Mechanical Engineering Commons^™

A Multiplication Toy For Children: The Color Cross Cube, Michael D. Walker, Ramana M. Pidaparti

Early Career Technical Journal (ECTJ)

Proceedings of the ASME District F Early Career Technical Conference, November 2-3, 2013. School of Engineering, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama

Section 9: Miscelleneous; pp. 297-301

Monitoring The Health Of A Beam Remotely By Using Scanning Laser Vibrometer, Hadi Fekrmandi, Javier Rojas, Michael Wolff, Ibrahim Nur Tansel, Sergio Gonzalez, Balemir Uragun

Early Career Technical Journal (ECTJ)

Proceedings of the ASME District F Early Career Technical Conference, November 2-3, 2013. School of Engineering, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama

Section 9: Miscelleneous; pp. 302-306

Cobb County-Marietta Water Authority Pump Station Maintenance Optimization Plan, William Cline, Pranita Saraswatula, Kambui John, Adeel Khalid, Kamran Moghaddam

Early Career Technical Journal (ECTJ)

Proceedings of the ASME District F Early Career Technical Conference, November 2-3, 2013. School of Engineering, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama

Section 9: Miscelleneous; pp. 307-314

Concept Review Of The Parameters As Related To The Green Aspects Of Elevators In Decision-Making Process, Magdalena Krstanoski

Early Career Technical Journal (ECTJ)

Proceedings of the ASME District F Early Career Technical Conference, November 2-3, 2013. School of Engineering, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama

Section 9: Miscelleneous; pp. 315-323

Asme District F Ectc Proceedings / Early Career Technical Journal (End Matter), Asme Ectc Coordinating Committee

Early Career Technical Journal (ECTJ)

Proceedings of the ASME District F Early Career Technical Conference, November 2-3, 2013. School of Engineering, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama

p. 324

Electric Field Influence On The Combustion Of Fuel Droplets, Solomon Benghan

LSU Master's Theses

Improving the combustion efficiency of fuels in combustion devices has become imperative in the face of the diminishing rate of the discovery of new energy sources and an ever increasing demand for energy. While there are other ways of improving combustion efficiency, this study investigated the effect of electric field on the combustion of fuel droplets. In order to model the physics of the problem, a mass transfer evaporation model, heat transfer evaporation model and a simple burning droplet model were considered and their result compared to existing result from literature. A burning rate constant of 1.380mm2/s, 14.910mm2/s and 0.612mm2/s …

An Acoustic-Based Microfluidic Platform For Active Separation And Mixing, Myeong Chan Jo

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Particle separation is of great interest to many biological and biomedical applications. Flow-based methods have been used to sort particles and cells. However, the main challenge with flow based particle separation systems is the need for a sheath flow for successful operation. Existence of the sheath liquid dilutes the analyte, necessitates precise flow control between sample and sheath flow, requires a complicated design to create sheath flow and separation efficiency depends on the sheath liquid composition. In addition, current gold standard active separation techniques are only capable of separation based on particle size; hence, separation cannot be achieved for same-size …

Continuous Electrowetting In Passivating And Non-Passivating Systems, Mehdi Khodayari

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Electrowetting is an electromechanical response that can be used to change the equilibrium

shape of droplets on a surface through the application of an electric potential. By applying this potential asymmetrically to a droplet, the droplet can be moved. Typical electrowetting devices use an electrode covered by a dielectric to reduce electrochemical interactions. Successful electrowetting requires electrodes and dielectric layers that can resist damage through many cycles of voltage.

Continuous Electrowetting (CEW) is performed on high resistivity silicon wafers. In this process, when an electric potential difference is applied between the substrate ends, the droplet on the substrate moves towards …

Aspect Ratio Effect On Melting And Solidification During Thermal Energy Storage, Prashanth Sridharan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The present work investigates, numerically, the process of melting and solidification in hollow vertical cylinders, filled with air and phase change material (PCM). The PCM used is sodium nitrate, which expands upon melting. Therefore, a void must be present within the cylinder, which is filled with air. The influence of cylinder shape on melting time is determined. The numerical model takes both conductive and convective heat transfer into account during the melting process. The Volume-of-Fluid (VOF) model is used to track the interface between the PCM and air as the PCM melts. Three dimensionless numbers represent the characteristics of the …

Effect Of Bolted Joint Preload On Structural Damping, Weiwei Xu

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Bolted joints are integral parts of mechanical systems, and bolt preload loss is one of the major failure modes for bolted joint structures. Understanding the damping and frequency response to a varying preload in a single-bolted lap-joint structure can be very helpful in predicting and analyzing more complicated structures connected by these joints.

In this thesis, the relationship between the bolt preload and the natural frequency, and the relationship between the bolt preload and the structural damping, have both been investigated through impact hammer testing on a single-bolted lap-joint structure. The test data revealed that the bolt preload has nonlinear …

Development Of Nanostructured Graphene/Conducting Polymer Composite Materials For Supercapacitor Applications, Punya A. Basnayaka

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The developments in mobile/portable electronics and alternative energy vehicles prompted engineers and researchers to develop electrochemical energy storage devices called supercapacitors, as the third generation type capacitors. Most of the research and development on supercapacitors focus on electrode materials, electrolytes and hybridization. Some attempts have been directed towards increasing the energy density by employing electroactive materials, such as metal oxides and conducting polymers (CPs). However, the high cost and toxicity of applicable metal oxides and poor long term stability of CPs paved the way to alternative electrode materials. The electroactive materials with carbon particles in composites have been used substantially …

Static And Dynamic Components Of Droplet Friction, Peter Robert Griffiths

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As digital microfluidics has continued to mature since its advent in the early 1980's, an increase in new and novel applications of this technology have been developed. However, even as this technology has become more common place, a consensus on the physics and force models of the motion of the contact line between the fluid, substrate, and ambient has not been reached. This uncertainty along with the dependence of the droplet geometry on the force to cause its motion has directed much of the research at specific geometries and droplet actuation methods.

