Refrigerated gases have been used to store energy with limited success. This paper presents the results of an exploratory study of how the behavior of fluids compressed to high pressures can be used to increase the efficiency of refrigeration cycles and one possible application for renewable energy. This research presents the results of thermodynamic modeling and analysis of a novel Carbon Dioxide (CO2) cycle to be used for alternative energy production. The thermodynamic computational simulations are carried out in MATLAB and use the NIST REFPROP database for modeling the high pressure (on the order of 1000 MPa) CO2 state points. Preliminary results show that the maximum energy that can be recovered using the proposed high pressure cycle in on the order of 11,043 J, for each mole of CO2 flowing in the cycle. Thus the Coefficient of Performance is COP = 2.22, and the efficiency of the cycle is estimated as η = 35%. Future work will focus on the development of equipment such as the cryogenic turbo-expander that can operate at the ultra-high pressures studied.

The sCO2-4-NPP european project aims to develop an innovative technology based on supercritical CO 2 (sCO 2 ) for heat removal to improve the safety of current and future nuclear power plants. The heat removal from the reactor core will be achieved with multiple highly compact self-propellant, self-launching, and self-sustaining cooling system modules, powered by a sCO 2 Brayton cycle. Heat exchangers are one of the key components required for advanced Brayton cycles using supercritical CO 2 . Fives Cryo company, a brazed plates and fins heat exchangers manufacturer, with its expertise in thermal and hydraulic design and brazing fabrication is developing compact, and highly efficient stainless steel heat exchanger solution for sCO 2 power cycles, thanks to their heat exchange capability with low pinch and high available flow sections. The aim of the development of this specific heat exchanger technology is to achieve an elevated degree of regeneration. For this matter, plates and fins heat exchanger is a very interesting solution to meet the desired thermal duty with low pressure drop leading to a reduction in size and capital cost. The enhancement of the mechanical integrity of plates and fins heat exchanger equipment would lead to compete with, and even outweigh, printed circuit heat exchangers technology, classically used for sCO 2 Brayton cycles. sCO 2 cycle conditions expose heat exchangers to severe conditions. Base material selection is essential, and for cost reasons, it is important to keep affordable heat-resistant austenitic stainless steel grades, much cheaper than a nickel-based alloy. Another advantage of high compactness of plates and fins heat exchangers is the diminution of the amount of material used in the heat exchanger manufacturing, decreasing even more its cost. The challenge here is to qualify stainless steel plates and fins heat exchangers mechanical resistance, at cycle operating conditions, and meet with pressure vessels codes and regulations according to nuclear requirements. One critical point in the development of the heat exchangers is the design of the fins. As secondary surface, they allow the maximization of heat transfer at low pressure drop. At the same time mechanical strength has to be guaranteed. To withstand high pressure, fins thickness has to be significant, which makes the implementation complicated. Efforts were dedicated to successfully obtain an optimal shape. Forming of fins was therefore improved compared to conventional techniques. Important work was undertaken to define industrial settings to flatten the top of the fins leading to a maximum contact between the brazing alloy and the fins. Consequently brazed joints quantity is minimized inducing a diminution of the presence of eutectic phase, which is structurally brittle and limits the mechanical strength of the construction. A metallurgical study brings other elements leading to the prevention of premature rupture of the brazed structure. The idea is to determine an optimized solidification path and to identify a temperature range and holding time where the brazed joint is almost free of eutectic phase during the assembly process in the vacuum furnace.

