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(181 - 200 of 314)
Pages
- Title
- The performance of a Harrington forced draft chain grate stoker
- Creator
- Barce, Stanley H, Doolittle, Charles B, Wolgemuth, Bruno E., Quinlan, Frank D.
- Date
- 2009, 1921
- Publisher
- Armour Institute of Technology
- Description
-
http://www.archive.org/details/performanceofhar00barc
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology
- Title
- HYBRID ELECTROSTATIC AND MICRO-STRUCTURED ADHESIVES FOR ROBOTIC APPLICATIONS
- Creator
- Ruffatto, Donald F., Iii
- Date
- 2015, 2015-07
- Description
-
Current adhesives and gripping mechanisms used in many robotics applica- tions function on very speci c surface types or at de ned attachment...
Show moreCurrent adhesives and gripping mechanisms used in many robotics applica- tions function on very speci c surface types or at de ned attachment locations. A controllable, i.e. ON-OFF, adhesive mechanism that can operate on a wide range of surfaces would be very advantageous. Such a device would have applications ranging from robotic gripping and climbing to satellite docking and inspection/service mis- sions. The main goal of the research presented here was to create such an attachment mechanism through the use of a new hybrid adhesive technology. The newly devel- oped adhesive technology is a hybridization of electrostatic and micro-structured dry adhesion. The result provides enhanced robustness and utility, particularly on rough surfaces. There were challenges not only in the integration of these two adhesive elements but also with its application in a complete gripping mechanism. Electrostatic and directional dry adhesives were both individually investigated. The electrode geometry for an electrostatic adhesive was optimized for maximum ad- hesion force using nite element analysis software. Optimization results were then veri ed through experimental testing. New manufacturing techniques were also de- veloped for electrostatic adhesives that utilized a metalized mesh embedded in a sili- cone polymer and Kapton lm based construction, greatly improving adhesion. The micro-structured dry adhesive used was provided by Dr. Parness, from the NASA Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL), and consists of an array of vertical stalks with an angled front face, referred to as micro-wedges. The hybrid electrostatic dry adhesive (EDA) was created by fabricating the electrostatic adhesive directly on top of a dry adhesive mold. This process created an array of dry adhesive micro-wedges directly on the surface of the electrostatic adhesive. In operation the electrostatic adhesive provides a normal force which serves to pull the dry adhesive into the surface substrate. With greater surface contact more of the dry adhesive is able to engage, bring the electro-static adhesive even closer to the surface and increasing its e ectiveness. Therefore, the combination of these two technologies creates a positive feedback cycle whose whole is often greater than the sum of its parts. An interface mechanism is needed to transmit applied loads from a rigid struc- ture to the exiable adhesive while still maintaining its conformability. This is es- pecially important for strong adhesion on rough surfaces, such as tile and drywall. Di erent concepts such as a structured brillar hierarchy and a uid- lled backing pouch have been explored. Additionally, nite element analysis was used to evaluate di erent fribrillar shapes and geometry for the structured hierarchy. The goal was to equalize the load distribution across the adhesive while still maintaining surface compliance. A gripper mechanism was also created which used a servo for actuation and three rigid tiles with a directional dry adhesive. It was tested on a perching Micro Air Vehicle (MAV) as well as in the RoboDome facility at NASA's Jet Propulsion lab to simulate a satellite docking/capture maneuver.
Ph.D. in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, July 2015
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- Title
- IDENTIFY AND IMPROVE OBSTACLE AVOIDANCE CAPABILITY OF UNMANNED GROUND VEHICLE
- Creator
- Nie, Chenghui
- Date
- 2015, 2015-05
- Description
-
An Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV), incorporating a high level of obstacle avoidance capability, benefits from field operations. Such a UGV...
