Mechanical Engineering Commons^™

Exhaust Thermal Management Using Cylinder Deactivation And Late Intake Valve Closing, Mark E. Magee

Open Access Theses

Progressively stricter emission regulations have compelled diesel engine manufacturers to develop new technologies that reduce harmful pollutants like NOx and soot. While manufacturers have previously been able to meet these regulations through the use of on engine technology such as exhaust gas recirculation and multiple pulse injections, exhaust after treatment systems such as diesel particulate filters and selective catalytic reduction systems have become necessary to meet recent stricter policies. While these after treatment systems are incredibly effective at reducing harmful emissions, to operate effectively the system needs to be above a certain temperature level typically between 250 and 300°C. Many …

Improving Indoor Air Quality Through Botanical Air Filtration In Energy Efficient Residences, Daniel William Newkirk

Open Access Theses

According to the U.S. EPA, the average American spends 90% of their time indoors where pollutants are two to five times more prevalent than outside. The consequences of these pollutants are estimated to cost the U.S. 125 billion dollars in lost health and productivity. Background literature suggests botanical air filtration may be able to solve this problem by leveraging the natural ability of plants to purify indoor air. By improving indoor air quality, energy consumption can also be reduced by bringing in less outside air to dilute contaminants within the space. A botanical air filter, called the Biowall, was designed …

A Novel Three Degree-Of-Freedoms Oscillation System Of Insect Flapping Wings, Yi Qin

Open Access Theses

We propose an oscillation system to replicate the dynamic behavior of flapping wings, inspired by insect flight muscles. In particular, we study the flight of the fruit fly Drosophila virilis . We model the wing as a rigid body with three degree-of-freedom, described by three Euler angles: the stroke angle, the rotation angle and the deviation angle. Insect flight muscles are separated into two types: power muscles and control muscles. One actuator and one torsional spring at the stroke angle act as the power muscles. Two torsional springs at the rotation angle and the deviation angle mimic the control muscles. …

Characterization Of Thermal And Mechanical Properties Of Porous Material For Electronic Cooling Applications, Ninad Tushar Trifale

Open Access Theses

Metal foams are considered beneficial for several applications because of its significantly large surface area for a given volume. Foams form a high thermal conductive network in a thermal interface for electro cooling applications. The porous structures are relatively compliant and can provide for a better contact and thereby have a lower thermal resistance. Porous heat sinks made of aluminum foam have been well studied in the past. It is not only cost effective due to the unique production process, but also attractive for the theoretical modeling study to determine the performance. A study on the thermal and mechanical characterization …

The Influence Of Gaps On The Frequency Response Of A Beamspring Contact System, Wenbin Zhang

Open Access Theses

Some mechanical systems with gaps such as in disc brakes and Cardan joints exhibit nonlinearity under certain load conditions, which is unpredictable and highly sensitive to initial conditions. Previous studies were mainly focused on either a single-degree-of-freedom (DOF) system or a flexible beam with uniform elastic foundation. The analysis of this thesis is a combination of these two where gaps are first introduced to a flexible beam model. A model of a beam resting on compliant foundation with gaps has been developed and analyzed. The assumed modes method is used to derive the equations of motion (EOM's) for the system. …

Understanding The Global Energy Crisis, Eugene D. Coyle, Richard A. Simmons

Purdue University Press Books

We are facing a global energy crisis caused by world population growth, an escalating increase in demand, and continued dependence on fossil-based fuels for generation. It is widely accepted that increases in greenhouse gas concentration levels, if not reversed, will result in major changes to world climate with consequential effects on our society and economy. This is just the kind of intractable problem that Purdue University’s Global Policy Research Institute seeks to address in the Purdue Studies in Public Policy series by promoting the engagement between policy makers and experts in fields such as engineering and technology.

Major steps forward …

Autonomous Indoor Localization Via Field Mapping Techniques, With Agricultural Big Data Application, Yan Cui, Kartik Ariyur, Benjamin D. Branch

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

This joint collaboration between the library, the Mechanical Engineering department shows the current research of localizing an Android smartphone using big data collection and sensor fusion techniques. The original work is Autonomous Indoor Localization via Field Mapping Techniques which primarily designed as indoor fire and safety aid.

