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This thesis has two major topics: (1) Electrostatic Separation of Superconducting Particles from a Mixture of Non-Superconducting Particles. (2) Improvement in fuel atomization by Electrorheology. (1) Based on the basic science research, the interactions between electric field and superconductors, we have developed a new technology, which can separate superconducting granular particles from their mixture with non-superconducting particles. The electric-field induced formation of superconducting balls is important aspect of the interaction between superconducting particles and electric field. When the applied electric field exceeds a critical value, the induced positive surface energy on the superconducting particles forces them to aggregate into balls or cling to the electrodes. In fabrication of superconducting materials, especially HTSC materials, it is common to come across materials with multiple phases: some grains are in superconducting state while the others are not. Our technology is proven to be very useful in separating superconducting grains from the rest non-superconducting materials. To separate superconducting particles from normal conducting particles, we apply a suitable strong electric field. The superconducting particles cling to the electrodes, while normal conducting particles bounce between the electrodes. The superconducting particles could then be collected from the electrodes. To separate superconducting particles from insulating ones, we apply a moderate electric field to force insulating particles to the electrodes to form short chains while the superconducting particles are collected from the middle of capacitor. The importance of this technology is evidenced by the unsuccessful efforts to utilize the Meissner effect to separate superconducting particles from non-superconducting ones. Because the Meissner effect is proportional to the particle volume, it has been found that the Meissner effect is not useful when the superconducting particles are smaller than 45pm. One always come across multi-phase superconducting materials where most superconducting grains are much smaller than 45μm. On the other hand, since our technology is based on the surface effect, it gets stronger when the particles become smaller. Our technology is thus perfect for small superconducting particles and for fabrication of HTSC materials. The area of superconductivity is expected to be very important for 21st Century energy industry. The key for this development is the HTSC materials. We, therefore, expect that our technology will have strong impact in the area. (2) Improving engine efficiency and reducing pollutant emissions are extremely important. Here we report our fuel injection technology based on new physics principle that proper application of electrorheology can reduce the viscosity of petroleum fuels. A small device is thus introduced just before the fuel injection for the engine, producing a strong electric field to reduce the fuel viscosity, resulting in much smaller fuel droplets in atomization. As combustion starts at the interface between fuel and air and most harmful emissions are coming from incomplete burning, reducing the size of fuel droplets would increase the total surface area to start burning, leading to a cleaner and more efficient engine. This concept has been widely accepted as the discussions about future engine for efficient and clean combustion are focused on ultra-dilute mixtures at extremely high pressure to produce much finer mist of fuel for combustion. The technology is expected to have broad applications, applicable to current internal combustion engines and future engines as well. / Physics

The Army's Fire Resistant Fuel (FRF) program is currently being used to defend against the threat of vehicle fuel fires resulting from unconventional warfare encountered in the Middle East. Fire Resistant Fuels are based upon JP-8, which is now the primary fuel for the Army ground services. The goal of FRF development is to reduce susceptibility to ignition at standard storage conditions while still serving as a fuel for the Army's diesel vehicles. Two preliminary tests were conducted to narrow down a field of candidates developed by Luna Innovations to a final set of five FRF. Dynamometer testing was used to determine peak power of the supplied Yanmar 2V750 engine. Fuel fire resistance characteristics were defined and compared using a rotating disk anti-misting characterization system. Fuels were characterized based upon spray characteristics including velocity and droplet diameter as well as through ignition testing. For these tests, FRF were compared to Diesel and Jet-A results. Results from this testing has shown that two fuels, both JP-8 emulsions, met the basic criteria of a fire resistant fuel. Engine testing trends showed that both fuels surpassed the peak power output of Diesel. Rotary atomization ignition testing resulted in no ignition for both fuels. As a supplementary study, cone calorimetry testing was performed to determine effective heats of combustion. Results from experimentation demonstrated that the energy content of the FRF is not of primary importance to engine performance or flame resistance. All data, analysis and trends are located in the appendices. / Master of Science

