RectorateOpen OpportunitiesThis project of the Urban Energy Systems Lab at Empa explores spatio-temporal electric vehicle demand flexibility estimation for a Swiss case study. - Engineering and Technology, Information, Computing and Communication Sciences
- Master Thesis, Semester Project
| This research focuses on optimizing district thermal network design and phasing strategies by incorporating existing infrastructure and studying interplays with urban design metrics. While many existing district thermal network models often assume the absence of prior infrastructure, this study introduces methodologies to account for existing pipes, plants, and pumps, enabling a more realistic scenario for network planning. Additionally, the research explores phased implementation strategies to maximize return on investment under budget constraints, providing a pathway for incremental network construction and operation.
A key aspect of the study is the feedback loop between urban design and thermal network engineering, which quantifies how urban parameters such as building density, land use types, and development phasing affect network performance, and vice versa. The proposed methodologies are applied to case studies in Zurich, Singapore, and Shanghai, representing diverse climatic and urban contexts.
The outcomes include a framework for integrating existing infrastructure, strategies for phased implementation, and insights into the dynamic interplay between urban design and district energy systems. If time permits, the research will also produce a computational prototype for integration into the City Energy Analyst (CEA).
- Architecture, Urban Environment and Building
- Master in Integrated Building Systems (ETHZ), Master Thesis
| Large-scale polymer 3D printing offers unique geometric freedom and performance integration, enabling the creation of lightweight, sustainable, and functional facade systems. Within the existing research efforts of NCCR DFAB, this project focuses specifically on mechanical testing to compare different polymer materials for use in 3D-printed facade systems. The research evaluates mechanical properties such as bending, impact, and tensile strength to determine the most suitable materials for lightweight facade components. Comparisons are made based on how the materials meet mechanical performance requirements for functional facades. - Building
- ETH Zurich (ETHZ), Master in Integrated Building Systems (ETHZ), Semester Project
| Digital and robotic fabrication techniques are increasingly being explored to create building components with embedded functionalities, offering unparalleled opportunities for customization.
As the adoption of robotic 3D printing grows, it becomes crucial to evaluate the environmental impacts of these processes, particularly their energy consumption and associated emissions. Understanding these impacts is essential to assess the sustainability of robotic 3D printing processes.
This project, enabled by real-world data provided by Saeki Robotics, aims to develop a predictive model to assess and forecast energy consumption and emissions in robotic 3D printing. - Architecture, Urban Environment and Building
- ETH Zurich (ETHZ), Master in Integrated Building Systems (ETHZ), Semester Project
| Rapid urbanization has intensified the Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect in many cities worldwide, leading to higher ambient temperatures and reduced thermal comfort. Building surfaces play a pivotal role in this process, as their materials and configurations affect how heat is absorbed and re-emitted into the surrounding environment. To better understand and mitigate these effects, this master’s thesis will investigate the thermal behavior of selected façade wall assemblies under controlled “sunlight” conditions using the Solar Simulator at the Zero Carbon Building Systems (ZCBS) Lab. - Architecture
- Master in Integrated Building Systems (ETHZ)
| Modern control methods often rely on explicit online computation. In order to understand such closed loops between numerical methods and dynamical systems, this project
approaches the algorithm as a dynamical system itself. In doing so, the usual
language of convergence of algorithms can be viewed as a special case of stability
theory. - Control Engineering, Numerical Analysis, Systems Theory and Control, Systems Theory and Control
- Master Thesis
| The objective of this project is the design and analysis of recommender systems as optimization algorithms representing a robust feedback controller. We aim to design recommender system algorithms that identify influential users using observable data from users (for example: clicks/ time spent on a page/ likes etc.) in a social network and provide recommendations accordingly. - Engineering and Technology, Mathematical Sciences
- Master Thesis, Semester Project
| In this project, we study Iterative Learning Control (ILC), which is a repetitive controller that uses feedback to improve performance over iterations. We formulate the ILC problem as an optimization problem with the physical system as a constraint. Specifically, we seek to apply ILC algorithms to practical applications in robotics and manufacturing.
Some potential applications include 3D printing of polymers or metals; Learning-based drone flight path optimization; Closed-loop control of planar and non-planar extrusion-based additive manufacturing; Robot-based machining processes; and Precision motion control.
The project will extend existing methods and specialize them for the application domain to provide a full demonstration of the potential of the controllers in various realistic scenarios. The specific application will be decided on the student's background and interests. The output of the project is the development and demonstration of learning controllers for various tasks. This project is part of the Research Explanation and Application Lab (REAL) initiative; a special focus will be put on research explanation and presentation skills; students working on the project will receive dedicated training. - Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Mechanical and Industrial Engineering
- Applications (IfA), Master Thesis, Semester Project
| Online Feedback optimization (OFO) is a beautiful control method to drive a dynamical system to an
optimal steady-state. By directly interconnecting optimization algorithms with real-time system measurements, OFO guarantees robustness and efficient operation, yet without requiring exact knowledge
of the system model. The goal of this project is to develop faster OFO schemes for congestion control
on freeways, in particular by leveraging the monotonicity properties of traffic networks. - Electrical Engineering
- Master Thesis, Semester Project
| This project aims to use two converter emulators available in the Automatic Control Laboratory of ETHz to experimentally validate a new impedance estimation approach. The main goals are to replicate realistic converter/grid conditions, assess the accuracy and robustness of the estimation method, and to explore its limitations and performance boundaries. - Engineering and Technology
- Master Thesis
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