Ray-finned fish swim by flapping their fins, which are composed of bony rays connected by an inextensible membrane. Throughout the flapping cycle, the fins typically undergo both ‘passive’ deformation due to hydrodynamic loading, and ‘active’ deformation arising from internal musculature deforming the fin against the flow. To systematically analyze the impact of fin shape on hydrodynamic performance, a parametric definition of the fin geometry and its modes of deformation is required, consistent with the fin’s material and mechanical properties. In this paper we present a model and algorithm to determine the fin shape corresponding to an arbitrary out-of-plane curvature distribution for each ray. The shape is computed by iteratively enforcing constraints corresponding to membrane inextensibility, and negligible torsional stiffness of the rays. Based on this model, we present a low-order parametrization of fin shapes that capture the predominant deformation modes due to combined hydrodynamic loading and intrinsic actuation, as compared to experimental observations. To demonstrate the model’s ability to provide insight into the effect of curvature on hydrodynamic fin performance, we integrate our algorithm into a 3D Navier-Stokes solver Using this framework, we present initial results on the cycle-averaged thrust coefficient of a passively and actively deforming generalized trapezoidal caudal fin model at Reynolds number 1500 and Strouhal number 0.3. The results demonstrate that our model, algorithm, and integration with the flow solver form a useful framework to understand the effect of 3D curvature on hydrodynamic performance of flapping fins.

In this work, we focus on the motility behavior of two model microorganisms widely used in the study of active fluids: Chlamydomonas reinhardtii microalga and Synechocystis sp. Cyanobacterium. Understanding the physiological responses of microorganisms under variable environmental conditions is essential for bioreactor engineering. Yet, most of the previous studies focused on the observation of cellular motility regardless of the growth process. Here, we measure the motility of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and Synechocystis sp. during their growth when subjected to different intensities of hydrodynamic shear stress. The results demonstrate a significant difference in the motility response of the two species against the applied hydrodynamic shear stress. Mechanical agitation appears to affect the motility of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii microalgae by stimulating the growth process and increasing the magnitude of the cellular swimming velocity. The motility varies following 3 different phases: the rising phase starting almost at the middle of the exponential growth phase, and the decay and damped phases during the stationary phase. This behavior is described using a linear model for the rising phase and a damped oscillatory model for the decay and damped phases. The motility of Synechocystis does not follow a well-defined pattern in time. However, it seems that the peak of the swimming velocity occurs always in the middle of exponential phase of growth. Synechocystis cells show a high endurance to the applied shear such that the global effect of agitation intensity on their motility is insignificant.

The flow around, and in the wake of, pitching airfoils has received renewed interest due to its potential for thrust production at low Reynolds numbers. Past work has centered on the flow fields generated by symmetric pitching of the airfoil. Studies investigating the effects of asymmetric motion are more limited. This work focuses on the wake patterns developed due to asymmetric pitching. Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) is used to quantify the flow field around a NACA0012 airfoil undergoing small amplitude, high frequency asymmetric pitching. The airfoil is pitched about the quarter chord point with an amplitude of ±4° at reduced frequencies of k = 2.6–5.8 at a Re c = 12000. Pitching symmetries of 50/50, 40/60 and 30/70 are studied, where the symmetry is defined by the fraction of the cycle spent in the pitch down versus pitch up motion. The data show that for the 50/50 (symmetric) motions two alternating sign vortices, with equivalent strength, are formed as expected. The asymmetric cases show that a single vortex is formed during the “fast” portion of the pitching motion. Multiple vortices are formed during the “slow” portion of the pitching motion. The number of secondary vortices and the downstream evolution of the vortices depends on the symmetry value. In some cases they remain isolated but orbit other vortical structures, while in other cases they pair with other vortical structures, and finally when the reduced frequency and asymmetry values are high enough the vortex array shows interaction between cycles.

