To achieve the highest levels of immersion and presence possible in a Virtual Reality experience, all of the sensory input we receive in the real world must be simulatable in Virtual Environments (VE) as well. Foregoing the more popular audio-visual feedback, this project aims to better understand the benefits of adding tactile feedback (namely that of airflow) to the VR-developer‟s toolkit. Through user tests, involving a hairdryer to produce a strong airflow that is easily redirected and changed in temperature, feedback was collected on the user experiences and applications of airflow in a VE made to simulate a walk through river lands similar to the ones found in Sweden. While there was no singular way that the participants experienced the added sensory input, most reported the airflow as being equally important to feeling immersed as background music, and on average almost as important as other audio cues. Perhaps most importantly, rich insights were gathered that can guide further research.

This work aims to assess human nasal blockage by investigating its influence on nasal airflow dynamics, both computationally and experimentally. An in-house CFD code (Lithium) computes the steady (mean) nasal airflow for a cavity constructed from CT images of a healthy adult, for the internal cavity and for the first time for the external flow. To account for turbulence occurrence, the low Reynolds number k-ω Reynolds-Averaged-Navier-Stokes (RANS) model is used. The flow field is calculated at different breathing rates by varying the influx rate. Blockages are introduced at various locations inside the cavity to investigate common nasal blockages. The computational results are assessed against published literature and the Particle Image Velocimetry experimental (PIV) results, carried out on a 2.54:1 scale model of the computational nasal cavity. Schlieren optical technique is also used for external nasal airflow visualizations of a human subject, to comment on using an optical system for clinical application. These computations reveal a significant dependency of both, the internal and external nasal airflow fields on the nasal cavity’s geometry. Although for this model, the flow is found to be turbulent in the inspiratory phase of 200 ml/s and higher, it is suggested that the nature of flow can vary depending on the nasal cavity’s structure which is influenced by genetics. Nevertheless, some common flow features were revealed such as higher flow rate in the olfactory region and main flow passage through lower airways during inspiration. More uniform flow passage was found in expiration. The results also suggest a possible correlation between the internal geometry of the cavity and the external nasal airflow angle and thickness. This correlation can allow an application of optical systems such as Schlieren which is shown to give accurate qualitative images of the external nasal airflow for assessment of the nasal blockage.

A aviação comercial vem experimentando expressivo crescimento com elevado grau de competitividade. Produzir aeronaves com nível de conforto diferenciado transformou-se em importante ferramenta de marketing e de venda. Esta, porém, não é tarefa fácil. Cabines de aeronave apresentam condições de escoamento e de trocas térmicas que tornam bastante difícil prover e avaliar condições de conforto térmico. Para tentar resolver o problema, estudos estão sendo realizados em centros de pesquisa, em colaboração com a indústria aeronáutica. O presente trabalho se insere neste contexto. Neste trabalho foi realizado estudo do escoamento em cabine de aeronave, por meio de medição de variáveis ambientais de cabine, e de conforto térmico utilizando manequim térmico instrumentado e avaliação com pessoas. Para a realização dos ensaios foi projetado e construído mock-up de seção de cabine com 12 lugares. Foram analisadas condições do escoamento e de conforto térmico para duas condições de cabine, 19 e 24 °C. Nos ensaios com pessoas participaram 11 voluntários. Temperaturas equivalentes foram determinadas utilizando-se manequim térmico instrumentado e apresentadas em diagrama de sensação térmica previsto para este fim em norma técnica de veículos. Posteriormente, avaliações subjetivas, com resultados apresentados em diagramas de voto térmico médio (VTM) e de voto de conforto médio (VCM), foram realizadas. Verificou-se que, apesar das condições complexas do escoamento, não ocorreram diferenças significativas de velocidade do ar na região de ocupação e nem de temperatura na direção vertical, que são fatores que poderiam ocasionar grande desconforto. Verificou-se também a ocorrência de uma boa aproximação entre as avaliações de conforto térmico feitas por meio das temperaturas equivalentes e os resultados das análises subjetivas realizadas por meio de questionários. Nas avaliações subjetivas ocorreu um pequeno deslocamento dos resultados para o lado direito no diagrama de VTM. Finalmente, verificou-se que as pessoas preferiram as condições de cabine na temperatura de 19 °C, com votos de conforto médio (VCM) de indiferentes a ligeiramente confortáveis, enquanto na temperatura de cabine de 24 °C as condições foram consideradas ligeiramente desconfortáveis. / The commercial aviation has experienced an expressive growth with a high degree of competitiveness. The production of aircrafts with a higher comfort level has become an important tool for marketing and trading. However, this is not an easy task. Aircraft cabins present airflow and thermal transfer conditions that make quite difficult to provide and to evaluate thermal comfort conditions. In order to try to solve this problem, studies are being performed in research centers, in collaboration with the aeronautical industry. This project is inserted in this context. In this project a study of aircraft cabin airflow, through the measurement of the cabin environmental variables, and the thermal comfort using thermal mannequin and evaluation with people, was accomplished. For the accomplishment of the tests a mock-up of a cabin section with 12 places was projected and built. Conditions of airflow and thermal comfort within two cabin conditions, 19 and 24 °C, were analyzed. The tests with people were performed by 11 volunteers. Equivalent temperatures were obtained by using a thermal mannequin and were presented in a thermal sensation diagram, which had been seen to this purpose in vehicles technical norm. Later on, subjective evaluations, whose results were presented by an mean thermal vote (MTV) diagram and by an mean comfort vote (MCV) diagram, were accomplished. It was verified that, in spite of the complex airflow conditions, significant differences neither of the air velocity in the occupation area nor of the temperature in the vertical direction happened, which are factors that could cause a great discomfort. It was also verified a strong relation between thermal comfort evaluations accomplished through the equivalent temperatures and the results of the subjective analyses accomplished through questionnaires. In the subjective evaluations, a small displacement of the results to the right side in the MTV diagram occurred. Finally, it was verified that the volunteers preferred 19 °C temperature cabin condition, with mean comfort votes (MCV) indicating from indifferent to lightly comfortable conditions, while in the 24 °C cabin the conditions were considered lightly uncomfortable.

