Abstract : The industrial partner of this project uses a slurry bubble reactor for the production of biogenic methanol. In the latter syngas is dispersed into the slurry continuous phase containing both liquid and solid phases. The rising bubbles containing a wide spectrum of the bubbles sizes, interact with the continuous phase due to the interface momentum transfer. The latter includes the drag, lift, wall lubrication and turbulent dispersion terms that require average bubble size, which needs to be calculated. One way to predict this average bubble size is by using population balance model (PBM), which can be coupled with the Eulerian framework. PBM also needs closure kernels for the bubble coalescence and bubble breakup. In this study, the influence of bubble coalescence and bubble breakup kernels have been studied in two- and three-phase system using eulerian approach, which solves momentum equation for each phase. The influence of the mesh sizes, number of bubble classes, numerical schemes, wall lubrication force and turbulent dispersion force are also included. In the two-phase system, results show that the Luo coalescence model needs to be tuned when used in combination with the Luo breakup kernel. The combination of the Luo coalescence and the Lehr breakup kernels (Luo-Lehr) show promising time-averaged radial profiles of gas holdup and axial liquid velocity as compared to empirical values. In the three-phase system, the combination of the Luo coalescence and the Lehr breakup kernels (Luo-Lehr) and the Luo coalescence and the Luo breakup kernels (Luo-Luo) predict convincing time-averaged radial profile of axial solid velocity as compared to experiments. However, at an elevated superficial gas velocity, a non-realistic behavior was predicted when compared to empirical observations. The sensitivity analysis results show that the 3 mm mesh size depicts a trend similar to the empirical values of the radial profiles of the gas holdup, axial liquid velocity, and solid axial velocity. The number of bubble classes influence the predicted bubble size distribution in the three-phase system while the numerical discretizing schemes have no influence on the results. The bench simulation results show that the inclusion of the turbulent dispersion term using a single porous tubular sparger influences the hydrodynamic behavior of the bubble column. / Le partenaire industriel de ce projet utilise un réacteur à suspension à trois phases pour la production de méthanol biogénique. Dans celui-ci, le gaz de synthèse est diffusé par barbotement dans la phase à suspension qui contient à la fois les phases liquide et solide. Les bulles en ascension présentent un large spectre de tailles et interagissent avec la phase à suspension en échangeant de la quantité de mouvement via leurs surfaces. Cet échange comprend les forces de trainé, de portance, de lubrification en proche parois et de dispersion par turbulence; lesquelles requièrent notamment le calcul de la taille moyenne des bulles. Une façon de prédire numériquement cette taille moyenne est de recourir à un modèle de bilan de population (PBM, de l’anglais Population Balance Model), qui peut être couplé avec un model multiphasique eulérien. Un tel PBM a requière des modèles de fermetures pour la coalescence et la rupture des bulles. Dans la présente étude, l'influence des modèles noyaux de coalescence et de rupture des bulles a été étudiée pour des systèmes à deux et à trois phases en utilisant l’approche eulérienne. L'influence de la taille du maillage, du nombre de classes de bulles, du schéma numérique, de la force de lubrification en proche parois et de la force de dispersion par turbulence sont également incluses. Dans un système bi-phasique, les résultats montrent que le modèle de coalescence Luo doit être ajusté lorsqu'il est utilisé en combinaison avec le noyau de rupture Luo. La combinaison des noyaux de coalescence Luo et de rupture Lehr (Luo-Lehr) montrent des profils radiaux moyennés dans le temps qui sont valides pour la concentration de gaz et la vitesse axiale du liquide par rapport aux mesures expérimentales. Dans le système triphasé, la combinaison des modèles noyaux de coalescence de Luo et de rupture de Lehr (Luo-Lehr) et de la coalescence de Luo et de rupture de Luo (Luo-Luo) prédisent des profils radiaux moyennés dans le temps qui sont valides pour la vitesse axiale moyenné dans le temps par rapport aux expériences. Cependant, à une vitesse de gaz superficielle élevée, ces profils prédisent un comportement non réaliste par rapport aux observations empiriques. Les résultats de l'analyse de sensibilité du maillage montrent qu’avec des cellules de 3 mm, le model prédit une tendance similaire aux valeurs empiriques pour les profils radiaux de concentration du gaz, de vitesse axiale du liquide et de vitesse axiale solide. Le nombre de classes de bulles influe sur les distributions prédites de taille de bulle dans le système triphasé alors que les schémas de discrétisation numériques n'ont aucune influence sur les résultats. Les résultats des simulations d’un banc d’essai avec diffuseur à bulles poreux montrent que tenir compte du terme de dispersion influence le comportement hydrodynamique de la colonne à bulles.

