Comparative Preliminary Unit Costs Analysis of the Operation of Passenger Cars with Combustion Engines and Fuel Cell Vehicles Powered by Hydrogen

The article presents political and legal aspects regarding the recommendation for the development of hydrogen technology in the economy and in transport. The development of electric cars with hydrogen-powered fuel cells, which took place in recent years in the world, has been outlined. The principles of calculation of average vehicle operating costs applicable in the transport economics are discussed. The estimated average unit operating costs of a statistical passenger car using conventional energy carriers, estimated in the studies of the Motor Transport Institute are quoted. The assumptions and results of the estimation of the average cost per 1 vehicle-kilometre of the electric passenger car’s mileage (BEV) have been presented, as well as the assumptions and results of the estimation of the average unit operating costs of a hydrogen powered passenger car (FCEV). The average unit costs of the mileage of these vehicles have been compared. The predictions regarding the future changes in the average prices of FCEV vehicles have been cited and the average unit costs of operating electric cars with fuel cells by the 2050 have been estimated. The project of administrative support for the development of low-emission transport in Poland was indicated.

Using Sorbents for Oil Spill Clean-Up in Ports and Coastal Areas

Petroleum substances are a mixture of many hydrocarbons of various structures; some of them are toxic for marine organisms. In case of pollution of the aquatic environment, these compounds may enter seawater organisms and adversely affect gas exchange and inhibit photosynthesis. Therefore, it is important to take measures to reduce the emissions of these compounds into the aquatic environment and quickly to remove possible spills of uncontrolled pollution. Sorbents are materials that soak up oil from water. They are best suited for the absorption of oil – derived substances. They are used to absorb leaks in open and closed tanks, particularly in hard – to-reach places. Sorbents can be natural organic, natural inorganic or synthetic. Natural sorbents are divided to organic materials such as peat moss or wood products, and inorganic materials such as vermiculite or clay. Sorbents are available in a loose form, which includes granules, powder, chunks and cubes. Synthetic sorbents are used to wipe other oil spill recovery equipment such as skimmers and booms after a spill clean-up operation. The thesis deals with the issues related to the analysis of the possibility of using sorbents to combat oil pollution in port and coastal areas. The article discusses the types of pollution occurring in coastal waters, as well as the types of sorbents used and the forces and measures to combat pollution. The characteristic features of sorbents are rate of absorption and adsorption, oil retention and ease of application. Absorption tests were carried out and the best sorbents for combating oil pollution were selected.

Numerical Investigation of Endplates Influence on the Wing in Ground Effect Lift Force

The article presents a comparison of the wing in ground effect magnitude of conceptual WIG craft model main characteristics for a wing with and without endplates which are also known as winglets in regular aircraft. In article, the author describes WIG effect with and WIG craft, which operates on low altitude, smaller than the length of wing chord, mostly above the water reservoir. WIG effect phenomenon is simple. The first aircraft needs to fly at adequate altitude, with a smaller distance between lower airfoil surface and ground static pressure rises, leading to rising of lift force. The main advantage of the wing in ground effect craft on regular aircraft is a much higher lift to drag ratio, also this phenomenon provides to drop in specific fuel consumption of aircraft and allows flying with heavier cargo due to higher lift force. Characteristics present in the article were designated from simulations, which were conducted in Ansys Fluent software. Results obtained for a wing with endplate in numerical analysis shows the superiority of this approach. Endplates provide to increase WIG effect by a decrease in induced drag through the move out vertices from the wing tips, which are made by differential pressure above and under the wing. As winglets in regular aircraft, endplates provide to save fuel. WIG craft does not need airports so it could be a cheap alternative for modern aircraft.

