Originally designed for wind velocity estimation over the ocean, scatterometers have since been applied to climate studies of the Earth's cryosphere and bioshere. As an integral part of climatological studies of the planet, the NASA Scatterometer Climate Record Pathfinder (SCP) supplies scatterometer-based products designed to aid researchers in climatological studies of the planet. In this thesis, necessary steps are taken to facilitate data from the Oceansat-2 Ku-band scatterometer (OSCAT) to be used in extending the Ku-band SCP dataset of conically scanning pencil-beam scatterometers begun by the Seawinds scatterometer flown on the QuikSCAT mission 1999-2009. As a standard SCP product, a temporal resolution enhancement technique for the scatterometer image reconstruction (SIR) algorithm is applied to OSCAT data. A relative cross-calibration method is developed to ensure consistency amongst datasets of conically scanning pencil-beam scatterometers in the SCP data time series. By application of the method, both raw data and SIR image data of OSCAT is cross-calibrated with QuikSCAT. To enable creation of SCP products requiring knowledge of the spatial response function (SRF) with OSCAT data, a method of estimating the SRF of pencil-beam scatterometers is developed. The estimation method employs rank-reduced least-squares to invert the radar equation using measurements over islands. A simulation is performed to validate the efficacy of the method and provide optimum choice of island size and number of singular values used in rank-reduced least-squares. The utility of the SRF estimates is demonstrated by applying an estimate of the OSCAT SRF to SIR image construction with OSCAT data.

No description available.

The application of robotic manipulators in machining systems has gained a great interest in manufacturing because of their lower prices, higher kinematic flexibility and larger workspace compared to conventional CNC machine tools. However, their performance is limited due to the much lower structural rigidity which makes them more susceptible to excessive and unstable vibrations, known as chatter, during the machining process. Highly effective chatter modeling and avoidance methods that have been developed for CNC machining in the past decades are now being used by the industry to design high-performance chatter-free machining operations. The available methods, however, face major difficulties when applied to robotic machining, mainly due to the high flexibility and pose-dependency of the vibration response in robots. High flexibility leads to high-amplitude vibrations which affect the process dynamics and excite structural nonlinearities. The existing approaches to modeling machining vibrations assume linearity of the structural dynamics of the robotic manipulator. This assumption, considering the inherent nonlinearities in the robot’s revolute joints, may cause considerable inaccuracies in predicting the stability of vibrations during the process. This thesis studies the high flexibility and nonlinearity of the robot’s structural dynamics and their effects on chatter vibrations. The research starts with investigating the effects of high flexibility of robot's structure in the process dyamics by considering the modulation of cutting forces by axial vibrations, which is normally ignored in CNC milling due to high rigidity of the machine in this direction. The results of chatter prediction considering this effect are shown and discussed. The rest of the thesis focuses on the structural nonlinearity. Firstly, an experimental study is presented to investigate the extent of nonlinearity in structural dynamics of the robot. The results confirm that structural nonlinearities in robotic machining systems can be effectively excited in the presence of high-amplitude vibrations due to milling forces, such that they cause remarkable differences in chatter prediction. The following step is modeling the structural nonlinearities. For this purpose, the variation of restoring forces with the dynamic response (displacement and velocity) are observed when the robot is subjected to harmonic excitation. Based on the experimental observations, the nonlinear effects are modeled by cubic stiffness and damping characteristics. Parameters of the nonlinear model are then identified using Higher-order Frequency Response Functions (HFRF) extracted from measurements. The identified model can predict the vibration behavior of the robotic machining system when subjected to periodic loads such as milling forces. The developed model of nonlinear structural dynamics is then coupled with the chatter model. Consequently, the system is described by nonlinear Delay Differential Equations (DDE) with periodic coefficients. Bifurcation diagrams for the forced vibrations in the described system are developed using the numerical continuation method. The effects of cutting parameters such as feedrate as well as the nonlinear parameters are studied. The thesis is concluded by proposing the use of in-process FRF in the linear model of chatter stability for quick prediction of stability limits. In this approach, the exact characteristics of the nonlinear mechanisms are not studied; instead, the measured FRF during the milling process are used, which are assumed to represent the nonlinear structural dynamics that are linearized about the applied operational conditions. Two methods of measuring in-process FRF are proposed and employed in the robotic milling system. The measured FRF are then used in the linear chatter model to develop the Stability Lobes Diagram (SLD) which shows the combination of cutting parameters that lead to stable or unstable vibrations. Experimental chatter tests show that better agreement with predictions can be achieved by using in-process FRF instead of FRF measured at the idle state of the system. The results of this thesis contribute to better characterization of vibrations in robotic machining with high-amplitude forces and selecting suitable strategies to enhance productivity of the operation. / Graduate