For Agricultural Big Data Use, the Android smartphone is being applied to in indoor greenhouse fire, safety and data knowledge design. Such may aid big data tool value to greenhouse fire and safety design and any data that may be important fieldwork considerations.

The indoor agricultural mapping application may be application to greenhouses …

A Novel Microgrid Demand-Side Management System For Manufacturing Facilities, Terance J. Harper, William J. Hutzel, James C. Foreman, Aaron L. Adams, Athula Kulatunga

Purdue Polytechnic Masters Theses

Thirty-one percent of annual energy consumption in the United States occurs within the industrial sector, where manufacturing processes account for the largest amount of energy consumption and carbon emissions. For this reason, energy efficiency in manufacturing facilities is increasingly important for reducing operating costs and improving profits. Using microgrids to generate local sustainable power should reduce energy consumption from the main utility grid along with energy costs and carbon emissions. Also, microgrids have the potential to serve as reliable energy generators in international locations where the utility grid is often unstable.

For this research, a manufacturing process that had approximately …

Strain Modulations As A Mechanism To Reduce Stress Relaxation In Laryngeal Tissues, Eric J. Hunter, Thomas Siegmund, Roger W. Chan

School of Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

Vocal fold tissues in animal and human species undergo deformation processes at several types of loading rates: a slow strain involved in vocal fold posturing (on the order of 1 Hz or so), cyclic and faster posturing often found in speech tasks or vocal embellishment (1–10 Hz), and shear strain associated with vocal fold vibration during phonation (100 Hz and higher). Relevant to these deformation patterns are the viscous properties of laryngeal tissues, which exhibit non-linear stress relaxation and recovery. In the current study, a large strain time-dependent constitutive model of human vocal fold tissue is used to investigate effects …

Rheological Investigation Of The Shear Strength, Durability, And Recovery Of Alginate Rafts Formed By Antacid Medication In Varying Ph Environments, Brooke M. Elliott, Kathleen E. Steckbeck, Lisa R. Murray, Kendra Erk

School of Materials Engineering Faculty Publications

The mechanical response of alginate rafts formed by mixing liquid alginate antacid medication (Gaviscon® Extra Strength Liquid Antacid) with acidic solutions was investigated by deforming isolated rafts in a shear rheometer. As rafts were deformed to varying magnitudes of applied strain, rheological parameters were identified and related to the overall strength, durability, and recoverability of rafts formed at different pH (1.1 – 1.7) and aging conditions (0.5 – 4 hr). Rafts formed in the lowest acidity solutions (pH 1.4, 1.7) were elastically weak (G₀’ = 60, 42 Pa for un-aged raft) yet maintained their elasticity during applied …

Visualizing Mechanics: Improving Student Learning Through Video Demonstrations, Blake A. Wetherton, Olumide A. Awofeso, Carolyn E. Creighton, Adam F. Potrzebowski, Charles M. Krousgrill, Jeffrey F. Rhoads

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

The Purdue Mechanics Freeform Classroom (PMFC) is a project that seeks to reform engineering mechanics education by integrating content and technology; enhancing communication between students, their peers, and instructors; accommodating a broader range of learning styles; and facilitating greater depths of understanding. In an attempt to increase the PMFC’s efficacy, a series of demonstration videos has been produced. As demonstrated by the popularity and pervasiveness of websites such as YouTube, short videos have the potential to captivate audiences. As such, these videos have incredible promise in educational contexts. In the PMFC series of videos, entitled Visualizing Mechanics, each imitates the …

Active Dense Tensegrity Structure: A Novel Concept For Shape Morphing Structures, Zhiwei Wu, Thomas Siegmund

