Mechanical Engineering Commons^™

Torrefaction Of Mixed Solid Waste, Zhuo Xu

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

The world is witnessing unprecedented accumulation of solid wastes in the environment and landfills with well-documented ecological, environmental, health, and economic consequences. With population growth and rise in living standards, solid wastes generation will increase, making the issue more pressing. In addition, current practices of solid waste disposal are creating an immediate challenge and a long-term disaster-scale problem. The solid wastes comprises two main groups of materials: (i) fiber wastes (paper, food, wood, trimming, 61% of U.S. municipal solid waste) and (ii)uniquely challenging subset of plastic wastes (13%) that become a threat to global sustainability including dangers to marine and …

Application Of Carbon Nanotube Thermophones As Duct Noise Cancelling Speakers: Using New Technology With Old Theories, Stephania M. Vaglica

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Certain materials can produce sound through heat fluctuations. In recent times, the material capable of this was discovered to be Carbon Nanotubes (CNT). The idea is to create a flexible speaker that can be made into any shape or form to create sound. Once a speaker has been created, an active noise control system can be designed to cancel loud sounds in building and pipe ducts. This technology, similar to noise cancelling headphones, allows a user to create a modular system to mitigate noise in everyday life. Thus, the purpose of this research is to illustrate the abilities of a …

Experimental Evaluation And Simulation Of Torque Transmissibility Frequency Response Functions Of Vibration Isolators And Absorbers For Drivetrain Applications, Luke Jurmu

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Four studies involving torsional vibration isolation performance of automotive drivetrain components, make up this dissertation. One study features a prototype planetary torsional vibration absorber, a unique device that targets low frequency torsion modes in automotive drivetrains. Two studies feature experiments on several torque converters, clutch locked and open, to validate models of the hardware. The last study details experiments on a centrifugal pendulum absorber in a torque converter, to characterize the viscous friction while submerged in automatic transmission fluid (ATF). The enclosed studies improve the state of the art of drivetrain vibration absorbers and isolators, by introducing a new vibration …

Thermomechanical Mechanisms That Cause Adhesion Of Aluminum High Pressure Die Castings To The Die, Alex Monroe

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

In high pressure die casting (HPDC) of aluminum, cast material adhering to die is a significant defect. Adhesion occurs in two primary ways. The casting may stick preventing its removal from the die. Aluminum can also adhere to the die and buildup in local areas on the die surface with additional casting cycles. This second form of adhesion is called soldering. Lubricant is the best technology to control all forms of adhesion, but it comes at the cost of casting porosity, blisters, reduced die life, and increased die casting machine wear. New strategies to prevent adhesion are desired to eliminate …

Sliding Mode Control Of A Nonlinear Wave Energy Converter Model, Tania Demonte Gonzalez

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

The most accurate wave energy converter models for heaving point absorbers include nonlinearities, which increase as resonance is achieved to maximize energy capture. The efficiency of wave energy converters can be enhanced by employing a control scheme that accounts for these nonlinearities. This project proposes a sliding mode control for a heaving point absorber that includes the nonlinear effects of the Froude-Krylov force. The sliding mode controller tracks a reference velocity that matches the phase of the excitation force to ensure higher energy absorption. This control algorithm is tested in regular linear waves and is compared to a complex-conjugate control …

Development Of Autonomous Vehicle Motion Planning And Control Algorithm With D* Planner And Model Predictive Control In A Dynamic Environment, Somnath Mondal

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

The research in this report incorporates the improvement in the autonomous driving capability of self-driving cars in a dynamic environment. Global and local path planning are implemented using the D* path planning algorithm with a combined Cubic B-Spline trajectory generator, which generates an optimal obstacle free trajectory for the vehicle to follow and avoid collision. Model Predictive Control (MPC) is used for the longitudinal and the lateral control of the vehicle. The presented motion planning and control algorithm is tested using Model-In-the-Loop (MIL) method with the help of MATLAB® Driving Scenario Designer and Unreal Engine® Simulator by Epic Games®. Different …

High Injection Pressure Impinging Diesel Spray Characteristics And Subsequent Soot Formation In Reacting Conditions, Zhihao Zhao

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

The spray impingement in diesel engines attracts the attention of engine researchers in recent decades as the physical size of the engine is reduced. Due to the spray impingement, the atomization, vaporizing and air-fuel mixing quality is altered compared to a free spray. For emission control, soot is one of the major particulate emissions from diesel combustion and its formation in an impinged spray is worthy to be investigated.

