Engineering Commons^™

Wind And Thermal Effects On Ground Mounted Photovoltaic (Pv) Panels, Chowdhury Mohammad Jubayer

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

A combination of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations and wind tunnel experiments are carried out to investigate the effects of wind on the aerodynamic loading and heat transfer of a ground mounted stand-alone photovoltaic (PV) panel with tilt angle of 25^o in open country atmospheric boundary layer. Several azimuthal wind directions are considered: Southern 0^o, Southwest 45^o, Northwest 135^o and Northern 180^o. Three dimensional Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) approaches with an unsteady solver using Shear Stress Transport (SST) k-ω turbulence closure are employed for the CFD simulations, whereas Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) and …

Structural Response Analyses Of Piezoelectric Composites Using Nurbs, Vijairaj Raj

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Variational method deduced on the basis of the minimum potential energy is an efficient method to find solutions for complex engineering problems. In structural mechanics, the potential energy comprises strain energy, kinetic energy and the work done by external actions. To obtain these, the displacement are required as a priori. This research is concerned with the development of a numerical method based on variational principles to analyze piezoelectric composite plates and solids. A Non-Uniform Rational B-Spline (NURBS) function is used for describing both the geometry and electromechanical displacement fields. Two dimensional plate models are formulated according to the first order …

Response Of Transmission Line Conductors Under Downburst Wind, Haitham Aboshosha

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Electricity is transmitted by Transmission Lines (TLs) from the source of production to the distribution system and then to the end consumers. Failure of a TL can lead to significant economic losses and to negative social consequences resulting from the interruption of power. High Intensity Winds (HIW), in the form of downbursts and tornadoes, are believed to be responsible for more than 80% of the weather-related failure of TLs around the world. The studies reported in this thesis are part of an ongoing extensive research program at Western University focusing on the response of TLs under HIW. Previous investigations conducted …

Automated Image Interpretation For Science Autonomy In Robotic Planetary Exploration, Raymond Francis

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Advances in the capabilities of robotic planetary exploration missions have increased the wealth of scientific data they produce, presenting challenges for mission science and operations imposed by the limits of interplanetary radio communications. These data budget pressures can be relieved by increased robotic autonomy, both for onboard operations tasks and for decision- making in response to science data.

This thesis presents new techniques in automated image interpretation for natural scenes of relevance to planetary science and exploration, and elaborates autonomy scenarios under which they could be used to extend the reach and performance of exploration missions on planetary surfaces.

Two …

Physical Simulation Of Tornado-Like Vortices, Maryam Refan

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Scaling ratios of simulations are essential to research the effect of tornadic winds on buildings and structures, in both experimental and numerical studies. In order to determine the proper scaling, access to wind fields of simulated and full-scale tornadoes is needed. For the first time here Doppler radar tornado velocity fields are analyzed and compared to experimental tornado-like vortices data in order to establish the scaling necessary to simulate tornadoes in a physical laboratory setting.

A prototype three-dimensional wind testing chamber capable of simulating tornadoes, named Model WindEEE Dome (MWD), was designed and built. Tornado-like vortices were simulated and investigated …