The ASCAT scatterometer measures the Earth surface microwave radar backscatter in order to estimate the near-surface winds over the oceans. While the spatial resolution of the conventional applications is sufficient for many purposes, other geoscience applications benefit from an improved spatial resolution. Specialized algorithms may be applied to the scatterometer data in order to reconstruct the radar backscatter on a high-resolution grid. Image reconstruction requires the spatial response function (SRF) of each measurement, which is not reported with the measurement data. To address this need, I precisely model the SRF incorporating (1) the antenna beam response, (2) the processing performed onboard ASCAT before telemetering to the ground, and (3) the Doppler shift induced by a satellite orbiting the rotating Earth. I also develop a simple parameterized model of the SRF to reduce computational complexity. The accuracy of both models is validated.Image reconstruction of the ASCAT data is performed using the modeled SRF. I discuss the spatial resolution of the reconstructed ASCAT images and consider the first- and second-order statistics of the reconstructed data. Optimum values for the parameters of the reconstruction algorithms are also considered. The reconstructed radar backscatter data may be used for enhanced-resolution wind retrieval and for geoscience applications. In this dissertation, the reconstructed backscatter data is used to map the surface extent of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill and in a study to quantify the azimuth angle anisotropy of backscatter in East Antarctica. Near-coastal ocean wind retrieval is also explored in this dissertation. Because near-coastal ocean measurements of backscatter may be “contaminated” from nearby land and introduce errors to wind retrieval, they must be discarded. The modeled SRF is used to quantify the land contamination, enabling enhanced-resolution wind retrieval much closer to the coasts. The near-coastal winds are validated against buoy measurements.

Bilindustrin är i ständig utveckling och är väl medvetna om de ökande kraven från kundermed avseende på körkomfort och körupplevelse. Lastbilar med tunga laster är ofta utrustademed en påbyggnad, till exempel en låda för pallar och gods, en sopsamlare eller en stödram förbärning av timmer. SCANIA Bodybuilding Center utvecklar riktlinjer för val av olika typer avkarosseri, dvs typ av stödram och antal , fästpunkter. Målet med detta arbete är att utvecklaen bättre förståelse för hur det stödjande ramverket och dess infästningar i en lastbil påverkarrammens dynamik och sedan föreslå förbättringar till dessa riktlinjer.Viktiga parametrar som påverkar chassisdynamiken identifierades och beskrivs från början.Fysisk vibrationstestning av chassiet och påbyggnadsram med fasthållningsfäste utfördes vidi testrigg på Scania R&D. Frekvensresponsfunktionerna från mätningarna användes för attbestämma modala parametrar. Olika test utfördes genom att ändra parametrarna och upptagningenav mätningarna. Testresultaten användes för att studera egenfrekvenser egna frekvenser,modifieringsformer och dämpning i systemet. Även en ny metod för att bygga en dynamiskfinit element (FE) modell eller chassi och påbyggnadsram är presenterad i denna undersökning.Modalanalys av chassi-påbygnadsramssystemet gjordes för att studera FEMs egna frekvenseroch modeformer. Den föreslagna metoden för koppling av chassit och delramen i FEM är kritisktbedömd genom att korrelera FE-simuleringen med de experimentella resultaten. Baserat på deutförda experimenten och den numeriska simuleringen föreslås från experiment och numerisksimulering, föreslås nya rekommendationer med avseende på påbyggnadsanslutningarnas konfigurationi lastbil. / The automotive sector is continuously evolving and the companies are well aware of therising demands from customers with regard to driving comfort and experience. Trucks carryingheavy loads are often equipped with on-built bodywork, for example a box for pallets and goods, agarbage collector device or a supporting frame for carrying timber. SCANIA bodybuilding centredevelops guidelines for selecting different types of bodywork, i.e. the type of supporting frame,design and number of attachment brackets, attachment points. The purpose of this master thesisis to develop a better understanding of how the supporting frame and its attachments in a truckinfluence the chassis frame dynamics and to propose improvements to these guidelines.Major parameters influencing the chassis dynamics were identified and described from theoutset. Physical vibration testing of the chassis-subframe assembly was carried out at roadsimulator. The frequency response functions from the measurements were used to determinethe modal parameters. Several tests were performed by altering the parameters and recordingthe measurements. The results from the test cases were used to study and analyse the eigenfrequencies, mode shapes and damping in the system. Also, a new method to build a dynamicfinite element (FE) model of chassis and subframe is presented in this study. Modal analysisof the chassis-subframe assembly was done to study the eigen frequencies and mode shapes byFEM. The proposed method of coupling the chassis and the subframe is critically assessed bycorrelating the results from FE simulation with the experimental results. Based on the resultsfrom experiment and numerical simulation, new recommendations are proposed with regard tothe bodywork attachments’ configuration in the truck.