Show moreAn Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV), incorporating a high level of obstacle avoidance capability, benefits from field operations. Such a UGV would be better able to travel at a high average speed to quickly finish tasks, as well as quickly alter its trajectory to avoid getting into hostile situation. However, avoiding obstacles at high speed is challenging, since the danger of collisions with obstacle is increased with vehicle speed. This thesis developed novel metrics to mathematically identify the obstacle avoidance capability of ground vehicles. The theory is applied to demonstrate the characteristics of the obstacle avoidance capability of generalized rigid bodies and three types of wheeled ground vehicles: Ackermann steered, differential steered and omni-directional vehicle. The design guidelines are provided in the final chapters to improve obstacle avoidance capabilities of these three types of wheeled ground vehicles. I demonstrated in this thesis that the Ackermann steered vehicle's obstacle avoidance capability is related to the location of its center of mass. I utilized the obstacle avoidance theory to create a novel Variable Inertial Vehicle (VIV), an unmanned ground vehicle with a capability to control the location of its center of mass during locotion. Experimental results are presented to demonstrate the improved obstacle avoidance capability at the end. This thesis also experimental evaluates the characteristics of the obstacle avoidance capability of an omni-directional unmanned ground vehicle. This omnidirectional vehicle is comprised of four independent differential steered units, Active Split Offset Caster (ASOC). Both the characteristics of the vehicle system and ASOC kinematics are demonstrated. Experimental results are presented at the end to validate its distinct obstacle avoidance capability in challenging outdoor terrains.
Ph.D. in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, May 2015
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- Title
- The physical properties and tests of lubricating oils
- Creator
- Robechek, B., Steindler, N. A.
- Date
- 2009, 1917
- Publisher
- Armour Institute of Technology
- Description
-
http://www.archive.org/details/physicalproperti00robe
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology; Bibliography: leaf 33
- Title
- INVESTIGATION AND MODELING OF PRESSURE DEPENDENT YIELD BEHAVIOR OF 3D STOCHASTIC AND PERIODIC FOAMS
- Creator
- Ayyagari Venkata S, Ravi Sastri
- Date
- 2013, 2013-07
- Description
-
With growing potential of cellular solids in a multitude of diverse engineering applications including but not limited to automotive,...
Show moreWith growing potential of cellular solids in a multitude of diverse engineering applications including but not limited to automotive, aerospace, naval and biomed- ical industries as lightweight alternatives and space lling cores in sandwich struc- tures, need for predictive yield/failure criteria for these load bearing members under multiaxial stress states becomes critical. Although there exist several yield criteria proposed in the literature for highly porous solid foams, they are all phenomenolog- ical in nature, rely on relatively long list of model parameters that require di cult experimentation not readily available to end user, and none of them can handle the anisotropy observed in the majority of commercially available solid foams. Further, it is by now well established that, unlike commonly used engineering bulk solids, the yield behavior of highly porous solid foams is signi cantly in uenced by the hydro- static component of stress. In majority of phenomenological yield criteria proposed for solid foams this dependence is expressed by a quadratic pressure term. The scope of this study is quite comprehensive in the sense that it integrates analytical and computational investigation of yield behavior in solid foams along with extensive validation by recent experimental results produced in our lab. Present study proposes a physics based approach by hypothesizing that the yielding of stochastic foams is governed by the total elastic strain energy density, which leads to an energy based yield criterion for transversely isotropic foams and also provides a physical basis for the quadratic pressure dependence commonly adopted in existing phenomenolog- ical models. An added bene t of the analytical framework proposed in this work is that it introduces new scalar measures of stress and strain, which are referred to as characteristic stress and characteristic strain, that function in an analogous way to e ective (von Mises) stress and strain commonly used in analyzing the yield and post- yield behavior of bulk metals. Besides accommodating anisotropy, this energy-based xii yield criterion renders a unique advantage by relying only on the elastic properties and uniaxial yield strengths of the material, which makes the proposed yield criterion extremely practical for end user. Results from experimental data obtained from multiaxial testing of Divinycell H100 and H130 foams (Sha q, 2009; Ehaab, 2011) as well as a series of extensive com- putational simulations performed in this study on: a) periodic Kelvin foam models (both isotropic and transversely isotropic) of varying relative densities, b) stochastic Voronoi foams (both isotropic and transversely isotropic), point out to an additional linear pressure dependence in the yield behavior of solid foams, from a load-sharing viewpoint. This dependence is observed to be more pronounced at lower relative den- sities. A simple quantitative technique which is based on the partition of elastic strain energy into bending and stretch components is used to identify the distribution of deformation modes at microstructural level, along with its in uence on load sharing as a function of stress path. Furthermore, a plasticity model that incorporates a ow rule and hardening law are presented which allows the analysis of inelastic deforma- tions in solid foams in a continuum framework. Such models facilitate development of user de ned material model (UMAT) that allow evaluating the performance of proposed yield criterion under complex loading scenarios, such as indentation and punch loading.
