Elisa Urbain who graduated from the Master en Efficacité Energétique et Economique at the University of Luxembourg recently received the “Prix d’Excellence” from the Fondation Enovos. She was among the seven engineering students who were congratulated for their excellent Master thesis.
Could you introduce yourself?
Elisa: “I grew up in Belgium and decided to study at the University of Luxembourg because I wanted to study in multiple languages and there were studies in engineering that interested me. I did a Bachelor in Engineering in Energy and Renewable Energy with an Erasmus in Berlin and I graduated in 2020 with a Master in Energetical and Financial Efficiency as well in Luxembourg with an Erasmus in Vienna.”
What was your Master thesis about?
Elisa: “I did my Master thesis in collaboration with the company Goblet Lavandier & Associés. The title of my thesis is “The heat pump, as a reference installation within the luxembourgish legislation“. In order to achieve the European climate targets and with a view to become independent from fossil fuels, the state of Luxembourg continues to invest in renewable energy and related technologies. It has decided to integrate the heat pump as a benchmark in the Luxembourg legislation on residential buildings.
The heat pump has been chosen mainly because, in order to function, it consumes only a small amount of energy from an electrical source, which can be renewable. This concept tends towards an autonomous and sustainable system. The most suitable heat pump is the air-to-water heat pump, it does not need a lot of space and is easy to install. In addition, there are no restrictions on the territory, unlike the geothermal heat pump. However, it is necessary to take into account that it can be noisy and can be considered as a noise nuisance. There is currently no law in place in Luxembourg on this issue.
In concrete terms, the purpose of this work was to define the maximum acceptable noise limit produced by the heat pump for regulatory drafting. The thesis has, first of all, a theoretical part concerning the heat pump, the concepts of noise, the noise protection measures, the legislation and the related standards. Subsequently, a market study was carried out considering different parameters such as noise intensity, the location of noise measurement, the type of installation, the nature of the habitat environment, etc. These values were then compared with those of other neighbouring countries. In order to conclude, using practical cases, representing different arrangements in Luxembourg’s neighbourhood, limit values were proposed.”
What does this award mean to you?
Elisa: “Firstly I would like again to thank Fondation du Luxembourg and Enovos for creating such an award. It’s really nice that the work done for the realisation is rewarded. It is also gratifying that professionals in engineering fields took the time to read my work and that it interested/pleased them.”
What are you doing now?
Elisa: “I have been working for a year at Asars Construction which is a company specialised in real estate promotion and development and I am currently responsible for a residential real estate project. My missions are diverse and varied, from the design of the project with an architect’s office to the handing over of the keys to the clients, including the coordination of the various trades.”
About the Fondation Enovos “Prix d’Excellence”
2021 marks the 10th edition of the Fondation Enovos “Prix d’Excellence”. The Fondation Enovos launched its “Prix d’Excellence” in 2012 in order to reward and encourage top students pursuing their studies and careers in the field of engineering. More information: https://www.fondation-enovos.lu/fr/prix-dexcellence