Mechanical Engineering Commons^™

Sampling Methods And Transportation Analysis Of Shipping Containers, Omar Roman-Sanchez

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Biomass is a perpetually burgeoning commodity as a sustainable energy resource, but some of the consistent drawbacks are transportation and sampling. The efficiency of pick-up and delivery to conversion facilities needs to be sufficient to allow for longer transport distances. Concurrent work explores the viability of using 20 ft intermodal shipping containers by using a screw auger to pack biomass feedstocks (miscanthus and corn stover) in ¼-scaled containers, which resulted in dry matter packing densities exceeding 8 lb/ft3. Full analysis of compaction energy plus transportation needs was found to understand net positive energy return on investment. To enhance the sampling …

Studying And Troubleshooting Lubricity Test On Pressure Wire X Proximal And Distal Coatings, Usama A. Khan

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Coatings of guidewires used in medical device manufacturing industry are one of the most important element aspects. It defines its efficiency to penetrate through tightest of canals and curves. Guidewires are put through controlled environment to accelerate its age and tested for its mechanical features. Pressure Wire X failed the lubricity testing after being tested by multiple operators and at alternate sites. A cause-and-effect diagram shows all potential causes of test failure. The human factor involved in the test failure was investigated through multiple Gage R&R and training records. Calibration error with the lubricity tester DL1000 was identified and solved …

Finite Element Analysis Of 3d-Printed Pcl Scaffolds, Ireolu K. Orenuga, Joao Soares, Phillip D. Glass, Daeha Joung Ph.D.

UROP Posters

Finite Element Analysis of 3D-printed PCL Scaffolds for Synergizing Cellular Micro-Environment and Mechanical Stimuli to Enhance Engineered Tissue Growth in Vitro

Ireolu Orenuga,1 Phillip Glass,2 Daeha Joung,2 Joao S. Soares1

1. Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering, College of Engineering, Virginia Commonwealth University
2. Department of Physics, College of Humanities & Sciences, Virginia Commonwealth University

Introduction: Tissue engineering aims to create viable and functional engineered tissues via biodegradable scaffolds and autologous cells. Scaffolds play an essential part in organizing the architecture of developing tissues and aid in the proper function of implants acutely by serving as mechanical support and long-term by …

Strategies Automotive Manufacturing Managers Use To Deliver Work In Alignment With Project Milestones, Sashidhar Mr. Sankaranarayanan

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Project managers working in manufacturing firms in the automotive industry frequently face challenges such as cost overruns, schedule delays, and scope changes. Project managers often lack effective strategies to ensure that different departments deliver their work in alignment with project milestones, which can negatively affect project success rates. Grounded in the balanced scorecard framework, the purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore strategies managers in the automotive manufacturing industry used in their different departments to deliver their work in alignment with project milestones. The participants were three project managers who had successfully implemented strategies that reduced the …

Strategies To Increase Competitive Advantage In The Automotive Manufacturing Supply Chain, Amber Willis

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Some automotive manufacturing supply chain leaders lack strategies that are needed to implement information technology (IT) systems. Business leaders are concerned with implementing IT systems to achieve and maintain a competitive advantage. Grounded in the resource-based view theory (RBV), the purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore information system strategies used by leaders in the automotive manufacturing supply chain to achieve competitive advantage. Participants were five leaders of an automotive manufacturing supply chain organization who implemented IT systems. Data were collected through semistructured interviews and a review of organization project documents. Through thematic analysis, five themes were …

Mechanical Design Of A Microwave Imaging Device For Breast Cancer Detection In Mri Scanners, Grace M. Player

Dartmouth College Master’s Theses

This project seeks to develop an updated version of a microwave imaging device for use in conjunction with breast MRI, improving upon existing technology and developing novel concepts for the device. It posits three primary redesign targets for updating the previous system: resizing the system height, making the device more iteration- friendly, and improving the overall manufacturability of the device by replacing custom components with commercially available alternatives. All three of these redesign targets are met in the new design, V2.0. The height is reduced by reducing antenna travel and height, embedding some components, and shortening the tank wall, resulting …

Mechanical And Morphological Characterization Of Energy Materials By Nanoindentation And Scanning Probe Microscopy, Jacob Hempel

Theses and Dissertations--Physics and Astronomy

The demand for robust materials in energy-based applications such as solid electrolytes for batteries, piezoelectric composites for mechanical energy harvesting, or new polymer materials for polymer binders in composite electrodes is on the rise. Mechanical degradation is the most common way for devices to fail in operation, thus a thorough understanding of a material’s mechanical properties is essential for application purposes.