A newly designed liquid fuel (kerosene) aeroramp injector/plasma igniter was tested in cold flow using the Virginia Tech supersonic wind tunnel at Mach 2.4. The liquid fuel (kerosene) injector is flush wall mounted and consists of a 2 hole aeroramp array of impinging jets that are oriented in a manner to improve mixing and atomization of the liquid jets. The two jets are angled downstream at 40 degrees and have a toe-in angle of 60 degrees. The plasma torch used nitrogen and air as feedstocks and was placed downstream of the injector as an ignition aid. First, schlieren and shadowgraph photographs were taken of the injector flow to study the behavior of the jets, shape of the plume, and penetration of the liquid jet. The liquid fuel aeroramp was found to have better penetration than a single, round jet at 40 degrees. However, the liquid fuel aeroramp does not penetrate as well as an upstream/downstream impinging jet in a plane aligned with the flow. Next, the Sauter mean droplet diameter distribution was measured downstream of the injector. The droplet diameter was found to vary from 21 to 37 microns and the atomization of the injector does not appear to improve beyond 90 effective jet diameters from the liquid fuel aeroramp. These results were then used to decide on an initial location for the plasma torch. The combined liquid injector/plasma torch system was tested in an unheated (300 K) Mach 2.4 flow with a total pressure of 345 kPa. The liquid fuel (kerosene) volumetric flow rate was varied from 0.66 lpm to 1.22 lpm for the combined liquid injector/plasma torch system. During this testing the plasma torch was operated from 1000 to 5000 watts with 25 slpm of nitrogen and air as feedstocks. The interaction between the spray plume and the plasma torch was observed with direct photographs, videos, and photographs through an OH filter. It is difficult to say that any combustion is present from these photographs. Of course, it would be surprising if much combustion did occur under these cold-flow, low-pressure conditions. Differences between the interaction of the spray plume and the plasma torch with nitrogen and air as feedstocks were documented. According to the OH wavelength filtered photographs the liquid fuel flow rate does appear to have an effect on the height and width of the bright plume. As the liquid fuel flow rate increases the bright plume increases in height by 30% and increases in width slightly (2%). While, a decrease in liquid fuel flow rate resulted in an increase in height by 9% and an increase in width by 10%. Thus, as the liquid fuel flow rate varies the width and height of the bright plume appear to always increase. This can be explained by noticing that the shape of the bright plume changes as the liquid fuel flow rate varies and perhaps anode erosion during testing also plays a part in this variation of the bright plume. From the OH wavelength filtered photographs it was also shown that the bright plume appears to decrease in width by 9% and increase in height by 22% when the plasma torch is set at a lower power setting. When air is used as the torch feedstock, instead of nitrogen, the penetration of the bright plume can increase by as much as 19% in width and 17% in height. It was also found that the height and width of the bright plume decreased slightly (2%) as the fuel flow rate increased when using air as the torch feedstock. Testing in a hot-flow facility is planned. / Master of Science

The disintegration of a liquid jet emerging from a nozzle has been under investigation for several decades. A direct consequence of the liquid jet disintegration process is droplet formation. The breakup of a liquid jet into discrete droplets can be brought about by the use of a diverse forcing mechanism. Cavitation has been thought to assist the atomization process. Previous experimental studies, however, have dealt with cavitation as a secondary phenomenon assisting the primary atomization mechanism. In this dissertation, the role of the energy created by the collapse of cavitation bubbles, together with the liquid pressure perturbation is explicitly configured as a principal mechanism for the disintegration of the liquid jet. A prototype of an atomizer that uses this concept as a primary atomization mechanism was developed and experimentally tested using water as working fluid. The atomizer fabrication process and the experimental characterization results are presented. The parameters tested include liquid injection pressure, ultrasonic horn tip frequency, and the liquid flow rate. The experimental results obtained demonstrate improvement in the atomization of water. To fully characterize the new atomizer, a novel infrared thermography-based technique for the characterization and visualization of liquid sprays was developed. The technique was tested on the new atomizer and two automotive paint applicators. The technique uses an infrared thermography-based measurement in which a uniformly heated background acts as a thermal radiation source, and an infrared camera as the receiver. The infrared energy emitted by the source in traveling through the spray is attenuated by the presence of the droplets. The infrared intensity is captured by the receiver showing the attenuation in the image as a result of the presence of the spray. The captured thermal image is used to study detailed macroscopic features of the spray flow field and the evolution of the droplets as they are transferred from the applicator to the target surface. In addition, the thermal image is post-processed using theoretical and empirical equations to extract information from which the liquid volume fraction and number density within the spray are estimated.

