Search results for: counter flow heat recovery fan
Commenced in January 2007
Frequency: Monthly
Edition: International
Paper Count: 8920

Search results for: counter flow heat recovery fan

7540 Gas Flotation Unit in Kuwait Oil Company Operations

Authors: Homoud Bourisli, Haitham Safar

Abstract:

Oil is one of main resources of energy in the world. As conventional oil is drying out, oil recovery is crucial to maintain the same level of oil production. Since water injection is one of the commonly used methods to increase and maintain pressure in oil wells, oil-water separation processes of the water associated with oil production for water injection oil recovery is very essential. Therefore, Gas Flotation Units are used for oil-water separation to be able to re-inject the treated water back into the wells to increase pressure.

Keywords: Kuwait oil company, dissolved gas flotation unit, induced gas flotation unit, oil-water separation

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7539 Thermal Behaviour of a Low-Cost Passive Solar House in Somerset East, South Africa

Authors: Ochuko K. Overen, Golden Makaka, Edson L. Meyer, Sampson Mamphweli

Abstract:

Low-cost housing provided for people with small incomes in South Africa are characterized by poor thermal performance. This is due to inferior craftsmanship with no regard to energy efficient design during the building process. On average, South African households spend 14% of their total monthly income on energy needs, in particular space heating; which is higher than the international benchmark of 10% for energy poverty. Adopting energy efficient passive solar design strategies and superior thermal building materials can create a stable thermal comfort environment indoors. Thereby, reducing energy consumption for space heating. The aim of this study is to analyse the thermal behaviour of a low-cost house integrated with passive solar design features. A low-cost passive solar house with superstructure fly ash brick walls was designed and constructed in Somerset East, South Africa. Indoor and outdoor meteorological parameters of the house were monitored for a period of one year. The ASTM E741-11 Standard was adopted to perform ventilation test in the house. In summer, the house was found to be thermally comfortable for 66% of the period monitored, while for winter it was about 79%. The ventilation heat flow rate of the windows and doors were found to be 140 J/s and 68 J/s, respectively. Air leakage through cracks and openings in the building envelope was 0.16 m3/m2h with a corresponding ventilation heat flow rate of 24 J/s. The indoor carbon dioxide concentration monitored overnight was found to be 0.248%, which is less than the maximum range limit of 0.500%. The prediction percentage dissatisfaction of the house shows that 86% of the occupants will express the thermal satisfaction of the indoor environment. With a good operation of the house, it can create a well-ventilated, thermal comfortable and nature luminous indoor environment for the occupants. Incorporating passive solar design in low-cost housing can be one of the long and immediate solutions to the energy crisis facing South Africa.

Keywords: energy efficiency, low-cost housing, passive solar design, rural development, thermal comfort

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7538 Investigation of the Working Processes in Thermocompressor Operating on Cryogenic Working Fluid

Authors: Evgeny V. Blagin, Aleksandr I. Dovgjallo, Dmitry A. Uglanov

Abstract:

This article deals with research of the working process in the thermocompressor which operates on cryogenic working fluid. Thermocompressor is device suited for the conversation of heat energy directly to the potential energy of pressure. Suggested thermocompressor is suited for operation during liquid natural gas (LNG) re-gasification and is placed after evaporator. Such application of thermocompressor allows using of the LNG cold energy for rising of working fluid pressure, which then can be used for electricity generation or another purpose. Thermocompressor consists of two chambers divided by the regenerative heat exchanger. Calculation algorithm for unsteady calculation of thermocompressor working process was suggested. The results of this investigation are to change of thermocompressor’s chambers temperature and pressure during the working cycle. These distributions help to find out the parameters, which significantly influence thermocompressor efficiency. These parameters include regenerative heat exchanger coefficient of the performance (COP) dead volume of the chambers, working frequency of the thermocompressor etc. Exergy analysis was performed to estimate thermocompressor efficiency. Cryogenic thermocompressor operated on nitrogen working fluid was chosen as a prototype. Calculation of the temperature and pressure change was performed with taking into account heat fluxes through regenerator and thermocompressor walls. Temperature of the cold chamber significantly differs from the results of steady calculation, which is caused by friction of the working fluid in regenerator and heat fluxes from the hot chamber. The rise of the cold chamber temperature leads to decreasing of thermocompressor delivery volume. Temperature of hot chamber differs negligibly because losses due to heat fluxes to a cold chamber are compensated by the friction of the working fluid in the regenerator. Optimal working frequency was selected. Main results of the investigation: -theoretical confirmation of thermocompressor operation capability on the cryogenic working fluid; -optimal working frequency was found; -value of the cold chamber temperature differs from the starting value much more than the temperature of the hot chamber; -main parameters which influence thermocompressor performance are regenerative heat exchanger COP and heat fluxes through regenerator and thermocompressor walls.

Keywords: cold energy, liquid natural gas, thermocompressor, regenerative heat exchanger

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7537 Work-Home Interference and Emotional Exhaustion: The Role of Psychological Detachment, Relaxation and Technology-Assisted Supplemental Work

Authors: Nidhi S. Bisht

Abstract:

The study examines the role of work-home interference, on enhancing emotional exhaustion in the branch officers of private MFIs in India. Additionally, the moderating role of recovery experiences and technology-assisted supplemental work (TASW) were studied. With the increasing expectations to perform job related tasks at home, technology-assisted supplemental work (TASW) was hypothesized to positively moderate the relationship between work-home interference and emotional exhaustion. Further, it was expected that recovery experiences-psychological detachment, relaxation will help to recover and unwind from work and negatively moderate the relationship between work-home interference and emotional exhaustion. Results of SEM-analyses largely offered support for the hypotheses. These findings increase our insight in the processes leading to increased emotional exhaustion and suggest that employees can protect themselves from emotional exhaustion by keeping a tab on technology-assisted supplemental work and facilitating recovery experiences.