In this dissertation, the mechanical characterization of novel boron cluster solid electrolytes is presented. Therein, we determine the elastic modulus and hardness of these compounds using instrumented indentation. A comparison is made against other solid electrolytes. It is found …

Technical And Economic Feasibility Of A Microgrid For A Fire Station In Humboldt County, California., Nishaant Kumar Sinha

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Microgrids are emerging as a promising solution to unreliable grid energy. Today, California is not only witnessing grid resiliency challenges from natural disasters such as wildfires, earthquakes, floods and heatwaves, but it is also seeking to green the grid and bring more renewables online. For example, Humboldt County, where this project is focused, has recently experienced an earthquake of 6.4M (on December 22nd, 2022), which shut down the regional grid for ~20 hours.

Microgrid adoption enables critical facilities to operate seamlessly. The Humboldt Bay Fire Station (HBFS) No.1 is one such example, where first responders work to protect citizens against …

A Semantic Web Approach To Fault Tolerant Autonomous Manufacturing, Fadi El Kalach, Ruwan Wickramarachchi, Ramy Harik, Amit Sheth

Publications

The next phase of manufacturing is centered on making the switch from traditional automated to autonomous systems. Future factories are required to be agile, allowing for more customized production, and resistance to disturbances. Such production lines would be able to reallocate resources as needed and minimize downtime while keeping up with market demands. These systems must be capable of complex decision-making based on parameters such as machine status, sensory/IoT data, and inspection results. Current manufacturing lines lack this complex capability and instead focus on low-level decision-making on the machine level without utilizing the generated data to its full extent. This …

Submerged Jet In Zero-G, Richard Sands

Maseeh Summer Undergraduate Research Experience

The rise dynamics of submerged jets refer to the behavior and characteristics of fluid jets that emerge from a source submerged beneath a liquid surface. These jets are commonly encountered in various natural and industrial settings, such as underwater volcanic eruptions, wastewater discharge, and fuel injection in marine engines. Understanding the rise dynamics of submerged jets is essential for numerous applications, including environmental impact assessments, propulsion system optimization, and volcanic hazard mitigation. All liquids and gases in the presence of gravity exert an upward force known as the buoyant force on any object immersed in them. Utilizing the Dryden Drop …

Turbulent Flow Over Coastal Areas, Weston Baker

Maseeh Summer Undergraduate Research Experience

With approximately half of the U.S. population residing in coastal areas, understanding the unique characteristics of air flow in these regions becomes critically important. The dynamic flow of air in urban environments affects the dispersal of pollutants, overall air quality, microclimates, human comfort levels, and the urban heat island (UHI) effect. Using computational fluid dynamics, this research aims to offer transformative solutions for enhancing air quality, optimizing building designs, and improving quality of life in coastal urban areas. Larger spacing between buildings results in larger zones of high-velocity flow. This flow can penetrate deeper into the urban fabric, facilitating better …

Modeling Carbon Allotropes Using Machine Learning, Angel Chung

Maseeh Summer Undergraduate Research Experience

This study is training a machine learning model to identify each different carbon allotrope with the best thermal conductivity. This machine learning model uses the M3GNet model to predict the energies and forces of the carbon allotrope. Thermal conductivity is important to prevent chips from overheating. Carbon is known for its high thermal conductivity, however, there are many allotropes. M3Gnet is a massive pretrained neural network trained to predict interatomic potential energy given energies, forces, and stresses. Convergence of the model is achieved by varying the learning rate to the varying number of epoch.

