There is a need for low-cost switching and proportional electro-hydraulic valves with low contamination sensitivity and good reliability. In an attempt to meet this need, a novel electro-hydraulic floating double-disc valve has been developed to the stage where it can be used to control hydraulic cylinders or motors directly. As the valve is significantly underlapped, problems still remain in achieving adequate hydraulic stiffness in the proportional mode of operation. The valve operation, which relies on the complex interaction between fluid and electro-magnetic forces acting on the valve discs, is described and a theoretical model of the fluid and electro-magnetic characteristics of the valve is presented. The theory shows satisfactory agreement with experimental data. A pre-production version of the double-disc valve has been designed and manufactured and it incorporates ideas for manufacturing cost reduction while at the same time conforming to CETOP 3 international valve port standards. This valve has been successfully tested as a switching or proportional device when controlling two different cylinders. Proportional control of the valve is achieved using Pulse-Width-Modulation technique. British Technology Group and University of Surrey have applied for a patent on the valve. The patented floating-disc valve has the following features: (a) 3 way or 4 way 2-position or proportional action with minor changes to produce the two types of action, (b) cartridge construction with interchangeable components, (c) low contamination sensitivity, (d) few critical dimensions, (e) no sliding surfaces, (f) CETOP valve port configuration and (g) potentially capable of operating with corrosive or non-lubricating fluids.

No description available.

In this thesis an investigation for the identification, measurement and modelling of the gear pump performance under marginal suction condition, created in the suction line and resulting in cavitation at the suction port and cavitation erosion on the delivery side plate is introduced. A new technique for the detection of cavitation in gear pumps has been employed and proved to be more efficient and less expensive than other techniques available. The experimental study has been carried out by monitoring the pressure ripple at the pump inlet and outlet, as well as investigating the pressure distribution around the gear rotor under cavitating and non-cavitating conditions. It was found that the gear pump cavitation appeared in three distinct stages, these being cavitation-inception, discrete-cavitation and continuous-cavitation. These stages of cavit tion were investigated by means of pressure distribution around the gear rotor using a miniature pressure transducer positioned at a gear fillet. The experimental results demonstrate a drop in filling efficiency, of the tooth space due to cavitation, which provides a further understanding of the pump performance characteristics at different inlet conditions. An expression for the definition of transient pressure in the tooth space due to trapped volume has been derived for the first time and proved to give a good correlation with published experimental work. A surface analysis technique has been employed in this work to study the behaviour of the material erosion due to cavitation bubble collapse, using a 'Talysurf 41 instrumentation system, and the results obtained are in good agreement with those published by NEL.

Jet impingement heating and cooling techniques are used extensively in industrial applications. in some of these installations, the axis of the jet can be inclined relative to the impingement surface. The impingement flow is then unsynLmetrical so that the heat transfer rates are modified. At present, there is a lack of information concerning the effect of inclination on jet impingement heat transfer. Thus, the experimental study reported in this thesis is primarily concerned with the measurement of local and average heat transfer coefficients associated with the impingement of inclined turbulent circular jets onto flat plates. A single free jet exiting into initially stagnant surroundings was considered and the nozzle inclination was varied from 300 to 900 to the surface. The tests covered the range: Z/d (nozzle-target separation) of 6 to 16 and Re (jet Reynolds number based on exit conditions) of 32500 to 65000. The effect of the exit nozzle shape was also determined. In multiple jet systems, the flow from the upstream jets can significantly affect those situated in the downstream section. Thus, the effect of nozzle inclination on the performance of an impinging jet exiting into a cross flow was also investigated. Thus, as well as the angle of inclination (a), the magnitude of the cross flow (Uc) and the width of the duct (H/d) were also altered in this confined situation. The ranges of these variables were 300<a<l350,55Uj/Uc520.9 and UH/d426. A 'thin-film' naphthalene sublimation technique was used to measure the variation of the mass transfer rates over the impingement surface and these rates were converted to heat transfer data by invoking the Chilton-Colburn analogy between the two processes. The average heat transfer coefficients quoted in the'text were obtained by numerically integrating the local values. The thin-film naphthalene sublimation technique yielded repeatable results which were generally in good agreement with published data for the limited cases for which comparisons-were possible. ' For the unconfined jets, inclining the nozzle reduced the heat transfer rates. The stagnation point, impingement region and average heat transfer coefficients were correlated by means of simple power law relationships which involved the Reynolds number (Re), the nozzle-target separation (z/d) and the angle of inclination (a). Both circular and elliptical-shaped nozzles produced essentially similar results so that it appears that the shape of the velocity profile at the jet exit can be neglected for the conditions studied in this invest: i. gation. For the confined situations, it was found that superimposing a cross flow onto the jet reduced the heat transfer rates and this is in agreement with the results of previous investigators. At low cross flows, inclining the nozzle further reduced the heat transfer rates. However, at higher cross flows, inclining the nozzle could lead to an increase in heat transfer rates and an angle of inclination of approximately 600 was found to yield optimal results. This optimal appears to result from a balance between two conflicting effects, namely that inclination reduces heat transfer but also simultaneously increases the penetration of the jet upstream into the cross flow. Limited velocity and turbulence measurements were undertaken for the jets in order to characterise the flow. These measurements were in good agreement with data from previous investigations so that the heat transfer results from this study should be applicable in a fairly general manner. In order to explain the heat transfer results, flow visualization studies were also carried out.

