Page category: Public
License:       CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

CONTENTS

Background

This page describes the information about the writing of the project work in Autumn semester and master's thesis in Spring semester. The project work corresponds to 15 ECTS and the master's thesis work corresponds to 30 ECTS. The project work is around 20 weeks. Master thesis work is for complete one semester. The Department of Energy and Process Engineering (EPT) is administratively responsible for the project and master thesis students. Students from the following degree programme are generally selected.

• Energy and the Environment 5-year programme, all branches, MTENERG
• Energy and the Environment 2-year programme, MIENERG
• Electric Power Engineering (international master programme) MSELPOWER
• Mechanical Engineering 5-year programme, branch Sustainable and Energy Efficient systems, MTMASKIN
• Mechanical Engineering 2-year programme, branch Sustainable and Energy Efficient systems, MTMASKIN
• Sustainable Energy (MSSE)
• Hydropower Development (MSB1)

Students, who selected the project with Ole Gunnar Dahlhaug and Chirag Trivedi, generally work in the Waterpower laboratory.  The work can be either experimental or numerical or both depending on the allocated tasks. Students selected for the project work in the Waterpower laboratory are largely continue master's thesis work on the same topic in Spring semester. Following courses are recommended for the project and master's thesis work.

• Autumn semester project work
  • TEP4521: Bærekraftige energisystemer, fordypningsprosjekt
  • TEP4506: Bærekraftige energisystemer, fordypningsemne (select two modules)
  • TEP4166: Numerisk strømningsberegning (option for CFD related project)
• Spring semester master's thesis work
  • TEP4906: Bærekraftige energisystemer, masteroppgave

Work space and location

A dedicated place to work, a desk, a chair and a computer will be provided to the selected students. The allocation of the desk and computer is generally occur before the startup date and it will be communicated via email. We have 20 desks with permanently fitted computers in the laboratory, and the allocation is carried out depending on the tasks in the project work. The student use same place and computer everyday during the Autumn and Spring semesters. The allocation will be terminated soon after submission of the master's thesis. In addition, the students will also have access to the kitchen, refrigerator and coffee. The students also have access to the 3d printing machine, training equipment, dedicated space for lunch and study room (must be reserved prior to use). The students will also have access to the local library, which includes several books, master thesis and phd thesis.

Location: https://link.mazemap.com/99uUh32B

Startup

Tasks for the project work and the master's thesis are assigned by the main supervisor therefore it is important to contact the supervisor and request the tasks as soon as possible, preferably before the semester startup date. Tasks are generally allocated as an agreement with introductory information and expectations from the students as project work. The project work and the thesis submission date is either provided by the EPT administration or marked in the task agreement.

At the start of the Autumn semester, a common meeting (general assembly) is called with all students, researchers and staff in the Waterpower laboratory. All students are expected/recommended to join the first meeting. The important information related to the project work, work environment, health, safety, and expectations is conveyed. Everyone affiliated to the Waterpower laboratory join the meeting and introduce themselves. Representative from the Waterpower laboratory will send the meeting invitation and location at the start of the semester. The meeting is generally organized in the study room (https://link.mazemap.com/CXy3RbiH) of the laboratory. Broadly following topics are covered during the general assembly:

1. Introduction by the supervisors, Ole Gunnar Dahlhaug and Chirag Trivedi.
2. Introduction by the researchers and staff working in the laboratory.
3. Introduction by the students and oral presentation of the project topic.
4. Information on work environment, health, safety, and emergency evacuation.
5. information related to resources in the laboratory, weekly duties, mainly kitchen cleaning and maintaining workspace in the student area.
6. Handling of windows near desk during summer time.
7. Practicality on coffee machine.
8. Spring semester excursions (Tour to Nepal).
9. Weekly progress meeting with supervisors and presentations.
10. Guideline to usage of resources, such as 3d printing, library books, IT resources, etc.
11. AOB.

It is also important to make plan for the project work or master thesis at the start of the semester and discuss with the supervisor. Students are recommended to use the available template and update the corresponding tasks.

  Download project plan template.

Progress

During the semester, the students usually carry out the assigned tasks and complete the project / master's thesis work. Supervisors usually arrange a weekly progress meeting with the students, where the students make their presentation on the tasks carried out during the week and proposed future activities. Sometime, phd students also join the meeting, if the research topic is in the similar field, to address practical question related to the project tasks.

