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Description
Image processing in canals, rivers and other bodies of water has been a very important concern. This research using Image Processing was performed to obtain a photographic evidence of the data of the site which helps in monitoring the conditions of the water body and the surroundings. Images are captured using a digital camera and the images are stored onto a datalogger, these images are retrieved using a cellular/ satellite modem. A MATLAB program was designed to obtain the level of water by just entering the file name into to the program, a curve fit model was created to determine the contrast parameters. The contrast parameters were obtained using the data obtained from the gray scale image mainly the mean and variance of the intensity values. The enhanced images are used to determine the level of water by taking pixel intensity plots along the region of interest. The level of water obtained is accurate to less than 2% of the actual level of water observed from the image. High speed imaging in micro channels have various application in industrial field, medical field etc. In medical field it is tested by using blood samples. The experimental procedure proposed determines the flow duration and the defects observed in these channel using a fluid introduced into the micro channel the fluid being water based dye and whole milk. The viscosity of the fluid shows different types of flow patterns and defects in the micro channel. The defects observed vary from a small effect to the flow pattern to an extreme defect in the channel such as obstruction of flow or deformation in the channel. The sample needs to be further analyzed by SEM to get a better insight on the defects.
ContributorsShasedhara, Abhijeet Bangalore (Author) / Lee, Taewoo (Thesis advisor) / Huang, Huei-Ping (Committee member) / Chen, Kangping (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
Mostly, manufacturing tolerance charts are used these days for manufacturing tolerance transfer but these have the limitation of being one dimensional only. Some research has been undertaken for the three dimensional geometric tolerances but it is too theoretical and yet to be ready for operator level usage. In this research, a new three dimensional model for tolerance transfer in manufacturing process planning is presented that is user friendly in the sense that it is built upon the Coordinate Measuring Machine (CMM) readings that are readily available in any decent manufacturing facility. This model can take care of datum reference change between non orthogonal datums (squeezed datums), non-linearly oriented datums (twisted datums) etc. Graph theoretic approach based upon ACIS, C++ and MFC is laid out to facilitate its implementation for automation of the model. A totally new approach to determining dimensions and tolerances for the manufacturing process plan is also presented. Secondly, a new statistical model for the statistical tolerance analysis based upon joint probability distribution of the trivariate normal distributed variables is presented. 4-D probability Maps have been developed in which the probability value of a point in space is represented by the size of the marker and the associated color. Points inside the part map represent the pass percentage for parts manufactured. The effect of refinement with form and orientation tolerance is highlighted by calculating the change in pass percentage with the pass percentage for size tolerance only. Delaunay triangulation and ray tracing algorithms have been used to automate the process of identifying the points inside and outside the part map. Proof of concept software has been implemented to demonstrate this model and to determine pass percentages for various cases. The model is further extended to assemblies by employing convolution algorithms on two trivariate statistical distributions to arrive at the statistical distribution of the assembly. Map generated by using Minkowski Sum techniques on the individual part maps is superimposed on the probability point cloud resulting from convolution. Delaunay triangulation and ray tracing algorithms are employed to determine the assembleability percentages for the assembly.
ContributorsKhan, M Nadeem Shafi (Author) / Phelan, Patrick E (Thesis advisor) / Montgomery, Douglas C. (Committee member) / Farin, Gerald (Committee member) / Roberts, Chell (Committee member) / Henderson, Mark (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
Rotorcraft operation in austere environments can result in difficult operating conditions, particularly in the vicinity of sandy areas. The uplift of sediment by rotorcraft downwash, a phenomenon known as brownout, hinders pilot visual cues and may result in a potentially dangerous situation. Brownout is a complex multiphase flow problem that is not unique and depends on both the characteristics of the rotorcraft and the sediment. The lack of fundamental understanding constrains models and limits development of technologies that could mitigate the adverse effects of brownout. This provides the over-arching motivation of the current work focusing on models of particle-laden sediment beds. The particular focus of the current investigations is numerical modeling of near-surface fluid-particle interactions in turbulent boundary layers with and without coherent vortices superimposed on the background flow, that model rotorcraft downwash. The simulations are performed with two groups of particles having different densities both of which display strong vortex-particle interaction close to the source location. The simulations include cases with inter-particle collisions and gravitational settling. Particle effects on the fluid are ignored. The numerical simulations are performed using an Euler- Lagrange method in which a fractional-step approach is used for the fluid and with the particulate phase advanced using Discrete Particle Simulation. The objectives are to gain insight into the fluid-particle dynamics that influence transport near the bed by analyzing the competing effects of the vortices, inter-particle collisions, and gravity. Following the introduction of coherent vortices into the domain, the structures convect downstream, dissipate, and then recover to an equilibrium state with the boundary layer. The particle phase displays an analogous return to an equilibrium state as the vortices dissipate and the boundary layer recovers, though this recovery is slower than for the fluid and is sensitive to the particle response time. The effects of inter-particle collisions are relatively strong and apparent throughout the flow, being most effective in the boundary layer. Gravitational settling increases the particle concentration near the wall and consequently increase inter-particle collisions.
