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Description
A hybrid PV/T module was built, consisting of a thermal liquid heating system and a photovoltaic module system that combine in a hybrid format. This report will discuss the work on the project from Fall 2012 to Spring 2013 and the extended section on the economics for the Honors Thesis. Three stages of experiments were completed. Stage 1 showed our project was functional as we were able to verify our panel produced electricity and increased the temperature of water flowing in the system by 0.65°C. Stage 2 testing included “gluing” the flow system to the back of the panel resulting in an average increase of 4.76°C in the temperature of the water in the system. Stage 3 testing included adding insulating foam to the module which resulted in increasing the average temperature of the water in our flow system by 6.95°C. The economic calculations show the expected energy cost savings for Arizona residents.
ContributorsHaines, Brent Robert (Author) / Roedel, Ronald (Thesis director) / Aberle, James (Committee member) / Rauch, Dawson (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Electrical Engineering Program (Contributor)
Created2013-05
Description
This research presents advances in time-synchronized phasor (i.e.,synchrophasor) estimation and imaging with very-low-frequency electric fields.
Phasor measurement units measure and track dynamic systems, often power
systems, using synchrophasor estimation algorithms. Two improvements to
subspace-based synchrophasor estimation algorithms are shown. The first
improvement is a dynamic thresholding method for accurately determining the
signal subspace when using the estimation of signal parameters via rotational
invariance techniques (ESPRIT) algorithm. This improvement facilitates
accurate ESPRIT-based frequency estimates of both the nominal system frequency
and the frequencies of interfering signals such as harmonics or out-of-band
interference signals. Proper frequency estimation of all signals present in
measurement data allows for accurate least squares estimates of synchrophasors
for the nominal system frequency. By including the effects of clutter signals
in the synchrophasor estimate, interference from clutter signals can be
excluded. The result is near-flat estimation error during nominal system
frequency changes, the presence of harmonic distortion, and out-of-band
interference. The second improvement reduces the computational burden of the
ESPRIT frequency estimation step by showing that an optimized Eigenvalue
decomposition of the measurement data can be used instead of a singular value
decomposition. This research also explores a deep-learning-based inversion
method for imaging objects with a uniform electric field and a 2D planar D-dot
array. Using electric fields as an illumination source has seen multiple
applications ranging from medical imaging to mineral deposit detection. It is
shown that a planar D-dot array and deep neural network can reconstruct the
electrical properties of randomized objects. A 16000-sample dataset of objects
comprised of a three-by-three grid of randomized dielectric constants was
generated to train a deep neural network for predicting these dielectric
constants from measured field distortions. Increasingly complex imaging
environments are simulated, ranging from objects in free space to objects
placed in a physical cage designed to produce uniform electric fields.
Finally, this research relaxes the uniform electric field constraint, showing
that the volume of an opaque container can be imaged with a copper tube antenna
and a 1x4 array of D-dot sensors. Real world experimental results
show that it is possible to image buckets of water (targets) within a plastic
shed These experiments explore the detectability of targets as a function of
target placement within the shed.
ContributorsDrummond, Zachary (Author) / Allee, David R (Thesis advisor) / Claytor, Kevin E (Committee member) / Papandreou-Suppappola, Antonia (Committee member) / Aberle, James (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2021
Description
In 1946 Felix Bloch first demonstrated the phenomenon of nuclear magnetic resonance using continuous-wave signal generation and acquisition. Shortly after in 1966, Richard R. Ernst demonstrated the breakthrough that nuclear magnetic resonance needed to develop into magnetic resonance imaging: the application of Fourier transforms for sensitive pulsed imaging. Upon this discovery, the world of research began to develop high power radio amplifiers and fast radio switches for pulsed experimentation. Consequently, continuous-wave imaging placed on the backburner.Although high power pulses are dominant in clinical imaging, there are unique advantages to low power, continuous-wave pulse sequences that transmit and receive signals simultaneously. Primarily, tissues or materials with short T2 time constants can be imaged and the peak radio power required is drastically reduced.
The fundamental problem with this lies in its nature; the transmitter leaks a strong leakage signal into the receiver, thus saturating the receiver and the intended nuclear magnetic resonance signal is lost noise.
Demonstrated in this dissertation is a multichannel standalone simultaneous transmit and receive (STAR) system with remote user-control that enables continuous- wave full-duplex imaging. STAR calibrates cancellation signals through vector modulators that match the leakage signal of each receiver in amplitude but opposite in phase, therefore destructively interfering the leakage signals. STAR does not require specific imaging coils or console inputs for calibration. It was designed to be general- purpose, therefore integrating into any imaging system. To begin, the user uses an Android tablet to tune STAR to match the Larmor frequency in the bore. Then, the user tells STAR to begin calibration. After self-calibrating, the user may fine-tune the calibration state of the system before enabling a low-power mode for system electronics and imaging may commence. STAR was demonstrated to isolate two receiver coils upwards of 70 dB from the transmit coil and is readily upgradable to enable the use of four receive coils.
Some primary concerns of STAR are the removal of transceivers for multichannel operation, digital circuit noise, external noise, calibration speed, upgradability, and the isolation introduced; all of which are addressed in the proceeding thesis.
ContributorsColwell, Zachary Allen (Author) / Sohn, Sung-Min (Thesis advisor) / Trichopoulos, Georgios (Thesis advisor) / Aberle, James (Committee member) / Sadleir, Rosalind (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2023