Physics Commons^™

Thermal Transportability Based Gas Analysis Using Fiber Bragg Grating Sensors, Yuan Chang

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Compositional analysis of gases in real time is important for many industries. Traditionally, it was done with online sensors such as thermal conductivity detectors or analytical methods such as gas chromatography. Fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors have demonstrated unique advantages in gas sensing. This dissertation focuses on the designing of a thermal modulation system that can properly functionalize FBG sensors, and the building of a sensing system that can perform non-specific gas compositional analysis in real time for pure gases and binary gas mixtures.

Thomson-Resonant Interference Effects In Elastic X-Ray Scattering Near The Cl K Edge Of Hcl, Stephane Carniato, P. Selles, Loic Journel, Renaud Guillemin, Wayne C. Stolte, L. El Khoury, T. Marin, Faris Gel'mukhanov, Dennis W. Lindle, Marc Simon

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Research

We experimentally observed interference effects in elastic x-ray scattering from gas-phase HCl in the vicinity of the Cl K edge. Comparison to theory identifies these effects as interference effects between non-resonant elastic Thomson scattering and resonant Raman scattering. The results indicate the non-resonant Thomson and resonant Raman contributions are of comparable strength. The measurements also exhibit strong polarization dependence, allowing an easy identification of the resonant and non-resonant contributions.

Thermal Correction To The Molar Polarizability Of A Boltzmann Gas, Ulrich D. Jentschura, Mariusz Puchalski, Peter J. Mohr

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

Metrology in atomic physics has been crucial for a number of advanced determinations of fundamental constants. In addition to very precise frequency measurements, the molar polarizability of an atomic gas has recently also been measured very accurately. Part of the motivation for the measurements is due to ongoing efforts to redefine the International System of Units (SI), for which an accurate value of the Boltzmann constant is needed. Here we calculate the dominant shift of the molar polarizability in an atomic gas due to thermal effects. It is given by the relativistic correction to the dipole interaction, which emerges when …

Kinetic Solution Of The Structure Of A Shock Wave In A Nonreactive Gas Mixture, Eswar Josyula, Prakash Vedula, William F. Bailey, Casmir J. Suchyta Iii

Faculty Publications

The multispecies Boltzmann equation is numerically integrated to characterize the internal structure of a Mach 3 shock wave in a hard sphere gas. The collision integral is evaluated by the conservative discrete ordinate method [F. G. Tcheremissine, Comput. Math. Math. Phys. 46, 315 (2006)]. There was excellent agreement of macroscopic variables [Kosuge et al., Eur. J. Mech. B/Fluids 20, 87 (2001)]. The effect of species concentration and mass ratio on the behavior of macroscopic variables and distribution functions in the structure of the shock wave is considered for both two- and three-species gas mixtures. In a binary mixture of gases …

Classical Thermodynamics Of Particles In Harmonic Traps, Martin K. Ligare

Faculty Journal Articles

No abstract provided.

Dimer-Dimer Collisions At Finite Energies In Two-Component Fermi Gases, J P. D'Incao, Seth T. Rittenhouse, Nirav P. Mehta, Chris H. Greene

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Research

We discuss a major theoretical generalization of existing techniques for handling the three-body problem that accurately describes the interactions among four fermionic atoms. Application to a two-component Fermi gas accurately determines dimer-dimer scattering parameters at finite energies and can give deeper insight into the corresponding many-body phenomena. To account for finite temperature effects, we calculate the energydependent complex dimer-dimer scattering length, which includes contributions from elastic and inelastic collisions. Our results indicate that strong finite-energy effects and dimer dissociation are crucial for understanding the physics in the strongly interacting regime for typical experimental conditions. While our results for dimer-dimer relaxation …

Rectification Of Thermal Fluctuations In Ideal Gases, Alejandro Garcia, P. Meurs, C. Van De Broeck

Alejandro Garcia

We calculate the systematic average speed of the adiabatic piston and a thermal Brownian motor, introduced by C. Van den Broeck, R. Kawai and P. Meurs [Phys. Rev. Lett. 93, 090601 (2004)], by an expansion of the Boltzmann equation and compare with the exact numerical solution.