PH.D in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, July 2013
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- Title
- EFFECTS OF FUEL PROPERTIES ON THE COMBUSTION PROCESS OF AN ADVANCED DIESEL ENGINE
- Creator
- Ramos Silva, Cedric Zacarias
- Date
- 2015, 2015-12
- Description
-
Internal combustion engines are encountered in our everyday lives in passenger cars and heavy-duty vehicles such as trucks and buses. While...
Show moreInternal combustion engines are encountered in our everyday lives in passenger cars and heavy-duty vehicles such as trucks and buses. While conventional compression ignition engines burn diesel fuel with an oxidizer (generally air) in a combustion chamber, much recent research has focused on improving the efficiency of combustion and reducing vehicle pollutant output through the usage of fuels with properties which differ from those of diesel fuel. In particular, this study focuses on a dual fuel engine in which two fuels (usually gasoline or diesel fuel mixed with an alternate fuel) are separately injected and combusted. Results from an Argonne National Laboratory test cell utilizing a 13 Liter (L) heavy duty dual fuel engine running in a combustion mode known as Reactivity Controlled Compression Ignition (RCCI) were leveraged in this work. In a RCCI engine, two fuels of different reactivities (low reactivity and high reactivity) are used in order to control in-cylinder fuel reactivity and allow for the optimization of combustion phasing and duration. In addition, RCCI combustion has been shown to produce low amounts of nitrogen oxides (NOx) as well as particulate matter (PM) emissions which may eliminate the need for expensive after-treatment systems. The combustion shaping capabilities and low emissions of RCCI dual fuel engines enable reductions in heat transfer losses and as such the increase of fuel efficiency. In order to understand the dynamics of such engines, a detailed simulation model of a RCCI dual fuel engine was constructed and developed using the Gamma Technologies (GT) simulation suite in particular GT-POWER and GT-SUITE. Modeling of the complex gas exchange process as well as the combustion process of the 13L RCCI dual fuel engine were both undertaken. This model was then leveraged to examine the effect of fuel properties on the combustion process using GT simulation suite. Experimental data from the 13L engine at Argonne was used to validate the models of the gas exchange and combustion processes. For the gas exchange process as well as the combustion process, the results from the simulation model fairly accurately match the experimental data from the Argonne engine. To achieve RCCI, the engine is equipped with a complex air handling system which includes two turbochargers as well as exhaust gas recirculation (EGR). To ensure that the gas exchange process was accurately captured, the experimental intake pressure, EGR fraction (EGR mass flow rate divided by the sum of EGR mass flow rate and air mass flow), fresh airflow rate, maximum in-cylinder pressure, IMEP and exhaust pressure were compared with the simulation results given by GT-POWER and GT-POST. By modeling the engine components in GT-POWER and adding additional control algorithms, the previously mentioned parameters predictions were within 10% of the engine data. The combustion process was modeled using a Direct-Injection Jet (DI-Jet) combustion model. The DI-Jet model is a predictive combustion model which predicts the burn rate, combustion rate and NOx emissions. This model was calibrated by comparing the experimental and simulation heat release curves. Particular attention is given to accurately capturing the start of combustion and ignition delay period because they affect the combustion process the most.
M.S. in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, December 2015
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- Title
- Design, installation and operation of cams for the valve-gear of a three-cylinder, 8 x 10 in. Westinghouse gas engine
- Creator
- Paterson, William, Bunge, Ludwig W. A
- Date
- 2009, 1915
- Publisher
- Armour Institute of Technology
- Description
-
http://www.archive.org/details/designinstallati00pate
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology, 1915 B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, 1915
- Title
- Design and installation of power plant and heating system for the zone of camp activities and amusements, Camp Funston, Kansas
- Creator
- Pimstein, Sidney.
