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At least 1,099 records · Page 61

An index to characterize gas‐solid and solid‐solid mixing from average volume fraction fields

Abstract A mixing index based on solid volume fraction fields is developed for gas‐solid flows. Conventional mixing indices are based on particle realizations of granular mixing and are applicable to experimental data or discrete element method simulations. However, these indices cannot be used as‐is for multifluid models, and an index for characterizing mixing in gas‐solid flows from continuous fields is needed. The performance of the new mixing index is tested in two applications. The first is a 3D simulation of the mixing of biomass and sand in a fluidized bed reactor, and the second is a 2D simulation of binary particle segregation in a fluidized bed. The simulations are performed using OpenFOAM®. The mixing index is used to quantify gas‐solid mixing using solid volume fractions and solid‐solid mixing using solid fractions. The formulation of conventional mixing indices is extended to be used with solid volume fractions fields, and methods for performance improvement are presented.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗

Retrieval of water vapor mixing ratios from a laser-based sensor

Langley Research Center has developed a novel external path sensor which monitors water vapor along an optical path between an airplane window and reflective material on the plane's engine. An infrared tunable diode laser is wavelength modulated across a water vapor absorption line at a frequency f. The 2f and DC signals are measured by a detector mounted adjacent to the laser. The 2f/DC ratio depends on the amount of wavelength modulation, the water vapor absorption line being observed, and the temperature, pressure, and water vapor content of the atmosphere. The present work concerns efforts to quantify the contributions of these factors and to derive a method for extracting the water vapor mixing ratio from the measurements. A 3 m cell was fabricated in order to perform laboratory tests of the sensor. Measurements of 2f/DC were made for a series of pressures and modulation amplitudes. During my 1994 faculty fellowship, a computer program was created which allowed 2f/DC to be calculated for any combination of the variables which effect it. This code was used to generate 2f/DC values for the conditions measured in the laboratory. The experimental and theoretical values agreed to within a few percent. As a result, the laser modulation amplitude can now be set in the field by comparing the response of the instrument to the calculated response as a function of modulation amplitude. Once the validity of the computer code was established, it was used to investigate possible candidate absorption lines. 2f/DC values were calculated for pressures, temperatures, and water vapor mixing ratios expected to be encountered in future missions. The results have been incorporated into a database which will be used to select the best line for a particular mission. The database will also be used to select a retrieval technique. For examples under some circumstances there is little temperature dependence in 2f/DC so temperature can be neglected. In other cases, there is a dependence with temperature for a particular pressure, requiring a more complicated retrieval algorithm. Future experimental work is necessary to test agreement with the theoretical values over a range of temperatures and mixing ratios. Additionally, retrieval algorithms for forthcoming missions must be incorporated into the software package which controls the instrument.

Tucker, George F.↗

Conditional Point Sampling: A Monte Carlo Method for Radiation Transport in Stochastic Media.

Current methods for stochastic media transport are either computationally expensive or, by nature, approximate. Moreover, none of the well-developed, benchmarked approximate methods can compute the variance caused by the stochastic mixing, a quantity especially important to safety calculations. Therefore, we derive and apply a new conditional probability function (CPF) for use in the recently developed stochastic media transport algorithm Conditional Point Sampling (CoPS), which 1) leverages the full intra-particle memory of CoPS to yield errorless computation of stochastic media outputs in 1D, binary, Markovian-mixed media, and 2) leverages the full inter-particle memory of CoPS and the recently developed Embedded Variance Deconvolution method to yield computation of the variance in transport outputs caused by stochastic material mixing. Numerical results demonstrate errorless stochastic media transport as compared to reference benchmark solutions with the new CPF for this class of stochastic mixing as well as the ability to compute the variance caused by the stochastic mixing via CoPS. Using previously derived, non-errorless CPFs, CoPS is further found to be more accurate than the atomic mix approximation, Chord Length Sampling (CLS), and most of memory-enhanced versions of CLS surveyed. In addition, we study the compounding behavior of CPF error as a function of cohort size (where a cohort is a group of histories that share intra-particle memory) and recommend that small cohorts be used when computing the variance in transport outputs caused by stochastic mixing.