Porous media compressed air energy storage (PM-CAES) is an emerging technology that stores compressed air in an underground aquifer during the off-peak periods, to mitigate the mismatch between energy supplies and demands. Thus, PM-CAES involves repeated two-phase fluid flow in porous media, and ensuring the success of PM-CAES requires a better understanding of repetitive two-phase fluid flow through porous media. For this purpose, we previously developed microfluidic channels that retain a two-dimensional (2D) pore network. Because it was found that the geometry of the pore structure significantly affects the patterns and occupational efficiencies of a non-wetting fluid during the drainage-imbibition cycles, a more realistic microfluidic model is needed to reflect the three-dimensional (3D) nature of pore structures in the underground geologic formation. In this study, we developed an easy-to-adopt method to fabricate a microfluidic device with a 3D random pore network using a sacrificial sugar template. Instead of using a master mold made in photolithography, a sacrificial mold was made using sugar grains so that the mold could be washed away after PDMS curing. First, we made sugar templates with different levels of compaction load, and found that the thickness of the templates decreased as the compaction load increased, which suggests more packing of sugar grains and thus lower porosity in the template. Second, we fabricated PDMS porous media using the sugar template as a mold, and imaged their pore structure using micro computed tomography (micro-CT). Pores within PDSM samples appeared more tightly packed as the compacting force increased. Last, we fabricated a prototype PDMS channel device with a 3D pore network using a sugar template, and visualized flow through the pore network using colored water. The flow visualization result shows that the water was guided by the random pores and that the resultant flow pattern was three dimensional.

Extracting milk during breastfeeding is not only caused by intra-oral vacuum pressure by the infant suckling but also is the periodic motion of the infant’s jaw, which is the focus of this study. A Fluid-structure interaction simulation provides a better understanding of the milk flow behavior in the human breast ductal system as the breast interacts with the infant’s oral cavity and jaws. Simulations were performed from the instance of latching and continued for two cycles of periodic tongue motion. The negative vacuum pressure profile was measured from the clinical data and applied in the simulation. The nipple dimensions were obtained using ultrasound images and used as boundary conditions in the simulation. The effect of vacuum pressure and the peripheral pressure on the milk flow behavior in breast ductal system were studied individually. It was observed that the deformation of the ductal system has a critical impact on milk flow behavior and the amount of expressed milk.

In this research, we numerically investigated the influences of the body’s presence on flow around the hovering fruit fly with regularized lattice Boltzmann method. In recent years, insect’s flapping flight system has been investigated because their superior flight mechanisms are expected to improve the flight abilities of micro air vehicles. Because of the simplification of experimental equipment and computational simulation, the insect model without body is often used to investigate the flow around the hovering flight insect. However, the gap between the wing and body can significantly change the flow around the wing root. Thus, we conducted investigations of the influences of the body’s presence on the vortical flow structure and cycle-averaged lift coefficient. As a result, the aerodynamic forces on the wings were enhanced by the body’s presence. The flow at the gap between wing and body enhanced the vortex strength and aerodynamic forces on the wing root region. Also, the cycle-averaged lift coefficient of the with body model was slightly higher than that of the without body model. If the wing’s flapping motion or the shape of the wing is changed, the effects of the body’s presence will cause different flow around the wing root. Therefore, it is necessary to take body’s presence into consideration.

Energy harvesting performance for a flapping foil device is evaluated to determine how activated leading edge motion affects the aerodynamic forces and the cycle power generated. Results are obtained for a thin flat foil that pitches about the mid-chord and operates in the reduced frequency range of k = fc/U of 0.06–0.10 and Reynolds numbers of 20,000 and 30,000 with a pitching amplitude of 70° and heaving amplitude of h 0 = 0.5c. Time resolved data are presented based on direct force measurements and are used to determine overall cycle efficiency and coefficient of power. These results are compared against a panel-based discrete vortex model to predict power production. The model incorporates a leading edge suction parameter predictor for vortex shedding and empirical adjustments to circulatory forces. It is found that the leading edge motions that reduce the effective angle of attack early in a flapping stroke generate larger forces later in the stroke. Consequently, the energy harvesting efficiencies and power coefficients are increased since the generated aerodynamic loads are better synchronized with the foil motion. The efficiency gains are reduced with increasing reduced frequencies.