Project report and master thesis writing

The students usually spend substantial time to carry out the research work during the semester, and the students deliver the project or master thesis at the end of the corresponding semester. This section provides guideline and help for the academic writing of the project work and the master's thesis. Overall guideline is available from NTNU (Academic writing - For students - NTNU), however, this is very generic guideline and applicable to all student. We, in the Waterpower laboratory, have developed customized help to our students. The developed guideline and help does neither guarantee high grade nor high quality of work. Same time, it is important to remember, good quality writing with clarity helps reader (or examiner) and make good impression about the scientific work. Since we are using identical structure and template for the project and master's thesis, the guideline is valid for both and no distinction is made. This guideline is valid for both project report and the master's thesis (hereafter referred as thesis). The project report and master's thesis are delivered via Inspera assessment system in NTNU. Instructions on the submission on Inspera is communicated by the administration (not supervisors) from the EPT.

Experience suggests that a minimum of four weeks is required to write a high-quality thesis. Therefore, it's crucial to prepare well ahead of time to avoid a last-minute rush. Outstanding research is of little value if not well-articulated in writing. Examiners, unfamiliar with you or your daily work, will judge your thesis solely on its written text and the interpretation of results. It is advisable to allocate ample time to craft a thesis or project report.

• It is good idea to start planning of thesis writing as early possible, two month before the submission date. You can use the project plan template for thesis writing indicating the chapter wise plan and milestones.
• Define important milestones related to writing contents in the thesis. Think about the contents and their organization. Then, set milestones for different chapters of the thesis.
• You may also like to write some chapters (draft) along with your work, for example, Introduction and literature review chapters.
• Progressive writing is often a better strategy than attempting to write everything at once.
• While there's no strict page limit, aim to write concisely and avoid redundancy. This approach not only saves you time in writing but also makes for a more efficient read for the examiner.

Cover page

The front and back cover pages are already included in the template for both project report and master's thesis. The cover pages broadly follow the guideline or example provided by Grafisk senter. The cover pages will be updated depending on document class selection,

\documentclass[project,final]{ntnuthesis}
\documentclass[msc,final]{ntnuthesis}

Preface

Proposed length: Half page

Preface is combination of formal and informal text, and summarizes your journey, personal and professional as well as contribution of others. Preface also describes how the chapters are organized, I mean flow of chapters. This will help reader on what to expect. Preface is in fact, blend among acknowledgment, abstract and conclusion. Preface is an optional hence, if you do not have any specific to write, you can skip this chapter.

Abstract

Proposed length: 1 page

The main purpose of an abstract is to contextualize and describe the work in a concise and easily understood manner. The abstract should not contain highly technical and scientific phrases. Potential reader from other engineering background can understand your work. Read through the entire thesis and distill main points or a short summary. Sentence connectivity and clarity in writing are extremely important in the abstract. Clarity is achieved by providing information in a predictable order (something like storyline). Consolidate the below points into 2 -- 4 paragraphs. Remember that the sentences must be linked to each other, similar to a story line. The examiner will like to read the abstract and encouraged to read the thesis.

Acknowledgement

Proposed length: 1 page

Acknowledgement section is placed after the abstract. In acknowledgement, you recognize and express gratitude to all those who contributed and supported you during your work. The acknowledgment is absolutely your choice and language. Please note that the acknowledgment is not part of evaluation.

First of all prepare a list of people to include in the acknowledgment. It is a good idea to thank the administrative staff, who helped you to sort out some problems during your study. Remember that the people, who do not know you personally, may read this part, so you should neither be too personal nor reveal your personal detail.

Recommendations

1. If you are writing thesis in the Waterpower Laboratory, and use space, computers, etc., it is nice to acknowledge the laboratory. You can copy this phrase and put as part of the acknowledgement: Research work presented in here is conducted in the Waterpower Laboratory. The laboratory combines more than 100 years of experience in research and education in Norway. It has played leading roles for the development of global hydropower, including efficient designs and implementation of turbines.
2. When you are conducting experiments in the laboratory and took the help from the technicians, include this phrase: I am thankful to the laboratory engineer and the technicians for help to prepare the test rig and completing the measurements. I acknowledge their contributions.
3. When you are conducting numerical simulations using supercomputer, i.e., Idun, include this phrase: Numerical simulations presented here are conducted using IDUN computing cluster. The Idun cluster is a project between NTNU’s faculties and the IT division that aims at providing a high-availability and professionally administrated compute platform for NTNU researchers.

Disclaimer

This chapter is included in 2024 due to increased use AI and avoid any plagiarism related issues. Write your disclaimer, if any. This can be related to the project work data usage, use of chatGPT/AI or related to joint thesis work, limited resourced to complete the thesis work, or something you would like the examiners should know during the thesis evaluation. Example of the text is available in the template. You can also write limitations, if any, you have experienced during your work, which directly/indirectly impacted the quality of the work, or you could not complete some of the tasks.

