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Full-Text Articles in Mechanical Engineering
Evaluation And Enhancement Of Clean Energy Systems: Analytical, Computational And Experimental Study Of Solar And Nuclear Cycles, Nima Fathi
Mechanical Engineering ETDs
Clean (and specifically renewable) energy is steadily improving its global share. However, finite availability of fossil fuels and the growing effects of climate change make it an urgent priority to convince the industry and governments to incentivize investment in the renewable energy field and to make it more attractive by decreasing the capital cost. Until recently, uncertainties in funding limited renewable energy development, especially in the US. That limitation has been one of the barriers to progress. Another limitation of many renewable energy systems is the variability in their output, which makes them unsuitable for baseline power production. Therefore, fossil …
The Development Of A Vertical-Axis Wind Turbine Wake Model For Use In Wind Farm Layout Optimization With Noise Level Constraints, Eric Blaine Tingey
The Development Of A Vertical-Axis Wind Turbine Wake Model For Use In Wind Farm Layout Optimization With Noise Level Constraints, Eric Blaine Tingey
Theses and Dissertations
This thesis focuses on providing the means to use vertical-axis wind turbines (VAWTs) in wind farms as an alternative form of harnessing wind energy in offshore and urban environments where both wake and acoustic effects of turbines are important considerations. In order for VAWTs to be used in wind farm layout analysis and optimization, a reduced-order wake model is needed to calculate velocities around a turbine quickly and accurately. However, a VAWT wake model has not been available to accomplish this task. Using vorticity data from computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulations of VAWTs and cross-validated Gaussian distribution and polynomial surface …
Assessment Of Varying Model Representations In Cfd Simulations, Caitlin R. Gerdes
Assessment Of Varying Model Representations In Cfd Simulations, Caitlin R. Gerdes
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This thesis investigates the effects of varying model refinement and representation of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations in two case studies. Product and process realization in engineering design requires substantial resources (time and money) in order to test novel designs for effectiveness. In recent decades, engineering has been relying more heavily on simulation-based analysis in the design process with computer models to help reduce the demands for real-life testing. The first case study analyzed in this thesis is a photobioreactor, which is used to grow microalgae for biofuel and require a balance of nutrients, light, and mixing for growth. The …
Cfd Analysis Methods For Systems Driven By Natural Convection, Aaron Propst
Cfd Analysis Methods For Systems Driven By Natural Convection, Aaron Propst
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Natural convection driven flows are present in many engineering applications such as HVAC, electronics cooling, and cryogenic systems. Predicting the flow behavior of such systems requires experimentation or numerical simulation through Computational Fluid Dynamics due to the complex interactions of natural convection. Recent advances in computing resources have made CFD increasingly popular for engineering analysis of fluid dynamics and heat transfer. CFD simulation has several advantages over experimentation including: 1) cost, 2) ease of changing design parameters, and 3) time required to obtain results. These advantages lead to an increased likelihood of discovering an optimal design. However, systems with complex …