Keywords: emotional exhaustion, India, microfinance institutions (MFIs), work-home interference

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7536 Iron Recovery from Red Mud As Zero-Valent Iron Metal Powder Using Direct Electrochemical Reduction Method

Authors: Franky Michael Hamonangan Siagian, Affan Maulana, Himawan Tri Bayu Murti Petrus, Panut Mulyono, Widi Astuti

Abstract:

In this study, the feasibility of the direct electrowinning method was used to produce zero-valent iron from red mud. The bauxite residue sample came from the Tayan mine, Indonesia, which contains high hematite (Fe₂O₃). Before electrolysis, the samples were characterized by various analytical techniques (ICP-AES, SEM, XRD) to determine their chemical composition and mineralogy. The direct electrowinning method of red mud suspended in NaOH was introduced at low temperatures ranging from 30 - 110 °C. Variations of current density, red mud: NaOH ratio and temperature were carried out to determine the optimum operation of the direct electrowinning process. Cathode deposits and residues in electrochemical cells were analyzed using XRD, XRF, and SEM to determine the chemical composition and current recovery. The low-temperature electrolysis current efficiency on Redmud can reach 20% recovery at a current density of 920,945 A/m². The moderate performance of the process was investigated with red mud, which was attributed to the troublesome adsorption of red mud particles on the cathode, making the reduction far less efficient than that with hematite.

Keywords: alumina, red mud, electrochemical reduction, iron production

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7535 Simulation of Hydraulic Fracturing Fluid Cleanup for Partially Degraded Fracturing Fluids in Unconventional Gas Reservoirs

Authors: Regina A. Tayong, Reza Barati

Abstract:

A stable, fast and robust three-phase, 2D IMPES simulator has been developed for assessing the influence of; breaker concentration on yield stress of filter cake and broken gel viscosity, varying polymer concentration/yield stress along the fracture face, fracture conductivity, fracture length, capillary pressure changes and formation damage on fracturing fluid cleanup in tight gas reservoirs. This model has been validated as against field data reported in the literature for the same reservoir. A 2-D, two-phase (gas/water) fracture propagation model is used to model our invasion zone and create the initial conditions for our clean-up model by distributing 200 bbls of water around the fracture. A 2-D, three-phase IMPES simulator, incorporating a yield-power-law-rheology has been developed in MATLAB to characterize fluid flow through a hydraulically fractured grid. The variation in polymer concentration along the fracture is computed from a material balance equation relating the initial polymer concentration to total volume of injected fluid and fracture volume. All governing equations and the methods employed have been adequately reported to permit easy replication of results. The effect of increasing capillary pressure in the formation simulated in this study resulted in a 10.4% decrease in cumulative production after 100 days of fluid recovery. Increasing the breaker concentration from 5-15 gal/Mgal on the yield stress and fluid viscosity of a 200 lb/Mgal guar fluid resulted in a 10.83% increase in cumulative gas production. For tight gas formations (k=0.05 md), fluid recovery increases with increasing shut-in time, increasing fracture conductivity and fracture length, irrespective of the yield stress of the fracturing fluid. Mechanical induced formation damage combined with hydraulic damage tends to be the most significant. Several correlations have been developed relating pressure distribution and polymer concentration to distance along the fracture face and average polymer concentration variation with injection time. The gradient in yield stress distribution along the fracture face becomes steeper with increasing polymer concentration. The rate at which the yield stress (τ_o) is increasing is found to be proportional to the square of the volume of fluid lost to the formation. Finally, an improvement on previous results was achieved through simulating yield stress variation along the fracture face rather than assuming constant values because fluid loss to the formation and the polymer concentration distribution along the fracture face decreases as we move away from the injection well. The novelty of this three-phase flow model lies in its ability to (i) Simulate yield stress variation with fluid loss volume along the fracture face for different initial guar concentrations. (ii) Simulate increasing breaker activity on yield stress and broken gel viscosity and the effect of (i) and (ii) on cumulative gas production within reasonable computational time.

Keywords: formation damage, hydraulic fracturing, polymer cleanup, multiphase flow numerical simulation

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7534 Heat Stress Adaptive Urban Design Intervention for Planned Residential Areas of Khulna City: Case Study of Sonadanga

Authors: Tanjil Sowgat, Shamim Kobir

Abstract:

World is now experiencing the consequences of climate change such as increased heat stress due to high temperature rise. In the context of changing climate, this study intends to find out the planning interventions necessary to adapt to the current heat stress in the planned residential areas of Khulna city. To carry out the study Sonadanga residential area (phase I) of Khulna city has been taken as the study site. This residential neighbourhood covering an area of 30 acres has 206 residential plots. The study area comprises twelve access roads, one park, one playfield, one water body and two street furniture’s. This study conducts visual analysis covering green, open space, water body, footpath, drainage and street trees and furniture and questionnaire survey deals with socio-economic, housing tenancy, experience of heat stress and urban design interventions. It finds that the current state that accelerates the heat stress condition such as lack of street trees and inadequate shading, maximum uses are not within ten minutes walking distance, no footpath for the pedestrians and lack of well-maintained street furniture. It proposes that to adapt to the heat stress pedestrian facilities, buffer sidewalk with landscaping, street trees and open spaces, soft scape, natural and man-made water bodies, green roofing could be effective urban design interventions. There are evidences of limited number of heat stress adaptive planned residential area. Since current sub-division planning practice focuses on rigid land use allocation, it partly addresses the climatic concerns through creating open space and street trees. To better respond to adapt to the heat stress, urban design considerations in the context of sub-division practice would bring more benefits.

