This master‘s thesis contains a comprehensive laboratory task about saving a heat energy with a use of changing a state of matter. The thesis is written for the object Chosen passages of renewable resources and saving a heat energy. Part one presents a theoretical part of the topic, terminology and relations needed to make this laboratory work. It also contains a created procedure of partial tasks necessary to take laboratory measurements. The second part of the thesis is about measuring and evaluation of acquired values according to procedure described in the theoretical part of the thesis. Different variations considered during the creation of measuring procedure are also named here. The final part of the thesis describes a laboratory equipment necessary to complete the task and an example of filled protocol is attached.

<p>Evaporative cooling is a highly energy efficient alternative to conventional vapor compression cooling system. The sensible cooling effect of evaporative cooling systems is well documented in the literature. Direct evaporative cooling however increases the relative humidity of the air as it cools it. This has made it unsuitable for data centers and other applications where humidity control is important. Desiccant-based dehumidifiers (liquid, solid or composites) absorb moisture from the cooled air to control humidity and is regenerated using waste heat from the data center. This work is an experimental and theoretical investigation of the use of desiccant assisted evaporative cooling for data center cooling according to ASHRAE thermal guidelines, TC 9.9. The thickness (depth) of the cooling pad was varied to study its effect on sensible heat loss and latent heat gain. The velocity of air through the pad was measured to determine its effect on sensible cooling. The flow rate of water over the pad was also varied to find the optimal flow for rate for dry bulb depression. The configuration was such that the rotary desiccant wheel (impregnated with silica gel) comes after the direct evaporative cooler. The rotary desiccant wheel was split in a 1:1 ratio for cooling and reactivation at lower temperatures. The dehumidification effectiveness of a fixed bed desiccant dehumidifier was compared with that of a rotary desiccant wheel and a thermoelectric dehumidifier. A novel condensate recovery system using the Peltier effect was proposed to recover moisture from the return air stream, (by cooling the return air stream below its dew point temperature) thereby optimizing the water consumption of evaporative cooling technology and providing suitable air quality for data center cooling. The moisture recovery unit was found to reduce the mass of water lost through evaporation by an average of fifty percent irrespective of the pad depth.</p> <p> </p>

The energy exchange in the soil-snow-vegetation-atmospheresystem was studied to improve the quantitative knowledge of thegoverning processes. The lack of such knowledge contributes tothe uncertainty in the applicability of many existing modelsindependent of the temporal or spatial scale. The theoreticalbackground and available methods for measurements and numericalsimulations were reviewed. Numerical simulation models andavailable data sets representing open land and boreal forestwere evaluated in both diurnal and seasonal time-scales.Surface heat fluxes, snow depth, soil temperatures andmeteorological conditions were measured at an agriculturalfield in central Sweden over two winters, 1997-1999. Twoone-dimensional simulation models of different complexity wereused to simulate the heat and water transfer in thesoil-snow-atmosphere system and compared with the measurements.Comparison of simulated and observed heat fluxes showed thatparameter values governing the upper boundary condition weremore important than the formulation of the internal mass andheat balance of the snow cover. The models were useful toevaluate the lack of energy balance closure in the observedsurface heat fluxes, which underlined the importance ofimproved accuracy in eddy correlation measurements of latentflow during winter conditions. The representation of boreal forest in the land surfacescheme used within a weather forecast model was tested with athree-year data set from the NOPEX forest site in centralSweden. The formulation with separate energy balances forvegetation and the soil/snow beneath tree cover improvedsimulation of the seasonal and diurnal variations of latent andsensible heat flux compared with an older model version.Further improvements of simulated surface heat fluxes could beexpected if the variation of vegetation properties within andbetween years and a new formulation of the boundary conditionsfor heat flux into the soil is included. Keywords: Surface energy balance, Snow, Boreal forest,SVAT models, Eddy-correlation Measurements, Latent heat flux,Sensible heat flux, Net radiation, Soil temperature,Aerodynamic roughness, Surface resistance / QC 20100614