Rectification Of Thermal Fluctuations In Ideal Gases, Alejandro Garcia, P. Meurs, C. Van De Broeck

Faculty Publications

We calculate the systematic average speed of the adiabatic piston and a thermal Brownian motor, introduced by C. Van den Broeck, R. Kawai and P. Meurs [Phys. Rev. Lett. 93, 090601 (2004)], by an expansion of the Boltzmann equation and compare with the exact numerical solution.

Molecular Simulations Of Sound Wave Propagation In Simple Gases, Alejandro Garcia, N. Hadjiconstantinou

Alejandro Garcia

Molecular simulations of sound waves propagating in a dilute hard sphere gas have been performed using the direct simulation Monte Carlo method. A wide range of frequencies is investigated, including very high frequencies for which the period is much shorter than the mean collision time. The simulation results are compared to experimental data and approximate solutions of the Boltzmann equation. It is shown that free molecular flow is important at distances smaller than one mean free path from the excitation point.

Molecular Simulations Of Sound Wave Propagation In Simple Gases, Alejandro Garcia, N. Hadjiconstantinou

Faculty Publications

Molecular simulations of sound waves propagating in a dilute hard sphere gas have been performed using the direct simulation Monte Carlo method. A wide range of frequencies is investigated, including very high frequencies for which the period is much shorter than the mean collision time. The simulation results are compared to experimental data and approximate solutions of the Boltzmann equation. It is shown that free molecular flow is important at distances smaller than one mean free path from the excitation point.

Mathematical Models Of Quiescent Solar Prominences, Iain Mckaig

Mathematics & Statistics Theses & Dissertations

Magnetic fields in the solar atmosphere suspend and insulate dense regions of cool plasma known as prominences. The convection zone may be the mechanism that both generates and expels this magnetic flux through the photosphere in order to make these formations possible. The connection is examined here by modeling the convection zone as both one-dimensional, then more realistically, two-dimensional.

First a Dirichlet problem on a semi-infinite strip is solved using conformal mapping and the method of images. The base of the strip represents the photosphere where a current distribution can be given as a boundary condition, and the strip extends …

Observation Of Stratospheric Ozone Depletion Associated With Delta Ii Rocket Emissions, Martin N. Ross, Darin W. Toohey, W. T. Rawlins, E. C. Richard, K. K. Kelly, A. F. Tuck, M. H. Proffitt, Donald E. Hagen, Alfred R. Hopkins, Philip D. Whitefield, J. R. Benbrook, W. R. Sheldon

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

Ozone, chlorine monoxide, methane, and submicron particulate concentrations were measured in the stratospheric plume wake of a Delta II rocket powered by a combination of solid (NH₄ClO₄/Al) and liquid (LOX/kerosene) propulsion systems. We apply a simple kinetics model describing the main features of gas-phase chlorine reactions in solid propellant exhaust plumes to derive the abundance of total reactive chlorine in the plume and estimate the associated cumulative ozone loss. Measured ozone loss during two plume encounters (12 and 39 minutes after launch) exceeded the estimate by about a factor of about two. Insofar as only the …

Studies Of Mixing Processes In Gases And Effects On Combustion And Stability, Frank Paul Kozusko Jr.

Mathematics & Statistics Theses & Dissertations

Three physical models of laminar mixing of initially separated gases are studied. Two models study the effects of the mixing dynamics on the chemical reactions between the gases. The third model studies the structure and stability of a laminar mixing layer in a binary gas. The three models are:

1. Two ideal and incompressible gases representing fuel and oxidizer are initially at rest and separated across an infinite linear interface in a two dimensional system. Combustion, expected as the gases mix, will lead to a rapid rise in temperature in a localized area, i.e. ignition. The mixing of the gases …

Simulation Of Active Control Of Asymmetric Flows Around Slender Pointed Forebodies, Hazem Sharaf El-Din

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

At high angles of attack, the flowfield over slender forebodies becomes asymmetric with substantial side force, which may exceed the available control capability. The unsteady compressible Navier-Stokes equations are used to investigate the effectiveness of different active control methods to alleviate and possibly eliminate the flow asymmetry and the subsequent side force. Although the research work focuses on active control methods, a passive control method has been investigated. The implicit, Roe flux-difference splitting, finite volume scheme is used for the numerical computations. Both locally-conical and three-dimensional solutions of the Navier-Stokes equations are obtained.