Keywords: climate change, urban design, adaptation, heat stress, water-logging

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7533 Applying a Noise Reduction Method to Reveal Chaos in the River Flow Time Series

Authors: Mohammad H. Fattahi

Abstract:

Chaotic analysis has been performed on the river flow time series before and after applying the wavelet based de-noising techniques in order to investigate the noise content effects on chaotic nature of flow series. In this study, 38 years of monthly runoff data of three gauging stations were used. Gauging stations were located in Ghar-e-Aghaj river basin, Fars province, Iran. The noise level of time series was estimated with the aid of Gaussian kernel algorithm. This step was found to be crucial in preventing removal of the vital data such as memory, correlation and trend from the time series in addition to the noise during de-noising process.

Keywords: chaotic behavior, wavelet, noise reduction, river flow

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7532 Combustion Characteristic of Propane/Acetylene Fuel Blends Pool Fire

Authors: Yubo Bi, Xiao Chen, Shouxiang Lu

Abstract:

A kind of gas-fueled burner, named Burning Rate Emulator, was proposed for the purpose of the emulation of condensed fuel recently. The gaseous fuel can be pure combustible fuel gas or blends of gaseous fuel or inert gas. However, this concept was recently proposed without detailed study on the combustion characteristic of fuel blends. In this study, two kinds of common gaseous fuels were selected, propane and acetylene, to provide the combustion heat as well as a large amount of smoke, which widely exists in liquid and solid fuel burning process. A set of experiments were carried out using a gas-fueled burner with a diameter of 8 cm. The total volume flow rate of propane and acetylene was kept at 3 liters per minute. The volume fraction of propane varied from 0% to 100% at interval of 10%. It is found that the flame height increases with propane volume fraction, which may be caused by the increase of heat release rate, as the energy density of propane is larger than that of acetylene. The dimensionless flame height is correlated against dimensionless heat release rate, which shows a power function relationship. The radiation fraction of the flame does not show a monotonic relationship with propane volume fraction. With the increase of propane volume fraction from 0% to 100%, the value of radiation fraction increases first and reach a maximum value around 0.46 at a propane volume fraction of 10%, and then decreases continuously to a value of 0.25 at the propane volume fraction of 100%. The flame radiation is related to the soot in the flame. The trend of the radiation fraction reflects that there may be a synergistic effect of soot formation between propane and acetylene which can be guessed from the significantly high radiation fraction at a propane volume fraction of 10%. This work provides data for combustion of gaseous fuel blends pool fire and also give reference on the design of Burning Rate Emulator.

Keywords: Burning Rate Emulator, fuel blends pool fire, flame height, radiation fraction

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7531 Quantifying Freeway Capacity Reductions by Rainfall Intensities Based on Stochastic Nature of Flow Breakdown

Authors: Hoyoung Lee, Dong-Kyu Kim, Seung-Young Kho, R. Eddie Wilson

Abstract:

This study quantifies a decrement in freeway capacity during rainfall. Traffic and rainfall data were gathered from Highway Agencies and Wunderground weather service. Three inter-urban freeway sections and its nearest weather stations were selected as experimental sites. Capacity analysis found reductions of maximum and mean pre-breakdown flow rates due to rainfall. The Kruskal-Wallis test also provided some evidence to suggest that the variance in the pre-breakdown flow rate is statistically insignificant. Potential application of this study lies in the operation of real time traffic management schemes such as Variable Speed Limits (VSL), Hard Shoulder Running (HSR), and Ramp Metering System (RMS), where speed or flow limits could be set based on a number of factors, including rainfall events and their intensities.

Keywords: capacity randomness, flow breakdown, freeway capacity, rainfall

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7530 Impact of Masonry Joints on Detection of Humidity Distribution in Aerated Concrete Masonry Constructions by Electric Impedance Spectrometry Measurements

Authors: Sanita Rubene, Martins Vilnitis, Juris Noviks

Abstract:

Aerated concrete is a load bearing construction material, which has high heat insulation parameters. Walls can be erected from aerated concrete masonry constructions and in perfect circumstances additional heat insulation is not required. The most common problem in aerated concrete heat insulation properties is the humidity distribution throughout the cross section of the masonry elements as well as proper and conducted drying process of the aerated concrete construction because only dry aerated concrete masonry constructions can reach high heat insulation parameters. In order to monitor drying process of the masonry and detect humidity distribution throughout the cross section of aerated concrete masonry construction application of electrical impedance spectrometry is applied. Further test results and methodology of this non-destructive testing method is described in this paper.

Keywords: aerated concrete, electrical impedance spectrometry, humidity distribution, non-destructive testing

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7529 Accounting for Downtime Effects in Resilience-Based Highway Network Restoration Scheduling

Authors: Zhenyu Zhang, Hsi-Hsien Wei

Abstract:

Highway networks play a vital role in post-disaster recovery for disaster-damaged areas. Damaged bridges in such networks can disrupt the recovery activities by impeding the transportation of people, cargo, and reconstruction resources. Therefore, rapid restoration of damaged bridges is of paramount importance to long-term disaster recovery. In the post-disaster recovery phase, the key to restoration scheduling for a highway network is prioritization of bridge-repair tasks. Resilience is widely used as a measure of the ability to recover with which a network can return to its pre-disaster level of functionality. In practice, highways will be temporarily blocked during the downtime of bridge restoration, leading to the decrease of highway-network functionality. The failure to take downtime effects into account can lead to overestimation of network resilience. Additionally, post-disaster recovery of highway networks is generally divided into emergency bridge repair (EBR) in the response phase and long-term bridge repair (LBR) in the recovery phase, and both of EBR and LBR are different in terms of restoration objectives, restoration duration, budget, etc. Distinguish these two phases are important to precisely quantify highway network resilience and generate suitable restoration schedules for highway networks in the recovery phase. To address the above issues, this study proposes a novel resilience quantification method for the optimization of long-term bridge repair schedules (LBRS) taking into account the impact of EBR activities and restoration downtime on a highway network’s functionality. A time-dependent integer program with recursive functions is formulated for optimally scheduling LBR activities. Moreover, since uncertainty always exists in the LBRS problem, this paper extends the optimization model from the deterministic case to the stochastic case. A hybrid genetic algorithm that integrates a heuristic approach into a traditional genetic algorithm to accelerate the evolution process is developed. The proposed methods are tested using data from the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake, based on a regional highway network in Sichuan, China, consisting of 168 highway bridges on 36 highways connecting 25 cities/towns. The results show that, in this case, neglecting the bridge restoration downtime can lead to approximately 15% overestimation of highway network resilience. Moreover, accounting for the impact of EBR on network functionality can help to generate a more specific and reasonable LBRS. The theoretical and practical values are as follows. First, the proposed network recovery curve contributes to comprehensive quantification of highway network resilience by accounting for the impact of both restoration downtime and EBR activities on the recovery curves. Moreover, this study can improve the highway network resilience from the organizational dimension by providing bridge managers with optimal LBR strategies.

Keywords: disaster management, highway network, long-term bridge repair schedule, resilience, restoration downtime

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7528 Design and Analysis of a Combined Cooling, Heating and Power Plant for Maximum Operational Flexibility

Authors: Salah Hosseini, Hadi Ramezani, Bagher Shahbazi, Hossein Rabiei, Jafar Hooshmand, Hiwa Khaldi

Abstract:

Diversity of energy portfolio and fluctuation of urban energy demand establish the need for more operational flexibility of combined Cooling, Heat, and Power Plants. Currently, the most common way to achieve these specifications is the use of heat storage devices or wet operation of gas turbines. The current work addresses using variable extraction steam turbine in conjugation with a gas turbine inlet cooling system as an alternative way for enhancement of a CCHP cycle operating range. A thermodynamic model is developed and typical apartments building in PARDIS Technology Park (located at Tehran Province) is chosen as a case study. Due to the variable Heat demand and using excess chiller capacity for turbine inlet cooling purpose, the mentioned steam turbine and TIAC system provided an opportunity for flexible operation of the cycle and boosted the independence of the power and heat generation in the CCHP plant. It was found that the ratio of power to the heat of CCHP cycle varies from 12.6 to 2.4 depending on the City heating and cooling demands and ambient condition, which means a good independence between power and heat generation. Furthermore, selection of the TIAC design temperature is done based on the amount of ratio of power gain to TIAC coil surface area, it was found that for current cycle arrangement the TIAC design temperature of 15 C is most economical. All analysis is done based on the real data, gathered from the local weather station of the PARDIS site.

Keywords: CCHP plant, GTG, HRSG, STG, TIAC, operational flexibility, power to heat ratio

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7527 Visualized Flow Patterns around and inside a Two-Sided Wind-Catcher in the Presence of Upstream Structures

Authors: M. Afshin, A. Sohankar, M. Dehghan Manshadi, M. R. Daneshgar, G. R. Dehghan Kamaragi

Abstract:

In this paper, the influence of an upstream structure on the flow pattern within and around the wind-catcher is experimentally investigated by smoke flow visualization techniques. Wind-catchers are an important part of natural ventilation in residential buildings or public places such as shopping centers, libraries, etc. Wind-catchers might be also used in places of high urban densities; hence their potential to provide natural ventilation in this case is dependent on the presence of upstream objects. In this study, the two-sided wind-catcher model was based on a real wind-catcher observed in the city of Yazd, Iran. The present study focuses on the flow patterns inside and outside the isolated two-sided wind-catcher, and on a two-sided wind-catcher in the presence of an upstream structure. The results show that the presence of an upstream structure influences the airflow pattern force and direction. Placing a high upstream object reverses the airflow direction inside the wind-catcher.

Keywords: natural ventilation, smoke flow visualization, two-sided wind-catcher, flow patterns

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7526 GRCNN: Graph Recognition Convolutional Neural Network for Synthesizing Programs from Flow Charts

Authors: Lin Cheng, Zijiang Yang

Abstract:

Program synthesis is the task to automatically generate programs based on user specification. In this paper, we present a framework that synthesizes programs from flow charts that serve as accurate and intuitive specification. In order doing so, we propose a deep neural network called GRCNN that recognizes graph structure from its image. GRCNN is trained end-to-end, which can predict edge and node information of the flow chart simultaneously. Experiments show that the accuracy rate to synthesize a program is 66.4%, and the accuracy rates to recognize edge and node are 94.1% and 67.9%, respectively. On average, it takes about 60 milliseconds to synthesize a program.

