Thesis (M.S.) -- University of Montana, 2009. / Title from author supplied metadata. Description based on contents viewed on August 24, 2009. Author supplied keywords: Sinter, microfacies, geyserites, hydrothermal breccia. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--San Diego State University, 1978.

The use of polymers in bituminous materials has been gaining popularity over the last decade. Despite their superiority in enhancing the performance of bituminous mixtures, problems have been experienced due to limitations on the applicability of currently available assessment techniques. This thesis is concerned with the mechanical behaviour of polymer modified bitumens and the performance of polymer modified bituminous mixtures. The first part of the thesis presents different pavement distresses and the importance of using polymer modified binders to improve the performance of bituminous mixtures. The second part deals with identification of properties of polymer modified binders and their mixtures by using dynamic mechanical analysis. The third part attempts to develop a novel technique for assessing resistance to permanent deformation of HRA mixtures using a dissipated energy method. Some polymer modified binders are susceptible to storage instability. However, this work has demonstrated that certain empirical tests are unsuitable for assessing the temperature susceptibility and storage stability of polymer modified binders. Viscoelastic behaviour of bituminous materials is better presented by dynamic mechanical analysis. The dynamic mechanical analysis provides a basis for explaining the unsuitability of some empirical tests on polymer modified binders. Determination of dissipated energy during creep testing enables more comprehensive and accurate assessment of the resistance to permanent deformation of Hot Rolled Asphalt (HRA) mixtures. This study reveals that assessment of the resistance to permanent deformation based upon permanent strain rate in the linear region is in good agreement with the dissipated energy method. The end of the linear region, N1, can be accurately determined by the dissipated energy method and provides a confidence that analysis will always be conducted in the linear region. As expected, polymer modified mixtures are superior to the unmodified ones in their resistance to permanent deformation which confirm by the wheeltracking test, but was not evident from the Marshall tests.

During the summer, buildings in hot dry climates have the inevitable problem of cooling. These climates are characterized by hot summer days with cold nights, a high degree of solar radiation, low humidity and with a nearly fixed seasonal and daily pattern of wind. These natural phenomena could be exploited by nocturnal ventilation to cool the building fabric, thus saving energy during the day and providing comfort at night. The procedures to evaluate thermal performance of buildings with special reference to nocturnal ventilation are studied. Various approaches to building thermal response are first reviewed. Dynamic thermal simulation computer models are developed to predict hourly 'internal temperatures'. These are used to study the various constituents of models. They are based on: -the Admittance Method (as suggested by the CIBSE Guide); -a similar procedure but with higher harmonics; -the Response Factor Method (suggested by ASHRAE); -and the Finite Difference Method. A room surrounded by similar rooms in a multi-storey building, having only one external wall, was simulated in the laboratory. It was subjected to typical variations of a hot climate. Predictions of the computer simulations are compared with laboratory results and it is shown that -the closest agreement was obtained with the Response Factor and Finite Difference methods which are equally good; -for higher rates of ventilation, representation of a room by a simple three nodes model thermal network will give sufficiently accurate results; while for lower rates of ventilation a more detailed model gives more accurate results; -the standard Admittance Method gives adequate results, especially with higher rates of ventilation. It could also be used for hourly temperature-, calculations and variable ventilation without loosing significant accuracy; -a fuller treatment in the Admittance Method of time-lag and time-lead, associated with the dynamic thermal factors, will not greatly improve the results. An increase in the number of harmonics in the procedure did not also result in significant improvements, especially with a high rate of ventilation. Natural ventilation into rooms through open windows in these climates is theoretically investigated. It is shown that the rate of natural air flow obtained may be sufficient to meet the requirements of passive cooling by nocturnal ventilation. A computer program is developed to calculate the rate of air flow in multi-zone buildings, and a new relationship is suggested, which will reduce the complexity of natural air flow calculations in multi-zone buildings subjected to cross ventilation.

