A Modular Low-Speed Wind Tunnel With Two Test Sections and Variable Inflow Angle

A modular low-speed wind tunnel system was designed and developed. Due to the modular concept, the wind tunnel permitted open-jet operation, cascade testing or closed-circuit operation. The closed-circuit wind tunnel had two test sections, and it had a high quality test-section with variable flow angle that is particular valuable for airfoil or blade testing. Physical calibration of the wind tunnel facility validated the design rules and CFD methods used and demonstrated that these techniques can be employed successfully for future wind tunnel designs. A detailed study of the thermal behavior of the closed-circuit wind tunnel was conducted. A feedback control method based on a PI control law was developed and tested for the wind tunnel speed.

The Influence of Micro Scale Ratchet Depth on the Motion of Leidenfrost Drop

The influence of ratchet depth on the motion of Leidenfrost water drop was investigated as a continuous effort to reveal the driving mechanism. Continuous directional rebounding behavior of the drop was observed only at below 200°C on both micro ratchets with two different depth-to-period aspect ratios (1:5 and 1:10) and sharp ridges. Overall, the shallow ratchets generated more efficient drop mobility in the entire surface temperature range of 193–299°C due to the increased area between the bottom of the drop and the ratchet surface, caused by the geometrical benefit. However, the depth effect was only critical at relatively lower surface temperatures.

3D Measurements of Nano-Particle Transport in Complex 2.5D Micro-Models

A confocal Micro-Particle Image Velocimetry (C-μPIV) technique along with associated post image processing algorithms is established to quantify three dimensional distributions of nano-particle velocity and concentration at the micro-scale (pore-scale) in 2.5D porous media designed from a Boise rock sample. In addition, an in-situ, non-destructive method for measuring the geometry of the micro-model, including its depth, is described and demonstrated. The particle experiments use 900 nm fluorescence labeled polystyrene particles at a flow rate of 10 nLmin−1 and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM), while in-situ geometry measurements use regular microscope along with Rhodamine dye and a depth-to-fluorescence-intensity calibration. Image post-processing techniques include elimination of background noise and signal from adsorbed nano-particle on the inner surfaces of the micro-model. In addition, a minimization of depth of focus technique demonstrates a capability of optically thin slice allowing us to measure depth wise velocity in 2.5D micro-model. The mean planar components of the particle velocity of the steady-state flow and particle concentration distributions were measured in three dimensions. Particle velocities range from 0.01 to 122 μm s−1 and concentrations from 2.18 × 103 to 1.79 × 104 particles mm−2. Depth-wise results show that mean velocity closer to the top wall is comparatively higher than bottom walls, because of higher planar porosity and smooth pathway for the nano-particles closer to the top wall. The three dimensional micro-model geometry reconstructed from the fluorescence data can be used to conduct numerical simulations of the flow in the as-tested micro-model for future comparisons to experimental results after incorporating particle transport and particle-wall interaction models.

Coastal Hydrodynamic and Sediment-Salinity Transport Simulations for Southwest Louisiana Using Measured Vegetation Data

Storm-surge flood is a major thread to the inhabitants and the health of the marshes in Southwest Louisiana. The floods caused direct damages to the area, but also indirectly caused excessive sedimentations in the water system, especially in Calcasieu Ship Channel which is a vital industrial water way connecting the City of Lake Charles to the Gulf. It is well known that coastal wetlands and marshes have significant impacts on the prevention and reduction of coastal floods. The wetland vegetation creates larger frictions to the flooding water and acts as the first line of defense against any storm surge floods. In this study, we center Calcasieu Ship Channel, and hydrodynamic and sediment transport simulations were conducted for Calcasieu Ship Channel and surrounding areas. The target area ranges from the city of Lake Charles as the north end and the Gulf of Mexico as the south end, and includes three connected water systems, Calcaiseu Lake, Prien Lake and Lake Charles. The entire Calcasieu Ship Channel running from north to south is included in the domain along with the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) in east and west directions. In authors’ previous study, only the area of south portion of the ship channel, Calcasieu Lake and its surrounding wetlands was simulated and studied. This study is a major upgrade to the model, which provides more complete understanding of the flow and sediment transport in the entire area, as well as the interactions among all water systems surrounding the ship channel. There are wetlands (two National Wild Life Refuges, one in the west and one in the east) surrounding Calcaiseu Lake, while there are various of vegetated and non-vegetated areas surrounding Prien Lake and Lake Charles. The standard 2-D depth averaged shallow water solver was utilized for the simulation of the flow phase and a standard Eulerian scalar transport equation was solved for the sediment and salinity phases. In the sediment phase, the sediment deposition and re-suspension effects are included, while in the salinity phase, the precipitation and evaporation are included. A realistic vegetation model was implemented to represent various types of vegetation coverage in the target area, and appropriate friction values were assigned to different non-vegetated areas. Measured and observed vegetation data were utilized. A coastal storm surge flood was simulated, and effects of vegetation on flood reduction and sediment distribution were investigated. The total flooded area, the flood speed, and the distribution of the flooding water and sediments were compared between vegetated and non-vegetated areas to show the differences between different types of surfaces.

