Turnkey Filtered Rayleigh Scattering (FRS) System for the combined measurement of pressure, temperature and three-component velocity field in gaseous flows

Aarhus University intends to award a contract without prior publication pursuant to section 80(3)(2) and section 80(4) of the Danish Public Procurement Act, cf. Article 32(2)(b)(ii) of Directive 2014/24/EU, on the basis that the required supplies and services can only be provided by one particular economic operator due to an absence of competition for technical reasons. Aarhus University has assessed that no reasonable alternative or substitute exists, and that the absence of competition is not the result of an artificial narrowing of the parameters of the procurement.

The intended contract concerns the delivery of a complete turnkey Filtered Rayleigh Scattering (FRS) system for laser-based diagnostics in gaseous flows. The system is required for quantitative planar measurements of pressure, temperature and three-component velocity information in a measurement region of up to 100 mm × 100 mm. The required system must comprise, as one integrated measurement chain, a frequency-tunable narrow-linewidth laser source at approximately 532 nm, high-precision wavelength measurement and stabilisation, iodine-based molecular filtering, beam delivery and light-sheet optics, multi-perspective imaging from nine viewing directions, perspective calibration, control and data acquisition functionality, installation, commissioning, documentation, training and acceptance testing.

The decisive requirement is not the supply of individual optical, laser, imaging or software components, but the delivery of a complete and operational FRS measurement system where one supplier assumes responsibility for the integration, calibration, commissioning and verified performance of the complete measurement chain. FRS measurements depend on the combined and synchronised performance of laser frequency control, molecular filter transmission, optical alignment, light-sheet formation, imaging geometry, calibration and data acquisition. These elements are technically interdependent and jointly determine whether the system can produce usable calibrated data for pressure, temperature and three-component velocity evaluation.

In Aarhus University’s assessment, procuring individual components from several suppliers would not constitute a reasonable alternative or substitute, as it would not provide a supplier with overall responsibility for the integration, calibration, commissioning and verified performance of the required operational FRS functionality. Based on Aarhus University’s technical and market assessment, ILA R&D GmbH is the only economic operator identified as capable of delivering the required complete turnkey FRS system and assuming responsibility for its overall functionality. Other suppliers considered may be able to provide individual components or related optical flow-diagnostic systems, such as lasers, wavelength meters, cameras, optical components, PIV/PTV, LDV, LIF, BOS, Rayleigh/scalar imaging or software interfaces.

However, Aarhus University has not identified a reasonable alternative or substitute capable of delivering the specific integrated FRS solution required, including iodine-filtered FRS, frequency-scanning and single-frequency operation, nine-perspective imaging, perspective calibration and acceptance testing of the complete system. Aarhus University therefore considers that the intended direct award is justified by the absence of competition for technical reasons. The absence of competition results from the technical requirements of the intended FRS measurement concept and the need for one supplier to deliver and take responsibility for the complete integrated system, and not from an artificial narrowing of the parameters of the procurement.