A methodology for the design of small autonomous underwater vehicle propulsion systems has been developed and applied to the Virginia Tech 690 AUV. The methodology is novel in that it incorporates fast design level codes capable of predicting the viscous effects of low Reynolds number flow that is experienced by small, slow turning propellers. The methodology consists of determining the minimum induced loss lift distribution for the propeller via lifting line theory, efficient airfoil sections for the propeller via a coupled viscous-inviscid flow solver and optimization, brushless DC motor identification via ideal motor theory and total system efficiency estimates. The coupled viscous-inviscid flow solver showed low Reynolds number flow effects to be of critical importance in the propeller design. The original Virginia Tech 690 AUV propulsion system was analyzed yielding an experimental efficiency of 26.5%. A new propeller was designed based on low Reynolds number airfoil section data yielding an experimental efficiency of 42.7%. Finally, an entirely new propulsion system was designed using the methodology developed herein yielding a predicted efficiency of 57-60%. / Master of Science

SMaRC, Swedish Maritime Robotics Centre, arbetar med att utveckla morgondagens smarta undervattenssystem. Ett av dessa system är den autonoma undervattensroboten SAM. Autonoma undervattensfarkoster, förkortat AUV, spelar en nyckelroll inom bland annat forskning, försvar och havsindustrin. När AUVerna blir billigare och lättare att manövrera, blir även havet och livet under ytan mer tillgängligt för människor. Syftet med detta projekt var därför att utveckla en ny utformning på propellersystemet till SAM.  Första steg i projektet var att designa det nya propellersystemet i CAD-verktyget Solid Edge. Därefter blev de olika komponenterna 3D-printade och skruvades ihop. I den nya designen av propellersystemet ersattes den ursprungliga motorn till SAM med två färdigtillverkade motorer från Blue Robotics. Motorbytet medförde en ändring i SAMs tyngdpunkt, vilket gjorde det nödvändigt att undersöka krafterna som verkade på farkosten. För att återskapa SAMs stabilitet integrerades stålvikter i designen för att balansera motorernas nya placering. När en modell som uppfyllde designkraven var färdig, testades prototypen på land. På grund av tidsbrist hanns inte en testning i vatten genomföras.  Slutresultatet är en tredelad lösning som innefattar en axel, en framdel och en dysa. När projektet påbörjades hade propellersystemet en massa på cirka 1.34 kg i luft, varav det nya systemet har massan 1.185 kg med motvikterna i luft. Detta ger en minskning av massan på ungefär 22 procent. Vid ett senare skede kommer axeln att tillverkas i aluminium, vilket vill ge en viktminskning med ungefär 9 procent istället.

A special class of nonstationary processes with periodically varying statistics, called cyclostationary (CS), is investigated. These processes are encountered in many engineering problems involving rotating machinery such as turbines, propellers, helicopter rotors, and diesel engines. We analyze a cyclostationary process model in order to show its advantages compared to a traditional stationary process model and present a methodology for calculating the statistics of the response of a linear system subjected to CS excitations. We demonstrate that a CS model estimates the statistics of the response of a linear dynamic system subjected to CS excitations more accurately by considering (1) a vehicle traveling on a rough road and (2) a propeller rotating in the wake of a ship in the presence of turbulence. In the case of the vehicle, the road consists of concrete plates of fixed length. We model the road excitation using a CS process and calculate the standard deviation (root mean square) of the vehicle response. In the case of the ship propeller, we calculate the hydrodynamic forces acting on the propeller using the vortex panel method and the vortex theory of propeller. Considering the randomness in the axial and the tangential components of velocity, we calculate the mean and the covariance of the forces. This analysis shows that the hydrodynamic forces acting on the propeller are CS processes. Then we perform finite element analysis of the propeller and calculate the mean and the standard deviation of the blade response. We do the parametric analysis to demonstrate the effects of some physical quantities such as the standard deviation, the correlation coefficient, the decorrelation time, and the scale of turbulence of the axial and the tangential components of the wake velocity on the standard deviation of the blade deflection. We found that the CS model yields the time-wise variation of the statistics of the excitation and the response (e.g., the root mean square) and their peaks correctly. This is important information for the calculation of probability of failure of the propeller. A traditional stationary model cannot provide this information. / Master of Science

