Univalle graduate develops master's degree research with BMW

It's not every day that you see a student publish his undergraduate thesis in an international journal, but a graduate of Universidad del Valle (Univalle) in Cali, Colombia, did it.  Now he is doing another master's project in Germany, with one of the largest companies in the world.  In 2018, Cristian Camilo Saáenz Betancourt, a graduate of the Mechanical Engineering Program of the School of Engineering started an undergraduate project, which seeks to protect the steel of hydroelectric turbines, which wear out over time.  Although hydroelectricity remains one of the cheapest forms of energy, hydroelectricity maintenance costs are 2 to 2.5% of installed costs per year, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency. According to Saénz, studies at the microscopic level like his can have implications at the macro scale. "My project on boronizing (thermochemical treatment) and analyzing how the material behaves at the micro level under cavitation relates to the macro properties of the system and could improve turbine efficiency," Saénz said.  Image: A photo using scanning electron microscopy of the specimen surface to observe the wear caused by cavitation. Credit: John Jairo Coronado Marín The Research  Professor John Jairo Coronado Marín, full professor of the Escuela School of Mechanical Engineering and Saenz's undergraduate project director explained that cavitation, the formation of vapor bubbles within a liquid in regions of low pressure, is a key factor in the wear and tear of hydroelectric turbines. "When bubbles collapse, they create shocks that contribute to weathering," said Prof. Coronado; adding that boriding (adding the element boron) is a thermochemical process that can increase the surface hardness of ferrous alloys such as steel. In the article “Effect of boronising on the cavitation erosion resistance of stainless steel used for hydromachinery applications”, published in the journal Wear, the researchers showed that the treatment improved cavitation resistance by 72% compared to untreated steel.  In addition, further research would be necessary because the treatment generates micro-cracks in the steel.  "If we can reduce the cracks, we can double the strength," said Prof. Coronado. Read more from Univalle’s school of Mechanical Engineering: Young Colombian Researcher Paves the Way for Lighter, Less Corrosion-prone Materials Photo: Professor John Jairo Coronado Marín of EIME. Credit: Alexander Bejarano/NCC-FI/Univalle Road to an international company Saénz explained that since he began studying engineering, he had planned to publish a scientific paper.   "For me, I am very interested in research, looking for something new... For me it was a moment of great happiness when I received the mail notifying me that they accepted the publication, a satisfaction," said Saénz; and added that it was available to undergraduate students.  "Univalle is my favorite place and a big part of my growth is because of Univalle," Saénz said; and added that in addition to his training as a mechanical engineer, he managed to learn German and do an exchange in Germany in 2017. After graduating from his undergraduate degree in 2020, Saénz is studying for his master's degree at Univalle. Technische Universität München in Germany, and did a six-month internship in BMW's simulation department, which dealt with fatigue of car parts.   "My internship supervisor is already my thesis director and I am very happy to develop and write the BMW Group Computational Mechanics master's thesis," said Saénz.  If you are interested in contacting the researcher or learning more about the project, please write to the Communications Office, Faculty of Engineering: comunicaingenieria(at)correounivalle.edu.co. Cover photo: Cristian Camilo Saénz Betancourt. Credit: Cristian Camilo Saénz Betancourt.