The research carried out in this thesis describes the processing of liquids and ceramic suspensions, having a viscosity >100mPa s, using electrostatic atomization, mainly in the stable cone-jet mode. Electrostatic atomization, also called electrospraying, refers to a process where a liquid or a suspension is made to flow through a needle. The liquid or suspension is subjected to a high voltage maintained between the needle and a ground electrode. Two major physical properties, namely electrical conductivity and viscosity, affect electrostatic atornization in the stable cone-jet mode and the investigations described in this thesis focussed on the latter. Firstly, a set of liquid mixtures were prepared using distilled water and glycerol. The dc electrical conductivity of these mixtures were kept constant and the viscosity was varied. The mixtures were subjected to electrostatic atornization and in each case the mode of atornization, the cone/jet characteristics and relic sizes were studied as a function of viscosity. The effect of applied voltage on the conejet mode electrostatic atornization of glycerol having a viscosity of 1338mPa s was also investigated. Secondly, the possibilities of electrostatically atomizing ceramic suspensions were studied in detail. Several alumina suspensions were used including one containing a high volume fraction of solids (20 vol. % - the highest filler loading attempted to date using any jet-based processing route). Applied voltage - flow rate - atornization mode maps were constructed for this suspension incorporating even pico-flow rate regimes. This is a new input into the aerosol science and engineering literature. This section also highlights the importance of controlling the applied voltage and flow rate as these parameters affect the jet diameter and relic/droplet size generated. The effect of the geometry of the ground electrode used for electrostatic atornization was also investigated. In particular, the use of a point-like ground electrode was studied for the very first time. The third and most innovative facet of this research was the discovery of ceramic electrostatic atornization printing (CEAP) and the use of electrostatic atornization to produce ceramic foams. In CEAP a point-like ground electrode is used to focus the spray which was printed as characters, collection of characters and single tracks. This investigation was extended to explore the printing of multiple tracks produced with the aid of several needles and ground electrodes which worked simultaneously. A ring shaped ground electrode was used to electrospray ceramic droplets onto a polyurethane template and this paved the way for the development of a new method to prepare open-cell ceramic foams with a very high porosity. This method was extended to prepare ceramic structures and complex components.

<p>Predmet istraživanja ove doktorske disertacije<br />je bio formiranje i proučavanje osobina i<br />pona&scaron;anja organskih aerosola nastalih<br />atomiziranjem stabilnih emulzija dominantno<br />pod dejstvom centrifugalne sile. Kori&scaron;ćene su<br />vodene emulzije komercijalnih sredstava za<br />hlađenje i podmazivanje (SHP), koja se koriste<br />pri obradi metalnih odlivaka. Cilj istraživanja je<br />bio ispitati i objasniti uticaj koncentracije SHP<br />emulzije, brzine strujanja vazduha, prirode kako<br />ulja, tako i osobina emulzija, kao &scaron;to su gustina,<br />viskoznost, povr&scaron;inski napon, kao i udaljenost<br />od mesta atomiziranja na masenu koncentraciju,<br />broj i veličinu kapi aerosola u kontrolisanim<br />laboratorijskim uslovima.<br />Uslovi eksperimenta isključili su uticaj toplote<br />nastale kao posledica trenja alata i delova koji<br />se obrađuju. Pored toga isključeno je prisustvo<br />čvrstih mikronskih čestica koje potiču od delova<br />koji se obrađuju, kao i prisutvo plivajućeg<br />hidrauličnog ulja i mikroorganizama koji uvek<br />prate realan industrijski fluid.<br />Eksperimentalni program je realizovan na tri<br />komercijalna SHP sredstva različitog porekla.<br />Proučavani su aerosoli formirani atomiziranjem<br />emulzije tri različite koncentracije uljne faze: 1,<br />6 i 10 %. Pri jednakim eksperimentalnim<br />uslovima ispitivan je i aerosol formiran, od<br />vode kori&scaron;ćene za pripremu emulzija. Određene<br />su osobine ulja i emulzija koje su od značaja za<br />atomiziranje tečnosti. Proučavan je i uticaj<br />brzine ventilacionog vazduha na osobine<br />aerosola. Eksperimenti su realizovani pri<br />brzinama vazduha od 1, 3, 6, 8 m/s.