Distributions of Hydrodynamic Pressure in the Gap of Slide Journal Bearing Lubricated with Ferro-Oil

This research work is part of a broader comprehensive issue, which is the analysis of flow and operating parameters of journal slide bearings lubricated with ferro-oil. In this article, the author presents only the main assumptions and essential transformations of the analytical and numerical model for determining the pressure distributions in the gap of a slide journal bearing lubricated with ferro-oil. It is cardinal that the rheological and magnetic values of ferro-oil parameters adopted in numerical calculations are based on the results of actual values obtained in the author’s earlier research work. There are presented the pressure distributions by abovementioned method in the article for cases of bearings lubricated with ferro-oils with different concentration of magnetic particles. The obtained results are shown in the form of a set of four complementary characteristics of the dimensionless pressure distributions. First and main of them are the calculations for classical Newtonian lubrication but they take into account the influence of the magnetic field on the distributions. The next of the presented characteristics are so-called “corrections” of pressure distribution values, taking into account as follows: effects of changes in ferro-oil viscosity related to temperature changes, impacts of ferro-oil viscosity changes related to pressure changes and the effect of non-oil properties of the lubricant. The article includes a qualitative and quantitative analysis of the obtained results as well as observations and conclusions are presented in it.

The Experimental Investigation of Surface Roughness After Dry Turning of Steel S235

Nowadays lot of scientific work inspired by industry companies was done with the aim to avoid the use of cutting fluids in machining operations. The reasons were ecological and human health problems caused by the cutting fluid. The most logical solution, which can be taken to eliminate all of the problems associated with the use of cooling lubricant, is dry machining. In most cases, however, a machining operation without lubricant finds acceptance only when it is possible to guarantee that the part quality and machining times achieved in wet machining are equalled or surpassed. Surface finish has become an important indicator of quality and precision in manufacturing processes and it is considered as one of the most important parameter in industry. Today the quality of surface finish is a significant requirement for many workpieces. Thus, the choice of optimized cutting parameters is very important for controlling the required surface quality. In the present study, the influence of different machining parameters on surface roughness has been analysed. Experiments were conducted for turning, as it is the most frequently used machining process in machine industry. All these parameters have been studied in terms of depth of cut (ap), feed rate (f) and cutting speed (vc). As workpiece, material steel S235 has been selected. This work presents results of research done during turning realised on conventional lathe CDS 6250 BX-1000 with severe parameters. These demonstrate the necessity of further, more detailed research on turning process results.

Investigation of Thermal Properties of Novel Phase Change Material Mixtures (Octadecane-Diamond) with Laser Flash Analysis

Phase change materials (PCMs) are widely used in numerous engineering fields because of their good heat storage properties and high latent heat of fusion. However, a big group of them has low thermal conductivity and diffusivity, which poses a problem when it comes to effective and relatively fast heat transfer and accumulation. Therefore, their use is limited to systems that do not need to be heated or cooled rapidly. That is why they are used as thermal energy storage systems in both large scale in power plants and smaller scale in residential facilities. Although, if PCMs are meant to play an important role in electronics cooling, heat dissipation, or temperature stabilization in places where the access to cooling water is limited, such as electric automotive industry or hybrid aviation, a number of modifications and improvements needs to be introduced. Investigation whether additional materials of better thermal properties will affect the thermal properties of PCM is therefore of a big interest. An example of such material is diamond powder, which is a popular additive used in abradants. Its thermal diffusivity and conductivity is significantly higher than for a pure PCM. The article presents the results of an analysis of the effect of diamond powder on thermal conductivity and diffusivity of phase change materials in the case of octadecane.

Analysis of Electric Vehicles Efficiency and their Influence on Environmental Pollution

Electric vehicles are increasingly present on the roads of the whole world. They have the opinion of ecological vehicles, not polluting the environment. Society is more and more often persuaded to buy electric cars as an environmentally friendly solution but is this for sure? Electric cars need quite a lot of electricity accumulated in batteries to drive on a long range. During the charging process, this energy is obtained from the electricity network, to where it is supplied by power plant. Electricity production from renewable sources is a privilege for the rare. However, electric cars are charged from the electricity grid, which in large part energy comes from non-renewable fuels. The efficiency of energy production in power plants and the energy transmission and conversion chain causes that only part of the energy produced in this way goes to the vehicle’s wheels. Although the power plants are equipped with more and more efficient exhaust gas cleaning systems, they do not clean them up to 100%. Sulphur, nitrogen, mercury and heavy metals remain in the exhaust. The article is an attempt to answer the question whether the total emission of toxic components associated with the use of an electric vehicle is not bigger than in a traditional internal combustion engine.