Real-Time Length Sensing Of Artificial Bpa Muscles For Use In Characterizing Strain Gauge Measurements, Rochelle Jubert

Maseeh Summer Undergraduate Research Experience

Braided Pneumatic Actuators (BPAs) function as artificial muscles in biomimetic robotics, where real-time length feedback is essential for precise neural network control. While flexible strain gauge sensors offer potential for tracking muscle contraction, they are highly sensitive and produce noisy length readings. To address this challenge, we designed and fabricated a test rig featuring a linear potentiometer, linear bearings, and an extruded aluminum frame to minimize extraneous degrees of freedom and signal noise. Experimental actuation demonstrated that the rig provides high-precision displacement data, establishing a reliable benchmark for calibrating and characterizing future strain gauge sensor measurements across various muscle lengths …

Investigation Of Graphene Coatings On Iron-Based Alloys Through Mechanochemical Ball-Milling, Sebastian Lara

Maseeh Summer Undergraduate Research Experience

Ball milling was selected to investigate in this study due to its potential of cost-effectiveness, scalability, and reproducibility for graphene coatings. Stainless steel balls of 316L alloy and exfoliated graphene were employed in a custom-built ball milling machine within a hollow, 3D-printed, spherical PLA container. Experimentation involving variations in rpms, total milling time, and SS:EG ratio showed the importance of these factors in the final graphene coating quality with a 20:1 SS:EG mass ratio and an hour milling time providing the most promising results. Lower RPM Ball Milling allows for a lower energy graphene-layer shearing environment. Higher RPM intervals are …

A New Course In Defense Manufacturing – An Introduction To Shipbuilding, Alley C. Butler

Manufacturing & Industrial Engineering Faculty Publications

This paper discusses the development and deployment of a new course in DMEI (Defense Manufacturing Engineering Innovation) titled, “Introduction to Shipbuilding.” This course has been taught using Zoom since 2021 at both the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, a Hispanic Serving Institution, and Virginia State University, a Historically Black University. After a brief literature review, an outline of the course is presented with topics including the maritime market for shipbuilding, economics of shipbuilding, the classification agencies, metallurgy and welding processes, ship structure and assembly, shipyard layout, accuracy control, and shipbuilding planning and scheduling. Difficulties in obtaining an appropriate textbook …

Aerostructural Predictions Combining Fenics And A Viscous Vortex Particle Method, Ryan Anderson, Andrew Ning, Ru Xiang, Sebastiaan P. C. Van Schie, Mark Sperry, Darshan Sarojini, David Kamensky, John T. Hwang

Faculty Publications

Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft experience complex, unsteady aerodynamic interactions between rotors, wings, and fuselage that can make design difficult. We introduce a new framework for predicting aerostructural interactions. Specifically, we demonstrate the coupling of a finite element solver with Reissner-Mindlin shell theory for computing deflections and a viscous vortex particle for capturing wakes. We perform convergence studies of the aerodynamics and the coupled aerostructural model. Finally, we share some preliminary results of the dynamic aeroelastic response of Uber’s eCRM-002 main wing, and share some qualitative observations.

Triangular Fin Array Passively Actuated By Bimetallic Coils For Cubesat Thermal Control, Josh Cannon, Rydge B. Mulford, Brian D. Iverson

Faculty Publications

CubeSat thermal control can be especially demanding due to volume and size constraints, high power dissipation per unit surface area, and highly variable internal and external heat loads. As such, CubeSat developers must rely on thermal control systems that meet the specific requirements of their mission and environmental conditions. Deployable radiators enable satellites to increase their radiative surface area and to reveal highly emissive surfaces during times when increased heat rejection is desired. In colder conditions, when decreased heat loss is preferable, the radiators can be stowed. Passive thermal control systems are unpowered and can increase system reliability by not …

Piv Measurements Of Open-Channel Turbulent Flow Under Unconstrained Conditions, James K. Arthur

Faculty Journal Articles

Many open-channel turbulent flow studies have been focused on highly constrained conditions. Thus, it is rather conventional to note such flows as being fully developed, fully turbulent, and unaffected by sidewalls and free surface disturbances. However, many real-life flow phenomena in natural water bodies and artificially installed drain channels are not as ideal. This work is aimed at studying some of these unconstrained conditions. This is achieved by using particle image velocimetry measurements of a developing turbulent open-channel flow over a smooth wall. The tested flow effects are low values of the Reynolds number based on the momentum thickness Re …