Nomenclatures

It is highly recommended to use nomenclatures presented in IEC standards and the relevant international standards. Please select appropriate Greek letters. Standardization of nomenclature is extremely valuable so the potential readers will understand the nomenclatures. The nomenclatures have to be in the following exact order (group): Abbreviation -> Latin symbols -> Dimensionless numbers -> Greek symbols -> Superscripts and subscripts. Arrange nomenclatures in alphabetical order in each group under the respective headings. Some nomenclatures are pre-defined in the template. Delete the additional nomenclatures, if those are not relevant.

Important guideline

1. All abbreviations must be normal (non-italic) and the first character of the word should be capital-case, and the remaining should be small letter. Note that, whenever abbreviation contains proper noun (name), you must use capital-case letter, e.g., Navier-Stokes, Maxwell-Boltzmann, etc.
2. All Latin and Greek symbols must be italic.
3. All non-dimensional symbols, such as Reynolds number, Weber number, Strouhal number, Froude number, etc., must be normal (non-italic).
4. All numerical numbers must be normal (non-italic).
5. All superscripts and subscripts must follow the above four points.
6. All units of the symbols must be normal (non-italic) and small letter. However, units based on proper noun (name) must be presented in capital letter, e.g., Newton (N), Joule (J), Hertz (Hz), Pascal (Pa), Watt (W), etc.
7. If there is no unit associated with the variable, leave it blank, e.g., Coefficient of drag. Do not write dash, (-). Also include one character space between the unit characters, e.g., m(a space)s^-1.

Above guideline must be followed everywhere in the thesis, e.g., chapters, paragraphs, equations, etc. The same rules applied where ever you use math and equations in the thesis. It is strongly recommended to use NIST guideline, Guide for the Use of the International System of Units (SI), for prescribing the symbols and the numbers. Checklist on page number five and six of NIST guide provides short detail to prescribe the units.

Chapter 1. Introduction

Proposed length: 2 - 3 pages or depending on need

Introduction is the first chapter generally students prefer to write very early. The introduction shapes reader-expectations of what they will find by reading the thesis. Include some nice figures/illustration in the introduction. This will help readers to understand the research field effortlessly. You can cite figures from the literature and internet. However, if you have own prepared illustration/figure, it gives positive impact to the reader and indicates your creativity. The initial paragraphs describe broad area of your discipline and the bigger challenge in the field. Then, narrow down the description towards your specific field of research, and present overall challenge in your field. Discuss concept and overall objective of the work, including importance of the work. At the end of this chapter, a potential reader receive more clarity about the research area, research gaps, and why this research is so important, what value does this work carry, etc. This will set tone for the upcoming chapter, i.e., Literature review, and maintain continuity.

Write goal and main objectives of your research work at the end of the chapter. You should consider bullet points to write the objectives.

Chapter 2. Literature review

Proposed length: 2 - 4 pages or depending on need

In Chapter 1, you have already discussed the overall field of research as well as broad challenge. Now, this chapter is more scientific and specific to your work. In this chapter, you should ONLY talk about the literature, which is directly relevant to the project tasks, results and work you are presenting in the thesis. Selection of appropriate article indirectly indicates expertise and depth of knowledge you are presenting in the thesis.

Present state-of-the-art in the scientific field, i.e., what has been done during previous years, which methods have been applied, what are the main conclusions, how those conclusions are relevant to your work, etc. You can also discuss if you disagree with the method or conclusion from the literature. Literature review is aimed to indicate that you are not conducting the work/research, which is already conducted in previous years. It is important that you describe what has been done so far, what is missing and what are you continuing as part of your work. This will help reader on what new knowledge is coming up through your work. You have to be critical when reading the previous work. If you are disagreeing with the previous literature, there is no problem. You can also mention why disagreement. This is called critical reflection, which indicates you have good knowledge of research in the field.

You should organize your literature (paragraphs) in one of the following orders depending on your choice,

• according to the year (chronological) of research.
• according to flow phenomenon.
• according to research method.

Finally, write summary of the literature on the topic (100 words) that will justify that your current research is new. The paragraph will create foundation for your work and the given tasks.

Selection of appropriate article indirectly indicates expertise and depth of knowledge you are presenting in the thesis. Use relevant keywords to search relevant journal articles. Use google scholar for global literature. Use ntnu open to find NTNU thesis.

 How to search effectively

Help:

Use free software Zotero for research article management. You can use some addons to manage literature efficiently, example, ZotFile, Better BibTeX, etc.

Finding literature via Google Scholar and ResearchGate is practice.

When you read the literature and research articles, it is good practice to write a summary paragraph (200 words) with some bullet points when you complete the reading. The collected summary will be helpful to write this chapter.

It is also good practice to write this chapter along with your literature review.

What is a literature review?