Firstly, to understand the impinged spray characteristics, the experiments for both non-vaporizing and reacting conditions were conducted in a constant volume combustion vessel. The impinged spray was captured by a high-speed …

Defect Detection Using Dynamic Analysis For Additive Manufactured Metals, Gita Deonarain

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Additive manufacturing (AM) has the ability to produce parts with complex geometries and internal features, however, for demanding applications such as the automotive and aerospace industries, it is crucial that the parts can meet the demanding functional and geometric requirements. Quality control for AM parts focuses on nondestructive methods of testing, but many of the current methods are expensive and time-consuming. The research presented in this report explores various methods of nondestructive evaluation (NDE) using dynamic analysis on stainless steel parts produced with selective laser melting (SLM). Methods include, but are not limited to, frequency response functions (FRF), impedance-based measurements, …

Integrated Torrefaction-Extrusion System For Conversion Of Fiber-Plastic Wastes Into Solid Fuels, Shreyas Kolapkar

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Waste generation is increasing, and a significant portion is being landfilled. In parallel, we are constantly pursuing cleaner fuels due to environmental and regulatory factors. To address both these challenges, torrefaction of wastes to produce clean fuels and feedstock for other thermochemical processes is one of the potential solutions. This work focuses on (a) fundamental understanding of the properties of un-torrefied and torrefied wastes and (b) development of a pilot-scale integrated torrefaction-extrusion system for converting fiber-plastic wastes to solid fuels.

In this study, a 60:40 fiber-plastic waste blend was used for performing extensive experiments on densified and un-densified wastes to …

Investigation Of A Machine-Plant Interface For Extracting Rooted Invasive Aquatic Plants, Brad Baas

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

The current solutions for managing rooted aquatic invasive plants are time consuming, have negative environmental impacts, or are cost-limiting for management organizations. The most effective treatment method is hand pulling, but hand pulling is not a feasible solution for a whole lake. A new device, the invasive aquatic plant extractor, aims to replace human divers who hand pull plants with a mechanical system. The device implements a machine-plant interface that resembles the tines of a fork. These tines will be pushed linearly through the substrate, and then raised from the substrate with the plant caught in the tines. The primary …

Phase-Field Fracture Modeling For Interlocking Micro-Architectured Materials, Shubham Sinha

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

It is fascinating to see how natural materials like teeth enamel, bone and nacre possess a very high stiffness and strength in spite of the fact that they are composed of minerals mostly. Studies have shown the reason for this aberration as the presence of weaker interfaces with intricate interlocking architectures at microscopic levels in these materials. Inspired by the architecture of these materials, micro-architectured sutures with jig-saw like geometry is being studied in this research study. The main focus of this study is to examine the effects of friction co-efficient and interlocking angles of the jig-saw tabs on pullout …

Direct Observation Of The Formation And Stabilization Of Metallic Nanoparticles On Carbon Supports, Zhennan Huang, Yonggang Yao, Zhenqian Pang, Yifei Yuan, Tangyuan Li, Kun He, Xiaobing Hu, Jian Cheng, Wentao Yao

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Direct formation of ultra-small nanoparticles on carbon supports by rapid high temperature synthesis method offers new opportunities for scalable nanomanufacturing and the synthesis of stable multi-elemental nanoparticles. However, the underlying mechanisms affecting the dispersion and stability of nanoparticles on the supports during high temperature processing remain enigmatic. In this work, we report the observation of metallic nanoparticles formation and stabilization on carbon supports through in situ Joule heating method. We find that the formation of metallic nanoparticles is associated with the simultaneous phase transition of amorphous carbon to a highly defective turbostratic graphite (T-graphite). Molecular dynamic (MD) simulations suggest that …