- Date
- 2009, 1919
- Publisher
- Armour Institute of Technology
- Description
-
http://www.archive.org/details/designinstallati00pims
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology; Includes folded leaves in back pocket
- Title
- Design of an exhaust gas calorimeter for automobile engines
- Creator
- Mayer, J. Leo., Hibbard, Lewis E
- Date
- 2009, 1915
- Publisher
- Armour Institute of Technology
- Description
-
http://www.archive.org/details/designofexhaustg00maye
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology, 1915 B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, 1915
- Title
- The design of a tractor for general farm and road work
- Creator
- Evans, R. T.
- Date
- 2009, 1917
- Publisher
- Armour Institute of Technology
- Description
-
http://www.archive.org/details/designoftractorf00evan
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology; Includes folded leaves in back pocket
- Title
- Economy tests of 40 H. P. automobile engine including construction and operation of manograph
- Creator
- Lawrence, M. F, Dunn, W. C.
- Date
- 2009, 1912
- Publisher
- Armour Institute of Technology
- Description
-
http://www.archive.org/details/economytestsof4000lawr
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology, 1912 B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, 1912
- Title
- Economical banking of fires with a green chain grate storker
- Creator
- Hayes, J. J., Jr, Jarvis, B. H.
- Date
- 2009, 1913
- Publisher
- Armour Institute of Technology
- Description
-
http://www.archive.org/details/economicalbankin00haye
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology
- Title
- Economy and capacity test of a three ton York ice plant
- Creator
- Sir, Walter Waldemar., Bohn, Robert, Cooley, Gilbert
- Date
- 2009, 1914
- Publisher
- Armour Institute of Technology
- Description
-
http://www.archive.org/details/economycapacityt00sirw
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology, 1914 Includes bibliographical references ...
Show morehttp://www.archive.org/details/economycapacityt00sirw
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology, 1914 Includes bibliographical references (leaf 26) and index B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, 1914
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- Title
- An economy analysis of automobile engines by a new method
- Creator
- White, H. S., Fritze, G. M., King, L. A.
- Date
- 2009, 1917
- Publisher
- Armour Institute of Technology
- Description
-
http://www.archive.org/details/economyanalysiso00whit
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology; Includes folded leaves in back pocket
- Title
- Efficiency test of a hydro-electric plant
- Date
- 2009, 1910
- Publisher
- Armour Institute of Technology
- Description
-
http://www.archive.org/details/effeciencytestof00baug
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology, 1910 B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, 1910
- Title
- The effect in economy of an automobile engine of varying the igniter and fuel valve opening
- Creator
- Dekker, Harry G., Mayes, Frank H.
- Date
- 2009, 1909
- Publisher
- Armour Institute of Technology
- Description
-
http://www.archive.org/details/effectineconomyo00dekk
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology; Includes bibliographical references and index
- Title
- Experiments with Westinghouse gas engine
- Creator
- Dreffein, C. G., Turnbull, I. J
- Date
- 2009, 1907
- Publisher
- Armour Institute of Technology
- Description
-
http://www.archive.org/details/experimentswithw00dref
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology, 1907 B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, 1907
- Title
- Experimental investigation of the flow of steam thru pipes by means of the pitot tube
- Creator
- Friedlander, L. G., Busse, C. F.
- Date
- 2009, 1908
- Publisher
- Armour Institute of Technology
- Description
-
http://www.archive.org/details/experimentalinve00frie
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology
- Title
- Experimental development of a special indicator for the gas engine
- Creator
- Brubaker, W. C.
- Date
- 2009, 1906
- Publisher
- Armour Institute of Technology
- Description
-
http://www.archive.org/details/experimentaldeve00brub
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology
- Title
- Gasoline characteristics
- Creator
- Mouat, Harry G, Wilcox, Maurice L
- Date
- 2009, 1916
- Publisher
- Armour Institute of Technology
- Description
-
http://www.archive.org/details/gasolinecharacte00moua
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology, 1916 Bibliography: leaf 47 B.S. in...
Show morehttp://www.archive.org/details/gasolinecharacte00moua
Thesis (B.S.)--Armour Institute of Technology, 1916 Bibliography: leaf 47 B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, 1916
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