Assessment Of Energy Efficient Methods Of Indoor Humidity Control For Florida Building Commission Research,
2014
Florida Solar Energy Center
Assessment Of Energy Efficient Methods Of Indoor Humidity Control For Florida Building Commission Research, Florida Solar Energy Center, Charles Withers, Jr.
FSEC Energy Research Center®
This research project was conducted with the primary objective to identify approaches and technologies which can achieve energy-efficient latent cooling in light of code requirements that may increase overall ventilation rates in new Florida homes. This report covers the work of two primary efforts of completing a literature review and testing a few space conditioning methods in a mechanically ventilated building. Results from a literature review provide a list of various approaches to managing the latent load in homes with emphasis on energy efficiency and cost-effectiveness. In addition to a literature review, controlled experiments using four different approaches to space …
The Poverty Crusher,
2014
Santa Clara University
The Poverty Crusher, Rob Golterman, Brian Hammond, Thien-Ryan Le, Arvin Lie
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
The Poverty Crusher team built a human-powered rock breaking device for the women in Nepal who make $1.50 - $3 per day crushing rocks. A prototype jaw-type rock crusher was designed and built over a period of several months. However, the device was unable to break rocks due to excessive bending in the connection points of the frame and in the crushing faces. Improvements were suggested for the next prototype, which include increasing the second moment of inertia of the crushing faces, using a welded frame, and generally decreasing the cost and weight of the device.
Swing Wing Aerial Drone (Swad),
2014
Santa Clara University
Swing Wing Aerial Drone (Swad), Chris Barton, Robert Gomez, Matt Kochalko, Kyle Nakagaki
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
Drones are unmanned aerial vehicles that have a variety of different applications in the field. Drones are very helpful for first responders such as firefighters, police, and even ranchers and large landowners. Most drones have a fixed wing. This report will show the design, construction, and fluid dynamic testing of a drone that has multiple wing positions. These modes are the straight wing position and swept back position. This design will change the flight profile of the plane, allowing for the user to launch at a faster speed and the glider to get to the desired location faster. Once the …
Vex Robotics,
2014
Santa Clara University
Vex Robotics, Ho Joon Cha, Joshua Del Real, Jamie Kalb, Thomas Nance, Jenny Yang
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
The objective of our project was to design and construct a control system for communication between two autonomous robots, of different size and capabilities, in an environment with numerous obstacles and challenges. These challenges, completed autonomously, involved moving over and under barriers along with the obtainment and transportation of spherical objects. Our project was tied to the VEX Robotics competition environment as we tested our robots by competing at the World Championships. Unfortunately, due to time and budget considerations, we had to scale back our sensor subsystem. This led to a simpler control system than originally intended; however, we were …
Aeroponic Test Bed For Hypergravity Research,
2014
Santa Clara University
Aeroponic Test Bed For Hypergravity Research, Shane Brunner, Theron Hawley, Mike Nichols, David Patzelt, Kurt Sprouse
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
Taking one pound of food to space costs over $10,000. A plant growth chamber in space would help reduce the cost of transporting food by creating a healthy, long-term source of food that can be used for extended space missions. Currently, there is a lack of knowledge in gravity response mechanisms of plants to facilitate employing such a system. The overarching goal of this project is to add to the current body of knowledge related to growing plants in space by conducting research regarding the effect of hypergravity on cherry belle radish growth. To successfully accomplish this goal, an aeroponic …
Solar Absorption Chiller,
2014
Santa Clara University
Solar Absorption Chiller, Craig Carlson, Mark Coulter, Claire Kunkle, Patrick Watson
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
In developing nations access to electricity is inconsistent at best, and food spoilage is a prevalent issue. The solar powered absorption chiller is a refrigeration system designed to provide refrigeration to these developing areas. This year, our team has worked to develop a system where the sun's rays are collected as heat to power an absorption refrigerator. The goal of this project was to take an existing solar tracker system and use its collected heat to power a refrigerator. Our team designed and built heat exchangers to extract heat from the concentrated solar system; assembled components for a fluid circulation …
A Review Of Home Airtightness And Ventilation Approaches For Florida Building Commission Research,
2014
Florida Solar Energy Center
A Review Of Home Airtightness And Ventilation Approaches For Florida Building Commission Research, Florida Solar Energy Center, Jeffrey Sonne
FSEC Energy Research Center®
This research project was conducted with the primary objectives of 1) providing a literature review, examination of experimental data, and calculations of energy impacts of using or not using various types of ventilation systems and 2) developing alternative approaches to achieving acceptable levels of ventilation while avoiding the risks associated with super-tight home enclosures and potential mechanical system failures. The report includes discussions of pertinent airtightness and mechanical ventilation topics and provides recommended ventilation practices for Florida.