An experimental and analytical investigation was conducted to gain insight and ultimately predict the dynamic flow response of a fan rotor with inlet flow distortion. Rotor exit total pressure circumferential profiles were accurately predicted using frequency response functions derived from experimental rotor response data. Using these predicted profiles, an initial attempt was made at predicting the dynamic (distorted) stage characteristics of the test machine with promising results. The first step of this research was an experimental investigation to gather unsteady rotor response data. The steady three-dimensional inlet flow of an isolated rotor subjected to inlet distortion was obtained using a five-hole pneumatic prism probe. Exit flow dynamic wake data were obtained using a piggyback steady/unsteady total pressure probe in non-nulling mode. Inlet and exit data were collected for eighteen different combinations of distortion level, operating point, and measurement span. Frequency response functions were generated and then averaged for each operating regime, span, and distortion intensity, assuming the data to be stationary and ergodic. These 'generalized' FRF's were used to predict the rotor exit total pressure profile. These pressure profiles were then used in an initial attempt to predict the dynamic stage (distorted) characteristics of the test machine. Best predictions resulted when an FRF was used for individual operating regimes, defined with respect to rotor blade mean aerodynamic loading. / Master of Science

No description available.

In this thesis a piezo-electro-mechanical system, constituted of an aluminum beam with five piezoelectric patches glued on it, each of them shunted with an RL electrical circuit, has been numerically and experimentally investigated, in order to determine the optimal electric tuning parameters for vibration damping. A numerical code based upon Galerkin weighted-residual method is developed and the complete piezo-electro-mechanical system is designed, realized and finally tested by a standard modal testing technique. Comparisons between different shunting configurations of the system are given and finally the experimental data are compared with ones obtained by the developed numerical code in order to verify the accuracy of the latter. / Master of Science