The thesis deals with the integration of phase change materials (PCMs) into building structures. The basic requirement is improved thermal stability during the summer season without using an air conditioner. This can be achieved by increasing the thermal storage capacity of the building structures. If the thermal capacity cannot be increased on the level of weight, phase change materials can be used. These materials are capable of storing latent heat and thus increasing the thermal storage capacity of the building. In the thesis the phase change materials were investigated in a thermal incubator by thermal analysis and, above all, in full-scale experiments using comparative measurements. The comparative measurements were carried out in two attic rooms at the Faculty of Civil Engineering, Brno University of Technology, where in one was used as a reference and the other for the experiment. Manufactured heat storage panels were installed in the experimental room. These panels are composed of a base plate; the capillary tubes placed on it are coated with modified plaster. The gypsum plaster is modified with micro-capsules paraffin for improving the thermal storage capacity. This system is connected to a thermal air-water pump, by which the storage panels can be additionally cooled or heated. In the experimental measurements, different operating modes were investigated and their effect on the indoor environment was evaluated. Thermal storage in PCMs dampens the temperature amplitude in the building during the summer season and, at the same time, allows the stored heat to be discharged during the night. Moreover, the time interval of withdrawing electric energy from the supply mains is much shorter than in the case of air conditioning. A conventional air conditioner must operate simultaneously with the thermal load, i.e. at the time of peak consumption of electric energy. Thanks to the set regimes, the installed system is capable of responding to external thermal condit

The main goal of this research is to quantitatively assess the resilience and vulnerability of geotechnical infrastructure to extreme events under a changing climate. In the first part, pertinent facts and statistics regarding California’s extreme drought and current status of its levees are presented. Weakening processes such as soil strength reduction, soil desiccation cracking, land subsidence and surface erosion, and oxidation of soil organic carbon are comprehensively evaluated to illustrate the devastating impacts that the California drought can have on earthen structures. In the second part, rainfall-triggered slope instabilities are analyzed using extreme precipitation estimates, derived using the historical stationary and a proposed future nonstationary approach. The extremes are integrated into a series of fully coupled 2D finite element simulations. The final part of this study investigates the impact of simultaneous variations in soil moisture and temperature changes in the California region on soil strength through a proposed thermo-hydro-mechanical framework.

This thesis is a part of the research work for Azelio TES.POD (Thermal energy storage. power on demand). It is a patented thermal energy storage system developed by Swedish cleantech company Azelio AB. The objective of this thesis work to find an alternative charging technology system that can be validated to be efficient and safe in operation for the charging of TES.POD. Induction heating technology is chosen as an alternative charging solution. Derived design steps to implement induction heater as a charging unit then selection of PCM container compatible with induction heater. Later simulating to evaluate total flux path in Finite Element Method Magnetics (FEMM) simulation tool which proposes the electrical results. The electrical performance of the induction heater indicates almost 9% higher electrical losses than the charging mechanism of the existing TES.POD design. However, from a safety standpoint, the alternate charging approach appears to be safer in operation than the existing system. Additionally, it reflects better intuitiveness from a manufacturing viewpoint.

<p>Electrohydrodynamics (EHD) was used to enhance the thermal performance of a latent heat thermal storage cell by reducing the charging time for a given amount of latent heat stored. Paraffin wax, which is an organic dielectric commercially available material was selected as the phase change material (PCM).</p> <p>Electric field was applied into the cell by using 9 electrodes kept at -8 kV in an effort to establish EHD forces inside the PCM. The EHD effect was studied in an originally conduction dominated melting environment. That was achieved by the cell design which promoted unidirectional melting downwards to prevent natural convection from occurring by assuring a thermally stratified molten phase. The target was to study the EHD mechanisms of enhancement with less interfering physics.</p> <p>Melting was studied under constant heat flux boundary condition. The temporal thermal profile of the surface heater and the melt front location were used to assess the EHD effect by comparing it to a 0 kV (no EHD) case.</p> <p>It was found that by using EHD (-8 kV), the time required to melt 7 mm thickness of the PCM can be reduced by 40 % when compared to 0 kV case. Through a four hour experiment time, the amount of molten PCM can be increased by 29 % by using EHD compared to 0 kV. The EHD power consumption was less than 0.17 W which is equivalent to 2.4 % of the thermal energy stored in the PCM.</p> <p>A new phenomena was discovered when applying EHD in the tested cell, which is Solid Extraction, where the solid dendrites within the mushy zone were extracted from the mushy zone into the liquid bulk towards regions of higher electric field.</p> <p>A new criteria was developed to quantify the EHD enhancement level and was called EHD enhancement factor. An enhancement factor up to 13 could be reached by using EHD. The effect of changing the heat flux on the enhancement factor was investigated, and it was found that the enhancement factor decreased by increasing the heat flux.</p> <p>Numerical simulations were performed in an effort to understand the EHD mechanisms of enhancement. The static electric field distribution, the interfacial extraction forces and the body forces acting on suspended dendrites were evaluated. The results of numerical simulations were supported by the high speed imaging and the experimental data to explain the EHD mechanisms of enhancement and the regions where solid dendrites extraction happened.</p> <p>Finally an analytical model was developed to estimate the energy stored in the different components of the tested latent heat storage cell and to estimate the amount of energy lost to the surroundings in order to quantify the accuracy of the experiment and a maximum of 18 % heat loss was estimated.</p> / Master of Applied Science (MASc)