Currently in development at Muroran Institute of Technology, a small gas-generator-cycle air turbo ramjet engine (GG-ATR) for a supersonic unmanned aerial vehicle requiring deep throttling uses liquid oxygen/ethanol as a propellant. However, it is difficult to maintain a liquid-phase flow at a low mass flow rate or at a low pressure due to flashing in the feedline. In response, we investigated the ability of our ground test facility to feed liquid oxygen at a low mass flow rate. The experimental results of the flow tests validated the proposed one-dimensional model, including heat input and the density change in the feed line. The minimum possible flow rate as a subcooled liquid flow was examined with the model and the throttling level of 75 % was possible when assuming 110 K in tank temperature.

The fate of particulate matter in the ocean is determined in large part by its size and settling rate. Disaggregation, caused by turbulence-induced shear, acts to fracture or erode large particles into slower-settling sub-aggregates and primary particles. The strength and breakup response of organic marine aggregates (i.e. marine snow particles consisting of phytoplankton) is poorly understood, limiting our ability to accurately predict marine particle transport effects on the global carbon cycle. A study was conducted to enable the investigation of disaggregation effects on these organic marine particle aggregates. Due to the fragile nature of the Phytoplankton cells and their resulting aggregates, test facilities that do not rely on external sampling or pumps are required. A novel rolling aggregation tank was developed that can both aggregate phytoplankton cells under varying hydrodynamic conditions and then expose them to calibrated shear forces using laminar oscillating flow. The theory behind the operation of this tank is presented along with the necessary operating conditions to create stable regions within the tank where particle settling effects are minimal but shear is still representative of values expected in the open ocean. Phytoplankton was cultured in the laboratory to create simulated marine snow particles in the open ocean for disaggregation experiments. The procedure to calculate and track the shear-history of each aggregate is described and how the data generated from this facility will be used to quantify disaggregation parameters relevant for population balance modeling is discussed.

Interaction between surge behavior and internal flow field under coexisting phenomena of surge and rotating stall was experimentally investigated. In the experiment, the tank pressure of the compressor during surge was measured to detect the effect of the back-pressure fluctuation on the change in the internal flow field. Furthermore, the rotating stall in the compressor was investigated to define the influence of an unsteady internal flow field change on the surge behavior. From the tank pressure measurements, the amplitude of the tank pressure fluctuation was found to vary depending on the cycle. A larger maximal value for the tank pressure fluctuation led to a higher flow rate where the stall inception occurred. This difference in the flow rate indicated that the stall was induced by a severe adverse pressure gradient in the compressor. Then, the absolute rate of change in the flow coefficient was increased by both a large decrease in the compressor back pressure and performance degradation from stalling. In a case where the rate of decline in the flow rate was large, the scale of the stall cell developed up to a deep stall according to the movement of the operating point. Thus, a large trajectory for the surge cycle was selected, where the unsteady operating point went through the deep stall region. This development in the scale of the stall cell suggested to be influenced by the instability of the inner flow field caused by the rapid change in the flow rate.

Closed regenerative Brayton cycle utilizing supercritical CO2 as working fluid has attracted more concern recently as it offers high cycle thermal efficiency and decreases size of turbomachinery. The performance testing of the CO 2 turbine is very important for the supercritical CO 2 cycle development. However, testing the turbine performance in a closed supercritical CO 2 cycle is of difficulty and complication. This paper proposes a novel experimental method on CO 2 turbine testing using high pressurized air as surrogate fluid. The performance similarity laws for the experimental method are studied, because traditional similarity criteria are not applicable since supercritical CO 2 and high pressurized air are both non-ideal gases. A CO 2 turbine is simulated by the CFD method under similar operating conditions with CO 2 and high pressurized air, and turbine performance and flow field is analyzed. CFD analysis results show that turbine’s overall performance matches up well, and difference of parameter in flow field is small. The proposed experimental method can be used for CO 2 turbine performance testing without setting up the complex closed supercritical CO 2 cycle test bench.