Analysis of the Vehicle Exploitation Process with Regard to Profiling

Transport telematics systems integrate information technology with telecommunications for their use in various transport systems. Thanks to the use of advanced technical solutions and modern telecommunications and IT systems, it is possible to implement additional innovative services. They can be used to rationalize the process of using and maintaining means of transport. Modern vehicles are equipped with telematic on-board systems. Such solutions combine various electronic devices used in the vehicle. For this purpose, bus solutions are used, thanks to which it is possible to control individual systems and devices. It is also possible to use the transmitted data to detect negative exploitation phenomena during vehicle use (e.g. glazing phenomenon, work in the upper engine rev range with too low coolant temperature, intensive work compressor of the high air pressure system being a symptom of inability of pneumatic systems). This is possible because the data being sent has a specific information resource. Thanks to this, to can be concluded about the loss of the exploitation potential of the vehicle. This approach will be used to rationalize the technical service of the vehicle fleet, with regard to profiling. Using exploitation data, received via a telematic interface from vehicles, it is possible to profile the rolling stock. It consists in distinguishing individual sets of vehicles due to certain reliability and exploitation properties. This approach allows for the specification of the rolling stock exploitation, giving the opportunity to rationalize the use and exploitation. The publication presents the author’s graph of the exploitation process taking into account the profiling of the vehicle fleet. The application of the presented approach will contribute to the improvement of the value of certain vehicle reliability and exploitation indicators.

Slip at Vehicle Transmission System with Hydrokinetic Converter in the Urban Test Cycle

The study concentrated on slip phenomenon occurring at hydrokinetic converter in passenger car transmission system. Optimization of modern automatic transmission systems aims, on the one hand, to further increase the comfort of use, and on the other hand to improve the efficiency and reliability operation of individual components, in such a way as to ultimately result in lowering fuel consumption and also harmful emissions. One of the important factors affecting the mentioned transmissions properties as a whole system is the slip phenomenon occurring between the pump and the hydrokinetic converter turbine. The study presents the results of research on ZF 4HP20 and Fuji Hyper M6 gearboxes operating in vehicle transmission systems. The tests were carried out using the MAHA MSR 500 chassis dynamometer during driving at chosen test cycles. The research covered the transmission systems operating according to selected control algorithms affecting not only the gear shifting strategy but also the operation of the lock up clutch causing the transmissions slip values. As shown by the conducted research, the algorithm controlling the operation of the torque converter can have a significant influence on their operating indexes. The conducted analyses indicate the possibilities of improving the transmission operating indexes, especially in urban driving cycles.

Mechanical Properties of AW-5083 Alloy Joints Welded By Hybrid Method – FSW and MIG

The article presents the research results on the mechanical properties of aluminum alloy AW-5083 and its joints welded by hybrid method – traditional MIG and FSW. AW-5083 alloy is the most currently used in shipbuilding industry. Friction Stir Welding (FSW) – a new technology can be successfully used for butt-welding of different types of aluminum alloy sheets. FSW method can be an alternative to traditional arc welding methods i.e. MIG or TIG. Hybrid welding (FSW with MIG or TIG) could be used in cases when joining only by FSW is not possible. Welding parameters used for the connection of the sheets were presented. Metallographic analysis showed the correct construction of structural bonded joints. The research was carried out using a static tensile test in accordance with the requirements of the Standard PN-EN ISO 4136:2013-05. Flat samples cut perpendicular to the direction of rolling were used. The research was conducted at the temperature of +20ºC. The test shows that the mechanical properties of joints made by hybrid method compered to native material were lower. The tensile strength of joint was lower by 20% then native material 5083 while its yield stress was lower only about 6%. The biggest change was observed in case of plastic properties. Elongation of joint was over 50% lower compared to native material. Despite the decrease of mechanical properties, they meets the requirements of classification societies, so the conclusion is that hybrid method (FSW and MIG) of joining AW-5083 can be applied in shipbuilding industry.