<br />Uzorkovanje aerosola je realizovano u komori,<br />na ulazu u ventilacini vod i duž ventilacione<br />cevi dužine 8m na pet mernih tačaka koje se<br />nalaze na 0,5, 1, 2, 4, 6, 8 m u odnosu na<br />komoru.<br />Značajan doprinos ove doktorske disertacije je<br />postavljanje teorije da atomiziranjem emulzije<br />kao heterogene tečnosti, nastaje heterogen<br />aerosol, pri čemu mogu nastati kapi različite<br />prirode, između ostalog i kapi čistog ulja. Na taj<br />način je obja&scaron;njen fenomen da porastom<br />koncentracije emulzije raste veličina kapi<br />nastalog aerosola. Aerosoli nastali od<br />koncentrovanijih emulzija pokazuju uređenije<br />strujanje kroz ventilacionu cev, &scaron;to je od<br />značaja za uspe&scaron;nije projektovanje ventilacionih<br />sistema i filtara za njihovu separaciju u cilju<br />za&scaron;tite zdravlja radnika i za&scaron;tite okoline.</p> / <p> This PhD Thesis presents an experimental<br /> study of organic aerosols formed from stable<br /> water emulsions, predominantly by centrifugal<br /> force under laboratory conditions. Emulsions of<br /> metalworking fluids (MWF) were used in the<br /> experiments. The aim of this investigation was<br /> to explain the influence of MWF emulsion<br /> concentration, oil and emulsion properties<br /> (density, viscosity, and surface tension), air<br /> velocity, as well as distance from atomization<br /> generator on aerosol behavior and properties as<br /> size distribution, mass and number<br /> concentration. The experimental conditions<br /> excluded the influence of the heat arising from<br /> the friction between the tool and the<br /> workpieces. In this way the mechanism of<br /> aerosol formation by the<br /> evaporation/condensation is minimized.<br /> Besides, the presence of solid micrometer sized<br /> particulates originated from the work piece is<br /> excluded, as well as the presence of tramp oil<br /> and microorganisms, always accompanying a<br /> real industrial fluid.<br /> Three different commercial MWFs were<br /> investigated at three different oil-in-water<br /> emulsion concentrations, 1, 6, and 10 %<br /> respectively. Water aerosol was investigated<br /> under same experimental conditions. Properties<br /> of MWF oils and emulsion, which are important<br /> for liquid atomization, were determined.<br /> Influence of ventilation air velocity on aerosol<br /> properties was investigated as well.<br /> Experiments were realized under four different<br /> air velocities: 1, 3, 6, and 8 m/s. Samples were<br /> taken at three different points: at the camber, at<br /> the entrance of ventilation pipe, and at five<br /> sampling points along the pipe. Ventilation pipe<br /> was 8 m long, and sampling point were at 0.5, 1,<br /> 2, 4, 6, 8 m from the aerosol camber.<br /> The main contribution of this dissertation is<br /> the new theory that atomization of emulsion as a<br /> heterogeneous fluid leads to the formation of<br /> heterogeneous aerosol, containing droplets of a<br /> different nature, including droplets of pure oil.<br /> This theory explains the phenomenon that the<br /> aerosol droplet sizes increase with the increase<br /> of the emulsion concentration. Obtained results<br /> show that aerosols formed from the emulsions<br /> of higher concentration (6 and 10 %) have less<br /> chaotic flow through the ventilation pipe. This<br /> observation is important for better design of<br /> ventilation systems and filters for mist<br /> separation in order to protect human health and<br /> the environment.&nbsp;</p>

Droplet formation from a rigid and a vibration nozzle driven by a pulsing pressure is simulated. Droplet formation is simulated by using one-dimensional model. For the case of droplet formation from a vibration nozzle, the nozzle vibration is simulated by large deflection plate vibration equation. Droplet formation from a rigid nozzle is studied simply by setting the nozzle deflection always to be zero. The one-dimensional model is solved by MacCormack method. The large deflection plate vibration equation is solved by mode shape approximation and Runga--Kuta time integration method. Three different effect factors, the driving pressure thrust input effects, the fluid viscosity effects, and the nozzle vibration effects, on droplet formation are studied. The driving pressure thrust input effects and the