Computational Analysis of Flow Inside a Diffuser of Three-Dimensional Supersonic Non-Steady Ejectors

The work to be presented herein is a Computational Fluid Dynamics investigation of the complex fluid mechanisms that occur inside a non-steady, three-dimensional, supersonic pressure exchange ejector, specifically with regard to the pressure exchange mechanisms and the induction processes between a “driving” primary fluid and a “driven” secondary fluid and how this is affected by the diffuser surface. The results will show that this ejector is capable of producing the desire affect of the flow induction in a three-dimensional supersonic, non-steady, viscous flow. Results of contour plots of total pressure and static pressure demonstrate that the flow inside the diffuser is a critical element in flow induction mechanism, especially when a pressure recovery is needed. Results of velocity vectors will show the structure of flow induction mechanism in a complex three-dimensional conical surface.

Multi-Variable, High Order, Performance Models (2005C)

In the course of developing advanced data processing and advanced performance models, as presented in companion papers, a number of basic scientific and mathematical questions arose. This paper deals with questions such as uniqueness, convergence, statistical accuracy, training, and evaluation methodologies. The process of bringing together large data sets and utilizing them, with outside data supplementation, is considered in detail. After these questions are focused carefully, emphasis is placed on how the new models, based on highly refined data processing, can best be used in the design world. The impact of this work on designs of the future is discussed. It is expected that this methodology will assist designers to move beyond contemporary design practices.

Efficiency Increase in the Extraction of Sugar Cane Juice in the Sugar Cane Mills by Means of the Regulation of Hydraulic Pressures

In this paper, the distribution of pressure on the bagasse layer in the sugar cane mills and an automatic regulation proposal to increase the efficiency in the extraction of sugar cane juice is approached. An analysis that considers the top shaft-roller as a beam on elastic foundation is carried out. It is possible to determine the pressure distribution on the bagasse layer and the mill bearing reactions. The behavior of the bagasse layer reaction is analyzed for different hydraulic pressures in each side of the mill; being demonstrated, an optimal relationship of pressures to achieve a uniform compression on the bagasse layer. The optimal hydraulic pressure rate is calculated with the help of the outlined method. Finally, once this pressure relation is known, a control strategy is developed for each hydraulic cylinder.

Fluid Flow Characteristics of a Confined Slot Jet Without or With a Target Surface

A series of experimental investigations with a stringent measurement method on the fluid flow characteristics of slot jet without or with a target surface have been successfully conducted. From all the fluid velocity data measured in the present study, the experimental conditions have been verified to be spanwise-symmetrically maintained and the results have been achieved in a spanwise-symmetric form. Three types of jet configuration without or with target surface are investigated: (A) Confined Slot Jet without Target Surfaces – the fluid flow parameters studied in the present investigation is the jet Reynolds number (ReD). Its ranges are ReD=506-1517. (B) Confined Slot Jet with Smooth Surfaces – the fluid flow parameters studied in the present investigation include the ratio of jet separation distance (H) to nozzle width (W) and the jet Reynolds number (ReD). The ranges of the relevant parameters are H/W=2–10 and ReD=504–1526. (C) Confined Slot Jet with Extended Surfaces – the fluid flow parameters studied include the ratio of jet separation distance (H) to nozzle width (W), the Reynolds number (ReD) and the ratio of extended surface height (Hes) to nozzle width (W). Their ranges are H/W=3–10, Hes/W=0.74-3.40 and ReD=501–1547. The flow characteristics such as the local mean streamwise velocity distribution, mean streamwise velocity decay along jet centerline, local jet turbulence intensity distribution, and turbulence intensities along jet centerline have been presented and discussed in the study.

Multistage Isoelectric Focusing: A Novel On-Chip Bio-Separation Technique

This experimental study reports a method to increase the resolving power of isoelectric focusing (IEF) on a polymeric microfluidic chip. Microfluidic chip is formed on poly-di-methyl siloxane (PDMS) using soft lithography and multilayer bonding technique. In this novel bioseparation technique, IEF is staged by first focusing protein species in a straight channel using broad-range ampholytes and then refocusing segments of that first channel into secondary channels that branch out from the first one. Experiments demonstrated that three fluorescent protein species within a segment of pH gradient in the first stage were refocused in the second stage with much higher resolution in a shallower pH gradient. A serially performed two-stage IEF was completed in less than 25 minutes under particularly small electric field strength up to 100 V/cm.