ContributorsMorales, Fernando (Author) / Squires, Kyle D. (Thesis advisor) / Wells, Valana L. (Committee member) / Calhoun, Ronald J. (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
Thermoelectric devices (TED's) continue to be an area of high interest in both thermal management and energy harvesting applications. Due to their compact size, reliable performance, and their ability to accomplish sub-ambient cooling, much effort is being focused on optimized methods for characterization and integration of TED's for future applications. Predictive modeling methods can only achieve accurate results with robust input physical parameters, therefore TED characterization methods are critical for future development of the field. Often times, physical properties of TED sub-components are very well known, however the "effective" properties of a TED module can be difficult to measure with certainty. The module-level properties must be included in predictive modeling, since these include electrical and thermal contact resistances which are difficult to analytically derive. A unique characterization method is proposed, which offers the ability to directly measure all device-level physical parameters required for accurate modeling. Among many other unique features, the metrology allows the capability to perform an independent validation of empirical parameters by measuring parasitic heat losses. As support for the accuracy of the measured parameters, the metrology output from an off-the-shelf TED is used in a system-level thermal model to predict and validate observed metrology temperatures. Finally, as an extension to the benefits of this metrology, it is shown that resulting data can be used to empirically validate a device-level dimensionless relationship. The output provides a powerful performance prediction tool, since all physical behavior in a performance domain is captured using a single analytical relationship and can be plotted on a singe graph.
ContributorsLofgreen, Kelly (Author) / Phelan, Patrick E (Thesis advisor) / Posner, Jonathan (Committee member) / Devasenathipathy, Shankar (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
While much effort in Stirling engine development is placed on making the high-temperature region of the Stirling engine warmer, this research explores methods to lower the temperature of the cold region by improving heat transfer in the cooler. This paper presents heat transfer coefficients obtained for a Stirling engine heat exchanger with oscillatory flow. The effects of oscillating frequency and input heat rate on the heat transfer coefficients are evaluated and details on the design and development of the heat exchanger test apparatus are also explained. Featured results include the relationship between overall heat transfer coefficients and oscillation frequency which increase from 21.5 to 46.1 Wm-2K-1 as the oscillation frequency increases from 6.0 to 19.3 Hz. A correlation for the Nusselt number on the inside of the heat exchange tubes in oscillatory flow is presented in a concise, dimensionless form in terms of the kinetic Reynolds number as a result of a statistical analysis. The test apparatus design is proven to be successful throughout its implementation due to the usefulness of data and clear trends observed. The author is not aware of any other publicly-available research on a Stirling engine cooler to the extent presented in this paper. Therefore, the present results are analyzed on a part-by-part basis and compared to segments of other research; however, strong correlations with data from other studies are not expected. The data presented in this paper are part of a continuing effort to better understand heat transfer properties in Stirling engines as well as other oscillating flow applications.
ContributorsEppard, Erin (Author) / Phelan, Patrick (Thesis advisor) / Trimble, Steve (Committee member) / Calhoun, Ronald (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
Multiphase flows are an important part of many natural and technological phe- nomena such as ocean-air coupling (which is important for climate modeling) and the atomization of liquid fuel jets in combustion engines. The unique challenges of multiphase flow often make analytical solutions to the governing equations impos- sible and experimental investigations very difficult. Thus, high-fidelity numerical simulations can play a pivotal role in understanding these systems. This disserta- tion describes numerical methods developed for complex multiphase flows and the simulations performed using these methods. First, the issue of multiphase code verification is addressed. Code verification answers the question "Is this code solving the equations correctly?" The method of manufactured solutions (MMS) is a procedure for generating exact benchmark solutions which can test the most general capabilities of a code. The chief obstacle to applying MMS to multiphase flow lies in the discontinuous nature of the material properties at the interface. An extension of the MMS procedure to multiphase flow is presented, using an adaptive marching tetrahedron style algorithm to compute the source terms near the interface. Guidelines for the use of the MMS to help locate coding mistakes are also detailed. Three multiphase systems are then investigated: (1) the thermocapillary motion of three-dimensional and axisymmetric drops in a confined apparatus, (2) the flow of two immiscible fluids completely filling an enclosed cylinder and driven by the rotation of the bottom endwall, and (3) the atomization of a single drop subjected to a high shear turbulent flow. The systems are simulated numerically by solving the full multiphase Navier- Stokes equations coupled to the various equations of state and a level set interface tracking scheme based on the refined level set grid method. The codes have been parallelized using MPI in order to take advantage of today's very large parallel computational architectures. In the first system, the code's ability to handle surface tension and large tem- perature gradients is established. In the second system, the code's ability to sim- ulate simple interface geometries with strong shear is demonstrated. In the third system, the ability to handle extremely complex geometries and topology changes with strong shear is shown.