fluid viscosity effects are studied based on a rigid nozzle. The nozzle vibration effects are studied by comparing the results from a vibration nozzle with the results from a rigid nozzle. Results show: 1) the primary droplet break-off time is constant if the driving pressure magnitude is high, but the primary droplet volume and primary droplet velocity increase slightly as the driving pressure thrust input increase; 2) higher thrust input can possibly result in the occurrence of overturn phenomenon; 3) increasing the fluid viscosity cause the primary droplet break-off later, but the primary droplet volume and the primary droplet velocity does not change significantly by fluid viscosity; 4) the nozzle vibration effect on the primary droplet break-off time and the primary droplet size is small, but the nozzle vibration cause the primary droplet velocity to increase by an amount of the nozzle vibration velocity magnitude; 5) nozzle vibration cause longer liquid thread to form and the total satellite droplet volume to increase significantly which eventually break into multiple satellite droplet. / Graduation date: 2004

Increased development in Canadas northern environments has increased the need for accurate methods to detect adverse impacts on tundra ecosystems. Ammonium nitrate is a common water pollutant associated with many industrial and municipal activities, including diamond mining, and is of special concern due to the toxicity of ammonia in aquatic systems. One solution to reduce exposure of sensitive aquatic systems to nitrogenous compounds is to atomize (atmospherically disperse in fine particles) contaminated water over the arctic tundra which will reduce N loading to surface water. However, the toxicity of ammonium nitrate to arctic soils is poorly understood. In this study I investigate the potential toxicity of ammonium nitrate solutions to arctic soil functions such as carbon mineralization, nitrification and plant growth, to determine concentrations that can be applied without causing significant inhibition to these processes. <p>Arctic ecosystems are based on a soil type termed a cryosol that has an underlying permafrost layer. Often these soils are subject to cryoturbation, a process which heaves and mixes the soil, bringing the mineral horizons to the surface. I hypothesized that phytotoxicity test results in arctic soils would be highly variable compared to other terrestrial ecosystems due to the cryoturbation process and subsequent range of soil characteristics. The variability associated with phytotoxicity tests was evaluated using Environment Canadas standardized plant toxicity test in three cryoturbated soils from Canadas arctic exposed to a reference toxicant, boric acid. The phytotoxicity of boric acid to northern wheatgrass (<i>Elymus lanceolatus </i>) in cryosols was much greater than commonly reported in other soils, with less than 150 ug boric acid g-1 soil needed to inhibit root and shoot growth by 20%. There was also large variability in the phytotoxicity test results, with coefficients of variation for 10 samples ranging from 160 to 79%. Due to this variability in cryoturbated arctic soils, more than 30 samples should be collected from each control and potentially impacted area to accurately assess contaminant effects, and ensure that false negatives of toxicant impacts in arctic soils are minimized. <p>To characterize the toxicity of ammonium nitrate I exposed a variety of arctic soils and a temperate soil to different concentrations of ammonium nitrate solution over a 90 day time period. Dose responses of carbon mineralization, nitrification and phytotoxicity test parameters were estimated for ammonium nitrate applications. In addition to direct toxicity, the effect of ammonium nitrate on ecosystem resistance was investigated by dosing nitrogen impacted soils with boric acid. Ammonium nitrate solutions had no effect on carbon mineralization activity, and affected nitrification rates in only one soil, a polar desert soil from Cornwallis Island. In contrast, ammonium nitrate applications (43 mmol N L-1 soil water) significantly impaired seedling emergence, root length and shoot length of northern wheatgrass. Concentrations of ammonium nitrate in soil water that inhibited plant parameters by 20% varied between 43 to 280 mmol N L-1 soil water, which corresponds with 2,100 to 15,801 mg L-1 in the application water. Arctic soils were more resistant to ammonium nitrate toxicity than the