Evaluation of the minimum face clearance of a high-speed gas-lubricated bearing with Navier slip boundary conditions under random excitations

Motivated by ongoing developments in aero-engine technology, a model for a coupled gas-lubricated bearing is developed in terms of an extended dynamical system. A slip boundary condition, characterised by a slip length, is incorporated on the bearing faces which can be relevant for operation in non-ideal extreme conditions, notably where external vibrations or disturbances could destabilise the bearing. A modified Reynolds equation is formulated to model the gas flow, retaining the effects of centrifugal inertia which is increasingly important for high-speed operation, and is coupled to the structural equations; spring-mass-damper systems model the axial stator and rotor displacements. A novel model is developed corresponding to a bearing experiencing an external random force to evaluate the resulting induced displacements of the bearing components. The minimum face clearance is obtained from a mapping solver for the modified Reynolds equation and structural equations simultaneously. In the case of random excitations, the solver is combined with a Monte Carlo technique. Evaluation of the average value of the minimum gap and the probability of the gap reaching a prescribed tolerance are provided. Extensive insight is given on the effect of key bearing parameters on the corresponding bearing dynamics.     

Cross-Domain Image Matching with Deep Feature Maps

International Journal of Computer Vision - We investigate the problem of automatically determining what type of shoe left an impression found at a crime scene. This recognition problem is made...     

Structural performance of a post-tensioned concrete floor during horizontally travelling fires

This paper highlights the structural performance of a bonded post-tensioned concrete floor subject to fires that travel horizontally between zones within the floorplate. The floorplate was previously analysed by the authors based on experimental and numerical investigations on one-way spanning bonded post-tensioned concrete slab strips. In the previous studies, a nonlinear finite element model was developed for the floor that considered the mechanical and thermal material nonlinearities of the floor’s components, interfaces between the components, different natural fire severities, different applied static load during the fire and different restraint conditions. The previous studies highlighted the importance of investigating the whole-building behaviour and provided a useful insight into the temperature distribution throughout the floor slab, failure modes, comparisons with current design rules and time-displacement behaviour of the floor under fire conditions. This paper extends the previous studies and uses the validated finite element model to investigate different horizontal travelling fire scenarios between zones and different inter-zone time delays to represent fire travelling time. The time-temperature distribution throughout the floor slab was predicted at different locations in the floor subject to travelling fires. Furthermore, the time-deflection and time-axial displacement relationships were predicted at different locations in the floor. The current study has shown that horizontally travelling fire scenarios and the inter-zone time delay affect the time-deflection behaviour considerably. The change in heating/cooling scenarios between zones has resulted in a cyclic deflection pattern, which has previously not been considered when designing post-tensioned concrete floors against fire. Based on the analysis of the results presented, it is shown that the worst case in terms of maximum vertical defection or maximum residual deflection, at a given point in the floorplate, could occur either under the assumption of a uniform fire or a travelling fire. It is therefore recommended that designers should consider the integrity of floorplates using various travelling fires.     

A digital wind gust recorder

The instrument was a byproduct of an undergraduate final year project on wind power which was carried out by the Department of Mechanical Engineering of the University of Liverpool.The windmill test site was on an exposed, rocky island where there was no history of weather recording but a long tradition of violent winds.Field experience during the winter months suggested that corrosion fatigue arising from wind buffeting and salt spray would rank equally with maximum wind pressure as criteria of failure and if modern materials, so convenient for forming aerodynamic surfaces, were to be used then limited life concepts would need to be considered. This called for more knowledge of wind variations at the test site. A complete wind spectrum taken on chart recording instruments would have been ideal but since such such refined devices were not available the instrument to be described was designed.The only wind measuring instrument which was available was a rotating cup anemometer. This supplied an alternating voltage proportional to its rotational speed. It also operated a gear driven microswitch which could give an integrated “miles of wind” reading on an electromagnetic counter.Briefly the e.m.f. generated by the anemometer (Fig. 1) was matched against a pre-set voltage corresponding to the required gust velocity. When this was exceeded an appropriate counter was operated. Only the rising e.m.f. was significant. The subsequent fall was ignored. Initially three stages were incorporated which reported the gusts rising through forty, fifty and sixty knots, respectively. These recorded on separate counters. All basic settings were based on pitot-static speed determinations in a wind tunnel.     

Development of an Algorithm to Predict Vertical Heat Transfer Through Ceiling/Floor Conduction

This paper describes a new algorithm of the Consolidated Fire Growth and Smoke Transport (CFAST) fire model and compares the results with data from real-scale fire tests conducted aboard the ex-USS Shadwell, the U.S. Navy's Research and Development Damage Control Platform. The new phenomenon modeled in this work is the conduction of heat in the vertical direction. The Shadwell tests chosen for validation purposes were part of the Internal Ship Conflagration Control (ISCC) Program. The work focuses on four compartments of the ship that were vertically aligned. The temperatures of the compartments and the decks between them were compared with model predictions. The predictions were very close to the experimental results for all compartments, although the temperatures rise in the topmost compartment was barely above ambient.     

Experimental behaviour of composite slabs during the heating and cooling fire stages

Most theoretical and experimental research investigating the effect of fire on structures has previously concentrated only on the structural behaviour during the heating stages of the fire, partly due to the fact that internationally accepted standard fire tests only consider this stage of the fire. Evidence from real fires in real buildings has highlighted that the cooling phase of a fire is equally important and it is possible for structures to fail during this stage of the fire even though they have survived the heating stage up to a maximum fire temperature. This paper provides an insight into the behaviour of composite slabs under different fire scenarios considering both the heating and cooling phase of the fire. Extensive test data is presented which shows the redistribution of moments and strains in the deck and steel mesh, together with displacements during the full duration of the fire. The results show that the behaviour of composite slabs is dependent on the heating rate, the maximum temperature reached and the cooling rate. In terms of overall performance, displacements and the temperature on the non-fire side of the slab are important. For the tests presented in this paper it was shown that one fire scenario resulted in the maximum displacement but another fire scenario resulted in the maximum temperature on the unexposed face. In addition the maximum temperature of the unexposed side of the slab and the mesh reinforcement within the slab occurring during the cooling stages of the fire. This highlights the fact that the performance of structures must be checked in design under a range of possible fire scenarios, which must include both the heating and cooling stages of a fire.