Highlights, opportunities and challenges for RACHP and ORC
The IIR Rankine 2020 – Advances in Heating, Cooling and Power Generation ended on 31 July following 90 presentations over 20 sessions and 14 coffee lounges.
The virtual event attracted over 200 delegates as well as 245 attendees to its Life and Legacy event which preluded the conference.
This event was the ideal opportunities to
share ideas, challenges, and opportunities between the worlds of
Refrigeration, Air-Conditioning and Heat Pumps (RACHP) and Organic
Rankine Cycles (ORC). Some of the common challenges highlighted
during Rankine 2020 included the slow adoption of new technologies by
end users and the skill shortages experienced both in the RACHP and
ORC industries. Both areas also have noticeable differences too –
environmental concerns are at the forefront for the RACHP community
while technology and thermo properties of fluids are some of ORC’s
biggest current challenges.
The conference’s three keynote speakers which were Eckhard Groll, Marc McLinden and Vincent Lemort were described by delegates as informative, entertaining, and challenging, while younger generations came up trumps with many students presenting their research and three students distinguished with the Student Paper Prize. The virtual component of the conference promoted further exchanges between delegates from different areas of expertise and the coffee lounges became the stage for lively and educational debates. Thanks to the online element of the conference, delegates will have access to all sessions recordings and conference papers up to four months following the end of the conference, which is one of Rankine 2020’s greatest perks. Anyone who hasn’t joined the conference but is interested in William Rankine’s work can tune into the Life and Legacy Event – the recording is now available for all to view from the IOR’s web site at ior.org.uk/events.