Akabot: 3d Printing Filament Extruder,
2014
Santa Clara University
Akabot: 3d Printing Filament Extruder, Emily Albi, Kevin Kozel, Daniel Ventoza, Rachel Wilmoth
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
3D printing could usher in a new age of localized manufacturing in places like Uganda, where three of our senior design team members spent the summer of 2013. Motivated by a concept for our senior design project, one of our team members interned with Village Energy, a small electronics business in Kampala, Uganda, as it piloted the use of a 3D printer to manufacture enclosures for its solar lights. The need for our project arose when we realized that although the 3D printer proved a viable method of manufacturing enclosures, Village Energy could not afford to continue 3D printing with …
Automated Precision Passing System,
2014
Santa Clara University
Automated Precision Passing System, Bryan Herrera, David Savitz, Mikiah Raffaeli
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
Athletes are always seeking ways to improve their performance. Down time and a lack of capable throwers prevent athletic receivers from practicing their skills. We hope to aid athletes in receiving drills within their respective sports and increase practice efficiency. In order to achieve this, the machine has one major axis of rotation driven by a motor. This enables it to adjust where the ball is being thrown. Using an Arduino Uno coupled with a Roboteq AX1500 motor driver, the Automated Precision Passing System is able to throw a ball to a specified point in space by adjusting both the …
Characterization And Optimization Of Thermal Protective Fabrics Designed To Protect Against Splash Hazards,
2014
Brigham Young University - Provo
Characterization And Optimization Of Thermal Protective Fabrics Designed To Protect Against Splash Hazards, Jeremy Osguthorpe
Theses and Dissertations
Thermal textiles used in Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) are used to protect individuals from the hazards of thermal energy. An analytical model of the diffusion of thermal energy within the fabric was developed to simulate the transfer of thermal energy due to a hot liquid splash. Based on the model results, it was determined that that the use of an orthotropic material in which the thermal conductivities in the radial and axial directions are different can be used to decrease the amount of heat transferred through the fabric and thereby increase amount of protection in PPE. An orthotropic material particularly …
Rsl Rover: Robotic Systems Laboratory Rugged Offroad Vehicle For Experimental Research,
2014
Santa Clara University
Rsl Rover: Robotic Systems Laboratory Rugged Offroad Vehicle For Experimental Research, Garrett Bonner, Owen Hale, Julian Pitt, Andrew Torrellas
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
The goal of this project was to build an autonomous vehicle testbed for the Robotics Systems Laboratory. This testbed will be used by undergraduate, graduate, and faculty researchers to test different control methods, sensor combinations, vehicle control laws, and eventually autonomous navigation. This paper documents our accomplishments to achieve this goal; we built a hierarchical control system, robust actuator mounts, and an effective safety system. The result is a capable 6-wheeled offroad vehicle that can be electronically controlled by remote or directly by wire. A feed-forward control law was incorporated for speed control, yielding predictable performance given a desired speed. …
Santa Clara University Human Powered Vehicle 2013-2014,
2014
Santa Clara University
Santa Clara University Human Powered Vehicle 2013-2014, Peter Chester, Luis Flores, Ian Jones, Ryan Nakamura, Dylan Porter, Peter Stephens
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
This document discusses the conceptual design for the 2013-2014 Santa Clara University Human Powered Vehicle. The objective of the Santa Clara University Human Powered Vehicle team is to design and manufacture a human powered vehicle that is practical, sustainable, and efficient. Key design features include a partial body fairing, tilt and ackermann steering, and cargo space. Ultimately we had to block out the tilt steering because its operation conflicted with the Ackermann steering. This vehicle's design satisfies the primary needs of a commuter and ultimately serves as a practical alternative to an automobile. Finally, this design complies with the requirements …
Wireless Impact Sensing Headband - W.I.S.H.,
2014
Santa Clara University
Wireless Impact Sensing Headband - W.I.S.H., Ryan Daly, Doug Furstinger, Tim Sashegyi, Nicklaus Schmidt, Mihir Shah
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
The prevalence of undiagnosed head injuries in the athletic world, and their associated health risks, is too great to ignore. This is especially true in non-helmeted sports where the availability of impact monitoring technologies is few and far between. In this paper, we discuss our wireless impact sensing headband technology that aids in the awareness and detection of potential concussions, from inception through design completion. Through the use of a custom-built validation system capable of simulating impact collisions, along with a series of experiments and revisions, our team was able to build a device that can sense and transmit data …
Benchtop Centrifuge For Materials Science,
2014
Santa Clara University
Benchtop Centrifuge For Materials Science, Jose Lizheno, Nathaniel Tseng, Ryan Tsuzaki
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
The Benchtop centrifuge for materials science was designed to be a versatile, cost-effective, user-friendly and safe centrifuge for the university setting. While a prototype was not completed due to running out of time for assembly, various forms of analysis were conducted including Natural Frequency Analysis and Finite Element Analysis. The team hopes that the work completed will provide a useful starting point for other teams that may wish to continue the project in the future.