Primal-Dual 2-Approximation Algorithm For The Monotonic Multiple Depot Heterogeneous Traveling Salesman Problem, S. Rathinam, R. Ravi, J. Bae, K. Sundar

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

We study a Multiple Depot Heterogeneous Traveling Salesman Problem (MDHTSP) where the cost of the traveling between any two targets depends on the type of the vehicle. The travel costs are assumed to be symmetric, satisfy the triangle inequality, and are monotonic, i.e., the travel costs between any two targets monotonically increases with the index of the vehicles. Exploiting the monotonic structure of the travel costs, we present a 2-approximation algorithm based on the primal-dual method.

Radio Frequency Emissions From Dark-Matter-Candidate Magnetized Quark Nuggets Interacting With Matter, J. Pace Vandevender, C. Jerald Buchenauer, Chunpei Cai, Aaron P. Vandevender, Benjamin A. Ulmen

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Quark nuggets are theoretical objects composed of approximately equal numbers of up, down, and strange quarks. They are also called strangelets, nuclearites, AQNs, slets, Macros, and MQNs. Quark nuggets are a candidate for dark matter, which has been a mystery for decades despite constituting ~ 85% of the universe’s mass. Most previous models of quark nuggets have assumed no intrinsic magnetic field; however, Tatsumi found that quark nuggets may exist in magnetars as a ferromagnetic liquid with a magnetic field BS = 1012±1 T. We apply that result to quark nuggets, a dark-matter candidate consistent with the Standard Model, and …

A Low-Cost Secure Iot Mechanism For Monitoring And Controlling Polygeneration Microgrids, Josué Martínez-Martínez, Diego Aponte-Roa, Idalides Vergara-Laurens, Wayne Weaver

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

The use of Internet-connected devices at homes has increased to monitor energy consumption. Furthermore, renewable energy sources have also increased, reducing electricity bills. However, the high cost of the equipment limits the use of these technologies. This paper presents a low-cost secured-distributed Internet of Things (IoT) system to monitor and control devices connected in a polygeneration microgrid, as a combined power system for local loads with renewable sources. The proposed mechanism includes a Wireless Sensor Actuator Networked Control System that links network nodes using the IEEE 802.15.4 standard. The Internet communication enables the monitor and control of devices using a …

Me-Em Enewsbrief, October-December 2020, Department Of Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics, Michigan Technological University

Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering eNewsBrief

No abstract provided.

The Economics Of Classroom 3-D Printing Of Open-Source Digital Designs Of Learning Aids, Nicole Gallup, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

While schools struggle financially, capital for purchasing physical learning aids is often cut. To determine if costs could be reduced for learning aids, this study analyzed classroom-based distributed digital manufacturing using 3-D printing of open-source learning aid designs. Learning aid designs are analyzed in detail for their economic viability considering printing and assembly costs with purchased components and compared to equivalent or inferior commercial products available on Amazon. The results show current open-source 3-D printers are capable of manufacturing useful learning aids and that doing so provides high economic savings in the classroom. Overall, the average learning aid would save …

Rf Studies Of Soot And Ammonia Loadings On A Combined Particulate Filter And Scr Catalyst, Shreyans Sethia, David Kubinski, Hans Nerlich, Jeffrey Naber

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Modern diesels employ a particulate filter (DPF) to reduce soot emissions. Additionally, the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NOx by NH3 stored on the SCR catalyst reduces NOx emissions. In some vehicles the functions of these aftertreatment components are combined in the SDPF, a DPF having a SCR washcoat. The RF resonant method has been shown to be an alternative tool for measuring the DPF's soot loading and the SCR's NH3 loading. For both applications, the transmitted electromagnetic signal between antennae placed on either side of the catalyst change with loading. Here we report the influence of the RF signal …