This work is concerned with evaluating and studying the possibilities of enhancing natural ventilation performance and its use as a passive cooling strategy in walk-up public housing blocks within the Egyptian desert climatic region. This research attempts to maximize the benefits from the vast investments made in housing projects in Egypt through providing thermally comfortable housing prototypes that could use by contrast less energy for cooling purposes. This is considered essential in the light of the current concerns about energy all over the world. Egypt was devided to seven different climatic regions by the Egyptian organization for energy conservation and planning. The Egyptian desert climatic region, which was chosen as the research context, is the largest climatic region of Egypt. Most of the Egyptian new cities that accommodate the majority of the recent public housing projects are located within this desert climatic region that represents the typical hot arid climate characteristics. Nationally, the problem of the misuse of the housing prototyping was spotted. According to previous researchers, the same basic prototypical designs are being built all over the country without giving enough consideration to the actual effects of different climates and the diversity in the residents social needs. Regionally, within the Egyptian desert climatic region, the harsh climatic conditions rate the problem of achieving thermal comfort within these housing prototypes as the most urgent problem that needs to be examined in depth. A pilot study that used observation and monitoring methods was conducted in the New Al-Minya city (The representative city of the desert climatic design region) in order to closely investigate this problem and identify its dimensions. The results confirmed thermal discomfort conditions of the housing prototypes built there, especially during the hot summer period. The passive design strategies analysis of the climatic context indicated that night purge ventilation is the most effective passive strategy that could enhance thermal comfort. These results go along with the rule of natural ventilation in reducing the used energy for cooling and the actually massive national income spent on these housing prototypes encourage this work so to concentrate on natural ventilation. Different studies using multi-approaches research techniques were employed in order to achieve the main aim of the research. These techniques included; literature review, monitoring, questionnaire and computer simulation.A critical literature review was conducted including; the physical science of natural ventilation, its strategic design as well as the design measures that control natural ventilation and the airflow in; the macro, intermediate and micro design levels. The results of the investigations were discussed and interpreted in the light of this review. A representative case study was chosen for the study. The natural ventilation performance in the case study was quantitatively and qualitatively evaluated through conducting field objective and subjective assessment respectively. In evaluation study, the thermal performance of the case study under different ventilation scenarios was monitored, the airflow inside it was simulated using CFD (computational fluid dynamics) software “FloVent” and a sample of residents were questioned. This study identified many problems associated natural ventilation uses and indicated its poor performance within the case study. A number of design measures were formulated based on the literature review and considering the evaluation study results along with the research context nature. The proposed natural ventilation design measures were applied to the case studies and their effectiveness in terms of enhancing the natural ventilation performance was quantified using “FloVent”. Results reported that the proposed natural ventilation design measures could significantly enhance the natural ventilation performance inside the case study quantitatively and qualitatively. This in turn maximizes the potential of providing thermal comfort by using both natural ventilation strategies; comfort ventilation and night purge ventilation. However, all the applied measures could not achieve neither an acceptable airspeed at any of the case study spaces nor a good airflow circulation at some of its spaces. It can be concluded that the current design of the case study can not achieve quality airflow without the use of the mechanical assisted ventilation. In general, it seems very difficult to optimize the air velocity within all spaces in a very dense multi-space design like this case study. A new design that considers natural ventilation and its drivers has to be introduced.