Keywords: program synthesis, flow chart, specification, graph recognition, CNN

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7525 Aerothermal Analysis of the Brazilian 14-X Hypersonic Aerospace Vehicle at Mach Number 7

Authors: Felipe J. Costa, João F. A. Martos, Ronaldo L. Cardoso, Israel S. Rêgo, Marco A. S. Minucci, Antonio C. Oliveira, Paulo G. P. Toro

Abstract:

The Prof. Henry T. Nagamatsu Laboratory of Aerothermodynamics and Hypersonics, at the Institute for Advanced Studies designed the Brazilian 14-X Hypersonic Aerospace Vehicle, which is a technological demonstrator endowed with two innovative technologies: waverider technology, to obtain lift from conical shockwave during the hypersonic flight; and uses hypersonic airbreathing propulsion system called scramjet that is based on supersonic combustion, to perform flights on Earth's atmosphere at 30 km altitude at Mach numbers 7 and 10. The scramjet is an aeronautical engine without moving parts that promote compression and deceleration of freestream atmospheric air at the inlet through the conical/oblique shockwaves generated during the hypersonic flight. During high speed flight, the shock waves and the viscous forces yield the phenomenon called aerodynamic heating, where this physical meaning is the friction between the fluid filaments and the body or compression at the stagnation regions of the leading edge that converts the kinetic energy into heat within a thin layer of air which blankets the body. The temperature of this layer increases with the square of the speed. This high temperature is concentrated in the boundary-layer, where heat will flow readily from the boundary-layer to the hypersonic aerospace vehicle structure. Fay and Riddell and Eckert methods are applied to the stagnation point and to the flat plate segments in order to calculate the aerodynamic heating. On the understanding of the aerodynamic heating it is important to analyze the heat conduction transfer to the 14-X waverider internal structure. ANSYS Workbench software provides the Thermal Numerical Analysis, using Finite Element Method of the 14-X waverider unpowered scramjet at 30 km altitude at Mach number 7 and 10 in terms of temperature and heat flux. Finally, it is possible to verify if the internal temperature complies with the requirements for embedded systems, and, if is necessary to do modifications on the structure in terms of wall thickness and materials.

Keywords: aerodynamic heating, hypersonic, scramjet, thermal analysis

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7524 Energy Metabolites Show Cross-Protective Plastic Responses for Stress Resistance in a Circumtropical Drosophila Species

Authors: Ankita Pathak, Ashok Munjal, Ravi Parkash

Abstract:

Plastic responses to multiple environmental stressors in wet or dry seasonal populations of tropical Drosophila species have received less attention. We tested plastic effects of heat hardening, acclimation to drought or starvation; and changes in trehalose, proline and body lipids in D. ananassae flies reared under wet or dry season specific conditions. Wet season flies revealed significant increase in heat knockdown, starvation resistance and body lipids after heat hardening. However, accumulation of proline was observed only after desiccation acclimation of dry season flies while wet season flies elicited no proline but trehalose only. Therefore, drought-induced proline can be a marker metabolite for dry season flies. Further, partial utilization of proline and trehalose under heat hardening reflects their possible thermoprotective effects. Heat hardening elicited cross-protection to starvation stress. Stressor-specific accumulation or utilization, as well as rates of metabolic change for each energy metabolite, were significantly higher in wet season flies than dry season flies. Energy metabolite changes due to inter-related stressors (heat vs. desiccation or starvation) resulted in possible maintenance of energetic homeostasis in wet or dry season flies. Thus, low or high humidity induced plastic changes in energy metabolites can provide cross-protection to seasonally varying climatic stressors.

Keywords: wet-dry seasons, plastic changes, stress related traits, energy metabolites, cross protection

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7523 Multi-Objective Optimization of the Thermal-Hydraulic Behavior for a Sodium Fast Reactor with a Gas Power Conversion System and a Loss of off-Site Power Simulation

Authors: Avent Grange, Frederic Bertrand, Jean-Baptiste Droin, Amandine Marrel, Jean-Henry Ferrasse, Olivier Boutin

Abstract:

CEA and its industrial partners are designing a gas Power Conversion System (PCS) based on a Brayton cycle for the ASTRID Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor. Investigations of control and regulation requirements to operate this PCS during operating, incidental and accidental transients are necessary to adapt core heat removal. To this aim, we developed a methodology to optimize the thermal-hydraulic behavior of the reactor during normal operations, incidents and accidents. This methodology consists of a multi-objective optimization for a specific sequence, whose aim is to increase component lifetime by reducing simultaneously several thermal stresses and to bring the reactor into a stable state. Furthermore, the multi-objective optimization complies with safety and operating constraints. Operating, incidental and accidental sequences use specific regulations to control the thermal-hydraulic reactor behavior, each of them is defined by a setpoint, a controller and an actuator. In the multi-objective problem, the parameters used to solve the optimization are the setpoints and the settings of the controllers associated with the regulations included in the sequence. In this way, the methodology allows designers to define an optimized and specific control strategy of the plant for the studied sequence and hence to adapt PCS piloting at its best. The multi-objective optimization is performed by evolutionary algorithms coupled to surrogate models built on variables computed by the thermal-hydraulic system code, CATHARE2. The methodology is applied to a loss of off-site power sequence. Three variables are controlled: the sodium outlet temperature of the sodium-gas heat exchanger, turbomachine rotational speed and water flow through the heat sink. These regulations are chosen in order to minimize thermal stresses on the gas-gas heat exchanger, on the sodium-gas heat exchanger and on the vessel. The main results of this work are optimal setpoints for the three regulations. Moreover, Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) control setting is considered and efficient actuators used in controls are chosen through sensitivity analysis results. Finally, the optimized regulation system and the reactor control procedure, provided by the optimization process, are verified through a direct CATHARE2 calculation.

