Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 2000. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains ix, 107 p. : ill. (some col.) Vita. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 50-51).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Michigan State University. Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, 2006. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed on June 19, 2009) Includes bibliographical references (p. 87-89). Also issued in print.

published_or_final_version / Electrical and Electronic Engineering / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 1994. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 2003. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains x, 61 p. : ill. (some col.). Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 59-61).

A cold-flow vibated-bed microreactor system, operating at the room temperature and atmospheric pressure, was built and tested. The purpose of this microreactor was to simulate gas- and solid-mixing in a hot-flow microreactor system. The latter is being developed to study carbon deposition rates for continuous Fischer-Tropsch synthesis from a low H₂:CO gas with rapid switching of catalyst between gas atmospheres. The cold-flow microreactor consisted of three chambers with vertical sliding baffles that shift catalyst between the smaller, center reaction chamber and two outer chambers. The results show that the solid mixing within each chamber is essentially complete within one second after transfer of catalyst. The solid mixing was independent of gas flow and gas flow rate. Results of gas-mixing studies show that gas transfer between chambers of the microreactor was due to the transfer of gas within the interstices of transferred catalyst particles. During rapid baffle-switching intervals, complete gas mixing within each chamber occurred. The amount of gas transferred from the center chamber to each outer chamber was nearly constant and increased only slightly with feed gas rate to the center chamber. For the gas feed rates tested, the percentage of gas fed to the center chamber that transferred to each outer chamber was low, ranging from 1.2 to 4.9 percent. The results of this study are significant to the further development of the "sliding-baffle" microreactor for continuous Fischer-Tropsch synthesis, from a low H₂:CO gas. The microreactor will give important information on the rate of carbon deposition in a system that switches catalyst between two gas atmospheres. / M.S.

Increasing surface pressure buildup levels and surface venting flow rates on intermediate wellbore casing strings provided an opportunity to analyze wellbore field data to determine a distribution of leakage path permeability values. The gas leakage source in the leaky wellbore originated at depth, and formation gas/fluid traveled along defects in the cement to accumulate at the surface wellhead. The most likely pathway is the cement interface with casing or formation. Due to uncertainty about the location of the leak, and the different methods that were used for calculating leakage parameter values, a range of leakage path permeability values was produced. Most leakage pathway permeability values were greater than intact cement permeability (few microdarcies). This finding supports the practice of using cement filled annuli to provide a safe protective barrier against leakage and to prevent gas flow to surface. Proper cementing techniques are presented in order to identify possible reasons for cracks to form. It is hypothesized that the higher permeability values are a result of cracks in the cement interface with the casing or formation. These types of defects could also be found in wellbores that are in communication with CO2 sequestration reservoirs. The risk of leakage along such existing wellbores associated with CO2 sequestration projects is quantified by the distribution of leakage path permeability. The gas migration path through existing leaky wellbores is an analog for wellbores that are in contact with migrating CO2 plumes. Cracks in the leaky wellbores provide a highly permeable conduit for CO2 to migrate out of the injection zone to the surface. By quantifying leakage path permeability, proper leakage risk assessment can be further developed. / text