Moisture induced damage in Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) mixture is a prevalent problem all over the world. It is one of the leading causes of premature failures in asphalt pavements and a significant concern to the paving industry. It is, therefore, necessary to identify mixes that are susceptible to moisture damage during the mix design process. Extensive research has been carried out by several researchers over the years to develop a reliable and practical laboratory test procedure that can simulate field moisture damage conditions and that can make predictions that are likely to correlate to field performance. However, it is inferred from literature that no single laboratory test method can accurately predict the moisture induced damage performance HMA mixtures. The objectives of the present study are to: Develop a framework that considers different test methods to predict the moisture induced damage of Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA); Develop a suitable machine learning method to achieve significantly high accuracy in predicting the moisture damage potential of Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA); and develop a tool (App) for use by practicing engineers to identify HMA mixes that are likely to be susceptible to moisture induced damage. A total of 35 in-plant produced asphalt mixtures with known field performance were sampled, and compacted in the laboratory, and the compacted samples were subjected to mechanical tests before and after moisture conditioning with the Moisture Induced Stress Tester (MiST). In addition, the effluent from the MiST was checked for Dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC) content and gradation of dislodged aggregates. Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis of the asphalt extracted from HMA samples was performed to observe changes in the functional groups before and after the MiST test. Statistical analysis showed that seismic modulus and indirect tensile strength were effective in distinguishing poor-performing mixes from the well-performing mixes. Principal component analysis was conducted on the test data, and a reduced set of dimensions that were capable of explaining significant variance in the data was identified. The significant test properties were used to develop machine-learning models with two supervised classification approaches. The k-nearest neighbor model was found to be very accurate in differentiating the mixes. The use of MiST conditioning, specified physical tests, and machine learning methods are recommended for the identification of moisture-susceptible hot mix asphalt. Contribution of this Work The major contribution of this work is the creation of a framework or a system that combines appropriate test methods and suitable machine learning models to achieve high accuracy (84%) in predicting the moisture damage potential of Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA). A secondary contribution is that this study, for the first time, combines the principles of Artificial Intelligence (AI), in the form of Machine Learning (ML), with the field of pavement performance, specifically for the evaluation of mixes that are subjected to moisture damage. Finally, the work provides users with a highly accurate ML model as well as an app, which can be used and further improved.

No description available.

The temperature of the flow entering a high-pressure turbine stage is inherently non-uniform, as it is produced by several discrete, azimuthally-distributed combustors. In general, however, industrial simulations assume inlet temperature uniformity to simplify the preparation process and reduce computation time. The effects of a non-uniform inlet field on the performance of a commercial, transonic, single-stage, high-pressure, axial turbine with a curved inlet duct have been investigated numerically by performing URANS (Unsteady Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes equations) simulations with the SST (Shear Stress Transport) turbulence model. By adjusting the alignment of the experimentally-based inlet temperature field with respect to the stator vanes, two clocking configurations were generated: a vane-impinging (VI) case , in which each hot streak impinged on a vane; and a mid-pitch (MP) case, in which each hot streak passed between two vanes. In the VI configuration, the hot streaks produced higher time-averaged heat load on the vanes and lower heat load on the blades. As the hot streaks in the VI case passed over the stator vanes, they also spread spanwise due to the actions of the casing passage vortices and the radial pressure gradient; this resulted in a stream entering the rotor with relatively low temperature variations. The hot streaks in the MP case were convected undisturbed past the relatively cool vane section. Relatively high time-averaged enthalpy values were found to occur on the pressure side of the blades in the MP configuration. The non-uniformity of the time-averaged enthalpy on the blade surfaces was lower in the VI configuration. The flow exiting the rotor section was much less non-uniform in the VI case, but differences in calculated efficiency were not significant. / Pratt & Whitney Canada, NSERC