61 RADIATION PROTECTION AND DOSIMETRY↗

Image sharpening for mixed spatial and spectral resolution satellite systems

Two methods of image sharpening (reconstruction) are compared. The first, a spatial filtering technique, extrapolates edge information from a high spatial resolution panchromatic band at 10 meters and adds it to the low spatial resolution narrow spectral bands. The second method, a color normalizing technique, is based on the ability to separate image hue and brightness components in spectral data. Using both techniques, multispectral images are sharpened from 30, 50, 70, and 90 meter resolutions. Error rates are calculated for the two methods and all sharpened resolutions. The results indicate that the color normalizing method is superior to the spatial filtering technique.

Hallada, W. A.↗

The mixing mechanism by organised turbulence structures in a plane jet excited by a novel method

The effect on a plane subsonic turbulent jet of controlled high-amplitude periodic oscillations applied to the nozzle is investigated experimentally. A variable-speed motor and a gear-cam mechanism are used to make the lips of the nozzle reciprocate in opposite directions at the desired frequency. Velocity profiles, flow visualizations, and pressure-signal traces are presented and analyzed in detail. The complex vortex processes involved in the oscillation-induced spreading and entrainment of the jet are explored, and a critical Strouhal number for vortex formation and amplification is determined. The oscillation technique is found to augment the thrust of a jet/duct-diffuser configuration by a factor of 1.20; the thrust increases with oscillation frequency up to 20 Hz and remains constant if the frequency is further increased.

Badri Narayanan, M. A.↗

Synthesis of mixed-valent [alpha]- and [beta]-NaFe[subscript 2]O[subscript 3] polymorphs under controlled partial oxygen pressure

Synthesis of mixed valent compounds, especially when multiple polymorphs exist, requires careful control of the preparation conditions. {alpha}- and {beta}-NaFe{sub 2}O{sub 3} polymorphs were synthesized under controlled partial oxygen pressure (pO{sub 2}). pO{sub 2} regions of stability at 850 C were determined for both phases for the first time. A modified oxygen buffer method was developed for the facile preparation of mixed valent oxides under controlled pO{sub 2}. {beta}-NaFe{sub 2}O{sub 3} is the only known n = 2 member of the AM{sub n}O{sub n+1} (A = alkali metal, M = 3d metal) rock-salt related homolog series with layered cation ordering. The possibility of new members of the homolog series with other 3d metals is considered.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Artificial compressibility methods for numerical solutions of transonic full potential equation

New methods for transonic flow computations based on the full potential equation in conservation form are presented. The idea is to modify slightly the density (due to the artificial viscosity in the supersonic region), and solve the resulting elliptic-like problem iteratively. It is shown that standard discretization techniques (central differencing) as well as some standard iterative procedures (SOR, ADI, and explicit methods) are applicable to the modified transonic mixed-type equation. Calculations of transonic flows around cylinders and airfoils are discussed with special emphasis on the explicit methods that are suitable for vector processing on the STAR 100 computer.

Hafez, M.↗

A homogeneous model for monotone mixed horizontal linear complementarity problems

In this paper, we propose a homogeneous model for the class of mixed horizontal linear complementarity problems. The proposed homogeneous model is always solvable and provides the solution of the original problem if it exists, or a certificate of infeasibility otherwise. Our formulation preserves the sparsity of the original formulation and does not reduce to the homogeneous model of the equivalent standard linear complementarity problem. We study the properties of the model and show that interior-point methods can be used efficiently for the numerical solutions of the homogeneous problem. Finally, numerical experiments show convincingly that it is more efficient to use the proposed homogeneous model for the mixed horizontal linear complementarity problem than to use known homogeneous models for the equivalent standard linear complementarity problem.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Mixing of Supersonic Jets in a RBCC Strutjet Propulsion System