Design and Optimization of the Restrictor of a Race Car

Formula SAE is a student competition organized by SAE International. The team of students design, manufacture and race a car. Restrictions are imposed by the Formula SAE rules committee to restrict the air flow into the intake manifold by putting a single restrictor of 20 mm. This rule limits the maximum engine power by reducing the mass flow rate flowing to the engine. The pull is greater at higher rpms and the pressure created inside the cylinder is low. As the diameter of the flow path is reduced, the cross sectional area for flow reduces. For cars running at low rpm when the engine requires less air, the reduction in area is compensated by accelerated flow of air through the restrictor. Since this is for racing purpose cars here are designed to run at very high rpms where the flow at the throat section reach sonic velocities. Due to these restrictions the teams are challenged to come up with improved restrictor designs that allow maximum pressure drop across the restrictor’s inlet and outlet. The design considered for optimizing a flow restrictor is a venturi type having 20 mm restriction between the inlet and the outlet complying with the rules set by Formula SAE committee. The primary objective of this work is to optimize the flow restriction device that achieves maximum mass flow and minimum pull from the engine. This implies the pressure difference created due to the cylinder pressure and the atmospheric pressure at the inlet should be minimum. An optimum flow restrictor is designed by conducting analysis on various converging and diverging angles and coming up with an optimum value. Venturi type is a tubular pipe with varying diameter along its length, through which the fluid flows. Law of governing fluid dynamics states that the “Velocity of the fluid increases as it passes through the constriction to satisfy the principle of continuity”. An equation can be derived from the combination of Bernoulli’s equation and Continuity equation for the pressure drop due to venturi effect. [1]. A Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) tool is used to calculate the minimum pressure drop across the restrictor by running a series of analysis on various converging and diverging angles and calculating the pressure drop. As a result, an optimum air flow restrictor is achieved that maximizes the mass flow rate and minimizes the engine pull.

Analysis Method for CFD Results of Centrifugal Blower in Vacuum Cleaner Using Proper Orthogonal Decomposition

2D and steady analysis have been replaced by 3D and unsteady analysis because of dramatic improvements in computational environments. Analysis models that faithfully simulate actual products conventionally tend to be complicated and large scale. Therefore, the storage of analysis results has been increasing tremendously, and the dominant flow-field structure has been difficult to clarify. Data reduction by proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) is effective for simultaneously reducing the number of results of unsteady computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and for comprehending the dominant flow-field structure. However, only a few applications are used in the domain of industrial machinery. In this study, we applied the POD method to unsteady CFD results of a centrifugal blower in a vacuum cleaner and evaluated the benefits. We extracted a time series of static pressure distribution in the diffuser from unsteady CFD results corresponding to one rotation of the impeller, applied the POD to these data, and compared the results of an experiment. The results were that the first six modes had a 99.4% contribution in terms of the L2 norm. In the scope of this research, the first six modes were revealed to surrogate the pressure fluctuation sufficiently. Also, the data storage was reduced to less than 2.0% of the original unsteady results. Next, frequency spectra were obtained by applying a discrete Fourier transform (DFT) to the expansion coefficients. The spectra of the expansion coefficients of the POD modes were found to have a peak near the blade passing frequencies (BPFs). The noise, the frequency of which is BPF, causes the majority of the noise that occurs in the diffuser. Therefore, we found by using both the POD and DFT that we could both reduce the dramatic data storage and extract the flow-field structures.

A Bioinspired Active Micropump

A preliminary design concept is provided for a bioinspired active micropump. The proposed micropump uses light energy to activate the transporter proteins (bacteriorhodopsin protein and sucrose/sugar transporter proteins), which create an osmotic pressure gradient and drive the fluid flow. The purpose of the bacteriorhodopsin protein is to pump proton from the pumping section to the sucrose source for a proton gradient. This proton gradient is used by the sucrose transporter proteins to transport sugar molecules from the sucrose solution chamber to the pumping channel, which generates an osmotic pressure in the pumping section. A numerical model is used to evaluate the performance of the micropump where the concentrations of proton and sucrose molecules are calculated using the conservation of chemical species equations. The fluid flow and pressure field are calculated from momentum and mass conservation equations. Simulation results predict that the micropump is capable of generating a pressure head that is comparable to other non-mechanical pumps. The proposed bioinspired self-sustained micropump will be most effective at low flow rate.