The goal of this thesis is to help …

Human Intention Recognition Based Assisted Telerobotic Grasping Of Objects In An Unstructured Environment, Karan Hariharan Khokar

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation work, a methodology is proposed to enable a robot to identify an object to be grasped and its intended grasp configuration while a human is teleoperating a robot towards the desired object. Based on the detected object and grasp configuration, the human is assisted in the teleoperation task. The environment is unstructured and consists of a number of objects, each with various possible grasp configurations. The identification of the object and the grasp configuration is carried out in real time, by recognizing the intention of the human motion. Simultaneously, the human user is assisted to preshape over …

Towards Rans Parameterization Of Vertical Mixing By Langmuir Turbulence In Shallow Coastal Shelves, Nityanand Sinha

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Langmuir turbulence in the upper ocean is generated by the interaction between the wind-driven shear current and the Stokes drift velocity induced by surface gravity waves. In homogenous (neutrally stratified) shallow water, the largest scales of Langmuir turbulence are characterized by full-depth Langmuir circulation (LC). LC consists of parallel counter-rotating vortices aligned roughly in the direction of the wind. In shallow coastal shelves, LC has been observed engulfing the entire water column, interacting with the boundary layer and serving as an important mechanism for sediment re-suspension.

In this research, large-eddy simulations (LES) of Langmuir turbulence with full-depth LC in a …

Analytical And Numerical Modeling Of Assembly Procedures Of Steel Fulcra Of Bascule Bridges, Sriharsha Garapati

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

To model shrink-fitting in metal components, an analytical model for two long compound cylinders with temperature dependent material properties and interference between them is developed for calculating transient temperatures and stresses. A finite element model is developed for the same geometry which incorporated the temperature dependent material properties. A convergence study is performed on the finite element and analytical model. The finite element model is validated by comparing the approximations of finite element model with the analytical solution.

In an assembly procedure of fulcrums for bascule bridges, called AP1, the trunnion is shrink-fitted into a hub, followed by shrink fitting …

Reliability Assessment Of Ion Contamination Residues On Printed Circuit Board, Minh Tam Tran Nguyen

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Ion contaminants from Printed Circuit Board (PCB) assembly processes pose a high reliability risk because they result in damaged circuits. Therefore, it is essential to understand the level of ionic species on the electronic circuitry as well as the reliability risks caused by these contaminants. There are a number of approaches available in the industry to assess the reliability risks ; for example, the water drop test (WDT) is one of the techniques used to determine the propensity of an ionic contaminant to cause electrical short failures by dendrite formation. The objective of this research is to determine the time …

Ankle Impedance And Ankle Angles During Step Turn And Straight Walk: Implications For The Design Of A Steerable Ankle-Foot Prosthetic Robot, Evandro M. Ficanha

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

During locomotion, turning is a common and recurring event which is largely neglected in the current state-of-the-art ankle-foot prostheses, forcing amputees to use different steering mechanisms for turning, compared to non-amputees. A better understanding of the complexities surrounding lower limb prostheses will lead to increased health and well-being of amputees. The aim of this research is to develop a steerable ankle-foot prosthesis that mimics the human ankle mechanical properties. Experiments were developed to estimate the mechanical impedance of the ankle and the ankles angles during straight walk and step turn. Next, this information was used in the design of a …

Novel Automotive Waste Heat Recovery Techniques, John Randall Armstead

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

The United States transportation industry is predicted to consume approximately 13 million barrels of liquid fuel per day by 2025. If one percent of the fuel energy were salvaged through waste heat recovery, there would be a reduction of 130 thousand barrels of liquid fuel per day. This dissertation focuses on automotive waste heat recovery techniques with an emphasis on two novel techniques.

The first technique investigated was a combination coolant and exhaust-based Rankine cycle system, which utilized a patented piston-in-piston engine technology. The research scope included a simulation of the maximum mass flow rate of steam (700 K and …

An Experimental Investigation Into The Effects Of Biodiesel Blends On Particulate Matter Oxidation In A Catalyzed Particulate Filter During Active Regeneration, James Pidgeon

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

Active regeneration experiments were carried out on a production 2007 Cummins 8.9L ISL engine and associated DOC and CPF aftertreatment system. The effects of SME biodiesel blends were investigated in this study in order to determine the PM oxidation kinetics associated with active regeneration, and to determine the effect of biodiesel on them. The experimental data from this study will also be used to calibrate the MTU-1D CPF model. Accurately predicting the PM mass retained in the CPF and the oxidation characteristics will provide the basis for computation in the ECU that will minimize the fuel penalty associated with active …

Molecular Modeling Of Pmr-15 Polyimide, Fnu Pruthul Kokkada Ravindranath

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

PMR-15 polyimide is a polymer that is used as a matrix in composites. These composites with PMR-15 matrices are called advanced polymer matrix composite that is abundantly used in the aerospace and electronics industries because of its high temperature resistivity. Apart from having high temperature sustainability, PMR-15 composites also display good thermal-oxidative stability, mechanical properties, processability and low costs, which makes it a suitable material for manufacturing aircraft structures. PMR-15 uses the reverse Diels-Alder (RDA) method for crosslinking which provides it with the groundwork for its distinctive thermal stability and a range of 280-300 degree Centigrade use temperature. Regardless of …