Yes / The failure of swirling ship propellers in marine environments can lead to huge repair costs. One of the main causes of such failure is when propellers tangle with vegetation, especially in shallow flow environments like ports, harbours, or shipyards. In order to understand the above-mentioned issue, this study proposes an analytical approach to explore efficient predictions and provide a flow guideline with respect to the co-existence of vegetation and propeller swirling effects. More specifically, we intend to investigate the full-depth theoretical velocity profile to represent propeller-induced flow under submerged vegetation conditions. This paper first investigates the modified logarithmic law approach to determine its suitability to represent the regional vegetated flow zone before implementing it into a three-layer analytical model. It was found, using the benchmark of literature measurements, that the modified log law improved the near-bed velocity calculation by nearly 70% when compared to an existing model. A propeller jet impact computation coupled into the vegetation analytical model was then investigated in different locations within the vegetated flow, i.e., at free-flow, water–vegetation interface, and vegetation-hindered zones, to study their complex velocity distribution patterns. The results demonstrate adequate validation with the vegetated flow and measured propeller jet data from the literature. This proves the potential of the proposed analytical approach in representing a real-world propeller jet event submerged in water flow with the existence of vegetation. The proposed novel method allows costless computation, i.e., as compared to conventional numerical models, in representing the complex interaction of the propeller jet and vegetated flow.

Eftersom användningen av små UAV:s (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) fortsätter att öka, harbullret från deras framdrivningssystem blivit ett ökande problem. Denna rapport är resultatetav ett masterprojekt med målet att utveckla en framdrivningsmetod med låga bullernivåerför små UAV:s.Projektet startade med en informationssökning där målet var att hitta information ombullerkällor i nuvarande system samt information om de fundamentala sätten på vilket luftflödekan skapas.När informationssökningen var färdig, genererades ett stort antal olika koncept. Konceptetsom författarna ansåg ha mest potential, var en propeller med en ny metod för passivkontroll av gränsskiktet. Konceptet har ett luftintag nära rotationscentrum. Efter att luftenhar kommit in i detta luftintag, leds den genom interna kanaler och accelereras radiellt utåtpå grund av centrifugalkraften. Luften sprutas sedan ut genom en slits nära framkantenpropellerbladets lågtryckssida. Denna ström av luft färdas över propellerbladet och sugsin genom en slits nära vingens bakkant. Därefter sprutas luften ut genom ett utlopp närapropellerbladets spets.Tanken är att den beskrivna metoden ska fördröja eller förhindra avlösning. Detta skullepotentiellt möjliggöra högre lyftkraft vid lägre rotationshastigheter, vilket därigenom potentielltsänker bullernivåerna. Förenklade modeller av det valda konceptet har utvecklats ochanalyserats med hjälp av CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) och jämförts med simuleringarav en referensmodell utan gränsskiktskontroll. Resultaten indikerar att flödet ikonceptmodellen strömmar genom kanalerna och över propellerbladet som det var tänkt.Lyftkraften och effektiviteten ökade med 4.3 % respektive 1.9 %, jämfört med referensmodellen,vid samma rotationshastighet. Den möjliga minskningen av rotationshastigheten pågrund av ökningen i lyftkraft resulterar i en minskning av bullernivån med 0.9 dB. Detbör noteras att resultaten från simuleringarna bör ses med försiktighet och att ytterligarearbete måste göras innan några definitiva slutsatser kan dras beträffande potentiella prestandaökningarav konceptet jämfört med en konventionell propeller. / As the use of small UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) keeps increasing, the noise emittedfrom their propulsion systems have become an increasing issue. This report is the resultof a master thesis project with the aim of developing a propulsion method with low noiseemissions for small UAVs.The project started with a background study, where the aim was to find informationabout sources of noise in current systems and information about the fundamental ways inwhich air flow can be created.When the background study was finished, a large number of different concepts were generated.The concept that the authors considered having the most potential, was a propellerwith a new method for passive circulation control. The concept has an air intake close tothe rotational center. After air has entered this inlet it is led through internal channels andis accelerated radially outwards due to centrifugal forces. The air is then ejected through aslot close to the leading edge on the low pressure side on the propeller blade. This stream ofair travels over the propeller blade and is the sucked in through a slot close to the trailingedge. After this, the air is ejected through an outlet close to the propeller blades tip.The idea is that the method described should delay or prevent boundary layer separation.This would potentially allow for higher thrust at lower rotational speeds, thus potentiallylowering the noise emissions. Simplified models of the chosen concept have been developedand analyzed using CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) and compared to simulations ofa baseline model with no circulation control. The results indicate that the fluid flow in theconcept model flows through the channels and over the propeller blade, as intended. Thethrust and efficiency were increased by 4.3 % and 1.9 % respectively, compared to the baselinemodel, at the same rotational speed. The possible reduction of the rotational speed due tothe increase in thrust, results in a reduction of the noise level by 0.9 dB. It should be notedthat the results from the simulations should be viewed with caution and the that furtherwork needs to be done before any clear conclusions can be drawn regarding the potentialperformance increase of the concept compared to a conventional propeller.

