No description available.

No description available.

Solar-control films are increasingly being retrofitted to the windows of buildings as a means of reducing solar gain. At present, there is a dearth of information concerning how these films effect the thermal comfort of occupants within buildings where these films have been applied. An illuminated hot box, utilising a xenon lamp to simulate sunlight, has been designed as a testing facility. The illuminated hot box has been used to obtain information on how much thermal radiation enters the internal space from a window fitted with a solar-control film. The data from the experimental apparatus was verified using a finite-difference model written on a personal computer, with the aim of the computer program being used to compare different films, and thereby avoiding expensive experiments. The experimental rig produced usable data for the tested films only when the lamp was orthogonal to the plane of the glass, with errors occurring, and increasing, as the angle of incidence between the lamp and the glass increased. This conclusion was verified by the computer based model. It was seen that the illuminated hot box was too small to give accurate measurements for angles of incidence other than 0°. It is suggested that a larger illuminated hot box which is able to eliminate the problems encountered when measuring for angles of incidence above 10° would be desirable. Furthermore, a more complex transient finite-difference computer based simulation model is needed, taking into account the conclusions that were made during this study.

All substances above zero kelvin temperature emit fluctuating electromagnetic waves due to the random motions of charge carriers. Controlling the spectral and directional radiative properties of surfaces has wide applications in energy harvesting and thermal management. Artificial metamaterials have attracted much attention in the last decade due to their unprecedented optical and thermal properties beyond those existing in nature. This dissertation aims at tailoring radiative properties at infrared regime and enhancing the near-field radiative heat transfer by employing metamaterials. A comprehensive study is performed to investigate the extraordinary transmission, negative refraction, and tunable perfect absorption of infrared light. A polarizer is designed with an extremely high extinction ratio based on the extraordinary transmission through perforated metallic films. The extraordinary transmission of metallic gratings can be enhanced and tuned if a single layer of graphene is covered on top. Metallic metamaterials are not the unique candidate supporting exotic optical properties. Thin films of doped silicon nanowires can support negative refraction of infrared light due to the presence of hyperbolic dispersion. Long doped-silicon nanowires are found to exhibit broadband tunable perfect absorption. Besides the unique far-field properties, near-field radiative heat transfer can be mediated by metamaterials. Bringing objects with different temperatures close can enhance the radiative heat flux by orders of magnitude beyond the limit set by the Stefan-Boltzmann law. Metamaterials provide ways to make the energy transport more efficient. Very high radiative heat fluxes are shown based on carbon nanotubes, nanowires, and nanoholes using effective medium theory (EMT). The quantitative application condition of EMT is presented for metallodielectric metamaterials. Exact formulations including the scattering theory and Green’s function method are employed to investigate one- and two-dimensional gratings as well as metasurfaces when the period is not sufficiently small. New routes for enhancing near-field radiative energy transport are opened based on proposed hybridization of graphene plasmons with hyperbolic modes, hybridization of graphene plasmons with surface phonon modes, or hyperbolic graphene plasmons with open surface plasmon dispersion relation. Noncontact solid-state refrigeration is theoretically demonstrated to be feasible based on near-field thermal radiation. In addition, the investigation of near-field momentum exchange (Casimir force) between metamaterials is also conducted. Simultaneous enhancement of the near-field energy transport and suppress of the momentum exchange is theoretically achieved. A design based on repulsive Casimir force is proposed to achieve tunable stable levitation. The dissertation helps to understand the fundamental radiative energy transport and momentum exchange of metamaterials, and has significant impacts on practical applications such as design of nanoscale thermal and optical devices, local thermal management, thermal imaging beyond the diffraction limit, and thermophotovoltaic energy harvesting.

During the development of flight tests of a spacecraft, heat exchange occurs among the many physically separated subsystem surfaces through the phenomenon of thermal radiation. Considering the increasing complexity of the geometrical forms and shapes in the design of such systems, the monitoring and control of the radiative heat fluxes taking place in the multi-reflecting, absorbing and emitting heat transfer environment are very critical. Because the analytical solution of thermal radiation in such geometrically complex three-dimensional systems is not practical, extensive numerical modelling techniques are widely used to predict radiative heat fluxes on the many thermally active surfaces. From experience, it is found that this can be very difficult and not at all commensurate with fast feedback unless the analysis is from a simple system layout. Considering that a relatively new approach dedicated to the basic analysis of radiative heat flux has been developed by the heat transfer community as a numerical approximation called the Discrete Ordinates Method (DOM), a first question did arise in terms of how well an enhanced and more comprehensive formulation based on this concept would fulfil the task of achieving faster results whilst still accurately predicting radiative heat transfer in three-dimensional, more complex geometries.