Keywords: gas power conversion system, loss of off-site power, multi-objective optimization, regulation, sodium fast reactor, surrogate model

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7522 Three-Dimensional Numerical Model of an Earth Air Heat Exchanger under a Constrained Urban Environment in India: Modeling and Validation

Authors: V. Rangarajan, Priyanka Kaushal

Abstract:

This study investigates the effectiveness of a typical Earth Air Heat Exchanger (EATHE) for energy efficient space cooling in an urban environment typified by space and soil-related constraints that preclude an optimal design. It involves the development of a three-dimensional numerical transient model that is validated by measurements at a live site in India. It is found that the model accurately predicts the soil temperatures at various depths as well as the EATHE outlet air temperature. The study shows that such an EATHE, even when designed under constraints, does provide effective space cooling especially during the hot months of the year.

Keywords: earth air heat exchanger (EATHE), India, MATLAB, model, simulation

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7521 Critical Analysis of Ideology of Non-Religious Spirituality (SBNR) Case Study of Sam Harris’ Theory

Authors: Muhammad Samiullah

Abstract:

Religion and spirit always goes side by side. In this era spirit and religion are studied separately with thought of an anti-religious phenomenon is there with its vast impacts. Non-religious mind and religious one have a lot of things that differs, they have spiritual struggles.so there is theme arises that is in the name of non-religious spirituality(SBNR). The thinking prevailing in west and now in east in reverse of the religious institutional thought and spirituality. Religious disputes created an image to the world that is nontolerant and companionate, rising a question of god existence and self-existence. Thus giving rise in Atheism, nihilism, free thinking. The thinking of spirituality also gone in another side with superstitions and spiritual meditation. Christian religious bodies and scholar criticized the stance with their religious aspect but there should be an Islamic counter narrative should be there. Here in this dissertation the phenomenon is addressed and analyzed in respect with some of the literature presented from 2014 till present year. The phenomenon was not analyzed before in broader sense. There are some introductory and static views presented in this regard. So there is a literature gap to be filled by this effort, the Muslim counter narrative is still not there though Christians do their part.

Keywords: SBNR, non-spirituality, superstitions, Sam Harris

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7520 Flame Retardancy of Organophosphorus Compound on Cellulose - an Eco Friendly Concern

Authors: M. A. Hannan, N. Matthias Neisius

Abstract:

Organophosphorus compound diethyloxymethyl-9-oxa-10-phosphaphenanthrene-10-oxide (DOPAC) was applied on cotton cellulose to impart eco-friendly flame retardant property to it. Here acetal linkage was introduced rather than conventionally used ester linkage to rescue from the undurability problem of flame retardant compound. Some acidic catalysts, sodium dihydrogen phosphate (NaH2PO4), ammonium dihydrogen phosphate (NH4H2PO4) and phosphoric acid (H3PO4) were successfully used to form acetal linkage between the base material and flame retardant compound. Inspiring limiting oxygen index (LOI) value of 22.4 was found after exclusive washing treatment. A good outcome of total heat of combustion (THC) 6.05 KJ/g was found possible during pyrolysis combustion flow calorimetry (PCFC) test of the treated sample. Low temperature dehydration with sufficient amount of char residue (14.89%) was experienced in case of treated sample. In addition, the temperature of peak heat release rate (TPHRR) 343.061°C supported the expected low temperature pyrolysis in condensed phase mechanism. With the consequence of pyrolysis effects, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) also reported inspiring weight retention% of the treated samples.

Keywords: acetal linkage, char residue, cotton cellulose, flame retardant, loi, low temperature pyrolysis, organophosphorus, THC, THRR

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7519 Linear Stability Analysis of a Regularized Two-Fluid Model for Unstable Gas-Liquid Flows in Long Hilly Terrain Pipelines

Authors: David Alejandro Lazo-Vasquez, Jorge Luis Balino

Abstract:

In the petroleum industry, multiphase flow occurs when oil, gas, and water are transported in the same pipe through large pipeline systems. The flow can take different patterns depending on parameters like fluid velocities, pipe diameter, pipe inclination, and fluid properties. Mainly, intermittent flow is produced by the natural propagation of short and long waves, according to the Kelvin-Helmholtz Stability Theory. To model stratified flow and the onset of intermittent flow, it is crucial to have knowledge of short and long waves behavior. The two-fluid model, frequently employed for characterizing multiphase systems, becomes ill-posed for high liquid and gas velocities and large inclination angles, for short waves can develop infinite growth rates. We are interested in focusing attention on long-wave instability, which leads to the production of roll waves that may grow and result in the transition from stratified flow to intermittent flow. In this study, global and local linear stability analyses for dynamic and kinematic stability criteria predict the regions of stability of the flow for different pipe inclinations and fluid velocities in regularized and non-regularized systems, concurrently. It was possible to distinguish when: wave growth rates are absolutely bounded (stable stratified smooth flow), waves have finite growth rates (unstable stratified wavy flow), and when the equation system becomes elliptic and hyperbolization is needed. In order to bound short wave growth rates and regularize the equation system, we incorporated some lower and higher-order terms like interfacial drag and surface tension, respectively.