In this thesis, a numerical approach based on a potential flow method has been developed in order to simulate unsteady rotor/stator interaction, and to predict the unsteady performance of a propeller and its rudder. The method is first developed and tested in two-dimensions by using a boundary element method in which a front hydrofoil is moving downward, while a back hydrofoil is stationary. The wakes of the two hydrofoils are modeled by continuous dipole sheets and determined in time by applying a force free-condition on each wake surface. The wake/hydrofoil interaction is de-singularized by applying a numerical fence on the surface of the back hydrofoil. The viscous wake/hydrofoil interaction is considered by employing a viscous wake vorticity model on the rotor's wake surface. The present method is validated by comparison with analytical solutions, experimental data and by using the results from a commercial Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) solver for the same set-up and conditions. The numerical approach is further extended to three-dimensions to predict the mutual interaction between a propeller and rudder. A fully unsteady wake alignment algorithm is implemented into a Vortex Lattice Method to simulate the unsteady propeller flow. The interaction between propeller and rudder is investigated in a fully unsteady manner, where a panel method is used to solve the flow around the rudder, and a vortex lattice method is used to solve the flow around the propeller. The interaction between a propeller and its rudder is considered in an iterative manner by solving the propeller and the rudder problems separately and by including the unsteady effects of one component on the other. The effect of the unsteady propeller-rudder interaction on the mean and on the unsteady propeller/rudder performance, including sheet cavitation on the rudder, is studied. / text