The Strutjet approach to Rocket Based Combined Cycle (RBCC) propulsion depends upon fuel-rich flows from the rocket nozzles and turbine exhaust products mixing with the ingested air for successful operation in the ramjet and scramjet modes. It is desirable to delay this mixing process in the air-augmented mode of operation present during take-off and low speed flight. A scale model of the Strutjet device was built and tested to investigate the mixing of the streams as a function of distance from the Strut exit plane in simulated sea level take-off conditions. The Planar Laser Induced Fluorescence (PLIF) diagnostic method has been employed to observe the mixing of the turbine exhaust gas with the gases from both the primary rockets and the ingested air. The ratio of the pressure in the turbine exhaust to that in the rocket nozzle wall at the point where the two jets meet, is the independent variable in these experiments. Tests were accomplished at values of 1.0 (the original design point), 1.5 and 2.0 for this parameter at 8 locations downstream of the rocket nozzle exit. The results illustrate the development of the mixing zone from the exit plane of the strut to a distance of about 18 equivalent rocket nozzle exit diameters downstream (18"). These images show the turbine exhaust to be confined until a short distance downstream. The expansion into the ingested air is more pronounced at a pressure ratio of 1.0 and 1.5 and shows that mixing with this air would likely begin at a distance of 2" downstream of the nozzle exit plane. Of the pressure ratios tested in this research, 2.0 is the best value for delaying the mixing at the operating conditions considered.

Muller, S.↗

Extended FFT-based micromechanical formulation to consider general non-periodic boundary conditions

Here, this paper presents a new approach for applying non-periodic boundary conditions in the context of FFT-based methods to solve micromechanical problems in heterogeneous solids. The domain of the original problem is extended to satisfy the periodicity requirements at the boundary of the extended domain. The velocity constraint on the boundary of the original domain is replaced by a corresponding constraint on the velocity gradient in the extended volume, and a two-level augmented Lagrangian method is used to enforce the constraint. The proposed method is implemented as an extension of the large-strain elasto-viscoplastic FFT-based (LS-EVPFFT) model of Zecevic et al. (2022). The proposed method is verified in the cases of fully imposed velocity boundary conditions and mixed velocity/traction-free boundary conditions. The accuracy and convergence of the method are studied next, followed by applications to bending and indentation of polycrystals that illustrate the extended capabilities of the proposed formulation.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Automated recovery of rare earth permanent magnets from electric machines

A method for the automated recovery of rare earth permanent magnets from electric machines are provided. The method includes identifying electric machines in a mixed product stream for performing a unique robotic disassembly routine. Electric machines that are not identified are diverted to a robot training station, during which time the system and the method include implementing a suitable disassembly routine. A conveyor delivers the remaining electric machines to a rotary platform having multiple stations for the simultaneous disassembly of multiple electric machines. Permanent magnets are removed from the electric machines and are then sorted for recycling operations.

McIntyre, Timothy J.↗

Prevention of Dual-Mode Excitation in 9-Cell Cavities for LCLSII-HE

Dual-Mode Excitation, also referred to as mode-mixing, is a superposition of two fundamental pi modes in an SRF cavity. In 9-cell TESLA cavities used for the LCLSII-HE project, the two modes that are commonly excited are the pi mode (1300.2 MHz), and the 7/9 pi mode (1297.8 MHz). During vertical cavity qualification testing, only the pi mode is driven by the RF system. However, at high gradients, emitted power at the frequency of the 7/9 pi mode grows despite the RF system only powering the pi mode. When this happens, the RF power measurement system is unable to differentiate between the superimposed modes, and any data taken is invalid. The previous method of dealing with mode-mixing was to turn off power to the cavity, let both modes decay fully, then restore power. Because of the time-sensitive nature of this testing, this leads to underestimates of Q0 or any radiant field emission present in the cavity. The novel RF control solution prevents the 7/9 pi mode from being excited while not interfering with measurements of the fundamental pi mode. A second RF control system is connected to the cavity which drives the 7/9 pi mode. The loop phase for driving the 7/9 pi mode in self excited loop mode is determined then shifted by 180 degrees, thus providing a negative feedback to the undesired mode. Because this off-resonance power can be very small, on the order of milliwatts, it does not interfere with the high-power measurements of the fundamental pi mode. At Jefferson Lab, we are now able to test a cavity for the LCLSII-HE project with no problems from mode-mixing, which allows for CW processing of high-gradient multipacting and field emission.

