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Full-Text Articles in Mechanical Engineering
Design Of A Gas Conditioning System For The Second Generation Union College Areogel Lab Catalytic Test Bed, Thomas Swanton
Design Of A Gas Conditioning System For The Second Generation Union College Areogel Lab Catalytic Test Bed, Thomas Swanton
Honors Theses
The goal of this project was to design and fabricate a system which could deliver artificially created test gas to the heating section at a specified composition, flow rate, and humidity, while additionally simulating the transient conditions found in automobile exhaust. It will make up one subsystem of the Union College Aerogel Lab’s second generation catalytic test bed. The test bed will be used to test the viability of catalytic aerogels as three way catalysts for automotive exhaust. To date a system for mixing test based on partial pressure has been fabricated and is operational, a system for generating transient …
Development And Validation Of A Computational Model For Studying Secondary Droplet Breakup In Time-Varying Flows, Brandan A. West
Development And Validation Of A Computational Model For Studying Secondary Droplet Breakup In Time-Varying Flows, Brandan A. West
Honors Theses
Secondary droplet breakup is an important topic in fluid mechanics that has applications in many atomization processes. To date, the experimental and computational research of secondary droplet breakup has focused primarily on the breakup process in flows that have steady velocities. This study utilizes computational fluid dynamics software called Star-CCM+ Version 7.04.006 to study the effects of time-varying flows on the droplet breakup process. Time-varying flows are more representative than steady flows are of the flow situations in combustion chambers of high-level engines such as jet and rocket engines. Weber number is the ratio of the external flow’s inertial forces …
The Design Of A Maneuverable Rolling Robot, David Carabis
The Design Of A Maneuverable Rolling Robot, David Carabis
Honors Theses
The purpose of this project was to design, fabricate, and test a maneuverable rolling robot. Although some other rolling robots were researched for this project, a novel approach was taken to design a unique, cheap robot that could turn and was fully enclosed by a rotating outer shell. The design and research phase of this project included the evaluation of several designs, the development of a mathematical model detailing forward motion of the robot, and the derivation of several design equations. Of the possible designs, an interior counterweight was chosen to provide a torque to the outside shell and move …
Analysis Of Degenerative Cervical Spondylolisthesis And Corrective Orthopaedic Implants, Tyler Heck
Analysis Of Degenerative Cervical Spondylolisthesis And Corrective Orthopaedic Implants, Tyler Heck
Honors Theses
Back pain is often due to the degeneration of intervertebral discs, which can lead to a condition known as spondylolisthesis, whereby a vertebra slips out of position in the anteroposterior direction. There are numerous orthopaedic implants which are used by surgeons to correct this condition; however, there has been no conclusive research conducted in comparing the efficacies of these implants. In the cervical spine, this condition most commonly occurs over two levels. For the purposes of this study, an implant’s efficacy depends on its ability to return the slipped vertebra back into natural position immediately after surgery. To test these …
16th Annual Sampe Student Bridge Contest: Design Of A Wood Core Flax Fiber-Reinforced Composite I-Beam, Robert J. Wagner
16th Annual Sampe Student Bridge Contest: Design Of A Wood Core Flax Fiber-Reinforced Composite I-Beam, Robert J. Wagner
Honors Theses
The goal of this project was to demonstrate the applicability of natural composites in structural applications for objects with shorter intended life spans such as sports equipment. This was done by competing in the 16th Annual SAMPE Student Bridge Contest with a natural fiber, natural core composite I-beam in Long Beach, California on May 8th, 2013. The beam was to withstand 3,000 lbs under three-point-bending while maintaining a low weight. In order to compete, natural reinforcement fibers, natural core materials and a bonding matrix had to be identified; a beam within allowable contest dimensions had to be designed; and a …
Measurement Of Skin Friction Drag On Hydrophobic Silica Aerogel Surfaces With Potential Application To Technical Swimsuit Design, Matthew R. Wahl
Measurement Of Skin Friction Drag On Hydrophobic Silica Aerogel Surfaces With Potential Application To Technical Swimsuit Design, Matthew R. Wahl
Honors Theses
The goal of this project was to fabricate and test a prototype technical swimsuit (low-drag suit worn by swimmers in their most important races) that utilized the hydrophobic properties of silica aerogels. This process involved coating a preexisting suit with aerogel material and completing the build of the newly redesigned water channel at Union College. To evaluate performance of materials, surface drag testing of airfoils coated in aerogel materials was performed using a dynamometer in the water channel. Several additions were made to the water channel in order to reduce variation in drag results. Variation was successfully decreased from 134% …