Les phytases hydrolysent les phytates représentant la forme majeure de stockage du P dans les céréales. Ces phytates sont aussi des facteurs anti-nutritionnels qui chélatent les cations réduisant leur absorption. Dans le premier volet de cette thèse, une nouvelle souche bactérienne produisant une phytase extracellulaire a été isolée et identifiée comme Bacillus amyloliquefaciens US573. L’enzyme «PHY US573» a été purifiée et caractérisée en comparaison avec deux phytases commerciales Ronozyme PL et Natuphos. PHY US573 se distingue par sa forte thermostabilité en présence de calcium. En outre, PHY US573 se caractérise aussi par une tolérance remarquable aux sels comme le NaCl et LiCl. L’ensemble de ces propriétés montre que PHY US573 pourrait être une candidate intéressante pour des applications en alimentation animale ou en agriculture pour améliorer la biodisponibilité du P-phytique pour les plantes. Dans le deuxième volet, la souche Streptomyces sp. US42 produisant une activité phytase extracellulaire a été sélectionnée. L’enzyme «PHY US42» a été purifiée et caractérisée. PHY US42 est calcium dépendante également une grande stabilité en présence de sels biliaires et des protéases digestives. La modélisation moléculaire de PHY US42 indique qu'elle appartient au groupe des β-propeller phytases qui sont généralement calcium-dépendantes. Vu ses propriétés biochimiques intéressantes, PHY US42 constitue une bonne candidate comme additif dans les aliments pour animaux monogastriques en combinaison avec une histidine acide phytase. Enfin dans un troisième volet, nous nous sommes intéressés à l’étude de la régulation de l'expression du gène phytase de S. coelicolor M145 (sco7697) chez S. coelicolor M145, S. lividans TK24 ainsi que chez ses deux mutants ppk et phoP. Ainsi, en plus des boites pho localisées en amont de la région promotrice -35 siège de la régulation positive PhoP-dépendante, nous avons révélé pour la première fois que la RD localisée en aval de la région promotrice -10 est le siège d’une forte régulation négative par un répresseur inconnu. Ce dernier empêcherait l’activation PhoP-dépendante de l’expression du gène phytase. / Phytases hydrolyse phytate representing the major storage form of P in cereal. phytates are also anti-nutritional factors that chelate cations such as Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, Fe²⁺, Z²⁺ reducing their absorption. The low bioavailability of phytic phosphorus in monogastric animals require their food supplementation with Pi to meet the needs of the animal in P. This creates an extra cost and increases the environmental pollution by the manure excretion highly charged phosphate. In the first part of this thesis, from soil samples taken near hot hydrothermal waters of the region Elhamma in southern Tunisian, a new bacterial strain producing extracellular phytase was isolated and identified as Bacillus amyloliquefaciens US573. The enzyme referred "PHY US573" was purified and characterized in comparison with two commercial acid histidine phytases Ronozyme PL and Natuphos. PHY US573 is calcium dependent and has an optimum activity at pH 7.5 (5 for Ronozyme and 5.5 for Natuphos) and 70°C (55°C for Ronozyme and Natuphos). PHY US573 is distinguished by its high thermostability, in fact, it keeps 93% of its activity after incubation for 10 min at 75°C in the presence of calcium while Ronozyme and Natuphos keep only 45% and 53% of their activity, respectively. This enzyme is specific for phytic acid and also has a very good stability at pH 3 to 9 and a perfect stability in presence of bile salts. In addition, PHY US573 is also characterized by a remarkable salt tolerance because it retains 80 to 95% of its activity in the presence of 20 g/l of NaCl and LiCl, respectively. All these properties shows that PHY US573 could be an interesting candidate for applications in feed industry alone or in combination with an histidine acid phytase. In a second part of this thesis, from the Streptomyces collection of LMB-CBS, a strain producing extracellular phytase activity was selected and identified as Streptomyces sp. US42. The enzyme "PHY US42" was purified and characterized. PHY US42 has a calcium-dependent activity (such as Bacillus phytases), optimally active at pH 7 and 65°C. PHY US42 is perfectly stable at pHs ranging from 5 to 10 and its thermal stability is greatly increased in the presence of calcium. Indeed, PHY US42 maintains 80% of its activity after 10 min of incubation at 75 °C in the presence of calcium. PHY US42 has also a high stability in the presence of bile salts and digestive proteases. Molecular modeling of PHY US42 indicates that it belongs to the β-propeller phytase group which are usually calcium-dependent. Given its interesting biochemical properties, PHY US42 which would operate mainly in the intestine, is a good candidate for use as an additive in agastriques fish food or in combination with an histidine acid phytase in feed industry. Finally in a third part, we are interested in studying the regulation of the expression of the phytase gene of S. coelicolor M145 (sco7697) in S.coelicolor M145, S.lividans TK24 and among its two mutants ppk and phoP. To do this, we merged the wild promoter regions (phyWT) or mutated (phym1, phym2, phym1+2) of sco7697 gene with the GUS reporter gene encoding ß-glucuronidase activity. Thus as expected, we demonstrated that the deletion of the PHO box located upstream of the -35 reduces the level of induction of sco7697 in conditions of Pi limitation. Moreover, we have revealed for the first time that the alteration of RD located downstream of -10 correlates with a dramatic increase of GUS expression when PhoP is present. Our results demonstrate that this RD is the seat of a strong negative regulation by an unknown repressor. This would prevent the PhoP-dependent activation of expression of the phytase gene.

This final thesis deals primarily with the comparison of two calibration approaches. It determines the degree of mutual agreement and tries to answer the reasons of their deviations. This agreement was measured by the LDA method. It was found that the calibration approach based on the reference framework of values of the previous bachelor thesis differs systematically from the calibration using calibration equations obtained from certified laboratories by -2 %. The causes of this deviation were investigated using LDA and PIV. Although a significant number of measurements were performed, all tested hypotheses were refuted and therefore it was not possible to determine their cause.