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Shape morphing is of relevance for advanced engineering systems such as future aerospace vehicles. Tensegrity structures, a structure comprised of a set of discontinuous compressed struts held together with a continuous web of tensioned cables, can function as the foundation of a shape morphing system (Keith et al, 2007). However, the classic tensegrity structures may not be ideal in all configurations because the space within the structure is not utilized. As an alternative, the present work proposes a dense tensegrity system as an assembly of cables carrying tensions only and polyhedral elements under compression only. An active dense tensegrity can …

Radiation Intensity Of A Turbulent Sooting Ethylene Flame, Ryan M. Hartman, Jay P. Gore

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Turbulent sooting flame radiation is relevant to applications ranging from fire safety to gas turbine engines. The complex direct interactions of soot and radiation intensity are of particular importance when creating accurate soot prediction models. Previous studies have measured gas-band and broadband radiation intensity from turbulent sooting flames. The focus of the current study is the characterization of radiation intensity emanating from soot. A high-speed infrared camera (FLIR Phoenix) was used to acquire time-dependent quantitative images of radiation intensity of a turbulent sooting ethylene flame. The flame had a Reynolds number of 15,200 and was stabilized on a burner with …

Computer Simulation Study Of Slipper Lubrication In Hydraulic Machines, Jordyn B. Miller, Monika Ivantysynova

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Hydraulic pumps and motors are vital components used in many applications today. Specifically, the axial piston pump is important because it is reliable, relatively compact, and has a high horsepower-to-weight ratio. These features make this type of pump very advantageous in hydraulic systems. Maintaining proper lubrication between surfaces in an axial pump, such as the slipper and swashplate, is imperative in order to have smooth operation of the system and prevent metal-to-metal contact. The aim of this research is to find the optimal slipper design and fluid film thickness to simultaneously maintain a balanced pressure and decrease power loss in …

Thin Electrical Double Layer Simulation Of Micro-Electrochemical Supercapacitors, Kaitlyn Fisher, Guoping Xiong, Timothy S. Fisher

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

The deteriorating state of the environment has drawn many people to hybrid electric vehicles. Electrochemical micro-supercapacitors are of interest in this field because of their high power density relative to other micro-power sources. However, little is known about how the properties of the electrolyte used affect the performance of such devices. The first step of this investigation was to use thermoreflectance microscopy to measure the temperature change of the electrodes while charging and discharging supercapacitor samples. The components of these samples were graphitic petal electrodes with a Ti/Au covering (for enhanced light reflectance) on a SiO₂ base, with a …

Phase-Field Dislocation Dynamics Code Optimization, Jaime A. Perez, Marisol Koslowski

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

The importance of the study of nanocrystalline materials has gained a huge amount of attention these years due to its extraordinary mechanical, electrical and chemical properties. One significant way to progress in this field is by simulating the behavior of the particles in nano scale, which is not only a need but a challenge due to massive interactions that occur there. The phase-field dislocation dynamics (PFDD) method has been successfully employed in the modeling of plastic deformation, creep and grain boundary sliding. In PFDD, the plastic strain and the energy are functions of phase fields that obey a set of …

Advanced Visualization Techniques Of Hot-Jet Combustion Of Lean And Ultra-Lean Substances, Timothy I. Machin, Li Qiao

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Research has been conducted on ignition of natural gas as a potential replacement for fossil fuels. A reason natural gas is not widely used and adapted is because of the harmful emissions created when combusted in rich mixtures, but if the gas can be burned at a lean or ultra-lean equivalence ratio, these emissions can be reduced or even eliminated. One method of burning lean and ultra-lean substances is by use of hot-jet ignition. This method ignites the substance near its combustion temperature, reducing the harmful emissions. This method is not yet fully understood, and so research must be done …

Dna Based Carbon Nanotube Porphyrin Nanohybrids Molecular Recognization And Regeneration, Molly M. Riccitelli, Hanyu Zhang, Jong Hyun Choi

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

In the search to improve solar cells, scientists are exploring new materials that will provide better current transfer. One material that has emerged as a strong contender is the single walled carbon nanotube (SWNT). Current DNA-SWNT based films combined with chromophores have poor operational lifetimes compared to commercial solar cells. Once exposed to light the chromophore begins to degrade, eventually rendering the solar cell unusable. To solve this problem, we used a method involving multiple steps. First we found which DNA sequences formed structures around the SWNT that could hold the most chromophores by using a spectrophotometer to test the …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Nucleic Acid-Functionalized Nanomaterials, Brianna S. Carroll, Jong Hyun Choi