Using Long Short-Term Memory (Lstm) Networks With The Toy Model Concept For Compressible Pulsatile Flow Metering, Indranil Brahma

Faculty Journal Articles

The metering of periodically oscillating pulsating flow has traditionally relied on eliminating pulsations, which is not possible for many systems such as internal combustion engines. Recent advances in the Deep Learning Suite of tools allow the extraction of useful information from complex signals acquired by inexpensive sensors. In this work, Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) networks have been proposed to meter highly compressible pulsatile flow by learning the relationship between the average flow rate and the temporal patterns of standard orifice measurements. The model was built and evaluated with separate training and testing datasets that had different pulsation frequencies and waveforms. …

Initial Procedure For Small-Scale Extraction Of Subsurface Martian Ice, Evan Steers

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

For decades, NASA has been surveying the surface of Mars with plans for human exploration. Due to recent advancements, there is strong evidence to believe that frozen aquifers beneath the Martian surface hold great amounts of usable H2O. Since the discovery of water on Mars, NASA has expressed key interest in harvesting this valuable resource. The presence of usable H2O on Mars could reduce the launching mass of future missions by giving astronauts the capability to harvest water once they have landed on Mars. This research focuses on the optimization of a current design to extract Martian water and the …

Perspective On Predictive Modeling: Current Status, New High-Order Methodology And Outlook For Energy Systems, Dan Gabriel Cacuci

Faculty Publications

This work presents a perspective on deterministic predictive modeling methodologies, which aim at extracting best-estimate values for model responses and parameters along with reduced predicted uncertainties for these best-estimate values. The two oldest such methodologies are the data-adjustment method, which stems from the nuclear energy field, and the data-assimilation method, which is implemented in the geophysical sciences. Both of these methodologies attempt to minimize, in the least-square sense, a user-defined functional that represents the discrepancies between computed and measured model responses. These two methodologies were briefly reviewed and shown to be inconsistent even to first-order in the sensitivities of the …

Advances In Precision Microfabrication Through Digital Light Processing: System Development, Material And Applications, Xinhui Wang, Jinghang Liu, Yang Zhang, Per Magnus Kristiansen, Aminul Islam, Michael Gilchrist, Nan Zhang

Articles

Digital Light Processing (DLP) is an advanced additive manufacturing technology which has garnered substantial recognition and has been extensively applications in various fields. This review focuses on the precision microfabrication process of DLP, providing an overview of the DLP 3D printing system, including the digital light engine, project lenses, motorised stage and resin vat for micro-structure fabrication. Additionally, this review paper comprehensively analyses commercially available DLP printers, covering resolution, cost and a detailed discussion on the importance of photopolymer resins, emphasising the monomer, photo-initiator, photoabsorber, etc. Based on the photopolymerisation theory, the DLP high-precision printing process is analysed, which is …

Cfd Simulation Of Anaerobic Granular Sludge Reactors: A Review, Camila D' Bastiani, David Kennedy, Anthony Reynolds

Articles

Anaerobic digestion processes can generate renewable energy in the form of biogas while treating organic wastewater. The generation of biogas within anaerobic digestion systems is directly linked to the mixing conditions inside the reactors. In high-rate reactors such as the up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor, the expanded granular sludge bed (EGSB) reactor and the internal circulation (IC) reactor, the hydrodynamic behaviour will depend on the interactions between the wastewater, the biogas, and the biomass granules. Over the past few years, various researchers have used computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to study the hydrodynamic behaviour in these types of reactors. This …

3d Simulation Of A Yogurt Filling Machine Using Grafcet Studio And Factory Io: Realization Of Industry 4.0, Bashir Salah, Waqas Saleem, Razaullah Khan, Ahmed Tawhid Ahmed Soliman

Articles

Manufacturing systems, enterprises and academic institutions worldwide are implementing industry 4.0 (IR4.0). By integrating the services and equipment, IR4.0 develops autonomous systems that manage industrial operations and exchange real-time data in real time. This study includes a simulation of an existing production system using the GRAFCET Studio software.