With the aim to recover waste heat from a specific micro gas turbine (MGT), and improve the thermal efficiency and the system compactness, simulation models of regenerative gas turbine cycle combined with supercritical CO 2 recompression cycle and supercritical CO 2 regenerative cycle respectively are developed. The influence of the introduction of the gas turbine recuperator with three cycle coupling methods on the thermal efficiency of the system is discussed. Compare to the micro gas turbine system combined with supercritical CO 2 regenerative cycle, the improved system can increase the thermal efficiency and the output power by 3.32 percent point and 10.54% respectively. The impact on system performance of cycle parameters, including split ratio, the maximum temperature of the bottoming cycle, the recuperator effectiveness of the bottoming cycle and the hot side outlet temperature of the intermediate heat exchanger have been analyzed and optimized. From the viewpoints of the thermal efficiency and the heat transfer area, performance comparison between two bottoming cycles with different coupling methods is done. The multi-objective optimization study shows that the regenerative gas turbine cycle coupled in series with supercritical CO 2 recompression cycle performs better than that coupled in parallel with supercritical CO 2 regenerative cycle in terms of thermal efficiency.

In this paper, flow structures around a corner modified square cylinder (side dimension, Bo) are presented and discussed. Cylinders with various corner arcs (circular) were considered (arc radius ‘r’). For various Corner Ratios (CR = r/Bo), values ranging from 0 to 0.5, flow visualization experiments were conducted in a water channel and the results are reported at Re = 2100 (based on Bo). Results presented are for two cases (a) stationary cylinders reporting the values of C D (coefficient of drag), St (Strouhal no.), and D (vortex size) and (b) oscillating cylinders at fe/fs = 1 (fe is the cylinder excitation frequency and fs is the vortex shedding frequency) and a/Bo = 0.8 (a is the cylinder oscillation amplitude). The work is aimed to explore the most effective configuration for drag reduction. Cylinder with corner ratio of 0.2 is proved to be the most effective one among the cases considered in this study with 19.3% drag reduction. As a major highlight, in contrast to the results of the previous studies, current study do not reveal a monotonous decrease of drag with increasing corner modification. Instead, it is shown here that, there is a specific value of CR ratio where the drag is the minimum most. A peculiar type of vortex structure was observed in the cases of stationary cylinders with CR > 0.2, contributing to the increase in drag. In the case of oscillating cylinders, description of one complete cycle for all CR ratios at various time instances are presented. The near-wake structures were observed to be dependent on the CR ratio. Counter intuitively, cylinder oscillation does not bring major difference in vortex size compared to the stationary case.

Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI) is a genetic bone disorder which is typically characterized by brittle bones with frequent fractures. It is also known as brittle bone disease. Surgical procedure is one of the ways adopted by clinicians for the management of OI. In recent years, it has however become clear that physical activity is equally important for managing OI in both children and adults. Exogenous mechanical stimulation e.g. prophylactic exercises may be useful in improving the bone mass and strength of OI bones as loading-induced mechanical components e.g. normal strain and canalicular fluid flow stimulate remodeling activities. Several studies have characterized the strain environment in OI bones, whereas, very few studies attempted to characterize the canalicular fluid flow. In the present study, we anticipate that canalicular fluid flow reduces in OI bone as compared to healthy bone under physiological loading. This work accordingly computes the canalicular fluid distribution in the single osteon model of OI and control/normal bones subjected to normal physiological loadings. A transversely isotropic poroelastic model of osteon is developed. Loading is applied in accordance with gait cycles reported for OI and healthy bones. Fluid distribution patterns computed for OI and healthy bones are compared at different time-points of stance phase of the gait cycle. A significant reduction in fluid flow is observed in case of OI bone as compared to healthy bone. This clearly indicates that improvements in physical activities or exercises can be designed to enhance the level of canalicular fluid flow to initiate possible osteogenic activities and the bone.