Resonance structures have long been employed by RF and microwave devices ranging from antennas, to wave guides. These resonance structures have exhibited an enormous amount of control over the wavelength selectivity, polarization, and directivity of the electromagnetic radiation which couples to the structure. Traditional geometrical optics has alternatively used discrete optical components such as lenses, gratings, and polarizers to accomplish equivalent control over optical radiation. This dissertation contributes to the larger body of literature that applies lessons learned in RF and microwave resonance structures, to nanoscale resonance structures. Optoelectronic nanoscale resonance structures were fabricated and characterized using both experimental and numerical methods. Two nanoscale resonance structures were investigated: an antenna inspired Yagi-Uda array, and a metasurface inspired interdigitated structure. Experimental devices containing the nanoscale resonance structures were fabricated on semiconducting substrates forming metal-semiconductor-metal photodiodes. The spectral response of the nanoscale resonance photodiode was determined by measuring the photocurrent or photovoltage resulting from incident monochromatic light which was swept through wavelengths from 400 nm to 2000 nm. The previously mentioned Yagi-Uda based device exhibited two maxima in photoresponse at 1110 nm and 1690 nm. Effective wavelength scaling was applied to the Yagi-Uda nanoantenas, and consistency was demonstrated between the theoretical effective wavelength and experimental photoresponse maxima. The spectral response of the interdigitated structure demonstrated good qualitative agreement with the finite element modeled absorbance in an equivalent structure. Analysis of the modeled absorbance suggests that hot electron injection contributes to the photoresponse, and the spectral response of the detector device may be tuned by varying the geometrical parameters of the device. An optimized device was proposed that could improve photodetection efficiency using nanoscale resonance devices. Antenna inspired nanoscale resonance structures may be used to probe fundamental physical phenomena such as hot carrier generation, hot carrier transport, and surface plasmon resonances. Combined optical and electrical-optoelectronic devices exploiting these phenomena may be realized for a variety of applications, eliminating some or all of the discrete optical components required for optoelectronic systems and hence significantly reducing the SWaP cost of optoelectronic systems. / Doctor of Philosophy / Resonance structures have long been employed by RF and microwave devices ranging from antennas, to wave guides. These resonance structures have exhibited an enormous amount of control over radio waves. Traditional optics has alternatively used discrete components such as lenses, gratings, and polarizers to accomplish equivalent control over light waves. This dissertation contributes to the larger body of literature that applies lessons learned in RF and microwave resonance structures, to nanoscale resonance structures. Optoelectronic nanoscale resonance structures were fabricated and characterized using both experimental and computational methods. Two nanoscale resonance structures were investigated: an antenna inspired Yagi-Uda array, and a metasurface inspired interdigitated structure. The ability of both devices to detect light of a particular wavelength was then tested. The photoresponse of the device containing a Yagi-Uda array is consistent with RF Yagi-Uda antennas when considered in accordance with the concept of effective wavelength. The experimental response of the interdigitated structure demonstrated good qualitative agreement with the computational modeled absorbance in an equivalent structure. Analysis of the modeled absorbance suggests that the spectral response of the detector device may be tuned by varying the geometrical parameters of the device. An optimized device was proposed that could improve photodetection efficiency using nanoscale resonance devices. Antenna inspired nanoscale resonance structures may be used to probe fundamental physical phenomena such as hot carrier generation, hot carrier transport, and surface plasmon resonances. Combined optical and electrical-optoelectronic devices exploiting these phenomena may be realized for a variety of applications, eliminating some or all of the discrete optical components required for optoelectronic systems and hence significantly reducing the SWaP cost of optoelectronic systems.

No / A novel, green, and continuous method for solid-state polymorphic transformation of artemisinin by high temperature extrusion has recently been demonstrated. This communication describes attempts to understand the mechanisms causing phase transformation during the extrusion process. Polymorphic transformation was investigated using hot stage microscopy and a model shear cell. At high temperature, phase transformation from orthorhombic to the triclinic crystals was observed through a vapor phase. Under mechanical stress, the crystalline structure was disrupted continuously, exposing new surfaces and accelerating the transformation process.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the sensitivity of instantaneous latent heat flux (LE) estimation from Surface Energy Balance Algorithm for Land (SEBAL) by changing hot/cold pixel selections. The SEBAL model was programed in a Matlab environment and applied to Lower Fox Watershed in northeast Illinois using two Landsat 5 Thematic Mapper images acquired in summer 2006. Unlike most previous studies where hot/cold pixel were manually selected by image analysts, we emphasized an automated hot/cold pixel selection based on land cover map, normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) map, and land surface temperature (LST) map. Various combinations of hot/cold pixels were automatically selected along the LST gradient. The LE estimations were then validated against ground-based eddy covariance observation. Results show that the LE estimations from SEBAL were sensitive to both hot and cold pixel selections and tend to be more sensitive to cold pixel selection. The absolute percentage difference (APD) of LE estimation compared with field observation data can range from 0.67% to 67.2% by varying hot and cold pixel combinations. The location of hot/cold pixels appears to have minor impact on SEBAL LE estimation. The LE estimation become acceptable (APD < 10%) when using the hot/cold pixels with a slightly higher/lower LST than LST extremes from the study area. This study provides insights into hot/cold pixel selection and the sensitivity of SEBAL-based LE estimation. Future research on SEBAL ET estimation should focus on enhancing automated hot/cold pixel selection algorithm to improve the model's operational use. / Master of Science