Orientador: Sandra Lucia da Cruz / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Quimica / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-08T04:57:11Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Sousa_ElisangelaOrlandide_M.pdf: 2598884 bytes, checksum: 7421959dcef02a5096290563b5f4500e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007 / Resumo: Redes de tubulação são sistemas complexos de dutos utilizados no transporte de fluidos a longas distâncias. Um pequeno vazamento em uma tubulação pode provocar grandes perdas de produtos e sérios danos ao meio ambiente até serem detectados. Com o propósito de prevenir vazamentos em tubulações, várias técnicas são relatadas na literatura. Este trabalho descreve o desenvolvimento e teste de uma técnica de detecção de vazamento de gás em tubulação baseada no método acústico e na análise de transientes de pressão gerados a partir do vazamento. Transientes de pressão e o ruído sonoro gerado pelo vazamento foram detectados e analisados em uma tubulação operando sem e com escoamento contínuo de gás (ar) em várias condições de operação. O trabalho experimental utilizou um vazo de pressão de 34,5 litros e uma tubulação com 60 m de comprimento e ½¿ de diâmetro. A pressão de operação variou de 2 a 7 kgf/cm2. Vazamentos de várias magnitudes foram simulados através de um orifício localizado na tubulação cujo diâmetro variou entre 0,4 mm a 5 mm. O microfone e o transdutor de pressão foram instalados no vaso de pressão ou na tubulação para detectar a ocorrência de vazamento, ambos conectados a um computador PC através de um conversor ADA. O sinal gerado pelo microfone foi amplificado e passou por um banco de filtros passa faixa sendo transformado em três sinais com amplitudes independentes, cada uma com uma faixa de freqüência específica de 1kHz, 5kHz e 9kHz. O programa de aquisição de dados foi escrito em linguagem C para ler e processar os dados. Os resultados experimentais mostraram que é possível detectar vazamentos em tubulações através do método acústico. A análise dos sinais de amplitude para freqüências diferentes mostrou que o ruído sonoro gerado pelo vazamento depende da magnitude do vazamento e da pressão na tubulação. Em todos os experimentos a ocorrência de vazamento foi prontamente detectada pelo microfone enquanto as mudanças nos perfis de transientes de pressão não eram sempre significativas para detectar o vazamento / Abstract: Pipeline networks are complex systems of ducts used in the fluid transportation through long distances. Even small leaks in a pipeline can lead to great losses of product and serious damages to the environment before it could be detected. With the purpose of preventing leakage in pipelines, various techniques have been reported in the literature. This work describes the development and test of a gas leak detection technique in pipelines based on an acoustic method and on the analysis of pressure transients generated by the leak. Pressure transients and the noise generated by leakage have been detected and analysed in a pipeline operating with and without continuous flow of gas (air) under various operation conditions. The experimental setup made use of a 34,5 liters pressure vessel and a 60 m long, ½¿ in diameter pipeline. The operational pressure varied from 2 to 7 kgf/cm². Leakages of various magnitudes were simulated through an orifice located in pipeline whose diameter varied from 0,4 mm to 5,0 mm. A microphone and a pressure transducer were installed either in the pressure vessel or in the pipeline to detect leak occurrence, both being connected to a PC computer through an ADA converter. The signal generated by the microphone was amplified and also passed through a bank of band pass filters being transformed into three signals with independent amplitude, each one with a band of specific frequency of 1 kHz, 5 kHz and 9 kHz. The data acquisition software was written in C language to read and process all data. The experimental results showed that it is possible to detect leaks in pipelines based on acoustic method. The analysis of the signal amplitude for different frequencies showed that the noise signal generated by leakage depend on both leak magnitude and pressure in the pipeline. In all experiments leak occurrence was readily detected by the microphone while the changes in pressure transient profiles were not always significant to detect the leak / Mestrado / Sistemas de Processos Quimicos e Informatica / Mestre em Engenharia Química