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Motor proteins such as kinesin move along microtubules in order to transport cellular cargos throughout the cell by obtaining energy from RNA hydrolysis which allows the cell to complete the tasks needed to stay alive. In this work, we developed synthetic molecular motors using DNA enzymes (DNAzyme) and fluorescent nanomaterials which mimic the functions and structures of motor proteins. A DNAzyme-capped CdS nanoparticle and a RNA-functionalized single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) were used as a walker and a track in the motor platform, respectively. As a walking mechanism, the DNAzyme cleaved the RNA substrates in the presence of metal cations. The …

Mems Lab Simulation Tool, Oluwatosin D. Adeosun, Sambit Palit, Ankit Jain, Muhammad A. Alam

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

MEMS actuators have multiple design applications. Understanding their behavior as well as the ability to predict their actuation characteristics and voltage response is important when designing these actuators. In order to know these devices will behave, designers have to solve multiple analytical equations and experiments that can be very time consuming. Over the course of the summer a tool was created on nanoHUB that will allow users to enter information about a MEMS actuator and provide the voltage response of the actuator. To create the tool, scaling equations were first provided for various geometry configurations and the equations were next …

Design Of A Novel Actuation System For Variable Displacement Gear Machine, Mark W. Mahuren, Andrea Vacca

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

External spur gear pumps are exceedingly useful components in common hydraulic systems. The main issue with external gear pumps is that all current models are limited to only fixed-displacement. This means that for every revolution of the gears inside the pump, a set amount of fluid will always be displaced. Consequently, external gear pumps are limited in their use because they can only operate at full throttle causing inefficiencies when reduced displacement is needed. The successful procurement of a variable displacement gear pump will allow a more efficient use of hydraulic systems, such as in the displacement controlled systems used …

Effect Of Compression On The Transmission Loss Of Porous Material, Yingchao Yang, J Stuart Bolton

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Porous materials are commonly applied in sound absorption in different places. Transmission loss, one of the vital parameters determining the performance of the material, will change when the material is compressed. Usually the compression that might affect the properties to the greatest extent are normal compression and the deformation can be simplified as 1D compression model. In order to verify the prediction, some formulas taking several parameters (porosity, tortuosity, flow resistivity and characteristic lengths) into account are applied and also the Johnson et al’s model of limp structure. Dynamic density of limp model and bulk modulus are thus obtained and …

Semi-Active Structural Control Of A 2-Story Shear Building, Alana K. Wilbee, Shirley Dyke

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

With continuing urban development across the world, it is becoming ever more important to provide increased structural safety against events such as earthquakes and strong winds. The field of structural control has recently been growing to meet these challenges through the use of semi-active control methods, such as the Magnetorheological (MR) Damper. However, due to the non-linearity of the device, the knowledge base surrounding the MR Damper and its various control algorithms still needs to be strengthened before large-scale implementation of this control method can occur. To address these issues, this study will examine a two story benchmark structure using …

Experimental Study Of Co2 Recycling Using Metal-Oxide Enhanced Coconut Char Gasification: Catalytic Effect Of Potassium Carbonate On Gasification, Mengqi Gao, Indraneel Sircar, Jay P. Gore

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Biomass gasification is an important process in the production of bio-derived fuels and renewable energy. Biomass gasification with CO₂ is an endothermic process requiring high temperatures, resulting in low process-efficiency. Metals found in the ash in biomass feedstock have shown rate-promoting effects on the C-CO₂ reaction and have motivated the study of low-temperature catalytic gasification. The present study investigates the catalytic effects of potassium (K) on the biomass gasification reactivity of a coconut-derived char (>99.9% carbon) within the temperature range of 600 – 1000 ^oC. A wet-impregnation technique is used to prepare K-treated chars. Gasification of …