<p>The energy exchange in the soil-snow-vegetation-atmospheresystem was studied to improve the quantitative knowledge of thegoverning processes. The lack of such knowledge contributes tothe uncertainty in the applicability of many existing modelsindependent of the temporal or spatial scale. The theoreticalbackground and available methods for measurements and numericalsimulations were reviewed. Numerical simulation models andavailable data sets representing open land and boreal forestwere evaluated in both diurnal and seasonal time-scales.Surface heat fluxes, snow depth, soil temperatures andmeteorological conditions were measured at an agriculturalfield in central Sweden over two winters, 1997-1999. Twoone-dimensional simulation models of different complexity wereused to simulate the heat and water transfer in thesoil-snow-atmosphere system and compared with the measurements.Comparison of simulated and observed heat fluxes showed thatparameter values governing the upper boundary condition weremore important than the formulation of the internal mass andheat balance of the snow cover. The models were useful toevaluate the lack of energy balance closure in the observedsurface heat fluxes, which underlined the importance ofimproved accuracy in eddy correlation measurements of latentflow during winter conditions.</p><p>The representation of boreal forest in the land surfacescheme used within a weather forecast model was tested with athree-year data set from the NOPEX forest site in centralSweden. The formulation with separate energy balances forvegetation and the soil/snow beneath tree cover improvedsimulation of the seasonal and diurnal variations of latent andsensible heat flux compared with an older model version.Further improvements of simulated surface heat fluxes could beexpected if the variation of vegetation properties within andbetween years and a new formulation of the boundary conditionsfor heat flux into the soil is included.</p><p><strong>Keywords</strong>: Surface energy balance, Snow, Boreal forest,SVAT models, Eddy-correlation Measurements, Latent heat flux,Sensible heat flux, Net radiation, Soil temperature,Aerodynamic roughness, Surface resistance</p> / QC 20100614

Dans ce travail, des modèles thermomécaniques basés sur une approche non-locale sont proposés pour décrire le comportement des Alliages à Mémoire de Forme (AMF) avec la prise en compte des effets de la localisation et de la chaleur latente lors de la transformation de phase. Ces modèles sont obtenus comme des extensions d’un modèle local existant. Pour décrire la localisation de la transformation de phase, l’extension du modèle initial a consisté à le réécrire dans un contexte non-local par l’introduction d’une nouvelle variable, définie comme la contrepartie non-locale de la fraction volumique de martensite déjà présente dans le modèle local. L’exploitation de ce modèle a nécessité le développement d’un élément fini spécial dans ABAQUS avec la fraction volumique non-locale de martensite comme un degré de liberté supplémentaire. Les simulations réalisées montrent la pertinence d’une telle approche dans la description de la transformation de phase dans des structures minces en AMF, soumises à des chargements thermomécaniques. Pour décrire les effets de la chaleur latente, une équation d’équilibre thermique ayant comme terme source des contributions dépendant de la transformation de phase a été adjointe au modèle initial. Là encore, l’exploitation du modèle a nécessité le développement d’un élément fini qui prend en compte le couplage thermomécanique et la formulation proposée pour l’équilibre thermique. Les simulations numériques réalisées ont montré l’effet retardant sur la transformation de phase de la chaleur latente, et le caractère hétérogène possible de la transformation dans ce cas. Ces effets sont d’autant plus importants que la vitesse de déformation est élevée / In this Phd thesis, thermo-mechanical models based on a nonlocal approach are proposed in order to describe the behavior of Shape Memory Alloys (SMA), taking into account localization and latent heat effects during phase transformation. These models are obtained as extensions of an existing local model. In order to describe the localization of phase transformation, the extension of the initial model consisted of rewriting it in a nonlocal context through the introduction of a new variable, defined as the nonlocal counterpart of the martensite volume fraction. The use of this model has required the development of a specific finite element in ABAQUS with the nonlocal martensite volume fraction as an additional degree of freedom. The simulations show the relevance of such an approach in the description of the phase transformation occurring in thin SMA structures subjected to thermo-mechanical loadings. To achieve the description of the latent heat effects, a heat balance equation with a source term depending on contributions of the phase transformation was added to the constitutive equations of the initial model. Even there, the use of the model required the development of a finite element which takes into account the thermo-mechanical coupling and considers the proposed formulation for the thermal balance. Numerical simulations have shown the delaying effect of the latent heat on phase transformation and the possible heterogeneous character of the phase transformation in this case. These effects are even more important as the strain rate is high