In this paper, aerodynamic characteristics of two flapping wings in clap-and-fling motion at Re of ∼10 4 , which corresponds to the flight regime of flapping-wing micro air vehicles, was investigated. The test employing dynamically scaled-up robotic arms installed on a water tank revealed that the wingbeat motion at such high Re in1duced the fully developed wake within two wingbeat cycles. This wake widely influenced the lift production covering the entire wingbeat period; the wings earned the additional lift during the entire downstroke, and lost the lift during the upstroke. Chordwise cross-sectional DPIV showed the massive downwash with enlarged tip vortices, when the wake was fully developed. The wake blew down the headwind and reduced the effective angles of attack. In the case of the clap-and-fling motion, the wake was leaned toward the dorsal part, in which the wings created the clap-and-fling motion, causing the global fluctuation of the aerodynamic force production.

In this study, an experimental study of the nucleation heat transfer and bubble dynamics inside the Water-in-PAO nanoemulsion fluid has been performed. Synchronized highspeed video and infrared thermography are used here to capture time-resolved temperature distribution data for the boiling surface and direct visualization of the bubble cycle. Data gathered included measurements of bubble growth versus time, as well as temperature history of the heater surface underneath the bubbles. Our findings demonstrate a substantial increase in nucleate heat transfer (i.e., heat transfer coefficient), and significantly different bubble dynamics of nanoemulsion fluid compared to pure water. The bubble growth rate of the nanoemulsion lies in the diffusion-controlled regime, and the growth data fit a power law at n ≈ 0.3. This is similar to the authors’ previous study of a similar fluid and is very different from conventional fluids. While the heat transfer mechanisms behind are not completely understood yet, it is hypothesized that the interfacial structures and thermal transport between surfactant molecules surrounding water nanodroplets and the base PAO fluid at elevated temperature may contribute to that.

Nearly 45% of the residential site energy in the US is consumed by the gas furnace for space heating. The design practice of next-generation product often refers to CFD-based design tool, in order to reduce the development cost and cycle. In the present study, Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) is applied to measure the detailed flow field inside a general gas furnace model for establishing a benchmark database and validating CFD predictions. The furnace model is equipped with multiple observation windows and is connected to an air circulation system with seeding particles introduced, simulating different well-controlled operation conditions. The flow field around the four primary heat exchangers and at the outlet of the furnace is measured and analyzed statistically. The mean velocity displays symmetric patterns as the differential pressure between inlet and outlet of the furnace is low. The symmetry is transiently lost as the differential pressure increases. Statistical analysis also shows turbulence in regions with flow separation and vortex shedding. The results provide a clear understanding of the change of flow characteristics under different operation conditions.

The vacuum systems play crucial role in various industries including, but not limited to, power generation, refrigeration, desalination, and aerospace engineering. There are different types of vacuum systems. Among them, the ejector or vacuum pump is highly utilized due to its low capital cost and easy maintenance. Generally, the better operation of a vacuum system can dramatically affect the performance of its upper-hand systems, e.g., the general efficiency of a thermal power plant cycle. This can be achieved if such vacuum systems are correctly designed, implemented, and operated. The focus of this work is on an existing steam jet-ejector, whose primary flow is a high pressure superheated steam and the suction flow is a mixture of steam and air. The main goal of this work is to optimize the geometry of the ejector including the nozzle exit position (NXP), the primary nozzle diverging angle, and the secondary throat length, etc. From the computational fluid dynamics perspective, there are some major challenges to simulate this ejector. It requires predicting the correct turbulent fluid flow and heat transfer phenomena with great complexities in treating the mixed subsonic and supersonic flow regimes, very high and very low pressure regions adjacent to each other, and complex mixing two phase flow jets. Indeed, the latter one has been almost neglected in literature. The main concern of this study is to reduce the consumption of motive steam, i.e., to increase the entrainment ratio via modifying the ejector geometry and investigating its performance under different operating conditions that helps to save the water consumption.