Kinetic Monte Carlo Simulations, Jingyuan Liang, R. Edwin García, Ding-Wen (Tony) Chung, David Ely

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Kinetic Monte Carlo (kMC) is a set of scientific libraries designed to deploy kMC simulations intended to simulate the time evolution of some processes occurring in nature. kMC is currently allows the user to intuitively generate single component crystal lattices to simulate, post process, and visualize the kinetic Monte Carlo-based atomistic evolution of materials. kMC provides an interface to the Stochastic Parallel PARticle Kinetic Simulator (SPPARKS) [1] and is specifically designed to simulate individual atomic deposition (condensation) and dissolution (evaporation) events, while simultaneously tracking the surface and bulk crystallographic anisotropic diffusion. The main goal of this project is to create …

Advancement Of Legged Locomotion Models By Including Nonlinear Damping, Ian Abraham, Zhuohua H. Shen, Justin E. Seipel

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Accurately predicting human locomotion has been a goal of various mathematical models. Early canonical models of locomotion were developed to predict the basic features of ground reaction forces (GRF). More recently, modified hip actuated and leg damped locomotion models have been developed to better predict the stability and robustness of human and animal locomotion. Such improvements have resulted in the loss of the characteristic GRF predicted by earlier models. Historically, GRF are among the most common measures to experimentally study human locomotion. Thus, it is important to develop new mathematical models that predict both accurate stability of motion, as well …

Improvement On Cylinder-To-Cylinder Variation In Pcci Engines Using Variable Start Of Injection And Exhaust Valve Closing Timings, Aðalsteinn Axelsson, Greg Shaver

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Premixed charge compression ignition (PCCI) is widely considered to be a possible method of meeting increasingly strict emissions regulations in internal combustion engines. PCCI can reduce harmful emissions substantially and at the same time increase efficiency relative to conventional combustion modes. Because of the nature of PCCI, changes in in-cylinder conditions have a greater impact than in conventional diesel engines. Therefore cylinder to cylinder variations are amplified which leads to problems such as misfire and decreased efficiency in cylinders with increased ignition delay and lower apparent heat release rate (AHRR) amplitudes. Two possible methods to counteract this effect in diesel …

Crane Shaking Platform Design, Bixing Yan, Andrea Vacca

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Most of the control methodology of Mobile hydraulic crane is not as energy efficient as people think or want, and the desire to innovate novel, energy-efficient control strategy is the target of most hydraulic experts. To develop or test the control method under real road and off-road conditions, a platform that could simulate the movement and vibration of the crane truck is desired. To design and build the multi-operation platform, a design process includes brain storming, design selection, FEA (Fundamental Element Analysis), mechanical sizing, hydraulic sizing and Bill of Material is required and preferred. After going through all the steps …

The Stability And Control Of The Single Track Vehicles, Shyngys Karimov, Martin Corless

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Bicycles, motorcycles and scooters are all examples of the single track vehicles. The dynamics of the single track vehicle involve many degrees of freedom and various modes which govern its performance, making a complicated and interesting research topic. Motorcycle in motion can roll, yaw, and steer about the steering axis. It has three main modes which determine the motion and stability of it, they are weave, capsize, and wobble. The motorcycle performance is limited by the behavior of its modes, and if even one of the modes becomes unstable, the vehicle will roll over, and crash. The goal of this …

Combustion Measurement Of Counter Flow Diffusion Flame Under High Pressure Using Coherant Anti-Stokes Raman Scattering (Cars) Thermometry, Xianan Huang, Robert P. Lucht

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

H₂-air combustion is widely employed in power generation systems and high speed propulsion systems which are high-pressure environments. Therefore, it is imperative to perform diagnostics in order to understand behaviors of H₂-air flames under high pressure to improve the design of systems such as those mentioned previously. In order to perform measurements at high pressure, a facility has been constructed for stabilizing steady-state, laminar counterflow diffusion flames (CFDFs). Both, qualitative and quantitative measurements will be performed in this high-pressure facility. Numerical simulations of high pressure, H₂-air flame structure are also being performed using COSILAB …