Orbital Stabilization Of Underactuated Systems Using Time Period Regulation, Nilay Kant, Ranjan Mukherjee

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

A new approach to orbital stabilization of under-actuated systems with one passive degree-of-freedom (DOF) is presented. Virtual holonomic constraints are enforced using partial feedback linearization; this results in a dense set of periodic orbits on a constraint manifold. Every orbit on the constraint manifold is associated with a unique time-period. A desired orbit is selected, and the impulse controlled Poincaré map (ICPM) approach is utilized to stabilize the orbit by regulating the time-period. By treating the time period as the output, it is possible to design a dead-beat controller that achieves orbital stabilization in a single time-step. The effectiveness of …

Reducing The Variability And Cost Of Determining The Coefficient Of Friction Of Various Lubricants, James M. Wirth

Honors Theses and Capstones

The Navy requires accurate fastener preloading for many of its fastened applications to protect the safety of the vessel and its personnel, and to ensure proper operation of various components. The preload is based on many properties including fastener materials, fastener geometries, and the coefficient of friction (COF) between mating surfaces. The COF is a critical value in determining the torque-load relationship of a fastener, and is dependent on the contact surface area and the materials in contact, the condition and finish of the contact surfaces, and any lubricant applied in these contact areas. Due to the large amount of …

Jet Noise Reduction: A Fresh Start, Christopher K. Tam, Fang Q. Hu

Mathematics & Statistics Faculty Publications

Attempts to reduce jet noise began some 70 years ago. In the literature, there have been many publications written on this topic. By now, it is common knowledge that jet noise consists of a number of components. They possess different spectral and radiation characteristics and are generated by different mechanisms. It appears then that one may aim at the suppression of the noise of a single component instead of trying to reduce jet noise overall. The objective of the present project is to reduce large turbulence structures noise. It is the most dominant noise component radiating in the downstream direction. …

Nonprehensile Manipulation Of A Stick Using Impulsive Forces, Aakash Khandelwal, Nilay Kant, Ranjan Mukherjee

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The problem of nonprehensile manipulation of a stick in three-dimensional space using intermittent impulsive forces is considered. The objective is to juggle the stick between a sequence of configurations that are rotationally symmetric about the vertical axis. The dynamics of the stick is described by five generalized coordinates and three control inputs. Between two consecutive configurations where impulsive inputs are applied, the dynamics is conveniently represented by a Poincaré map in the reference frame of the juggler. Stabilization of the orbit associated with a desired juggling motion is accomplished by stabilizing a fixed point on the Poincaré map. The Impulse …

Performance Evaluation Of Composite Sandwich Structures With Additively Manufactured Aluminum Honeycomb Cores With Increased Bonding Surface Area, M. Rangapuram, S. K. Dasari, Joseph William Newkirk, K. Chandrashekhara, H. Misak, P. R. Toivonen, D. Klenosky, T. Unruh, J. Sam

Materials Science and Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Modern aerostructures, including wings and fuselages, increasingly feature sandwich structures due to their high-energy absorption, low weight, and high flexural stiffness. The face sheet of these sandwich structures are typically thin composite laminates with interior honeycombs made of Nomex or aluminum. Standard cores are structurally efficient, but their design cannot be varied throughout the structure. With additive manufacturing (AM) technology, these core geometries can be altered to meet the design requirements that are not met in standard honeycomb cores. This study used a modified aluminum honeycomb core, with increased surface area on the top and bottom, as the core material …

Cell For Flow Battery, Jonghyun Park, Mohammed Abdulkhabeer Al-Yasiri

Patents

A reaction cell for a flow battery having flow channels positioned within a recess of a non-porous and non-brittle housing that is also a dielectric. Positioning the flow channels within the recess eliminates the need for end plates, gaskets, and insulators of conventional designs. A current collector and an electrode within the recess have areas approximately equal to the area of the recess such that they fit within the recess and maximize the contact area between them.