Cette thèse est une étude expérimentale du comportement thermo-mécanique superélastique d'un fil nanocristallin Ti-50.9Ni at.% Ni en alliage à mémoire de forme (SMA) (diamètre 0.5 mm), après subir un cold work (CW). Les AMF sont capables d'induire des changements de température importants lorsqu'ils sont chargés mécaniquement. Ce phénomène est dû à un important couplage thermomécanique présent dans cette transformation de phase solide entre les phases Austénite (A) et Martensite (M).La chaleur latente par unité de masse (ΔH) tout au long de la transformation de phase est l'énergie responsable de cette variation de température. La détermination de ΔH est généralement effectuée par calorimétrie à balayage différentiel (DSC). Cependant, pour les SMA nanocristallins, les résultats DSC obtenus ne sont pas concluants sur la détermination de cette propriété.Dans ce travail, une méthode utilisant la corrélation d'image numérique (DIC) et les mesures de champ thermique (TFM) a été utilisée pour analyser les couplages thermomécaniques lors d'une transformation de phase induite par contrainte. Des champs cinématiques et thermiques ont été acquis lors d'essais de traction superélastiques réalisés sur des fils CW NiTi soumis à différentes températures de traitements thermiques (TTT) allant de 523 à 598 K pendant 30 min. Un tel traitement thermique à basse température favorise une boucle totalement superélastique sans plateau de contrainte et sans déformation de type Lüders. En supposant un modèle thermique uniforme, les sources de chaleur impliquées lors du chargement cyclique ont été estimées. Cette puissance thermique par unité de masse a été comparée à la puissance mécanique et intégrée au fil du temps pour obtenir l'équilibre énergétique. De plus, grâce à une analyse thermodynamique basée sur l'énergie libre de Gibbs, les valeurs de ΔH, ainsi que la fraction de martensite, ont été estimées au cours des transformations de phase A-M directe et inverse M-A. L'analyse des résultats a conduit aux conclusions suivantes: (1) Les puissances et énergies thermiques et mécaniques présentaient une dépendance significative vis-à-vis du TTT. (2) Malgré l'effet important des valeurs du TTT sur les réponses mécaniques et thermiques, les ΔH obtenues étaient très proches pour tous les TTT et dans la même gamme de valeurs fondée dans la littérature pour un alliage Ti-50.9Ni at.% Ni entièrement recuit testé par technique DSC. (3) Pour une deformation donnée, la fraction de martensite augmente avec l'augmentation de TTT. (4) Pour une contrainte imposée de 4,5%, la fraction de martensite augmente de 30% à 40% en augmentant le TTT de 523K à 598K. / This PhD thesis is an experimental study of the thermomechanical superelastic behaviour of a Ti-50.9Ni at.% Ni Shape Memory Alloy (SMA) nanocrystalline thin wire (diameter 0.5 mm), in a Cold Worked (CW) state. SMAs are capable of inducing important temperature change when they are mechanically loaded. This phenomenon is due to an important thermomechanical coupling present in this solid phase transformation between Austenite (A) and Martensite (M) phases. The latent heat per unit of mass (∆H) throughout the phase transformation is the energy responsible of this temperature variation. The determination of ∆H is generally performed by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). However, for nanocrystalline SMAs, the obtained DSC results are non conclusive on the determination of this property.In this work, a method using digital image correlation (DIC) and thermal field measurements (TFM) was used to analyse the thermomechanical couplings during a stress induced phase transformation (SIPT). Kinematics and thermal full fields were acquired during superelastic tensile tests performed on the CW NiTi wire submitted to different heat treatments temperatures (HTT) ranging from 523 to 598 K during 30 min. Such a heat treatment at low temperature promoted a fully superelastic loop without stress plateau and no Lüders-like deformation. Assuming a uniform thermal model, the heat sources involved during the cyclic loading were estimated. This thermal power per unit of mass was compared to the mechanical one and integrated over the time to get energy balance. Further, through a thermodynamic analysis based on the Gibbs free energy, the values of ∆H, as well as the martensite fraction, were estimated during the forward A-M and reverse M-A phase transformations. The analysis of the results led to the following conclusions: (1) Thermal and mechanical powers and energies presented a significant dependence on the HTT. (2) Despite the strong effect of the values of the HTT on mechanical and thermal responses, the obtained ∆H were very close for all HTT and in the same range of values founded in the literature for a fully annealed Ti-50.9Ni at.% Ni alloy tested via DSC technique. (3) For a given strain, martensite fraction increases with increasing HTT. (4) For an imposed strain of 4.5%, the martensite fraction increases from 30% to 40% when increasing HTT from 523K to 598K.