Kyoto University (京都大学) / 0048 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(工学) / 甲第15367号 / 工博第3246号 / 新制||工||1488(附属図書館) / 27845 / 京都大学大学院工学研究科建築学専攻 / (主査)教授 中島 正愛, 教授 林 康裕, 教授 吹田 啓一郎 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当

Abstract Quality and economical requirements have raised evident need and interest in the industry to further develop continuous kraft cooking. A Kappa number, representing the cooking degree, is one of the few quality measures of cooking, and usually the only one measured on-line. Cooking degree is mainly controlled by temperature, chemical charge, and cooking time. Cooking conditions strongly depend on the packing degree of a chip column in the digester. At the same time, the packing of a chip column is affected by the cooking degree of chips. A typical problem is that the conditions and cooking degree in the process are not known. To achieve better control, more information about the cooking process is required. The aim of this thesis has been to more accurately describe the cooking conditions and phenomena in the digester scale. Conventional and Downflow Lo-Solids™ continuous cooking processes, producing both softwood and hardwood pulp, were investigated. Information achieved from measurements, and physical and chemical models describing chip scale phenomena, were utilised. Kappa number modelling was based on the use of an optimised and on-line adapted Gustafson's model. Modelling over grade change situations was accomplished by smoothly adjusting the model parameters as a function of temperature change profiles. Real-time profiles of cooking chemicals, temperature, and lignin and carbohydrates contents of chips within the processes were modelled. These real-time profiles were utilised in the modelling of the chip column's packing degree in the conventional process. Based on the developed models, blow-line Kappa numbers of both processes were predicted. By exploiting the prediction results, a new control strategy for the Kappa number was developed. In the strategy, set points for chemical charge and cooking temperature are iteratively solved by using only the developed prediction models of the blow-line Kappa number. It was shown that the modelled profiles of wood components and cooking chemicals can give new information regarding the continuous cooking processes. The modelling results are feasible in control purposes, and they also can support the operators' work. In the new control strategy, compared to the widely used H-factor based control, chemical concentrations can be more precisely taken into account.

Commercial viability of Wave Energy Converters (WEC) depends on addressing not only the energetic effciency, but also in solving the practical issues related to manufacturing methods, access to technology, handling, transportation and installation, operation and maintenance, impact on marine life and most importantly the cost per kW-h. The UFCAP WEC is one concept which has the potential to facilitate handling, manufacturing, and installation activities as well as to be able to lower the current wave energy cost per kW-h, however its feasibility had not been properly assessed nor proved. It consists of multiple interconnected Oscillating Water Columns (OWC) chambers, it is modular, and simple, with no-moving parts in contact with the water and can use a simpler one-direction turbine which is more economic, and more effcient than self-rectifying turbines used in most of the OWCs devices. Testing of the device to fully assess its feasibility required a low pressure check-valve, and a customized turbine which were developed during the present work. Check-valves are widely used in the industry for medium or high-pressures, but were not available at all for large-flows with low-pressure-differences. A novel check-valve was devised for this application, along with the scaled UFCAP prototypes developed to be tested in a wave-flume and in the ocean to validate UFCAPs concept feasibility, and identify critical design parameters and features such as the conduit/air-chamber ratio. Ocean tests allowed to observe performance at component and assembly levels, learning new failure-modes and stablishing best-practices for future deployments. Testing confirmed the UFCAP WEC is not only an idea, but a concept which works and can generateing electricity at a competitive cost. / Graduate

