Anita Loos’ Gentlemen Prefer Blondes constantly acknowledges tensions between the intentions and actions of its protagonist, Lorelei Lee. Some literary critics and authors have speculated in depth the reasons and/or effects of Lorelei’s humorous oblivion, coming to the conclusion that Loos creates this character as a parody for the reader. This article asserts instead that readers should grant Lorelei autonomy, thus giving her more credit than she is generally given at face value. I read Blondes as a self-help book rather than a parody. Specifically, I read Lorelei as not only a creation of modernist work, but a creator of such work: her diary works as a satire on the nineteenth century social etiquette texts directed at women. By identifying some implicit lessons in Lorelei’s diary, I will demonstrate how Loos carefully constructs Lorelei’s humorous rhetoric as a disguised societal guide for the contemporary American flapper who aspires upward mobility.

In 2016 it is 70 years since the first patent for a two-stage servovalve was filed, and 60 years since the double nozzle-flapper two-stage valve patent was granted. This paper reviews the many alternative servovalve designs that were investigated at that time, focusing on two-stage valves. The development of single-stage valves – otherwise known as direct drive or proportional valves – for industrial rather than aerospace application is also briefly reviewed. Ongoing research into alternative valve technology is then discussed, particularly focussing on piezoelectric actuation and the opportunities afforded by additive manufacturing.

A flapper valve is made from a hardened and tempered high strength strip steel which opens and shuts as it is subjected to very high cyclic loads. Steel strip of which flapper valves are made from can   encounter a surface defect which are anticipated to influence fatigue life negatively. In this study, the influence of surface scratches on fatigue life of flapper valve strip was investigated. The analysis was carried out by using thirty samples that were blanked out of eight different steel strips in the transverse direction. Of these samples, fifteen of them had scratches on the surface and fifteen did not, all these samples were fatigue tested by constant amplitude method. An S-N curve was plotted based upon the values and results from the fatigue test, considering the curve as the nerve center in relation with fractrographic studies using the Scanning electron microscope. Therefore this master thesis work aims to explain the influence of scratches on fatigue life of flapper valve strip and suggest future improvements based on the findings.

No description available.

In 2016 it is 70 years since the first patent for a two-stage servovalve was filed, and 60 years since the double nozzle-flapper two-stage valve patent was granted. This paper reviews the many alternative servovalve designs that were investigated at that time, focusing on two-stage valves. The development of single-stage valves – otherwise known as direct drive or proportional valves – for industrial rather than aerospace application is also briefly reviewed. Ongoing research into alternative valve technology is then discussed, particularly focussing on piezoelectric actuation and the opportunities afforded by additive manufacturing.

Compressors that are used in refrigerators and air conditioners usually have flapper vales made of martensitic stainless steel to control the flow of the refrigerant in the system. During service the flapper valves are affected by both bending and impact fatigue in the very high cycle fatigue (VHCF) range with billions of cycles until failure. Due to the VHCF, it is time consuming and expensive to test the performance of the flapper valves. One approach to improve the valve testing could be to combine traditional sample testing with the finite element method (FEM). In this paper, FEM was used to calculate the velocity and stress between a flapper valve and the seat during impact. Three different valve tongue shapes were investigated: a circular and two elliptically shaped tongues with a width to length ratio of 3:2 and 2:1. Furthermore, two different load cases were used to make the valve move: a backpressure case that was adapted from a compressor manufacturer and a springback case that was adapted from a flapper valve testing platform. A study of the wear mark evolution was also made on the surface of flapper valves that impacts with the seat. The valves had been in use for a different amount of cycles, were supplied by a compressor manufacturer and were made of Sandvik Hiflex steel. Stereo microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and surface measurements were used at three different areas on the valves. It was shown with the FEM that the maximum compressive stress, at a specific point in the material, does not occur at the impact for that point. Rather, that constructive interference between stress waves in the material is the probable cause for the stress peaks that are formed. In what way the valve impacts with the seat will affect the maximum compressive stress distribution in the valve tongue. If an area close to the root of the valve impacts first with the seat, a whiplash effect will cause a higher impact velocity and impact stress in the free end of the valve. The wear mark study showed an initially high growth rate for the wear mark. However, with an increasing amount of cycles, the wear mark growth rate will decrease. Areas at the edge of the valve tongue consistently had the lowest wear mark depth, while areas close to the root and the free end of the valve had similar wear mark depth in the longest tested valve. FEM and wear mark results indicate that the impact velocity and maximum compressive stress are important factors for wear mark growth.

V posledních několika desetiletích se objevuje snaha o snížení firemních nákladů, stejně tak jako nákladů, které je nucen vynaložit zákazník, čímž se společnosti snaží získat výhodu vůči svým konkurentům na trhu. Spolu s tímto trendem jde i neustálá snaha snížit dopady na životní prostředí. Vývoj stávajících produktů se proto zdá být klíčovým prvkem. Tento dokument se zabývá vývojem pístového kompresoru na CO2 chladivo, který vyrábí společnost Emerson Climate Technologies. Cíl práce je zvýšit COP kompresoru při zachování stávající životnosti kompresoru. Diplomová práce je rozčleněna do několika kapitol, které se zabývají analýzou originálního designu kompresoru, návrhem a vyhodnocením designů nových. Nezbytné teoretické základy mohou být také shlédnuty v počátečních kapitolách. V poslední části dokumentu jsou sdělena možná další vylepšení a případné jiné konstrukce. Vývoj byl zaměřen na sestavu ventilové desky. Na základě několika předpokladů a výsledků analýzy původního designu kompresoru byly navrženy nové konstrukce, které byly dále testovány statickou strukturální analýzou. Pomoci modální analýzy byly také vypočteny vlastní frekvence a vlastní tvary sacího jazýčku. Mimo modální a statické strukturální analýzy byla provedena také CFD analýza. V posledním kroku byly testovány navržené prototypy a jejich výsledky byly porovnány s původním kompresorem. K správnému návrhu bylo zapotřebí programové podpory a to především v podobě MATLABu, ANSYSu WB a Microsoft Excelu. V práci jsou velmi často prezentovány obzvláště výsledky získané v programu ANSYS WB.

This study of thirty representative short stories from 1912-1941 demonstrates the stages of growth in Fitzgerald's writing which emerged from his own mental development, focusing upon his changing attitudes toward women as he reflects these attitudes in his depictions of the dominant female figures in the stories. The above chronology is then divided into four major blocks; in each block the dominant female illustrates Fitzgerald's concept of women at that particular stage of his life, The stories prove to be integral to the whole of Fitzgerald's writing and deserve to be judged independently of the novels. Furthermore, through an examination of Fitzgerald's short stories, the growth periods and the natural course of his changing attitudes become all the more clear and incisive.

No description available.

This thesis examines Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald’s writing published between 1920 and 1932. To date, biographers and scholars have largely failed to carefully examine and understand Zelda’s publications. During this period Zelda critiques the materialism and generational lack of respect she finds in the North in her articles, while using her imagination to discuss the possibilities of the South in her short stories. All of her works during these years culminate in her novel, Save Me the Waltz, in which much of her life and return to the South is mirrored by her heroine, Alabama Knight. This thesis examines Zelda’s publications in this 1920 to 1932 period in order to reveal her perception of the society she had become a part of when she married F. Scott Fitzgerald and to understand the transition in her desire to at first fit in to the Northern society that expected her to be the flapper and celebrity wife, and then later to find success and self-expression in a return to the South.