This thesis presents observations from the Bosphorus (Strait of Istanbul), Turkey, made to study the effects of mixing, entrainment and frictionally induced shear on the dynamics of an exchange flow. The well known two-layer structure with an upper layer of brackish Black Sea water over an opposing undercurrent of salty Mediterranean water was observed. It is likely that the exchange was maximal as it seemed to be bounded by two hydraulic controls at the strait's ends; a sill control at the Black Sea was readily identifiable and the exchange also appeared to be controlled at the south exit toward the Sea of Marmara. The lower layer lost 15 to 20% of its volume to the upper layer because of upward mixing caused by interfacial shear and turbulence created at bends and lateral protuberances. The exchange was quasi-steady, except during a so-called Orkoz when strong winds caused a reversal of the upper layer flow. Between the controls the interface sloped steeply throughout the strait indicating that mass and momentum exchange between the layers and friction along the interface and sidewalls were important. The hydraulics of a single layer flow with entrainment is examined with a reduced gravity model. Expressions are derived for the local change of layer thickness and Froude number as function of the entrainment velocity. It is shown that entrainment, like friction, acts to force the flow toward criticality, although the layer thickness can increase if the Froude number is smaller than 1/2. For certain Froude numbers the effects of friction and entrainment on the layer thickness and the hydraulic state of the flow are found to be of comparable magnitude. A two-layer model with entrainment is developed. Predicted and observed interfacial slopes are found to be in reasonable agreement. The classical definition of hydraulic control assumes layers with uniform velocity so that further consideration is required if there is frictionally induced shear as observed in the Bosphorus. If a shear flow preserves the shape of its velocity profile, a standard formula suggests that hydraulic control is achieved when the depth-averaged flow speed is less than ( gh)1/2. On the other hand, shallow water waves have a speed relative to the mean flow of more than (gh)1/2, suggesting that information could propagate upstream. This apparent paradox is solved by showing that the internal stress required to maintain a constant velocity profile depends on flow derivatives, thus altering the wave speed without introducing damping. By contrast, an inviscid shear flow does not maintain the same profile shape, but is shown to exhibit hydraulic control when the depth-averaged speed equals the inviscid long wave speed. In the Bosphorus the similarity assumption was found to approximately hold indicating that hydraulic control could not be defined using classical inviscid theory. / Graduate

