy in urban areas will be highlighted (cooling water, energy consumption for water sanitation, hydropower ...).

The main concepts underpinning the design and sizing of urban drainage systems will be introduced, as well as current developments in urban flood risk management.


The classes cover the following topics:

  • fundamentals of water production, transport and supply
  • water storage in reservoirs
  • sewage and urban drainage systems
  • urban flood risk analysis and management
  • ...
In practical assignments, the concepts taught during the classes will be applied to real-world case studies.

For the energy part, an introduction to the structure of electrical grids, gas networks and district heating networks is given. This introduction is followed by simplified techniques of energy planning and preliminary design. From this design, the tradeof between environmental impact and energy cost is discussed.

Learning outcomes of the learning unit

At the end of this course, the students will be able to:

  • understand the concepts underlying the design and sizing of water and energy transport and supply systems;
  • make a preliminary hydraulic design of a water service reservoir, considering water demand scenarios and the energy consumption of pumping systems;
  • make a preliminary design of a urban disctrict energy system for electricity and heat.
  • make a preliminary hydraulic design of a large-scale water harvesting system, accounting for various hydrometeorological scenarios and the influence of water pricing;
  • understand the components of an integrated flood risk analysis, as well as evaluate urban flood risk based on flood hazard and vulnerability data;
  • Evaluate the tradeof between centralised and de-centralised energy production and between cost and environmental impact.
A full list of Learning outcomes is available at: https://www.programmes.uliege.be/cocoon/20182019/formations/descr/A2UCON01.html.


This course contributes to the learning outcomes I.1, I.2, III.1, III.2, III.3, III.4, IV.1, IV.2, IV.3, IV.4, IV.5, V.1, V.2, V.3, VI.1, VI.2, VI.3, VI.4, VII.1, VII.2, VII.3, VII.4, VII.5, VII.6 of the MSc in civil engineering.


This course contributes to the learning outcomes I.1, I.2, III.1, III.2, III.3, III.4, IV.1, IV.2, V.1, V.2, V.3, VI.1, VI.2, VI.3, VI.4, VII.1, VII.2, VII.3, VII.4, VII.5, VII.6 of the MSc in geological and mining engineering.

Prerequisite knowledge and skills

  • basic understanding of pressurized and open-channel flow computation (uniform flow, friction formulae)
  • basic experience in using a computation software (such as Matlab and Python)
  • basic knowledge of thermodynamics.

Planned learning activities and teaching methods

The classes are divided in theoretical lectures and compulsory exercise sessions.

The compulsory exercise sessions include:



  • exercises on the hydraulic sizing of a service reservoir;
  • a small project on the design and sizing of a large-scale rainwater harvesting system;
  • a small project related to urban flood risk modelling;
  • a small project of energy planning on an urban disctrict
  • a small project on energy system design.

Mode of delivery (face to face, distance learning, hybrid learning)

The course consists in face-to-face classes divided in theoretical lectures and compulsory exercise sessions. In the latter, the students are requested to submit a short report at the end of each session or a more comprehensive report after several sessions.

Recommended or required readings

The following reports provide a topical and valuable complement to the classes:

Exam(s) in session

Any session

- In-person

written exam AND oral exam

Written work / report


Additional information:

A written exam takes place in January and in September. The reports of the practical assignments are also evaluated.

The practical assignments constitute an important part of the course and are compulsory. Students who fail to submit in due time the expected reports on the assignments will not be allowed to take the exam.

A written report gathering the two projects concerning the energy system design must be supplied and defended orally during the January exam session.


No partial exemption is granted.

Work placement(s)

Organisational remarks and main changes to the course

The course is taught in English.

Lectures take place Tuesday morning during the first semester. An detailed schedule will be provided during the first class.

Main change: The rationale behind the structure of the course will be explained in greater detail at the beginning of the term, and the assessment procedures for each part of the course will be announced more explicitly.

Contacts

Pierre Dewallef: p.dewallef@ulg.ac.be
Benjamin Dewals: b.dewals@ulg.ac.be

Association of one or more MOOCs