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Full-Text Articles in Mechanical Engineering

Improving Future Vehicle Fuel Economy And Operational Design Domain Through Novel Data Pipelines, Kyle James Carow Apr 2023

Improving Future Vehicle Fuel Economy And Operational Design Domain Through Novel Data Pipelines, Kyle James Carow

Masters Theses

Modern automobiles have greatly advanced in recent years, with technological developments that enhance performance, safety, and comfort. However, there is still much room for improvement. Today’s vehicles are heavily reliant on the combustion of fossil fuels, proven to be harmful for the environment on both a local and global scale. In addition, the safety benefits of autonomous vehicles and advanced driver assistance systems are not yet fully realized due to the limited operational design domain of these technologies. In this research, these needs are addressed through the development of two novel data pipelines. In the first study, a novel methodology …


Gearbox Baffle Optimization, Megan Arduin Dec 2019

Gearbox Baffle Optimization, Megan Arduin

Masters Theses

Current literature reveals there is limited consensus on the placement of baffles within a gearbox to reduce churning losses. Thus, there is a need for a process to identify baffle clearances that result in maximum and minimum churning losses. There are two types of baffles: axial and radial. While both axial and radial baffles cause reductions in churning losses to various degrees, the focus is on the effect of radial baffles. The effect of a board (rectangular plate) baffle location on the churning losses of a single gear gearbox are evaluated using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) implemented in Ansys. Several …


Simulation Of An Intake Manifold Pre-Heater For Cold Diesel Engine Startup, Patrick K. Kreun Apr 2014

Simulation Of An Intake Manifold Pre-Heater For Cold Diesel Engine Startup, Patrick K. Kreun

Masters Theses

Ensuring consistent, reliable diesel engine startups in cold temperatures is of utmost importance in a number of applications. Under extreme temperatures, the use of glow plugs is complemented by intake manifold heaters. In these, the energy released from combustion increases the intake air temperature before the air enters the main combustion chamber. Since the process also alters the stoichiometry of the fuel-air mixture at the intake ports, the preheater operation must be optimized in order to guarantee successful and reliable in-cylinder combustion during engine startups. This paper describes the development of an intake manifold model incorporating an air pre-heater for …


Development Of Cfd Models For The Purposes Of Exploring Free Surface Wave Phenomena, Leonard P. Stoehr Apr 2013

Development Of Cfd Models For The Purposes Of Exploring Free Surface Wave Phenomena, Leonard P. Stoehr

Masters Theses

With the push for finding alternative, green energy sources, the harnessing of energy from ocean and lake waves is becoming a more researched field. To fully understand the behavior of wave interactions and optimize designs to extract this energy, it is necessary to develop computer models that can accurately replicate this behavior. A case is presented in which previous work done using the wave tank found in the Western Michigan University fluids lab is examined. The case involves harnessing the energy generated by ocean waves through the usage of plates of different shapes resting horizontally on the water’s surface. The …