The mechanisms governing the formation and destruction of soot in turbulent combustion are intimately coupled to thermal radiation due to the strong dependence of sooting processes and radiative loss on temperature. Detailed computational fluid dynamics (CFD) predictions of the radiative and soot output from turbulent non-premixed flames are normally performed by parabolic algorithms. However, the modelling of combustion systems, such as furnaces and unwanted enclosure fires, often require a fully elliptic description of the flow field and its related physical phenomena. Thus, this thesis investigates the intimate coupling between radiative energy exchange and the mechanisms governing soot formation and destruction within a three-dimensional, general curvilinear CFD code. Thermal radiation is modelled by the discrete transfer radiation model (DTRM). Special emphasis is given to approximate solutions to the radiative transfer equation encompassing various models for the radiative properties of gases and soot. A new algorithm is presented, entitled the differential total absorptivity (DTA) solution, which, unlike alternative solutions, incorporates the source temperature dependence of absorption. Additionally, a weighted sum of gray gases (WSGG) solution is described which includes the treatment of gray boundaries. Whilst the DTA solution is particularly recommended for systems comprising large temperature differences, the WSGG solution is deemed most appropriate for numerical simulation of lower temperature diffusion flames, due to its significant time advantage. The coupling between radiative loss and soot concentration is investigated via a multiple laminar flamelet concept applied within the CFD simulation of confined turbulent diffusion flames burning methane in air at 1 and 3 atm. Flamelet families are employed relating individual sooting mechanisms to the level of radiative loss, which is evaluated by the DTRM formulated for emitting-absorbing mixtures of soot, C02 and H20. Combustion heat release is described by an eddy break-up concept linked to the k-c turbulence model, whilst temperature is evaluated from the solved enthalpy field. Detailed comparisons between prediction and experiment for the critical properties of mixture fraction, temperature and soot volume fraction demonstrate the effectiveness of this novel, coupled strategy within an elliptic flow field calculation.

<p> To determine the detectability of thermal radiation from the surface of a neutron star, the surface temperature as a function of time is needed. To find this, the surface temperature as a function of core temperature is found; this ratio depending on temperature, stellar mass, and magnetic field strength. The energy loss rates from photon emission and neutrino emission are calculated, along with the specific heat of the star; the latter two quantities depending on the core temperature. The surface temperature as a function of time is then calculated for various combinations of the variable parameters: stellar mass, equation of state, magnetic field, superfluidity, and pion cutoff density. Finally, a calculation of the detectability (distance vs. age) of a typical neutron star is made, using the estimated capabilities of the X-ray telescope on the Einstein Observatory.</p> / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

ITC/USA 2005 Conference Proceedings / The Forty-First Annual International Telemetering Conference and Technical Exhibition / October 24-27, 2005 / Riviera Hotel & Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada / The ability to accurately measure the temperature of different materials has always been a challenge for the Instrumentation Engineer. The use the classic contact type temperature detector such as thermocouples or RTD’s (Resistance Temperature Detectors) has not always shown to be the best approach to obtain the expected measurement. When not used carefully in closed environments, thermocouples and RTD’s could report the environmental temperature rather than the temperature from the product under examination. They are also temperature limited and when needed for applications above those limits, very expensive and low reliable materials are necessary to do the job. The use of non-contact thermometers has become the preferred choice for such applications. They have also come as a solution for the difficulties involved in the temperature measurements of moving targets. The industry has used portable and spot type infrared thermometers for some time, but the demand for better and more precise measurements has brought an incredible number of new products to the market. By means of advanced electronics and new software developments these products are used to cope with the difficulties of acquiring challenging measurements. Some of the same demands have made necessary the use of non-contact temperature measurement devices on aircraft instrumentation applications. The use of these capabilities has allowed the data acquisition community to get valuable data that was very difficult if not impossible to obtain before. In spite of all these facts, this promising emerging technology demands very careful attention before it is put to good use. The many products and solutions available do not accurately address every problem and the selection of the wrong technology for a specific task can prove to be fatal. The use of non-contact temperature devices is not an easy “off the shelf” pick but rather an option that demands knowledge of the infrared measurement theory as well as a complete understanding of the material under observation. The intention of this paper is to provide a practical understanding on the non-contact temperature measurement methods to the Aircraft Instrumentation Engineer who has not benefited from the use of this exiting technology.

Atmospheric interactions affected both the mechanics of impact ejecta deposition and the environmental effects from the catastrophic Chicxulub impact at the Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) boundary. Hypervelocity reentry and subsequent sedimentation of Chicxulub impact spherules through the Earth's atmosphere was modeled using the KFIX-LPL two-phase flow code, which includes thermal radiation and operates at the necessary range of flow regimes and velocities. Spherules were injected into a model mesh approximating a two-dimensional slice of atmosphere at rates based on ballistic models of impact plume expansion. The spherules decelerate due to drag, compressing the upper atmosphere and reaching terminal velocity at ~70 km in altitude. A band of spherules accumulates at this altitude, below which is compressed cool air and above which is hot (>3000 K) relatively-empty atmosphere.Eventually the spherule-laden air becomes unstable and density currents form, transporting the spherules through the lower atmosphere collectively as plumes rather than individually at terminal velocity. This has implications for the depositional style and sedimentation rate of the global K-Pg boundary layer. Vertical density current formation in both incompressible (water) and compressible (air) fluids is evaluated numerically via KFIX-LPL simulations and analytically using new instability criteria. Models of density current formation due to particulate loading of water are compared to tephra fall experiments in order to validate the model instabilities.The impact spherules themselves obtain peak temperatures of 1300-1600 K and efficiently radiate that heat as thermal radiation. However, the downward thermal radiation emitted from decelerating spherules is increasingly blocked by previously-entered spherules settling lower in the atmosphere. This self-shielding effect strengthens with time as the settling spherule cloud thickens and becomes increasingly opaque, limiting both the magnitude and duration of the thermal pulse at the ground. For a nominal Chicxulub reentry model, the surface irradiance peaks at 6 kW/m <super>2 </super> and is above normal solar fluxes for ~25 minutes. Although biologic effects are still likely, self-shielding by spherules may have prevented the global wildfires previously postulated. However, submicron dust may act as a hot opaque cap in the upper atmosphere, potentially increasing the thermal pulse beyond the threshold for forest ignition.

No description available.