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Articles 1 - 7 of 7
Full-Text Articles in Engineering
Synthesizing And Modeling The Optical Properties Of Silica Aerogel, Hannah Margavio
Synthesizing And Modeling The Optical Properties Of Silica Aerogel, Hannah Margavio
Honors Theses
Silica aerogel has attracted the attention of researchers for decades for its applications in insulation materials, storage, and solar-thermal devices. The appeal surrounding silica aerogel is attributed to its unique combination of physical and chemical properties. Silica aerogel is a highly porous, optically transparent nano-polymer with a low thermal conductivity. Additionally, the material boasts a super-low density, high specific surface area, and low dielectric constant. The following report proposes a viable method of synthesizing polyvinylpolymethylsilane (PVPMS) aerogel as well as a model for determining the optical performance of TMOS aerogel by determining its radiative properties. First, the report will explore …
High Performance Thermal Insulation: Silica Aerogels In Construction Technology, Matthew Giarrusso
High Performance Thermal Insulation: Silica Aerogels In Construction Technology, Matthew Giarrusso
Honors Theses
The United States is a world leader in the production and expenditure of energy, accounting for 18% of the total global energy consumption in 2016, 40% of which was used for the heating, cooling, and lighting of commercial and residential buildings. Currently, traditional air-based insulation products are being used in thicker and more numerous layers in an attempt to keep up with contemporary codes and standards. One promising alternative to traditional insulation is silica aerogel. With a remarkably low density and thermal conductivity, silica aerogel could save energy, space, and weight in new and retrofit structures. Silica aerogels are currently …
Diesel Particulate Generation, Matthew Ferdenzi
Diesel Particulate Generation, Matthew Ferdenzi
Honors Theses
The goal of this project is to design a diesel particulate generator to test aerogels as diesel particulate filters. Diesel particulate generators are machines that generate diesel particulate matter, or diesel soot. Diesel particulate filters have been recently put into the market to help many car companies meet the ever-changing diesel emission regulations set by the EPA and other international agencies. The main goal of the filter is to block soot from exiting to the environment. Once the filter is full, the soot is oxidized and released. The problem with these filters is that they are large, costly, detrimental to …
Design Of Diffusiometer For Aerogel Monoliths, Kamin Sylvia
Design Of Diffusiometer For Aerogel Monoliths, Kamin Sylvia
Honors Theses
Aerogels’ have great potential to be used as catalytic substrates and filters. To use them as such, we must first understand how gas flows through them. Diffusivity is a property of aerogels that relates the gas flow through a sample with the pressure gradient driving the flow. This project sets out to design an experimental apparatus (diffusiometer) and methodology that can be used to obtain diffusivity values of various kinds of aerogels. Adapting the method outlined in Stumpf et. al 1992[1], a diffusiometer was designed and built for aerogels at sub-atmospheric pressures. This device utilizes a control mass system rather …
Kinetic Modeling Of Catalytic Aerogels, Yi Cao
Kinetic Modeling Of Catalytic Aerogels, Yi Cao
Honors Theses
As pollution becomes an increasing concern globally, strict regulations have been set on vehicle pollutant emissions. The three-way catalytic converter is capable of converting toxic emissions such as carbon monoxide, unburned hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides to less hazardous waste such as carbon dioxide, water, and nitrogen. Current catalysts employ platinum group metals, which are expensive and environmentally damaging to mine. Catalytically-active aerogels such as Co-Al, Cu-Al and V-Al aerogels have shown promise as alternatives to these metals. The work presented here adapts and extends a global kinetic model which predicts the conversion of hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide on platinum catalyst …
Investigation Of Boat Hull Performance With Superhydrophobic Coating, Nolan Sayre
Investigation Of Boat Hull Performance With Superhydrophobic Coating, Nolan Sayre
Honors Theses
Aerogels are a nano-porous material that have the ability to be made chemically superhydrophobic. A durable boat hull coating of superhydrophobic aerogels could form the boundary conditions necessary to reduce drag in water and in turn improve overall boat performance. This project investigated whether a superhydrophobic aerogel coating could effectively reduce skin friction drag on a boat. Various techniques for superhydrophobic surface fabrication were researched and tested with the goal of maximizing the surface water contact angle. It was concluded that Nafion solution is not an effective material to adhere aerogels to a surface. Hydrophobic and non-hydrophobic aerogels were adhered …
Testing The Photocatalytic Oxidation Abilities Of Titania-Silica Aerogels Fabricated Using The Rapid Supercritical Extraction Method, Lauren B. Brown
Testing The Photocatalytic Oxidation Abilities Of Titania-Silica Aerogels Fabricated Using The Rapid Supercritical Extraction Method, Lauren B. Brown
Honors Theses
Indoor air has been shown to be four to five times more polluted than outdoor air. Titania-silica aerogels can photocatalytically oxidize volatile organic compounds found in indoor air. Aerogels are the lightest known solid with 90-99% air by volume. Titania-silica aerogels were fabricated in seven to nine hours using the Rapid Supercritical Extraction method and properties compared well to those published in the literature. Bulk density ranges between 0.025 and 0.04 g/cm3. Skeletal density ranges between 1.75 and 2.75g/cm3. BET surface area ranges between 200 and 700 m2/g. BJH pore distribution showed distinct differences between silica and titania aerogels. FTIR …