Landfills are considered to be one of the major sources of anthropogenic methane (CH4) emissions in the environment. A landfill biocover system optimizes environmental conditions for biotic CH4 consumption that controls the fugitive and residual emissions from landfills. A compost material has more oxidation potential in comparison to any other material due to its high porosity, organic content, free flux for gases and water holding capacity. Thermal, hydraulic, bio – chemical and mechanical (THMCB) properties are important factors that can significantly affect the performance of biocover material with regards to CH4 oxidation potential as well as structural stability. Technical data on the thermal, hydraulic and mechanical (THM) properties of compost based biocover materials are quite limited. Hence, a detailed experimental program has been carried out at the University of Ottawa to study the THM properties and behaviour of compost biocover material by conducting experimental tests on small compost samples as well as by performing column experiments. The test results indicate that lower water content (dry of optimum for compaction curve) shows more free air space (FAS) in comparison to higher water content. The compost has almost the same shear strength for various initial water contents and dry unit weights; however, it settles and swells more at higher water content than lower water content per mechanical test results. The thermal and hydraulic properties of compost are a function of the compaction degree in addition to various other parameters. It is also found that the THM properties of compost are strongly coupled and the degree of saturation greatly affects the FAS.

As the "network of network", the Internet has been playing a central and crucial role in modern society, culture, knowledge, businesses and so on in a period of over two decades by supporting a wide variety of network technologies and applications. However, due to its popularity and multi-provider nature, the future development of the Internet is limited to simple incremental updates. To address this challenge, network virtualization has been propounded as a potential candidate to provide the essential basis for the future Internet architecture. Network virtualization is capable of providing an open and flexible networking environment in which service providers are allowed to dynamically compose multiple coexisting heterogeneous virtual networks on a shared substrate network. Such a flexible environment will foster the deployment of diversified services and applications. A major challenge in network virtualization area is the Virtual Network Embedding (VNE), which aims to statically or dynamically allocate virtual nodes and virtual links on substrate resources, physical nodes and paths. Making effective use of substrate resources requires high-efficient and survivable VNE techniques. The main contribution of this thesis is two high-performance p-Cycle-based survivable virtual network embedding approaches. These approaches take advantage of p-Cycle-based protection techniques that minimize the backup resources while providing a full VN protection scheme against link and node failures.

Research into hydrate production technologies has increased in the past years. While many technologies have been presented, there is no consensus on which reactor design is best for each potential application. A direct experimental comparison of hydrate production technologies has been carried out in between a variety of reactor configurations at similar driving force conditions. Three main reactor types were used: a stirred tank, a fixed bed and a bubble column and compared different phase contacting patterns for the stirred tank and bubble column. In the initial phase of hydrate formation in a stirred tank, formation was mass and heat transfer limited at the lower stirring speed, and heat transfer limited at the higher stirring speed. After more than 10% of the water had been converted to hydrate, formation was mass transfer limited regardless of the other conditions. Neither the use of a gas inducing impeller, nor a 10 wt% particle slurry significantly affected hydrate formation rates; however, the particle slurry did lower the induction time. Due to the poor scale-up of impeller power consumption in a stirred tank, a semi-batch fixed bed was studied since it does not require any power input for mixing. The significantly slower rates of formation observed in the semi-batch fixed bed, as well as the lost reactor capacity to particles, mean that this type of system would require a much larger reactor. Faster volume and power normalized rates of hydrate formation were observed in the bubble column than in a stirred tank at similar mass transfer driving force conditions. Higher conversions of water to hydrate were observed in the bubble column because mixing was accomplished by bubbling gas from the bottom rather than by an impeller. The highest conversions of water and gas were achieved during a later stage of accelerated hydrate formation, indicating an optimal hydrate fraction for continuously operated bubble column reactors. The second stage of hydrate formation occurred more frequently at higher gas flowratess. Therefore, the increased water conversion and single-pass gas conversion justify the increased energy input required by the higher gas flowrate. Balancing the rates of mass transfer and heat removal was also critical for optimal bubble column as insufficient mass transfer would result in a lower rate of formation and insufficient heat transfer would cause previously formed hydrates to dissociate. The addition of 10wt% glass beads to the reactor promoted hydrate formation; however, it did not do so sufficiently to make up for the loss in reactor capacity or the increased energy requirement.