The asymmetric flow over five-degree semi-apex angle …

Unsteady Flow Simulations About Moving Boundary Configurations Using Dynamic Domain Decomposition Techniques, Guan-Wei Yen

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

A computational method is developed to solve the coupled governing equations of an unsteady flowfield and those of rigid-body dynamics in six degrees-of-freedom (6-DOF). This method is capable of simulating the unsteady flowfields around multiple component configurations with at least one of the components in relative motion with respect to the others. Two of the important phenomena that such analyses can help us to understand are the unsteady aerodynamic interference and the boundary-induced component of such a flowfield. By hybridizing two dynamic domain decomposition techniques, the grid generation task is simplified, the computer memory requirement is reduced, and the governing …

Microscopic Simulation Of Dilute Gases With Adjustable Transport Coefficients, Alejandro Garcia, F. Baras, M. Malek Mansour

Alejandro Garcia

The Bird algorithm is a computationally efficient method for simulating dilute gas flows. However, due to the relatively large transport coefficients at low densities, high Rayleigh or Reynolds numbers are difficult to achieve by this technique. We present a modified version of the Bird algorithm in which the relaxation processes are enhanced and the transport coefficients reduced, while preserving the correct equilibrium and nonequilibrium fluid properties. The present algorithm is found to be two to three orders of magnitude faster than molecular dynamics for simulating complex hydrodynamical flows.

Microscopic Simulation Of Dilute Gases With Adjustable Transport Coefficients, Alejandro Garcia, F. Baras, M. Malek Mansour

Faculty Publications

The Bird algorithm is a computationally efficient method for simulating dilute gas flows. However, due to the relatively large transport coefficients at low densities, high Rayleigh or Reynolds numbers are difficult to achieve by this technique. We present a modified version of the Bird algorithm in which the relaxation processes are enhanced and the transport coefficients reduced, while preserving the correct equilibrium and nonequilibrium fluid properties. The present algorithm is found to be two to three orders of magnitude faster than molecular dynamics for simulating complex hydrodynamical flows.

On Shock Capturing For Liquid And Gas Media, Tze Jang Chen

Mathematics & Statistics Theses & Dissertations

The numerical investigation of shock phenomena in gas or liquid media where a specifying relation for internal energy is absent poses special problems. Classically, for gas dynamics the usual procedure is to employ a splitting scheme to remove the source terms from the Euler equations, then up-wind biased shock capturing algorithms are built around the Riemann problem for the system which remains. However, in the case where the Euler equations are formulated in the term of total enthalpy, a technical difficulty associated with equation splitting forces a pressure time derivative to be treated as a source term. This makes it …

On A Moving Boundary Problem Of Transitional Ballistics, Jen-Ing G. Hwang

Mathematics & Statistics Theses & Dissertations

A major problem which arises in computer simulation of the firing of a gun weapon is the development of numerical schemes which effectively account for the physics of projectile motion. The chief difficulty is that away from the projectile the calculation is ordinarily accomplished on a fixed numerical grid, whereas due to projectile movement some cells of the grid near the projectile undergo volume changes as the calculation proceeds. A local finite volume scheme is developed which accounts for the expansion or compression of cells fore-and-aft of the projectile. Through the process of numerical experiment, the effectiveness of the scheme …

An Investigation Of A Gas Measurement Technique Employing Ultraviolet Excitation, Alphonso Vincent Diaz

Physics Theses & Dissertations

A study was undertaken to determine the general applicability of a temperature measurement technique which uses the fluorescence stimulated by a vacuum ultraviolet continuum as the indicator. This study was directed toward determining the temperature of nonradiating carbon monoxide. A number of ultraviolet radiation sources which produced high intensity in the region of l,150 A were investigated. This study led to the conclusion that the technique was not applicable to measurements in carbon monoxide within the present limits of' detectability.