Legacy Borehole Project,
2014
Santa Clara University
Legacy Borehole Project, Maza Brady, Luke Cashman, Erin Hicks, Meghan Richey
Interdisciplinary Design Senior Theses
The Legacy Borehole Project is a three-year effort to design and build a sensor package that will be used to explore the geological and chemical conditions of the ocean floor. Over the course of three years, a mechanical structure and a robotic system will be constructed to lower sensors into previously drilled boreholes. As the team responsible for the development of the first year of this project, we have constructed a prototype sensor package and mock mechanical structure to test a communication interface between the sensors and a graphical user interface. The sensors were tested by lowering the sensor package …
A Neural Network Structure For Prediction Of Chemical Agent Fate,
2014
Kettering University
A Neural Network Structure For Prediction Of Chemical Agent Fate, Homayun K. Navaz, N. Kehtarnavaz, Zoran Jovic
Mechanical Engineering Presentations And Conference Materials
This work presents the development of a multi-input, multi-output neural network structure to predict the time dependent concentration of chemical agents as they participate in chemical reaction with environmental substrates or moisture content within these substrates. The neural network prediction is based on a computationally or experimentally produced database that includes the concentration of all chemicals presents (reactants and products) as a function of the chemical agent droplet size, wind speed, temperature, and turbulence. The utilization of this prediction structure is made userfriendly via an easy-to-use graphical user interface. Furthermore, upon the knowledge of the time-varying environmental parameters (wind speed …
Shrouded Small Wind Turbines,
2014
Santa Clara University
Shrouded Small Wind Turbines, Kristen Flannery, Michael Holligan, Joseph Soares
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
The goal of this project is to improve the energy production of small wind turbines (rated less than 100 kW) by increasing wind velocity at the turbine blades through the design of a shroud attachment. The design process involves the analysis of various computer aided design (CAD) nozzle/diffuser shroud geometries. Computational fluid dynamic (CFD) modeling is used to analyze the effect of shroud features on velocity and pressure fields. A 3D printed scale model is tested in a wind tunnel with strain gauges and pressure transducers to validate the CFD data. The resulting design locally increases velocity by a factor …
Proteus: Mini Underwater Remotely Operated Vehicle,
2014
Santa Clara University
Proteus: Mini Underwater Remotely Operated Vehicle, Jorge Guerra, Robert Heinevetter, Tristan Morris, Killian Poore, Alexandra Waschura
Mechanical Engineering Senior Theses
Marine ecosystems contain life, minerals, information, etc, that can help the planet, however, only 5% of them are explored. This is mainly because existing Underwater Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) are expensive and require a lot of workand time to use. Team Proteus designed a low cost, easy to use, portable, safe, and reliable ROV capable of being used for scientific research, while being operated and maintained by students. In this paper we explain the necessity behind this project, how it compares to similar projects and the design decisions made in developing the ROV, to include the options and trade-offs considered. …
Redox Stable Anodes For Solid Oxide Fuel Cells,
2014
University of South Carolina - Columbia
Redox Stable Anodes For Solid Oxide Fuel Cells, Guoliang Xiao, Fanglin Chen
Faculty Publications
Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) can convert chemical energy from the fuel directly to electrical energy with high efficiency and fuel flexibility. Ni-based cermets have been the most widely adopted anode for SOFCs. However, the conventional Ni-based anode has low tolerance to sulfur-contamination, is vulnerable to deactivation by carbon build-up (coking) from direct oxidation of hydrocarbon fuels, and suffers volume instability upon redox cycling. Among these limitations, the redox instability of the anode is particularly important and has been intensively studied since the SOFC anode may experience redox cycling during fuel cell operations even with the ideal pure hydrogen as …
Microstructural Factors Of Strain Delocalization In Model Metallic Glass Matrix Composites,
2014
Brigham Young University - Provo
Microstructural Factors Of Strain Delocalization In Model Metallic Glass Matrix Composites, Thomas James Hardin
Theses and Dissertations
Metallic glass matrix composites have enormous potential stemming from the interplay between crystalline and amorphous phases. This work models such a composite using shear transformation zone dynamics (a modified kinetic Monte Carlo method) for the amorphous phase, and a local Taylor dislocation model for the crystalline phase. An N-factorial experiment using the model is presented examining the effects of crystalline volume fraction, microstructure length scale, and yield stress of the crystalline phase. Each replicate is analyzed for maximum stress, maximum strain, strain energy dissipation, strain localization, and strain partitioning between phases. Regression analysis is used to identify statistically-significant trends in …