Numerical Investigation of Two-Phase Flow in 45 Degrees “Y” Junctions

Frequently, Two-phase flow occurs in petroleum industry. It takes place on production and transportation of oil and natural gas. Initially, the most common patterns for vertical flow are Bubble, Slug, Churn and Annular Flow. Then, for horizontal flow, the most common patterns are Stratified Smooth, Stratified Wavy, Elongated Bubble, Slug, Annular, Wavy Annular and Dispersed Bubble Flow. It is also known that after separation, each fluid is carried through pipes, so oil is moved long distances. However, as it is known, the oil energy diminishes on the way. For that reason, it is needed a pumping station for keeping the oil flow energy high for proper movement. Additionally, that fluid is transported through a network, so fittings are present, like elbows, “T” and “Y” junctions, and others. As known, on a piping network, the losses can be classified in two groups: large and localized. The former consists on losses due to wall roughness-fluid interaction. The latter is related with fittings. This study is focused on 45° “Y” junctions. The main purpose of this study is to simulate the fluid flow on a 45° “Y” junction, using a 0.1143 m diameter 2 m length pipe, in which a 0.0603 m diameter 1 m length pipe confluences, using oil-gas as the working fluid, considering Dispersed Bubble Pattern. It can be attributed a “K” flow loss coefficient for each path, from each entry to the exit of the junction. For the Two-Phase Flow, it was supposed a horizontal Dispersed Bubble Pattern, which takes place at very high liquid flow rates. So the liquid phase is the continuous phase, in which the gas phase is dispersed as discrete bubbles. Particularly three API Grades were considered for the oil, corresponding to three main types of continuous phase. For the numerical model, it was generated several non-structured grids for validation, using water as a fluid. Then the simulations were carried out, using non-homogenous model, with oil and gas, changing the gas void fraction, and the superficial velocities for gas and liquid. A commercial package was used for numerical calculations. It was encountered that changing the value of the referred variables, in some cases the exit pressure of the “Y” junction diminishes. For validation of the results, a literature model was used for comparing both “K” loss coefficients: numerically and from the bibliography. It is important to highlight that these results, permit to analyze a way of diminishing the fluid energy losses in a Two-Phase oil-gas piping network, particularly in 45° “Y” junctions which represents economically saving.

Experimental Characterization of the Flow Instabilities of a Mixed-Flow Multiphase Pump Operating Air and Water Through Local Visualization and Analysis of Dynamic Measurements

Part load operation of pumps generates flow and machine instabilities, which are not desirable and should be avoided as they result in premature wear and mechanical problems. Two-phase flow introduces additional challenges, both at the design and operational stages, due to the different phase behavior and mutual interaction. The phenomena involved present an intermittent character and are strongly dependent on the specific geometry and operating conditions. Despite the recent promising development of numerical simulations capabilities, an accurate characterization of the flow mechanisms still relies on real tests, which are needed to validate the numerical models too. An advanced laboratory test facility built at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology provides the required optical access to the pump channels, and high-speed recordings, along with local measurements of the pressure pulsations, allow to describe the flow structures in terms of location, length and time scales, and relate them to overall machine measurements, such as flow, pressure and torque. This provides a wide collection of test data of great value for a further understanding of the surging phenomenon, the development of a surging onset prediction model and a control strategy. Tests are performed covering the whole range of flow rates; a characteristic surging condition is identified and described in the article.

Numerical and Experimental Investigation of the Flow in the SNS Jet Flow Target

Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) numerical simulations were performed for the flow inside the Spallation Neutron Source jet-flow target vessel at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Different flow rates and beam conditions were tested to cover all the functioning range of the target, but for brevity, only the nominal case with a mass flow rate of 185 kg/s and a beam power of 1.54MW is presented here. The heat deposition rate from the proton beam was computed using the general-purpose Monte Carlo radiation transport code MCNPX and the commercial CFD code ANSYS-CFX was used to determine the flow velocity in the mercury and the temperature fields in both the mercury and the stainless steel vessel. Boundary conditions, turbulence model and mesh effects are presented in depth. To validate the numerical approach, Particle Imagery Velocimetry (PIV) measurements on a water-loop setup with an acrylic jet-flow target mock-up were performed and compared to the numerical simulations. It was found that a sustained wall jet was developed across the whole length of the vulnerable surface, confirming the good design of the jet-flow target. Overall, good agreements were observed between the experiments and the simulations: the velocity contours and the shape of the recirculation zone near the side baffle are qualitatively similar. However, some differences were also observed that underlines the shortcomings of both the numerical simulations and the experimental measurements.