Recent tsunami disasters caused devastating damages to well-engineered coastal infrastructures. In fact, the current design guidelines are not able to provide realistic estimations of tsunami loads in order to design structures to withstand tsunamis. Tsunami hydrodynamic forces are estimated using the drag coefficient. This coefficient is traditionally calculated based on a steady flow analogy. However, tsunami bores behave like unsteady flows. The present work aims at investigating the tsunami forces for different structure geometries to provide realistic guidelines to estimate drag coefficients considering unsteady flows. In the present paper, the dam-break approach is used to investigate the tsunami-like bore interaction with structures. A three-dimensional multiphase numerical model is implemented to study the tsunami induced forces on rectangular shape structures with various aspect ratios (width/depth) and orientations. The numerical model results are validated using measured forces and bore surface elevations of the physical experiments. A scaled-up domain is modeled in order to eliminate the effects of domain sidewalls in the simulation results. The drag coefficient relations with structure geometries and bore depths are provided. The obtained hydrodynamic forces and drag coefficients are compared with existing data in the literature and design codes. For the second topic, a multi-phase three-dimensional numerical reproduction of a large scale laboratory experiment of tsunami-like bores interaction with a surface-piercing circular column is presented. The numerical simulation is conducted in OpenFOAM. The dam-break mechanism is implemented in order to generate tsunami-like bores. The numerical model is validated using the experimental results performed at Canadian Hydraulics Center of the National Research Council (NRC-CHC) in Ottawa. The unsteady Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes equations (RANS) are used in order to treat the turbulence effects. The Shear Stress Transport (SST) k-ω turbulence model showed high level of accuracy in replication of the bore-structure interaction. Further, a scaled-up domain is used to investigate the influence of the bed condition in terms of various downstream depths and roughness. Finally, a broad investigation on the bore propagation characteristics is performed. The resulting stream-wise forces exerted on the structural column as well as the bore velocity are compared and analyzed for smooth, rough, dry and wet beds with varying depths.