Keywords: linear stability analysis, multiphase flow, onset of slugging, two-fluid model regularization

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7518 Experiments to Study the Vapor Bubble Dynamics in Nucleate Pool Boiling

Authors: Parul Goel, Jyeshtharaj B. Joshi, Arun K. Nayak

Abstract:

Nucleate boiling is characterized by the nucleation, growth and departure of the tiny individual vapor bubbles that originate in the cavities or imperfections present in the heating surface. It finds a wide range of applications, e.g. in heat exchangers or steam generators, core cooling in power reactors or rockets, cooling of electronic circuits, owing to its highly efficient transfer of large amount of heat flux over small temperature differences. Hence, it is important to be able to predict the rate of heat transfer and the safety limit heat flux (critical heat flux, heat flux higher than this can lead to damage of the heating surface) applicable for any given system. A large number of experimental and analytical works exist in the literature, and are based on the idea that the knowledge of the bubble dynamics on the microscopic scale can lead to the understanding of the full picture of the boiling heat transfer. However, the existing data in the literature are scattered over various sets of conditions and often in disagreement with each other. The correlations obtained from such data are also limited to the range of conditions they were established for and no single correlation is applicable over a wide range of parameters. More recently, a number of researchers have been trying to remove empiricism in the heat transfer models to arrive at more phenomenological models using extensive numerical simulations; these models require state-of-the-art experimental data for a wide range of conditions, first for input and later, for their validation. With this idea in mind, experiments with sub-cooled and saturated demineralized water have been carried out under atmospheric pressure to study the bubble dynamics- growth rate, departure size and frequencies for nucleate pool boiling. A number of heating elements have been used to study the dependence of vapor bubble dynamics on the heater surface finish and heater geometry along with the experimental conditions like the degree of sub-cooling, super heat and the heat flux. An attempt has been made to compare the data obtained with the existing data and the correlations in the literature to generate an exhaustive database for the pool boiling conditions.

Keywords: experiment, boiling, bubbles, bubble dynamics, pool boiling

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7517 Artificial Neural Network Modeling of a Closed Loop Pulsating Heat Pipe

Authors: Vipul M. Patel, Hemantkumar B. Mehta

Abstract:

Technological innovations in electronic world demand novel, compact, simple in design, less costly and effective heat transfer devices. Closed Loop Pulsating Heat Pipe (CLPHP) is a passive phase change heat transfer device and has potential to transfer heat quickly and efficiently from source to sink. Thermal performance of a CLPHP is governed by various parameters such as number of U-turns, orientations, input heat, working fluids and filling ratio. The present paper is an attempt to predict the thermal performance of a CLPHP using Artificial Neural Network (ANN). Filling ratio and heat input are considered as input parameters while thermal resistance is set as target parameter. Types of neural networks considered in the present paper are radial basis, generalized regression, linear layer, cascade forward back propagation, feed forward back propagation; feed forward distributed time delay, layer recurrent and Elman back propagation. Linear, logistic sigmoid, tangent sigmoid and Radial Basis Gaussian Function are used as transfer functions. Prediction accuracy is measured based on the experimental data reported by the researchers in open literature as a function of Mean Absolute Relative Deviation (MARD). The prediction of a generalized regression ANN model with spread constant of 4.8 is found in agreement with the experimental data for MARD in the range of ±1.81%.

Keywords: ANN models, CLPHP, filling ratio, generalized regression, spread constant

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7516 Inverse Heat Transfer Analysis of a Melting Furnace Using Levenberg-Marquardt Method

Authors: Mohamed Hafid, Marcel Lacroix

Abstract:

This study presents a simple inverse heat transfer procedure for predicting the wall erosion and the time-varying thickness of the protective bank that covers the inside surface of the refractory brick wall of a melting furnace. The direct problem is solved by using the Finite-Volume model. The melting/solidification process is modeled using the enthalpy method. The inverse procedure rests on the Levenberg-Marquardt method combined with the Broyden method. The effect of the location of the temperature sensors and of the measurement noise on the inverse predictions is investigated. Recommendations are made concerning the location of the temperature sensor.

Keywords: melting furnace, inverse heat transfer, enthalpy method, levenberg–marquardt method

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7515 Effect of Surfactant Concentration on Dissolution of Hydrodynamically Trapped Sparingly Soluble Oil Micro Droplets

Authors: Adil Mustafa, Ahmet Erten, Alper Kiraz, Melikhan Tanyeri

Abstract:

Work presented here is based on a novel experimental technique used to hydrodynamically trap oil microdroplets inside a microfluidic chip at the junction of microchannels known as stagnation point. Hydrodynamic trapping has been recently used to trap and manipulate a number of particles starting from microbeads to DNA and single cells. Benzyl Benzoate (BB) is used as droplet material. The microdroplets are trapped individually at stagnation point and their dissolution was observed. Experiments are performed for two concentrations (10mM or 10µM) of AOT surfactant (Docusate Sodium Salt) and two flow rates for each case. Moreover, experimental data is compared with Zhang-Yang-Mao (ZYM) model which studies dissolution of liquid microdroplets in the presence of a host fluid experiencing extensional creeping flow. Industrial processes like polymer blending systems in which heat or mass transport occurs experience extensional flow and an insight into these phenomena is of significant importance to many industrial processes. The experimental technique exploited here gives an insight into the dissolution of liquid microdroplets under extensional flow regime. The comparison of our experimental results with ZYM model reveals that dissolution of microdroplets at lower surfactant concentration (10µM) fits the ZYM model at saturation concentration (Cs) value reported in literature (Cs = 15×10⁻³Kg\m³) while for higher surfactant concentration (10mM) which is also above the critical micelle concentration (CMC) of surfactant (5mM) the data fits ZYM model at (Cs = 45×10⁻³Kg\m³) which is 3X times the value reported in literature. The difference in Cs value from the literature shows enhancement in dissolution rate of sparingly soluble BB microdroplets at surfactant concentrations higher than CMC. Enhancement in the dissolution of sparingly soluble materials is of great importance in pharmaceutical industry. Enhancement in the dissolution of sparingly soluble drugs is a key research area for drug design industry. The experimental method is also advantageous because it is robust and has no mechanical contact with droplets under study are freely suspended in the fluid as compared existing methods used for testing dissolution of drugs. The experiments also give an insight into CMC measurement for surfactants.