A literature review is a critical analysis of published sources, or literature, on a particular topic. It is an assessment of the literature and provides a summary, classification, comparison and evaluation. The literature review is generally in the format of a standard essay made up of three components: an introduction, a body and a conclusion. It is not a list like an annotated bibliography in which a summary of each source is listed one by one. Present state-of-the-art in the scientific field, i.e., what has been done during previous years, which methods have been applied, what are the main conclusions, how those conclusions are relevant to your work, etc. You can also discuss if you disagree with the method or conclusion from the literature. Literature review is aimed to indicate that you are not conducting the work/research, which is already conducted in previous years. It is highly important that you describe what has been done so far, what is missing and what are you continuing as part of your work. This will help reader on what new knowledge is coming up through your work. You have to be critical when reading the previous work. If you are disagree with the previous literature, there is no problem. You can also mention why disagreement. This is called critical reflection, which indicates you have good knowledge of research in the field.

Why do we write literature reviews?

You show your understanding by analysing and then synthesising the information to:

• Determine what has already been written on a topic
• Provide an overview of key concepts
• Identify major relationships or patterns
• Identify any gaps in the research
• Identify any conflicting evidence
• Provide a solid background to your work

How to write a literature review

Determine purpose: Work out what you need to address in the literature review. What are you being asked to do in your literature review? What are you searching the literature to discover? Check your assignment question, tasks, expected results and your criteria sheet to know what to focus on. You can organize paragraphs either according to phenomenon or according to the method or how research progressed over the years. Select appropriate source material: Use a variety of academic or scholarly sources that are relevant, current and authoritative. An extensive review of relevant material will include — books, journal articles, reports, government documents, conference proceedings and web resources. The number of sources that you will be required to review will depend on what the literature review is for and how advanced you are in your studies. Your supervisor will advise you on these details.

• Critically read each source, look for the arguments presented rather than for facts.
• Take notes as you read and start to organise your review around themes and ideas.
• Consider using a table, matrix or concept map to identify how the different sources relate to each other.

In order for your writing to reflect strong critical analysis, you need to evaluate the sources. For each source you are reviewing ask yourself these questions:

• What are the key terms and concepts?
• How relevant is this article to my specific topic?
• What are the major relationships, trends and patterns?
• How has the author structured the arguments?
• How authoritative and credible is this source?
• What are the differences and similarities between the sources?
• Are there any gaps in the literature that require further study?

Chapter 3. Theory and methods

Proposed length: 4 - 7 pages or depending on need

It is difficult to come up with an appropriate title of the chapter. Alternative titles of this chapter may be Material and methods, Solution approach, Experimental method/technique, Numerical method/technique, Experimental setup, Numerical modeling. You may select appropriate title, which describes method you have used to complete the task and to obtain results. Overall, this chapter should contain critical information related to theory and methods, which you are going to use to solve the problem. Avoid writing of long theory, which already exists in the books and the internet commonly, including Wikipedia. 

One can use ``Theory and methodology" as chapter title however, clear difference should be in mind.

Method vs. methodology: understanding the difference

A method is simply the tool used to answer your research questions --- how, in short, you will go about collecting your data. Methods are the specific tools and procedures you use to collect and analyze data (for example, experiments, surveys, and statistical tests).

A methodology is the rationale for the research approach, and the lens through which the analysis occurs. Said another way, a methodology describes the “general research strategy that outlines the way in which research is to be undertaken” Methodology refers to the overarching strategy and rationale of your research project. It involves studying the methods used in your field and the theories or principles behind them, in order to develop an approach that matches your objectives.

Ask yourself whether you are describing how you will collect your data (method), or if it’s the broader strategy for your research approach (methodology). With one methodology, you can apply several different methods to support or reject the research hypothesis.

What can you include?

In this chapter, you can write direct scientific theory of your work (avoid repeating information, which is included in the chapter 1). Avoid theory commonly available in all types of literature, for example, working principle of turbine, what is hydropower, etc.

You can present following topics in this chapter (note---this is just suggestion):

• Three-dimensional geometry and meshing of numerical model.
• Mesh independence study.
• Short mathematical presentation of turbulence modelling.
• Experimental test rig.
• Measurement procedure.
• Calibration procedure and uncertainty quantification.
• Data processing techniques.
• Background about coding and mathematical representation.
• Range of parameters.
• Boundary conditions and physics.
• Instrumentation.
• Numerical modeling.
• Data analysis techniques.
• All relevant information for results and discussion.

This is the last chapter before the results. Therefore, you should provide sufficient information that will help reader to interpret the results. Do not repeat information, which is already presented in chapter 1 and chapter 2. Avoid figures and illustrations from literature. You should prepare your own illustrations and present here. This chapter represents your own work and its description hence borrowing someone's illustration will not give positive impact.