M.Ing. / Experimental tests have indicated that limit cycles are likely to occur in hydraulic drive systems, where backlash in the actuator seals is the dominant nonlinearity'. This study primarily deals with the analysis and synthesis of existing hydraulic drive systems to eliminate limit cycles and with establishing a design tool for the design of hydraulic drives with the object of avoiding limit cycles. Most analytical results were verified experimentally. The most general methods for the design of practical nonlinear systems are discussed. It is concluded that some form of synthesis and analysis is necessary, and that the need exists for general methods to evaluate the stability of nonlinear systems and design tools for nonlinear system design. Ageneral procedure of system analysis is given. Amathematical model of the system needs to be obtained, which can be done with the aid of bond graphs. Simulations of complex systems are recommended to verify system performance only. The first procedure of system analysis that should be followed is to systematically identify elements of the system which are not related to the cause of the limit cycle. Experimental testing is a good first step in identifying the non-critical elements. Signal flow diagrams enable the engineer quickly to determine all feedback loops of a complicated system which might be critical. Block diagrams are necessary for the application of nonlinear analysis and synthesis techniques. Hydraulic resonance, where the actuator seal acts as an oscillating mechanism, is identified as a possible cause of the limit cycle. An unusual application of the describing function, where the describing function is applied to optimize the hydraulic supply, is discussed. The transfer function of flow in a hydraulic pipe is given. With the use of the describing function, the gain margin can be studied versus different parameters of the plant. This gives insight into slightly damped conditions of the hydraulic supply that might be the cause of a limit cycle in the system. A control gain does not change the dynamic behaviour of the hydraulic supply, but only amplifies certain natural modes of the system. The design application of the describing function to nonlinear hydraulic drives is discussed. Procedures to eliminate an existing limit cycle and to design a nonlinear hydraulic drive system are proposed. Most important of all, is to design the system so that the natural frequencies of the mechanical structure and the hydraulic supply do not have any common multiples.

Le tassement des sols est l'un des principaux processus de dégradation des sols en Europe. Il est principalement dû à la mécanisation des activités agricoles et forestières qui se traduit par des passages d’engins de plus en plus lourds, très souvent en conditions climatiques défavorables. La directive cadre pour la protection des sols en préparation envisage de demander aux Etats membres de l’Union Européenne de recenser les zones les plus sensibles au tassement en vue d’appliquer des mesures de prévention ou de réhabilitation. Le but de notre étude est de développer une méthode d’estimation des risques de tassement des sols et de l’appliquer à l’échelle de la France métropolitaine. La sensibilité des sols au tassement dépend du type de sol et augmente avec la teneur en eau. L’intensité du tassement dépend de la charge appliquée à la surface du sol. L’estimation des risques de tassement repose sur la fréquence d’occurrence d’une teneur en eau critique qui engendre une intensité de tassement pénalisant le fonctionnement des sols et des cultures. Elle fait appel à deux modèles : le modèle de culture STICS pour le calcul de l’évolution journalière de la teneur en eau des sols, le modèle de déformation COMPSOIL pour le calcul des teneurs en eau critiques en fonction des engins utilisés. Ces deux modèles sont appliqués sur la Base de Données Géographique des Sols de France au 1/1 000 000ème. Une amélioration du paramétrage du module hydrique de STICS adapté à cette base de données est proposée. Les risques de tassement des sols sont estimés pour trois périodes d’intervention au cours d’une culture de blé d’hiver ou de maïs : le semis, la fertilisation azotée et la récolte, en fonction de scénarios climatiques actuels et futurs. Plusieurs critères de définition d’un sol tassé et d’un risque de tassement ont été utilisés. La cartographie des risques de tassement (1) s’avère très sensible au choix de ces critères, (2) résulte de la combinaison des trois facteurs : type de sol, climat et système de culture, sans facteur prédominant. La méthodologie proposée, basée sur l’utilisation de modèles de fonctionnement hydromécanique, est bien adaptée à l’estimation des risques de tassement des horizons de surface des sols cultivés. Une caractérisation plus précise des propriétés mécaniques des sols français est à envisager pour réduire les incertitudes sur la cartographie des risques. / Soil compaction is one of the major processes of soil degradation in Europe. Compaction is mainly due to the mechanization ofagricultural and forest activities which involve use of increasingly heavy machines, even when the weather conditions may beunfavourable. The European Union Directive for soil protection in preparation will require for the Member States to zone soilcompaction risk for determining priority areas for soil prevention or soil improvement. In this context, the aim of this study is tobuild a methodology to soil compaction risk at national scale. The susceptibility of soil to compaction increases with the soil watercontent. The soil compaction risks are deduced from frequency of appearance of critical water content which implies systematiccompaction. Soil water content is estimated with the crop model STICS for 30 years on the whole French soils. Before simulations,we must (1) estimate critical water content as a function of soil and applied stress; (2) parameterize the hydraulic module of STICSso that it is adapted to the whole French soils; (3) parameterize the mechanical functioning of French soils. The results are mappedwith the Soil geographical data base of France at 1/1 000 000. The compaction risks are thus estimated for three periods of farmingoperation during winter wheat and maize cultivation: soil conditioning/sowing, nitrogenous fertilising and harvest for present andfuture climates. These three operations are characterized by the applied stress and the climatic conditions. Several criteria definingcompacted soil and compaction risk were used. Maps of soil compaction risk appeared sensitive to these criteria and also showed that compaction risk is resulting from the interaction of three factors: soil types, climate and farming systems without any dominating.The proposed methodology based on use of hydraulic and mechanical models is well adapted to the estimation of compaction risk for cultivated topsoil. But, mechanical properties for French soils must be characterised more precisely in future to limit uncertainties in the mapping of soil compaction risk.