temperate soil under these study conditions. However, it is not clear if this represents a general trend for all polar soils, and because nitrogen is an essential macro-nutrient, nitrogenous toxicity should likely be considered a special case for soil toxicity. As soil concentrations could be maintained under inhibitory levels with continual application of low concentrations of ammonium nitrate over the growing season, atomization of wastewater contaminated with ammonium nitrate is a promising technology for mitigation of nitrogen pollution in polar environments. <p>Increased development in Canadas northern environments has increased the need for accurate methods to detect adverse impacts on tundra ecosystems. Ammonium nitrate is a common water pollutant associated with many industrial and municipal activities, including diamond mining, and is of special concern due to the toxicity of ammonia in aquatic systems. One solution to reduce exposure of sensitive aquatic systems to nitrogenous compounds is to atomize (atmospherically disperse in fine particles) contaminated water over the arctic tundra which will reduce N loading to surface water. However, the toxicity of ammonium nitrate to arctic soils is poorly understood. In this study I investigate the potential toxicity of ammonium nitrate solutions to arctic soil functions such as carbon mineralization, nitrification and plant growth, to determine concentrations that can be applied without causing significant inhibition to these processes. <p>Arctic ecosystems are based on a soil type termed a cryosol that has an underlying permafrost layer. Often these soils are subject to cryoturbation, a process which heaves and mixes the soil, bringing the mineral horizons to the surface. I hypothesized that phytotoxicity test results in arctic soils would be highly variable compared to other terrestrial ecosystems due to the cryoturbation process and subsequent range of soil characteristics. The variability associated with phytotoxicity tests was evaluated using Environment Canadas standardized plant toxicity test in three cryoturbated soils from Canadas arctic exposed to a reference toxicant, boric acid. The phytotoxicity of boric acid to northern wheatgrass (<i>Elymus lanceolatus </i>) in cryosols was much greater than commonly reported in other soils, with less than 150 ug boric acid g-1 soil needed to inhibit root and shoot growth by 20%. There was also large variability in the phytotoxicity test results, with coefficients of variation for 10 samples ranging from 160 to 79%. Due to this variability in cryoturbated arctic soils, more than 30 samples should be collected from each control and potentially impacted area to accurately assess contaminant effects, and ensure that false negatives of toxicant impacts in arctic soils are minimized. <p>To characterize the toxicity of ammonium nitrate I exposed a variety of arctic soils and a temperate soil to different concentrations of ammonium nitrate solution over a 90 day time period. Dose responses of carbon mineralization, nitrification and phytotoxicity test parameters were estimated for ammonium nitrate applications. In addition to direct toxicity, the effect of ammonium nitrate on ecosystem resistance was investigated by dosing nitrogen impacted soils with boric acid. Ammonium nitrate solutions had no effect on carbon mineralization activity, and affected nitrification rates in only one soil, a polar desert soil from Cornwallis Island. In contrast, ammonium nitrate applications (43 mmol N L-1 soil water) significantly impaired seedling emergence, root length and shoot length of northern wheatgrass. Concentrations of ammonium nitrate in soil water that inhibited plant parameters by 20% varied between 43 to 280 mmol N L-1 soil water, which corresponds with 2,100 to 15,801 mg L-1 in the application water. Arctic soils were more resistant to ammonium nitrate toxicity than the temperate soil under these study conditions. However, it is not clear if this represents a general trend for all polar soils, and because nitrogen is an essential macro-nutrient, nitrogenous toxicity should likely be considered a special case for soil toxicity. As soil concentrations could be maintained under inhibitory levels with continual application of low concentrations of ammonium nitrate over the growing season, atomization of wastewater contaminated with ammonium nitrate is a promising technology for mitigation of nitrogen pollution in polar environments.