Nonlinear Controller For Nonlinear Wave Energy Converters, David G. Wilson, Giorgio Bacelli, Rush D. Robinett Iii, Ossama Abdelkhalik

Michigan Tech Patents

The present invention is directed to a nonlinear controller for nonlinear wave energy converters (WECs). As an example of the invention, a nonlinear dynamic model is developed for a geometrically right-circular cylinder WEC design for the heave-only motion, or a single degree-of-freedom (DOF). The linear stiffness term is replaced by a nonlinear cubic hardening spring term to demonstrate the performance of a nonlinear WEC as compared to an optimized linear WEC. By exploiting the nonlinear physics in the nonlinear controller, equivalent power and energy capture, as well as simplified operational performance is observed for the nonlinear cubic hardening spring controller …

Effect Of Geometry And Fluid Viscosity On Dynamics Of Fluid-Filled Cracks: Insights From Analog Experimental Observations, Haitao Cao, Ezequiel F. Medici, Gregory P. Waite, Roohollah Askari

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Fluid-filled volumes in geological systems can change the local stress field in the host rock and may induce brittle deformation as well as crack propagation. Although the mechanisms relating fluid pressure perturbations and seismicity have been widely studied, the fluid-solid interaction inside the crack of a host rock is still not well understood. An analog experimental model of fluid intrusion in cracks between planar layers has been developed to study stress conditions at the margins and tips. A combined high-speed shadowgraph and a photoelasticity imaging system is used to visualize the fluid dynamics and induced stresses on the solid matrix. …

Towards Real-Time Reinforcement Learning Control Of A Wave Energy Converter, Enrico Anderlini, Salman Husain, Gordon Parker, Mohammad Abusara, Giles Thomas

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

The levellised cost of energy of wave energy converters (WECs) is not competitive with fossil fuel-powered stations yet. To improve the feasibility of wave energy, it is necessary to develop effective control strategies that maximise energy absorption in mild sea states, whilst limiting motions in high waves. Due to their model-based nature, state-of-the-art control schemes struggle to deal with model uncertainties, adapt to changes in the system dynamics with time, and provide real-time centralised control for large arrays of WECs. Here, an alternative solution is introduced to address these challenges, applying deep reinforcement learning (DRL) to the control of WECs …

Open Source High-Temperature Reprap For 3-D Printing Heat-Sterilizable Ppe And Other Applications, Noah G. Skrzypczak, Nagendra G. Tanikella, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Thermal sterilization is generally avoided for 3-D printed components because of the relatively low deformation temperatures for common thermoplastics used for material extrusion-based additive manufacturing. 3-D printing materials required for high-temperature heat sterilizable components for COVID-19 and other applications demands 3-D printers with heated beds, hot ends that can reach higher temperatures than polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) hot ends and heated chambers to avoid part warping and delamination. There are several high temperature printers on the market, but their high costs make them inaccessible for full home-based distributed manufacturing required during pandemic lockdowns. To allow for all these requirements to be met …

A Control System For A Constrained Two-Body Wave Energy Converter, Shangyan Zou, Ossama Abdelkhalik

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Wave energy can be used to power oceano-graphic buoys. A new switching control strategy is developed in this paper for a two-body heaving wave energy converter that is composed of a floating cylinder and two rigidly connected submerged hemispheres. This control strategy is designed to prevent excessive displacement of the floating buoy that may occur due to the actuator force. This control strategy switches the control between a multi-resonant controller and a nonlinear damping controller, depending on the state of the system, to account for displacement constraints. This control strategy is developed using a one-degree-of-freedom dynamic model for the relative …

Me-Em 2019-20 Annual Report, Department Of Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics, Michigan Technological University

Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Annual Reports

Table of Contents

• Element 1
• Element 2
• Element 3
• Element 4
• Enrollment & Degrees
• Graduates
• Department
• Alumni
• Donors