Owen, Peter↗

Field Testing of a Mixed Potential IoT Sensor Platform for Methane Quantification

Emissions of CH 4 from natural gas infrastructure must urgently be addressed to mitigate its effect on global climate. With hundreds of thousands of miles of pipeline in the US used to transport natural gas, current methods of surveying for leaks are inadequate. Mixed potential sensors are a low cost, field deployable technology for remote and continuous monitoring of natural gas infrastructure. We demonstrate for the first time a field trial of a mixed potential sensor device coupled with machine learning and internet-of-things platform at Colorado State University’s Methane Emissions Technology Evaluation Center (METEC). Emissions were detected from a simulated buried underground pipeline source. Sensor data was acquired and transmitted from the field test site to a remote cloud server. Quantification of concentration as a function of vertical distance is consistent with previously reported transport modelling efforts and experimental surveys of methane emissions by more sophisticated CH 4 analyzers.

03 NATURAL GAS↗

Mixed-venous oxygen tension by nitrogen rebreathing - A critical, theoretical analysis.

There is dispute about the validity of the nitrogen rebreathing technique for determination of mixed-venous oxygen tension. This theoretical analysis examines the circumstances under which the technique is likely to be applicable. When the plateau method is used the probable error in mixed-venous oxygen tension is plus or minus 2.5 mm Hg at rest, and of the order of plus or minus 1 mm Hg during exercise. Provided, that the rebreathing bag size is reasonably chosen, Denison's (1967) extrapolation technique gives results at least as accurate as those obtained by the plateau method. At rest, however, extrapolation should be to 30 rather than to 20 sec.

Kelman, G. R.↗

A QUALITATIVE METHOD TO ESTIMATE HSI DISPLAY COMPLEXITY

There is mounting evidence that complex computer system displays in control rooms contribute to cognitive complexity and, thus, to the probability of human error. Research shows that reaction time increases and response accuracy decreases as the number of elements in the display screen increase. However, in terms of supporting the control room operator, approaches focusing on addressing display complexity solely in terms of information density and its location and patterning, will fall short of delivering a properly designed interface. This paper argues that information complexity and semantic complexity are mandatory components when considering display complexity and that the addition of these concepts assists in understanding and resolving differences between designers and the preferences and performance of operators. This paper concludes that a number of simplified methods, when combined, can be used to estimate the impact that a particular display may have on the operator's ability to perform a function accurately and effectively. We present a mixed qualitative and quantitative approach and a method for complexity estimation.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

A self-contained algorithm for determination of solid-liquid equilibria in an alloy system

In this paper, we describe a self-contained procedure to evaluate the free energy of liquid and solid phases of an alloy system. The free energy of a single-element solid phase is calculated with thermodynamic integration using the Einstein crystal as the reference system. Then, free energy difference between the solid and liquid phases is calculated by Gibbs-Duhem integration. The central part of our method is the construction of a reversible alchemical path connecting a pure liquid and a liquid alloy to calculate the mixing enthalpy and entropy. We have applied the method to calculate the free energy of solid and liquid phases in the Al-Sm system. Finally, the driving force for fcc-Al nucleation in Al-Sm liquid and the melting curve for fcc-Al and Al 3 Sm are also calculated.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Cesium and sodium-containing scintillator compositions

The present invention relates to scintillator compositions and related devices and methods. The scintillator may include, for example, a mixed halide scintillator composition including at least two different CsNaLa halide compounds and a dopant. Related radiation detection devices and methods are further included.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