Les activités R&D dans le domaine d’aéronautique sont actuellement orientées par l’évolution naturelle vers des technologies plus efficaces et durables. La motivation principale de cette tendance est le besoin de résoudre les problèmes liés à la nature de l’industrie très polluante. À cet égard, le développement d’avions plus électriques contribuerait à la réduction de la consommation de combustibles fossiles en intégrant des sources et des convertisseurs d’énergie alternatifs, tels que les piles à combustibles (PàC). Cependant, un système PàC devrait se conformer à des contraintes de fiabilité et de sécurité particulières, d’autant plus que l’environnement aéronautique n’est guère clément : cyclages en pression et en température, ainsi que des forces mécaniques, agissants dans les trois dimensions. Les vibrations et les chocs peuvent notamment entraîner un desserrage brusque ou graduel de la PàC, dégradant ainsi ses performances et pouvant aller jusqu’à une fuite de gaz. Il semble donc important de pouvoir surveiller l’état de serrage mécanique d’une PàC au cours du temps, idéalement de manière non intrusive. Les résultats présentés dans la littérature indiquent que la qualité du serrage mécanique d’une PàC peut être évaluée à travers sa résistance ohmique (Rohm), plus précisément par sa partie électronique (Re-, formée par les résistances des couches de la PàC et les résistances de contact). Dans les conditions nominales de fonctionnement, l’autre partie plus importante de la Rohm – la résistance protonique (RH+, formée par la résistance de la membrane et de l’ionomère) – ne dépend pas de la force de serrage. Cette amalgamation de résistances de natures différentes empêche une extraction de la Re- sans l’utilisation de capteurs invasifs. Par conséquent, l’estimation de la qualité du serrage mécanique d’une PàC n’est pas aisée. Au cours de cette thèse, une méthode de diagnostic préventif in situ capable de détecter la dégradation des conditions de serrage d’une PàC par la modélisation de sa résistance ohmique est proposée. Une étude théorique est d’abord réalisée afin de démontrer que les résistances RH+ et Re- peuvent être séparées de la Rohm totale, à partir de leur dépendance à la température. La méthode de diagnostic est ensuite validée à l’aide de données expérimentales générées lors de la caractérisation de deux PàC à membrane échangeuse de protons : basse et haute température. Quelques divergences entre les valeurs identifiées par l’algorithme et celles rapportées dans la littérature sont observées, néanmoins, elles représentent correctement l’état du serrage mécanique de la PàC. Dans l’ensemble, les résultats sont encourageants dans le but d’estimer la qualité du serrage mécanique d’une PàC à travers l’évolution de RH+ et Re-. / The aeronautical R&D activities are currently shaped by the issues associated with the pollutantrich nature of the industry and the natural evolution towards more effective and sustainable technologies. In this regard, the development of more electric aircraft would contribute to reducing fossil fuel consumption by incorporating alternative sources and converters of energy, such as FCs. However, a FC system would have to comply with particular reliability and safety constraints, especially as the aeronautical environment is not very indulgent: abundant pressure and temperature cycling as well as mechanical loads, varying both in frequency and amplitude, in all three dimensions. Vibrations and shocks can in particular lead to a sudden or gradual loosening of the FC, thus degrading its performance, and possibly provoking a gas leak. It therefore seems important to be able to monitor the tightening state of a FC over time, ideally in a non-intrusive manner. Results reported in the literature indicate that the quality of the mechanical tightening of a FC assembly might be assessed through its ohmic resistance (Rohm), more precisely through its electronic part (Re-, formed by the bulk resistances of FC layers and the interfacial contact resistances). In nominal operating conditions, the second and more dominant part of Rohm – the protonic resistance (RH+, formed by the membrane and ionomer resistances) – does not depend on clamping pressure. This amalgamation of resistances of different natures prevents an easy extraction of Re- without the use of invasive sensors and thus an estimation of the quality of the mechanical tightening of a FC assembly. This thesis proposes an in situ preventive diagnosis method that is capable of detecting the degradation of clamping conditions of a FC through the modelling of its ohmic resistance. A theoretical study is performed and demonstrates that the RH+ and Re- resistances can be separated from the total Rohm, based on their temperature dependence. The proposed method is verified with experimental data generated during the characterization of low and high temperature Polymer Electrolyte Membrane (PEM) single cells. Although some differences between the values identified by the algorithm and those reported in the literature are observed, they correctly depict the behavior of the mechanical tightening of the tested FCs. Overall, the results are encouraging in the aim of monitoring the quality of mechanical tightening of a FC through the evolution of RH+ and Re-.

The dissertation thesis deals with short-term gas releases (puffs) in an urban canopy studied utilizing wind-tunnel modelling. The urban canopy was composed of buildings with pitched roofs organised into closed courtyards. Into it, a ground-level point gas source was placed. The first part of the thesis is focused on specific definitions of puff characteristics. New definitions of puff arrival and departure times are presented. Various definitions of puff arrival time were applied on the same datasets and the results were compared. Moreover, it was studied how slight changes in determination of puff departure time can affect its values and other derived puff characteristics. The second part of the thesis is focused on modelling of probability density functions of puff characteristics with knowledge of sampling positions towards the gas source and mean values of concentrations valid for long-term gas sources. The found equations will be utilized in an operational model. The outputs in the form of the probability density functions of puff characteristics distinguish my model from the usually utilized operational models, in which only the ensemble-averaged puff outline and concentration field can be predicted.