Open-Source Grinding Machine For Compression Screw Manufacturing, Jacob Franz, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Some of the most promising distributed recycling and additive manufacturing (DRAM) technical systems use fused particle fabrication (FPF) or fused granular fabrication (FGF), where compression screws force post-consumer waste plastic through a heated nozzle for direct 3D printing. To assist the technical evolution of these systems, this study provided the details of an invention for a low-cost, easily replicable open-source grinding machine for compression screw manufacturing. The system itself can be largely fabricated using FPF/FGF following the self-replicating rapid prototyper (RepRap) methodology. This grinding machine can be made from a cordless cut-off grinder and < $155 in parts. The new invention is demonstrated to be able to cut custom screws with variable (i) channel depths, (ii) screw diameters, (iii) screw lengths, (iv) pitches, (v) abrasive disk thicknesses, (vi) handedness of the screws, (vii) and materials (three types of steel tested: 1045 steel, 1144 steel, and 416 stainless steel). The results show that the device is more than capable of replicating commercial screws as well as providing makers with a much greater flexibility to make custom screws. This invention enables the DRAM toolchain to become even more self-sufficient, which assists the goals of the circular economy.

Me-Em Enewsbrief, September 2020, Department Of Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics, Michigan Technological University

Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering eNewsBrief

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of Adsorbed Volatile Organic Compounds On An Ultrathin Water Film Measurement, Shahab Bayani Ahangar, Chan Ho Jeong, Fei Long, Jeffrey S. Allen, Seong Hyuk Lee, Chang Kyoung Choi

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

Using surface plasmon resonance imaging (SPRi), we have recently shown for the first time the existence of a monolayer water film between droplets during dropwise condensation. This study examines the effect of adsorbed volatile organic compounds (VOCs) on the ultrathin film measurement using SPRi. Further, the work presents the proper surface-treatment process that enables measurements of the ultrathin water layer during high-speed imaging of dropwise condensation at 3000 frame per second. In this study, two methods were applied for cleaning the surface (gold-coated glass)-(1) standard cleaning procedure (SCP) using acetone, isopropyl alcohol, and deionized water and (2) SCP followed by …

Power Take-Off And Energy Storage System Static Modeling And Sizing For Direct Drive Wave Energy Converter To Support Ocean Sensing Applications, Xiang Zhou, Ossama Abdelkhalik, Wayne Weaver

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

This paper addresses the sizing and design problem of a permanent magnet electrical machine power take-off system for a two-body wave energy converter, which is designed to support ocean sensing applications with sustained power. The design is based upon ground truth ocean data bi-spectrums (swell and wind waves) from Martha’s Vineyard Coastal Observatory in the year 2015. According to the ground truth ocean data, the paper presents the optimal harvesting power time series of the whole year. The electrical machine and energy storage static modeling are introduced in the paper. The paper uses the ground truth ocean data in March …

Open-Source Digitally Replicable Lab-Grade Scales, Benjamin R. Hubbard, Joshua M. Pearce

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

This study provides designs for a low-cost, easily replicable open-source lab-grade digital scale that can be used as a precision balance. The design is such that it can be manufactured for use in most labs throughout the world with open-source RepRap-class material extrusion-based 3-D printers for the mechanical components and readily available open-source electronics including the Arduino Nano. Several versions of the design were fabricated and tested for precision and accuracy for a range of load cells. The results showed the open-source scale was found to be repeatable within 0.05 g with multiple load cells, with even better precision (0.005 …

Investigation Of Deformation Induced Micro To Macro Scale Surface Roughness, Ayotunde Olayinka, William J. Emblom, Scott W. Wagner, Michael Khonsari, Ali Haghshenas

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

In the present work the relationship between deformation and deformation induced surface roughness of 100 micron thick annealed AISI 304 stainless steel was investigated at the meso scale. This work is a continuation of the previous work by the authors where roughness values were determined at the apex of the bulge test samples at micro scale. The apex is believed to be the region of highest stress and strain in a typical bulge process in a circular die. The material was deformed using a biaxial bulge test through hydraulic fluid pressure. The strains on the workpieces were measured with respect …