Nonlinear Dynamics of Electrokinetic Instabilities

Electrokinetic instabilities are generated by a coupling of electric fields and ionic conductivity gradients. This coupling results in an electric body force in the bulk liquid that can generate temporal, convective, and absolute flow instabilities. In this work, we perform a parametric experimental study of convective instabilities in cross-shaped microchannels using epifluorescence microscopy and high speed digital imaging. We report temporal power spectra and spatiotemporal maps as a function of the applied field. The spectral analyses reveal that disturbances induced by electrokinetic instability are purely sinuous at the onset of instability and exhibit higher-order harmonics, frequency bifurcations, and continuous power spectra with increasing electric Rayleigh number. Electrokinetic instabilities (EKI) in cross-shaped channels are relevant to injections for field amplified sample stacking, electrokinetic flows at the intersections in multi-dimensional assay devices, and systems with indeterminate sample chemistry.

Numerical Simulation of Turbulent Flows in Ribbed Pipes

The Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) equations were solved along with three turbulence models, namely κ-ε, κ-ω, and Reynolds stress models (RSM), to study the fully developed turbulent flows in circular pipes roughened by repeated square ribs. The spacing between the ribs was varied to form three representative types of surface roughness; d–type, intermediate, and k–type. Solutions of these flows at two Reynolds numbers were obtained using the commercial computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software Fluent. The numerical results were validated against experimental measurements and other numerical data published in literature. Extensive investigation of effects of rib spacing and Reynolds number on the pressure and friction resistance, flow and turbulence distribution was presented. The performance of three turbulence models was also compared and discussed.

Self and Directed Colloidal Assembly on Patterned Electrodes

Clustering of colloidal particles near an electrode surface during and after electrophoretic deposition has been reported in the literature [1, 2, 3, 4]. The aggregation of colloidal particles has made the precise assembly of two and three dimensional colloidal crystals possible. In this paper, we demonstrate the use of external electric fields to sensitively tune the interactions between colloidal particles to form ordered structures. The directed assembly of colloidal particles on patterned electrode surfaces is also investigated as a means of building three-dimensional nanostructures. Finally, a new method to map potential energy landscapes of templated substrates using a diffusing colloidal particle as a sensitive local energy probe is described.

Particle Orientational Properties and Viscosity of a Dense Colloidal Dispersion Composed of Ferromagnetic Spherocylinder Particles: Analysis by Means of Mean Field Approximation for a Simple Shear

We have theoretically investigated the particle orientational distribution and viscosity of a dense colloidal dispersion composed of ferromagnetic spherocylinder particles under circumstances of an applied magnetic field. The mean field approximation has been applied to take into account the magnetic interactions of the particle of interest with the other ones which belong to the neighboring clusters, besides its own cluster. The basic equation of the orientational distribution function, which is an integro-differential equation, has approximately been solved by Galerkin’s method and the method of successive approximation. Even when the magnetic interaction between particles is of the order of the thermal energy, the effect of particle-particle interactions on the orientational distribution comes to appear more significantly with increasing the volumetric fraction of particles. This effect comes to appear more significantly when the influence of the applied magnetic field is not relatively so strong compared with magnetic particle-particle interactions.

Stability and Bifurcation Analysis of a Forced Cylinder Wake

We present a study on the dynamics of a cylinder wake subjected to forced excitation. Williams et al. (1992) discovered that the spatial symmetry of the excitation plays a crucial role in determining the resulting wake dynamics. Reflection-symmetric forcing was found to affect the Karman wake much more strongly compared to Z2(κ, π) asymmetric forcing. For low forcing amplitudes, the existence of a nonlinear mode interaction mechanism was postulated to explain the observed “beating” phenomenon observed in the wake. Previous work by the authors (Mureithi et al. 2002, 2003) presented general forms of the modal interaction amplitude equations governing the dynamics of the periodically forced wake. In the present work, numerical CFD computations of the forced cylinder wake are presented. It is shown that the experimentally observed wake bifurcations can be reproduced by numerical simulations with reasonable accuracy. The CFD computations show that the forced wake first looses reflection symmetry followed by a bifurcation associated with vortex merging as the forcing amplitude is increased. A bifurcation analysis of a simplified amplitude equation shows that these two transitions are due to a pitchfork bifurcation and a period-doubling bifurcation of mixed mode solutions.