This thesis focuses on the optimization of the electric aircraft propeller in order to increaseflight performance. Electric aircraft have limited energy, particularly the electricmotor torque compared to the fuel engine torque. For that, redesign of the propeller forelectric aircraft is important in order to improve the propeller efficiency. The airplanepropeller theory for Glauert is selected as a design method and incorporated with Brattimprovements of the theory. Glauert theory is a combination of the axial momentum andblade element theory. Pipistrel Alpha Electro airplane specifications have been chosen asa model for the design method. Utilization of variable pitch propeller and the influence ofnumber of blades has been investigated. The obtained design results show that the variablepitch propellers at cruise speed and altitude 3000 m reducing the power consumptionby 0.14 kWh and increase the propeller efficiency by 0.4% compared to the fixed pitchpropeller. Variable pitch propeller improvement was pretty good for electric aircraft. Theoptimum blade number for the design specifications is 3 blades. / Denna rapport har som fokus att optimera propellern på ett eldrivet flygplan för att förbättraflygprestationen. Eldrivna flygplan har begränsad energi, i synnerhet motorns vridmomenti jämförelse med bränslemotorns vridmoment. Därav behöver propellern designas om föratt uppnå en större verkningsgrad i propellern. Glauerts teori om flygplanspropellrar haranvänts som metod för designen där vissa modifieringar i teorin har tillämpats enligt Brattför att förbättra teorin. Glauerts teori är en kombination mellan axiell momentum- ochbladelement teori. Specifikationerna för Pipistrel Alpha Electro flygplan har använts sommodell i design metoden. Utnyttjande av propeller med justerbara bladvinklar samt antalblads påverkan har undersökts. De erhållna designresultaten visade att propellern medjusterbara bladvinklar vid planflykt på 3000 m höjd har sparat 0,14 kWh samt ökat propellernsverkningsgrad med 0,4% jämfört med propellern med icke justerbara bladvinklar.Propeller med justerbara stigning var lämplig för elflygplan. Det optimala antalet blad fördesignspecifikationerna är 3 blad.

The late University of Canterbury civil engineering lecturer Peter Giddens developed a range of simple microhydro turbines, with publications from as early as the 1980s. He considered that a range of simple but well-designed turbines which covered the gamut of possible small sites would be more useful than any single turbine. He started with radial inflow turbines, then set about extending their range of applicability by increasing specific speed. That extension was continued by the research in this thesis, which aimed to produce a design with a minimum efficiency of 70 % at a specific speed of at least 600 (rev/min, kW, m). Achieving those targets would differentiate it from existing microhydro designs. In order to reach those performance targets, the volute, runner, and draft tube were examined through experiment and computational fluid dynamics models to characterize past designs and test the validity of their embodied assumptions. A prototype with a design specific speed of 650 was built and fully characterized by dynamometer testing. Measurements of the outlet velocity distribution of two of Peter Giddens’s volutes confirmed that single tangential inlet volutes are not torque-free when certain geometric conditions are met; swirl increased through those volutes by 70 % or more depending on the design. A new overall turbine design was proposed, where axial flow enters the runner and swirling flows leaves it. This required the design of a novel volute. Through computational analysis, the effect of swirling flow entering the conical draft tube was shown to affect its pressure recovery: negatively for draft tubes with small angles, positively for larger angles. It was shown that the peak pressure recovery of an optimum draft tube was not likely to be improved upon by the use of swirl, and since there was uncertainty in the analysis, a conservative draft tube was specified for the prototype. A flat-bladed runner was designed for the prototype and computational modeling indicated its performance would be sensitive to small changes in flow angle. Despite that sensitivity — an intrinsic property of high specific speed runner velocity triangles — the computational model was shown to give good predictions of the runner flow characteristics, although not its effciency. Finally, a 1.2 kW prototype was built and achieved a peak net effciency of 64 % as defined by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers at a net head of 2.07 m, a flowrate of 94 L/s, and a runner shaft speed of 1670 rev/min, corresponding to a specific speed of 740. Maximum measured runner efficiency of 87 % also occurred at those conditions. Compared to existing designs, that performance extended the operational envelope of microhydro turbines considerably. A three-zone computational model of the entire prototype was assembled and trialled, but not validated. It is concluded that for efficient high specific speed turbines, volute swirl characteristics must be known with confidence, as the volute sets the conditions at the leading edge for peak runner efficiency. A simple but efficient runner may be made using flat blades, showing the potential for this geometry even when made by limited workshops. Adding a free-vortex tangential velocity distribution to the inlet flow of a stalled conical draft tube may increase its pressure recovery, although it is not likely to exceed the best performance obtainable with axial inlet flow. Therefore taking measures to reduce the peak fluid velocity entering the draft tube could be more beneficial to overall performance than seeking outright improvements in draft tube pressure recovery.