Lean premixed combustors have been designed to lower NOx and other pollutant levels in land based gas turbines. These combustors are often susceptible to thermo-acoustic instabilities, which manifest as pressure and heat release oscillations in the combustor. To be able to predict and control these instabilities, it is required that both the acoustics of the system, and a frequency-resolved response of the combustion process to incoming perturbations be understood. Currently, a system-level approach is being used widely to predict the thermoacoustic instabilities. This approach requires simple, yet accurate models which would describe the behavior of each dynamic block within the loop. The present study is directed toward using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) as a tool in developing reduced order models for the dynamics of laminar flat flames and swirl stabilized turbulent flames. A finite-volume based approach is being used to simulate reacting flows in both laminar and turbulent combustors. The study has been divided into three parts -- the first part involves the modeling of a self-excited combustor (the acoustics of the combustor are coupled with the unsteady heat release); the second part of the research aims to study the effect of velocity perturbations on the unsteady heat release rate from a burner stabilized laminar flat flame; the third and final part of work involves an extension of the laminar flat flame study to turbulent reacting flows in a swirl stabilized combustor, and study the effects on the turbulent heat release due to the velocity perturbations. A Rijke tube combustor was selected to study self-excited combustion phenomenon. A laminar premixed methane-air flat flame was stabilized on a honeycomb flame-stabilizer. The flame stabilizer was placed at the center of the 5 feet vertical tube. The position of the flame at the center of the tube leads to a thermoacoustic instability of the 2nd acoustic mode. The fundamental thermoacoustic frequency was predicted accurately by the CFD model and the amplitude was reasonably matched (for a flow rate of Q = 120 cc/s and equivalence ratio phi = 1.0). Other characteristics of the pressure power spectrum were captured to a good degree of accuracy. This included the amplitude modulation of the fundamental and the harmonics due to a subsonic pulsating instability. The flat flame study has been being conducted for Q = 200 cc/s and equivalence ratio phi = 0.75. The objective has been to obtain a frequency response function (FRF) of the unsteady heat release rate (output) due to incoming velocity perturbations (input). A range of frequencies (15 Hz - 500 Hz) have been selected for generating the FRF. The aim of this part of the study has been to validate the computational model against the experimental results and propose a physics based interpretation of the flame response. Detailed heat transfer modeling (including radiation heat transfer) and two-step chemistry models have been implemented in the model. The FRF generated has been able to reproduce the experimentally observed phenomena, like the low frequency pulsating instability occurring at 30 Hz. A heat transfer study has been conducted to explain the pulsating instability and a fuel variability study has been performed. Both the heat transfer study and the fuel variability study proved the role of heat transfer in creating the pulsating instability. The final part of the study involves simulation of reacting flow in a turbulent swirl stabilized combustor. The effect of velocity perturbations on the unsteady heat release has been studied by creating an FRF between the unsteady velocity and the unsteady heat release rate. A Large Eddy Simulation (LES) approach has been selected. A swirl number of S = 1.19 corresponding to a flow rate of Q = 20 SCFM with an equivalence ratio of phi = 0.75 have been implemented. Reduced reaction chemistry modeling, turbulence-chemistry interaction and heat transfer modeling have been incorporated in the model. The LES of reacting flow has shown vortex-flame interaction occurring inside the combustor. This interaction has been shown to occur at 255 Hz. The FRF obtained between unsteady velocity and unsteady heat release rate shows good comparison with the experimentally obtained FRF. / Ph. D.

The surface width, a global quantity that depends on time, is used to characterize the temporal evolution of growing surfaces. One of the most successful concepts for describing the property of the surface width is the famous Family-Vicsek scaling relation. We discuss an extended scaling relation that yields a complete description for various growth models. For two linear Langevin equations, namely the Edwards-Wilkinson equation and the Mullins-Herring equation, we furthermore study analytically the behavior of global quantities related to the surface width or to a quantity which is conjugated to the diffusion constant. The global quantities depend in a non-trivial way on two different times. We discuss the dynamical scaling forms of global correlation and response functions. For global functions related to the surface width, we show that the scaling behavior of the response can depend on how the system is perturbed. Different dynamic regimes, characterized by a power-law or by an exponential relaxation, are identified, and a dynamic phase diagram is constructed. We discuss global fluctuation-dissipation ratios and how to use them for the characterization of non-equilibrium growth processes. We also numerically study the same two-time quantities for the non-linear Kardar-Parisi-Zhang equation. For global functions related to the quantity which is conjugated to the diffusion constant of the linear Langevin equations, we show that the integrated response is proportional to the correlation in the linear response regime. In the aging regime, the autocorrelation and autoresponse exponents are identical and the aging exponent for the response is equal to the aging exponent for the correlation. We investigate the non-equilibrium fluctuation-dissipation theorem for non-equilibrium states based on this quantity. In the non-linear response regime a certain dissipation-fluctuation ratio approximates unity for small waiting times but approaches the ratio of perturbed and unperturbed diffusion constants for larger waiting times. / Ph. D.