<p> This dissertation presents studies on several statistical-mechanical problems, many of which involve exotic many-particle systems. In Chapter 2, we present an algorithm to generate Random Sequential Addition (RSA) packings of hard hyperspheres at the infinite-time saturation limit, and investigate this limit with unprecedented precision. In Chapter 3, we study the problem of devising smooth, short-ranged isotropic pair potentials such that their ground state is an unusual targeted crystalline structure. We present a new algorithm to do so, and demonstrate its capability by targeting several singular structures that were not known to be achievable as ground states with isotropic interactions. </p><p> A substantial portion of this dissertation examines exotic many-particle systems with so-called &ldquo;collective-coordinate&rdquo; interactions. They include &ldquo;stealthy&rdquo; potentials, which are isotropic pair potentials with disordered and infinitely degenerate ground states as well as &ldquo;perfect-glass&rdquo; interactions, which have up to four-body contributions, and possess disordered and <i>unique</i> ground states, up to trivial symmetry operations. Chapters 4-7 study the classical ground states of &ldquo;stealthy&rdquo; potentials. We establish a numerical means to sample these infinitely-degenerate ground states in Chapter 4 and study exotic &ldquo;stacked-slider&rdquo; phases that arise at suitable low densities in Chapter 5. In Chapters 6 and 7, we investigate several geometrical and physical properties of stealthy systems. Chapter 8 studies lattice-gas systems with the same stealthy potentials. Chapter 9 is concerned with the introduction and study of the perfect-glass paradigm. Chapter 10 demonstrates that perfect-glass interactions indeed possess disordered and unique classical ground states&mdash;a highly counterintuitive proposition. </p><p> In Chapter 11, we use statistical-mechanical methods to characterize the spatial distribution of the prime numbers. We show that the primes are much more ordered than anyone previously thought via the structure factor. Indeed, they are characterized by infinitely many Bragg peaks in any non-zero interval of wave vectors, yet unlike quasicrystals, the ratio between the heights or locations of any two Bragg peaks is always rational. We analytically explain the locations and heights of all such peaks.</p><p>

No description available.

The stochastic-continuum model developed by Schwartz and Smith [1988] is a new approach to the traditional continuum methods for solute transport in fractured media. Instead of trying to determine dispersion coefficients and an effective porosity for the hydraulic system, statistics on particle motion (direction, velocity and fracture length) collected from a discretely modeled sub-domain network are used to recreate particle motion in a full-domain continuum model. The discrete sub-domain must be large enough that representative statistics can be collected, yet small enough to be modeled with available resources. Statistics are collected in the discrete sub-domain model as the solute, represented by discrete particles, is moved through the network of fractures. The domain of interest, which is typically too large to be modeled discretely is represented by a continuum distribution of the hydraulic head. A particle tracking method is used to move the solute through the continuum model, sampling from the distributions for direction, velocity and fracture length. This thesis documents extensions and further testing of the stochastic-continuum two-dimensional model and initial work on a three-dimensional stochastic-continuum model. Testing of the model was done by comparing the mass distribution from the stochastic-continuum model to the mass distribution from the same domain modeled discretely. Analysis of the velocity statistics collected in the two-dimensional model suggested changes in the form of the fitted velocity distribution from a gaussian distribution to a gamma distribution, and the addition of a velocity correlation function. By adding these changes to the statistics collected, an improvement in the match of the spatial mass distribution moments between the stochastic-continuum and discrete models was effected. This extended two-dimensional model is then tested under a wide range of network conditions. The differences in the first spatial moments of the discrete and stochastic-continuum models were less than 10%, while the differences in the second spatial moments ranged from 6% to 30%. Initial results from the three-dimensional stochastic-continuum model showed that similar statistics to those used in the two-dimensional stochastic-continuum model can be used to recreate the nature of three-dimensional discrete particle motion. / Science, Faculty of / Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, Department of / Graduate