Keywords: extensional flow, hydrodynamic trapping, Zhang-Yang-Mao, CMC

Procedia PDF Downloads 345
7514 Impact of Air Flow Structure on Distinct Shape of Differential Pressure Devices

Authors: A. Bertašienė

Abstract:

Energy harvesting from any structure makes a challenge. Different structure of air/wind flows in industrial, environmental and residential applications emerge the real flow investigation in detail. Many of the application fields are hardly achievable to the detailed description due to the lack of up-to-date statistical data analysis. In situ measurements aim crucial investments thus the simulation methods come to implement structural analysis of the flows. Different configurations of testing environment give an overview how important is the simple structure of field in limited area on efficiency of the system operation and the energy output. Several configurations of modeled working sections in air flow test facility was implemented in CFD ANSYS environment to compare experimentally and numerically air flow development stages and forms that make effects on efficiency of devices and processes. Effective form and amount of these flows under different geometry cases define the manner of instruments/devices that measure fluid flow parameters for effective operation of any system and emission flows to define. Different fluid flow regimes were examined to show the impact of fluctuations on the development of the whole volume of the flow in specific environment. The obtained results rise the discussion on how these simulated flow fields are similar to real application ones. Experimental results have some discrepancies from simulation ones due to the models implemented to fluid flow analysis in initial stage, not developed one and due to the difficulties of models to cover transitional regimes. Recommendations are essential for energy harvesting systems in both, indoor and outdoor cases. Further investigations aim to be shifted to experimental analysis of flow under laboratory conditions using state-of-the-art techniques as flow visualization tool and later on to in situ situations that is complicated, cost and time consuming study.

Keywords: fluid flow, initial region, tube coefficient, distinct shape

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7513 The Development and Evaluation of the Reliability and Validity of the Science Flow Experience Scale

Authors: Wen-Wei Chiang

Abstract:

In this study, the researcher developed a scale for use in measuring the degree to which high school students experience a state of flow. The researcher then verified its reliability and validity in an actual classroom setting. The ultimate objective was to identify feasible methods by which to promote the experience of a flow state among high school students engaged in the study of science. The nine indices identified in this study to assess the engagement of high school students focus primarily on the study of science-related topics; however, the principles on which they are based are applicable to a wide range of learning situations. Teachers must outline the goals of each lesson clearly and provide unambiguous feedback. They must also look for ways to make the lessons more fun and appealing.

Keywords: flow experience, positive psychology, questionnaire, science learning

Procedia PDF Downloads 118
7512 Flow Field Optimization for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Authors: Xiao-Dong Wang, Wei-Mon Yan

Abstract:

The flow field design in the bipolar plates affects the performance of the proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell. This work adopted a combined optimization procedure, including a simplified conjugate-gradient method and a completely three-dimensional, two-phase, non-isothermal fuel cell model, to look for optimal flow field design for a single serpentine fuel cell of size 9×9 mm with five channels. For the direct solution, the two-fluid method was adopted to incorporate the heat effects using energy equations for entire cells. The model assumes that the system is steady; the inlet reactants are ideal gases; the flow is laminar; and the porous layers such as the diffusion layer, catalyst layer and PEM are isotropic. The model includes continuity, momentum and species equations for gaseous species, liquid water transport equations in the channels, gas diffusion layers, and catalyst layers, water transport equation in the membrane, electron and proton transport equations. The Bulter-Volumer equation was used to describe electrochemical reactions in the catalyst layers. The cell output power density Pcell is maximized subjected to an optimal set of channel heights, H1-H5, and channel widths, W2-W5. The basic case with all channel heights and widths set at 1 mm yields a Pcell=7260 Wm-2. The optimal design displays a tapered characteristic for channels 1, 3 and 4, and a diverging characteristic in height for channels 2 and 5, producing a Pcell=8894 Wm-2, about 22.5% increment. The reduced channel heights of channels 2-4 significantly increase the sub-rib convection and widths for effectively removing liquid water and oxygen transport in gas diffusion layer. The final diverging channel minimizes the leakage of fuel to outlet via sub-rib convection from channel 4 to channel 5. Near-optimal design without huge loss in cell performance but is easily manufactured is tested. The use of a straight, final channel of 0.1 mm height has led to 7.37% power loss, while the design with all channel widths to be 1 mm with optimal channel heights obtained above yields only 1.68% loss of current density. The presence of a final, diverging channel has greater impact on cell performance than the fine adjustment of channel width at the simulation conditions set herein studied.

Keywords: optimization, flow field design, simplified conjugate-gradient method, serpentine flow field, sub-rib convection

Procedia PDF Downloads 296
7511 Countercurrent Flow Simulation of Gas-Solid System in a Purge Column Using Computational Fluid Dynamics Techniques

Authors: T. J. Jamaleddine

Abstract:

Purge columns or degasser vessels are widely used in the polyolefin process for removing trapped hydrocarbons and in-excess catalyst residues from the polymer particles. A uniform distribution of purged gases coupled with a plug-flow characteristic inside the column system is desirable to obtain optimum desorption characteristics of trapped hydrocarbon and catalyst residues. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) approach is a promising tool for design optimization of these vessels. The success of this approach is profoundly dependent on the solution strategy and the choice of geometrical layout at the vessel outlet. Filling the column with solids and initially solving for the solids flow minimized numerical diffusion substantially. Adopting a cylindrical configuration at the vessel outlet resulted in less numerical instability and resembled the hydrodynamics flow of solids in the hopper segment reasonably well.

Keywords: CFD, degasser vessel, gas-solids flow, gas purging, purge column, species transport

Procedia PDF Downloads 129