Performance of bridges during previous earthquakes has demonstrated that many structural failures could be attributed to seismic deficiencies in bridge columns. Lack of transverse reinforcement and inadequate splicing of longitudinal reinforcement in potential plastic hinge regions of columns constitute primary reasons for their poor performance. A number of column retrofit techniques have been developed and tested in the past. These techniques include steel jacketing, reinforced concrete jacketing and use of transverse prestressing (RetroBelt) for concrete confinement, shear strengthening and splice clamping. A new retrofit technique, involving fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) jacketing has emerged as a convenient and structurally sound alternative with improved durability. The new technique, although received acceptance in the construction industry, needs to be fully developed as a viable seismic retrofit methodology, supported by reliable design and construction procedures. The successful application of externally applied FRP jackets to existing columns, coupled with deteriorating bridge infrastructure, raised the possibility of using FRP reinforcement for new construction. Stay-in-place formwork, in the form of FRP tubes are being researched for its feasibility. The FRP stay-in-place tubes offer ease in construction, convenient formwork, and when left in place, the protection of concrete against environmental effects, including the protection of steel reinforcement against corrosion, while also serving as column transverse reinforcement. Combined experimental and analytical research was conducted in the current project to i) improve the performance of FRP column jacketing for existing bridge columns, and ii) to develop FRP stay-in-place formwork for new bridge columns. The experimental phase consisted of design, construction and testing of 7 full-scale reinforced concrete bridge columns under simulated seismic loading. The columns represented both existing seismically deficient bridge columns, and new columns in stay-in-place formwork. The existing columns were deficient in either shear, or flexure, where the flexural deficiencies stemmed from lack of concrete confinement and/or use of inadequately spliced longitudinal reinforcement. The test parameters included cross-sectional shape (circular or square), reinforcement splicing, column shear span for flexure and shear-dominant behaviour, FRP jacket thickness, as well as use of FRP tubes as stay-in-place formwork, with or without internally embedded FRP crossties. The columns were subjected to a constant axial compression and incrementally increasing inelastic deformation reversals. The results, presented and discussed in this thesis, indicate that the FRP retrofit methodology provides significant confinement to circular and square columns, improving column ductility substantially. The FRP jack also improved diagonal tension capacity of columns, changing brittle shear-dominant column behavior to ductile flexure dominant response. The jackets, when the transverse strains are controlled, are able to improve performance of inadequately spliced circular columns, while remain somewhat ineffective in improving the performance of spliced square columns. FRP stay-in-place formwork provides excellent ductility to circular and square columns in new concrete columns, offering tremendous potential for use in practice. The analytical phase of the project demonstrates that the current analytical techniques for column analysis can be used for columns with external FRP reinforcement, provided that appropriate material models are used for confined concrete, FRP composites and reinforcement steel. Plastic analysis for flexure, starting with sectional moment-curvature analysis and continuing into member analysis incorporating the formation of plastic hinging, provide excellent predictions of inelastic force-deformation envelopes of recorded hysteretic behaviour. A displacement based design procedure adapted to FRP jacketed columns, as well as columns in FRP stay-in-place formwork provide a reliable design procedure for both retrofitting existing columns and designing new FRP reinforced concrete columns.

Les techniques de dépoussiérage les plus efficaces et largement utilisées pour séparer des particules ultrafines d’un fluide porteur sont les médias fibreux. Le principal problème est le colmatage du filtre qui induit une augmentation de la perte de charge dans le temps et nécessite donc un nettoyage régulier des médias (ou son remplacement). La séparation des particules ultrafines par voie liquide au moyen d’une colonne à bulles a été envisagée. L’influence des différentes conditions opératoires telles que la hauteur du liquide de piégeage, le débit de filtration, la taille des bulles et la présence d’un garnissage, sur la collecte des particules a été étudiée. Malgré des rendements de collecte inférieurs à ceux des filtres à fibres, les résultats expérimentaux montrent que les colonnes à bulles présentent des performances d’autant plus importantes que le niveau du liquide est élevé et que les orifices de bullage sont petits. Par ailleurs, si l’étude de l’influence de la vitesse de gaz à l’orifice sur l’efficacité de collecte des nanoparticules ne montre pas une tendance bien définie, la présence d’un garnissage dans le liquide de collecte permet d’augmenter significativement le temps de séjour des bulles dans la colonne et donc l’efficacité de collecte / The most effective and widely used dust separation techniques to separate ultrafine particles of a carrier fluid are fibrous media. The main problem is the clogging of the filter that induces a pressure drop increase over time and thus requires a regular cleaning of the media (or its replacement). In this context, the idea is to test bubble columns, which operate at a constant pressure drop, as an alternative to fibrous filters. This study proposes to investigate the influence of different operating conditions such as the liquid level, the air flow rate, the bubble size and the presence of beads, on the collection of ultrafine particles. Despite collection efficiencies lower than those of fibrous filters, experimental results show that bubble columns present high collection efficiency when the liquid level is high and bubbling orifices have low diameters. Besides, if gas velocity does not show an important influence on the collection e_ciency, the presence of beads in the liquid increases the residence time of the bubbles in the column and thus the collection efficiency