Tese de Mestrado Integrado. Engenharia Civil. Área de Especialização de Construções. Faculdade de Engenharia. Universidade do Porto. 2012

A three-field photometer has been employed at the University of Adelaide's Buckland Park field site to collect optical observations of the 557.7nm OI and 730nm OH airglow emissions. Data have been collected on an almost continuous basis since May 1995 through to May 2000, with observations made whenever the moon was not up. Techniques and analysis procedures have been developed which allow routine extraction of the parameters of gravity waves observed each night. A cross-spectral analysis was performed on processed data from the photometer to identify short period (less than 3 hours) wave activity on nights where the impact of clouds on the data was minimal. The resulting wave parameters are analysed for seasonal variability and used to build up a climatology of wave parameters over the 5 years of observation. No consistent seasonal variation was observed, although there was a strong eastward perference to the wave's propagation direction. Implications of this finding are discussed. A co-located MF radar has been operating in spaced antenna mode providing wind data concurrent with the optical observations for most of the acquisition period. When available the wind data allowed calculation of the intrinsic parameters for waves identified in the optical data. The seasonal variablility of these parameters was investigated. An evaluation of energy and momentum fluxes estimated using the method of Swenson et al (1998b) was carried out. Approximations made in this method were found to be inappropriate for the waves detected by the photometer, and a refined procedure was therefore developed. This gave more realistic results, although large number of physically unreasonable momentum flux measurements were reported. Possible reasons for these were explored, and the need for further investigations emphasised. The five year dataset also allowed investigation of the long-term behaviour of the airglow. Both the intensity and variance were analysed using the Lomb-Scargle method across the complete dataset to identify the dominant periods present. Following similar treatment, the MF spaced antenna winds were compared with the optical results; this utilised a complex spectrum extension to the basic Lomb algorithm. Seasonally related periodicities of two years, one year, one half of a year and one third of a year were observed in the optical data, along with a possible signature of a five and a half year period potentially linked to the eleven year solar cycle. The radar data did not have stong signatures of the one third of a year periodicity although the presence of an five and a half year periodicity could not be ruled out. Gravity wave activity, as measured by the optical intensity variance, reached a maximum during autumn with a secondary maximum occurring in spring. The annual variability of the wave spectrum detected by the photometer was also studied which showed a falloff in the wave energy at short periods (less than thirty minutes) during autumn and spring. This suggested that the enhanced wave activity at these times consisted mainly of waves with periods greater than thirty minutes. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Department of Physics and Mathematical Physics, 2000.

Empirical models of airflow output and power consumption were developed for series and parallel fan powered variable air volume terminal units at typical design pressure conditions. A testing procedure and experimental setup were developed to test sets of terminal units from three different manufacturers. Each set consisted of two series and two parallel units, each with 8 in. (203 mm) and 12 in. (304 mm) primary air inlets, for a total of four units in each set. Generalized models were developed for the series and parallel units, with coefficients varying by size and manufacturer. Statistical modeling utilized SAS software (2002). Fan power and airflow data were collected at downstream static pressures over a range from 0.1 to 0.5 in. w.g. (25 to 125 Pa) for the parallel terminal units. Downstream static pressure was held constant at 0.25 in. w.g. (62 Pa) for the series units. Upstream static pressures of all variable air volume (VAV) terminal units ranged from 0.1 to 2.0 in. w.g. (25 to 498 Pa). Data were collected at four different primary air damper positions. Data were also collected at four different terminal unit fan speeds, controlled by a silicon controlled rectifier (SCR). The models utilized the RMS voltage entering the terminal unit fan, the 'rake' sensor velocity pressure, and the downstream static pressure. In addition to the terminal unit airflow and power models, a model was developed to quantify air leakage in parallel terminal units, when the unit fan was off. In all but two of the VAV terminal units, the resulting models of airflow and power had R2 values greater than 0.90. In the two exceptions, there appeared to be manufacturing defects: either excessive air leakage or a faulty SCR that limited the effectiveness of the airflow and power models to capture the variation in the data.

