Structural optimization with an automatic mode identification method for tracking the local vibration mode

Traditional optimization methods, which take a specific order of modal frequency as the design constraint, could fail to obtain the desired solution because of modal substitution. An improved optimization model with continuous sizing variables is established to solve this problem, in which the minimum weight and a given local modal frequency are considered as the objective and the constraint. To capture accurately the expected mode of vibration, a local mode identification technique is proposed based on the strain energy ratio between the local area and the whole structure. With that scheme, an optimization system is developed, in which the local mode can be effectively identified and the constraint can be updated with it in the iteration process. Two numerical examples, of a reinforced plate and a satellite structure, are applied to illustrate the effectiveness and efficacy of the proposed method.     

阳泉矿区煤样不同应力状态下声发射特性分析

为探索原煤煤样的力学性能和不同应力状态下的声发射活动特性,对阳泉矿区新景矿、平舒矿主采煤层的煤样进行了单轴、三轴压缩和巴西劈裂的声发射试验,分析了2种煤样力学性能及不同加载过程的声发射活动规律。证明通过监测声发射(微震)活动分析煤样或煤岩体内部破坏状态是一种方便有效的手段。     

海水淡化用空心锥喷嘴喷淋性能理论及实验研究

设计开发一种具有高通量、低流阻特征的空心锥喷嘴,并通过理论与实验方法研究空心锥喷嘴的喷淋性能,基于准自由涡理论建立空心锥喷嘴内部流体流动的数学模型,阐明流量系数、喷淋锥角、喷嘴流量与喷嘴结构参数之间的定量关系,并利用多效蒸馏海水淡化喷淋实验台对理论计算结果进行实验测试和验证。研究结果表明:正常工作状态下喷嘴流量系数、喷淋锥角、喷淋流量等参数理论值与测量值之间的误差小于5%,验证了设计模型的准确性。同时根据实验测试数据,拟合得到该类型空心锥喷嘴喷淋锥角与雷诺数之间的经验公式,可为蒸馏海水淡化用大流量空心锥喷嘴的结构设计、工艺选型提供理论指导和数据支持。     

A spectrally selective surface structure for combined photothermic conversion and radiative sky cooling

The sun and outer space are the ultimate heat and cold sources for the earth, respectively. They have significant potential for renewable energy harvesting. In this paper, a spectrally selective surface structure that has a planar polydimethylsiloxane layer covering a solar absorber is conceptually proposed and optically designed for the combination of photothermic conversion (PT) and nighttime radiative sky cooling (RC). An optical simulation is conducted whose result shows that the designed surface structure (i.e., PT-RC surface structure) has a strong solar absorption coefficient of 0.92 and simultaneously emits as a mid-infrared spectral-selective emitter with an average emissivity of 0.84 within the atmospheric window. A thermal analysis prediction reveals that the designed PT-RC surface structure can be heated to 79.1°C higher than the ambient temperature in the daytime and passively cooled below the ambient temperature of approximately 10°C in the nighttime, indicating that the designed PT-RC surface structure has the potential for integrated PT conversion and nighttime RC utilization.     

CFD modeling of thermal contact resistance between solid contacting surfaces

Heat transfer has considerable applications in different industries such as designing of heat exchanger, nuclear reactor cooling, control system for spacecraft, and designing of microelectronics cooling. As the surfaces of two metals contact each other, this issue becomes so crucial. Thermal contact resistance (TCR) is one of the key physical parameters in heat transfer of mentioned surfaces. Measuring the experimental value of TCR in laboratory is highly expensive and difficult. As an alternative, numerical modeling methods could be engaged. In this study, inverse problem method solution is utilized as a proper method for estimation of TCR value. In this order, three different configurations (flat-flat, flat-cylinder, and cylinder-cylinder) were utilized in two steady and unsteady state conditions to predict the value of TCR. A comparison between the measured values and obtained values from the simulation show the errors for flat-flat, flat-cylinder, and cylinder-cylinder configuration after 10 min from starting the experiment are 4.6074%, 0.1662%, and 0.5622%, respectively. And in steady-state condition, the corresponding errors are 6.06e-3%, 1.506%, and 0.846%, respectively. In conclusion, the final results establish the fact that the inverse problem method solution can predict TCR values between contacting surfaces.     