ContributorsBrady, Peter, Ph.D (Author) / Herrmann, Marcus (Thesis advisor) / Lopez, Juan (Thesis advisor) / Adrian, Ronald (Committee member) / Calhoun, Ronald (Committee member) / Chen, Kangping (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
A new method of adaptive mesh generation for the computation of fluid flows is investigated. The method utilizes gradients of the flow solution to adapt the size and stretching of elements or volumes in the computational mesh as is commonly done in the conventional Hessian approach. However, in the new method, higher-order gradients are used in place of the Hessian. The method is applied to the finite element solution of the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations on model problems. Results indicate that a significant efficiency benefit is realized.
ContributorsShortridge, Randall (Author) / Chen, Kang Ping (Thesis advisor) / Herrmann, Marcus (Thesis advisor) / Wells, Valana (Committee member) / Huang, Huei-Ping (Committee member) / Mittelmann, Hans (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
The focus of this investigation is on the renewed assessment of nonlinear reduced order models (ROM) for the accurate prediction of the geometrically nonlinear response of a curved beam. In light of difficulties encountered in an earlier modeling effort, the various steps involved in the construction of the reduced order model are carefully reassessed. The selection of the basis functions is first addressed by comparison with the results of proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) analysis. The normal basis functions suggested earlier, i.e. the transverse linear modes of the corresponding flat beam, are shown in fact to be very close to the POD eigenvectors of the normal displacements and thus retained in the present effort. A strong connection is similarly established between the POD eigenvectors of the tangential displacements and the dual modes which are accordingly selected to complement the normal basis functions. The identification of the parameters of the reduced order model is revisited next and it is observed that the standard approach for their identification does not capture well the occurrence of snap-throughs. On this basis, a revised approach is proposed which is assessed first on the static, symmetric response of the beam to a uniform load. A very good to excellent matching between full finite element and ROM predicted responses validates the new identification procedure and motivates its application to the dynamic response of the beam which exhibits both symmetric and antisymmetric motions. While not quite as accurate as in the static case, the reduced order model predictions match well their full Nastran counterparts and support the reduced order model development strategy.
ContributorsZhang, Yaowen (Author) / Mignolet, Marc P (Thesis advisor) / Davidson, Joseph (Committee member) / Spottswood, Stephen M (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
Processed pyro-gel contains castor oil with solid component of boehmite (Al-OOH). The pyro-gel is synthesized by heat to convert boehmite to gamma-Al2O3 and to a certain extent alpha-Al2O3 nano-particles and castor oil into carbon residue. The effect of heat on pyro-gel is analyzed in a series of experiments using two burning chambers with the initial temperature as the main factor. The obtained temperature distribution profiles are studied and it is observed that the gel behaves very close to the theoretical prediction under heat. The carbon residue with Al2O3 is then processed for twelve hours and then analyzed to obtain the pore distribution of the Al2O3 nano-particles and the relation between the pore volume and the pre-heat temperature is analyzed. The obtained pore distribution shows the pore volume of Al2O3 nano-particles has direct relation to the pre-heat temperature. The experimental process involving the cylindrical reactor is simulated by using a finite rate chemistry eddy-dissipation model in a non-premixed and a porous mesh. The temperature distribution profile of the processed gel for both the meshes is obtained and a comparison is done with the data obtained in the experimental analysis. The temperature distribution obtained from the simulations show they follow a very similar profile to the temperature distribution obtained from experimental analysis, thus confirming the accuracy of both the models. The variation in numerical values between the experimental and simulation analysis is discussed. A physical model is proposed to determine the pore formation based on the temperature distribution obtained from experimental analysis and simulation.
ContributorsSagi, Varun (Author) / Lee, Taewoo (Thesis advisor) / Phelan, Patrick (Committee member) / Chen, Kangping (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2010
Description
The focus of this research is to investigate methods for material substitution for the purpose of re-engineering legacy systems that involves incomplete information about form, fit and function of replacement parts. The primary motive is to extract as much useful information about a failed legacy part as possible and use fuzzy logic rules for identifying the unknown parameter values. Machine elements can fail by any number of failure modes but the most probable failure modes based on the service condition are considered critical failure modes. Three main parameters are of key interest in identifying the critical failure mode of the part. Critical failure modes are then directly mapped to material properties. Target material property values are calculated from material property values obtained from the originally used material and from the design goals. The material database is searched for new candidate materials that satisfy the goals and constraints in manufacturing and raw stock availability. Uncertainty in the extracted data is modeled using fuzzy logic. Fuzzy member functions model the imprecise nature of data in each available parameter and rule sets characterize the imprecise dependencies between the parameters and makes decisions in identifying the unknown parameter value based on the incompleteness. A final confidence level for each material in a pool of candidate material is a direct indication of uncertainty. All the candidates satisfy the goals and constraints to varying degrees and the final selection is left to the designer's discretion. The process is automated by software that inputs incomplete data; uses fuzzy logic to extract more information and queries the material database with a constrained search for finding candidate alternatives.
ContributorsBalaji, Srinath (Author) / Shah, Jami (Thesis advisor) / Davidson, Joseph (Committee member) / Huebner, Kenneth (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011