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) has been extensively used in the study of building energy usage and thermal comfort in buildings, however there remains the need to thoroughly evaluate the accuracy of the results given by such CFD methods. The present study involves a numerical investigation of the flow and temperature distribution in the atrium situated in the Concordia University Engineering Building. The study involved a steady-state simulation of the conditions in the atria on August 1, 2007, a date for which experimental data was available for validation of the numerical results. The commercial CFD solver FLUENT was used to solve the equations that govern the flow in the atrium. The realizable k- turbulence model incorporating buoyancy force effects was used. During the period studied a forced airflow through the atrium existed due to a mechanical air supply vent near the floor level. The natural convection in the atrium, induced by the temperature differences resulting mainly from the incoming solar radiation, was modeled using the bousinessq approximation. In general, good agreement was obtained between the numerical and experimental results. The numerical results also predicted the thermal stratification in the atrium relatively accurately. A parametric study was performed to assess the sensitivity of the numerical results to the assumed boundary conditions used in the study. An evaluation of the thermal comfort levels in the atrium was also undertaken using the numerical results. This indicated that while regions of thermal discomfort did exist in the atrium, these regions constituted only a small part of the atrium. / Thesis (Master, Mechanical and Materials Engineering) -- Queen's University, 2009-09-25 17:29:46.857

No description available.

A three-field photometer has been employed at the University of Adelaide's Buckland Park field site to collect optical observations of the 557.7nm OI and 730nm OH airglow emissions. Data have been collected on an almost continuous basis since May 1995 through to May 2000, with observations made whenever the moon was not up. Techniques and analysis procedures have been developed which allow routine extraction of the parameters of gravity waves observed each night. A cross-spectral analysis was performed on processed data from the photometer to identify short period (less than 3 hours) wave activity on nights where the impact of clouds on the data was minimal. The resulting wave parameters are analysed for seasonal variability and used to build up a climatology of wave parameters over the 5 years of observation. No consistent seasonal variation was observed, although there was a strong eastward perference to the wave's propagation direction. Implications of this finding are discussed. A co-located MF radar has been operating in spaced antenna mode providing wind data concurrent with the optical observations for most of the acquisition period. When available the wind data allowed calculation of the intrinsic parameters for waves identified in the optical data. The seasonal variablility of these parameters was investigated. An evaluation of energy and momentum fluxes estimated using the method of Swenson et al (1998b) was carried out. Approximations made in this method were found to be inappropriate for the waves detected by the photometer, and a refined procedure was therefore developed. This gave more realistic results, although large number of physically unreasonable momentum flux measurements were reported. Possible reasons for these were explored, and the need for further investigations emphasised. The five year dataset also allowed investigation of the long-term behaviour of the airglow. Both the intensity and variance were analysed using the Lomb-Scargle method across the complete dataset to identify the dominant periods present. Following similar treatment, the MF spaced antenna winds were compared with the optical results; this utilised a complex spectrum extension to the basic Lomb algorithm. Seasonally related periodicities of two years, one year, one half of a year and one third of a year were observed in the optical data, along with a possible signature of a five and a half year period potentially linked to the eleven year solar cycle. The radar data did not have stong signatures of the one third of a year periodicity although the presence of an five and a half year periodicity could not be ruled out. Gravity wave activity, as measured by the optical intensity variance, reached a maximum during autumn with a secondary maximum occurring in spring. The annual variability of the wave spectrum detected by the photometer was also studied which showed a falloff in the wave energy at short periods (less than thirty minutes) during autumn and spring. This suggested that the enhanced wave activity at these times consisted mainly of waves with periods greater than thirty minutes. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Department of Physics and Mathematical Physics, 2000.