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Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons

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California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo

Theses/Dissertations

2011

Fluid Dynamics

Articles 1 - 3 of 3

Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Ferrofluids, James Patt Jun 2011

Ferrofluids, James Patt

Physics

Ferrofluids are truly fascinating. Technologically savvy artists have been able to capture the human imagination with little but a judicious application of a magnetic field. The substance seems to defy gravity, flowing and shaping itself seemingly like magic (see Figure 1). The true magic, however, is the vast range of properties that this intrinsically simple substance can exhibit. It can vary its viscosity given the strength of the magnetic field. It can draw heat away from an over worked mechanical component. It can even split a beam of light in two. It’s hard to imagine what kind of strange and …


Human Powered Helicopter: Observing The Impacts Of Ground Effect And Intermeshed Rotors, Shane Stowe Jun 2011

Human Powered Helicopter: Observing The Impacts Of Ground Effect And Intermeshed Rotors, Shane Stowe

Physics

No abstract provided.


Python Modeling Of Heat Flow In A Thermal Storage Device, Tim Hider Jan 2011

Python Modeling Of Heat Flow In A Thermal Storage Device, Tim Hider

Physics

A parabolic dish that concentrates sunlight into a thermal storage device may comprise an inexpensive, environmentally benign, clean cooking technology appropriate for developing countries. A Scheffler Solar reflector was constructed and a thermal storage device built to eventually be coupled with the Scheffler. We tested the heat flow in the thermal storage device with an electric heater, and wrote Python code that solves the heat diffusion in 1D and 2D in order to model heat flow in the thermal storage device.