Developing microencapsulated 12‐hydroxystearic acid (HSA) for phase change material use

Phase change materials (PCM) have an increasingly more important role as a thermal energy storage (TES) media. However, leakage problem of PCM causes limitation during their integration in TES systems. Therefore, the encapsulation of PCMs is attracting research interest to extend usage of PCMs in real TES applications in recent years. In this study, hydroxystearic acid (HSA) was encapsulated with polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) and different PMMA comonomer shells via emulsion polymerization method for the first time in literature. HSA with high melting temperature range (74–78°C) can widen the scope of using PCMs, and the encapsulated form can make it more versatile. The chemical structures, morphologies, and thermophysical properties of capsules were determined by FT‐IR, SEM, DSC, TGA, and thermal infrared camera. Among the produced HSA capsule candidates, PMMA‐HEMA is the most promising with latent heat of 48.5 J/g with melting range of 47 to 85°C. SEM analysis indicated that the capsules have spherical shape with compact surface at nano‐micro (100–440 nm) size range; however, some capsules exhibited agglomeration.     

Outcome‐based ventilation: A framework for assessing performance,health, and energy impacts to inform office building ventilation decisions

This article presents an outcome‐based ventilation (OBV) framework, which combines competing ventilation impacts into a monetized loss function ($/occ/h) used to inform ventilation rate decisions. The OBV framework, developed for U.S. offices, considers six outcomes of increasing ventilation: profitable outcomes realized from improvements in occupant work performance and sick leave absenteeism; health outcomes from occupant exposure to outdoor fine particles and ozone; and energy outcomes from electricity and natural gas usage. We used the literature to set low, medium, and high reference values for OBV loss function parameters, and evaluated the framework and outcome‐based ventilation rates using a simulated U.S. office stock dataset and a case study in New York City. With parameters for all outcomes set at medium values derived from literature‐based central estimates, higher ventilation rates’ profitable benefits dominated negative health and energy impacts, and the OBV framework suggested ventilation should be ≥45 L/s/occ, much higher than the baseline ~8.5 L/s/occ rate prescribed by ASHRAE 62.1. Only when combining very low parameter estimates for profitable impacts with very high ones for health and energy impacts were all outcomes on the same order. Even then, however, outcome‐based ventilation rates were often twice the baseline rate or more.     

改进Elman神经网络在短期热负荷预测中的应用

热电厂的短期热负荷预测在城市集中供暖中起着至关重要的作用,直接影响热电厂的经济效益和热能利用率。电厂的短期热负荷一般采用神经网络预测模型进行预测,而BP神经网络应用最为广泛。Elman神经网络算法在BP神经网络基础上加入了承接层,作为一步延时算子,实现记忆能力,使系统具备适应时变能力,增强系统全局稳定性。但Elman神经网络算法模型的构造依然需要大量样本的支撑,而且输入层的变量多,导致预测时间依然很长,收敛速度慢。该文在Elman神经网络预测前,进行了相关系数预处理和对样本中异常值的平均化预处理,通过数据归一化运算,使Elman神经网络输入层变量大幅减少。仿真实验表明,改进的Elman神经网络算法使预测模型快速寻优,减少预测时间的同时明显提高预测精度。     

Comparison of throttle devices to measure two-phase flowrates of wet gas with extremely-low liquid loading

The online measurement of wet gas with extremely-low liquid loading (Lockhart-Martinelli parameter lower than 0.02) remains a challenge. In this study, three types of throttle devices, Venturi, orifice plate and cone, are compared experimentally with air-water two-phase flow in a horizontal pipe of inner diameter of 50 mm. High-precision correlations are established to measure the gas and liquid flowrates via a single throttle device. Results show that the two-phase mass flow coefficient (K) of the three throttle devices all increase linearly with the liquid densiometric Froude number and the K correlations are established respectively to correct the gas mass flowrate deviation. The pressure loss ratio (δ) for Venturi is sensitive and monotonous to the liquid loading, which contributes to the high accuracy of liquid flowrate measurement. By incorporating the K correlations, both the gas and liquid mass flowrates can be predicted precisely. The relative error of the gas mass flowrate predicted by the Venturi is within ±2.0% at 95% confidence level, and that of the liquid mass flowrate is within ±15% at 90% confidence level.