<p>Future long-duration space missions will take humans farther from the support resources of Earth than ever before. These missions will require microgravity surgical technologies in the case of an emergency that necessitates medical intervention. This experiment integrated three different surgical technologies for testing in weightlessness on parabolic flights: a surgical containment dome, a multi-function surgical wand, and a microgravity blood-air separator. Two fluid loops were utilized: one in which the surgical wand, containment dome, and a wound model were used to provide a realistic mixture of blood simulant and air to the blood-air separator. The other fluid loop used prescribed mixture ratios of air and blood to test the performance of the separator under varying conditions. The results of this experiment showed that the multi-functional surgical tool and dome functioned as designed. In addition, each separator successfully separated the blood and air from the mixture, allowing for future blood transfusion. With this demonstration, each system used in this experiment qualifies as technology readiness level 6. Advancing the technology readiness level of these technologies further will require long duration zero-g testing on-orbit before inclusion in authentic space mission emergency surgical strategy. </p>

<p>In this study, universal databases and semi-empirical correlations are developed for cryogenic two-phase heat transfer and pressure drop in heated tubes undergoing flow boiling.</p>

<p>Fibre suspensions in the fluid medium are common in industry, biology, and the environment. Industrial examples of concentrated suspensions include fresh concrete, uncured solid rocket fuel, and biomass slurries; natural examples include silt transfer in rivers and red blood cells in the blood.  These suspensions often include a Newtonian fluid as their suspending medium; still, these suspensions exhibit a plethora of non-Newtonian properties, such as yield stresses, rate-dependent rheology, and normal stresses, to name a few. Other than volume fraction, the type of fiber material, the presence of fluid-fiber or fiber-fiber interactions such as hydrodynamic, Brownian, colloidal, frictional, chemical, and/or electrostatic determine the rheological behavior of suspension. The average inter-fiber gaps between the neighboring fibers decrease significantly as the suspension volume fraction move towards a concentrated regime. As a result, in this regime, inter-fiber interactions become dominant.  Moreover, the surface asperities are present on the fiber surface even in the case of so-called smooth fibers, as fibers in real suspensions are not perfectly smooth. Hence, contact forces arising from the direct touching of the fibers become one of the essential factors in determining the rheology of suspensions.</p> <p>We first describe the causes of yield stress, shear thinning, and normal stress differences in fibre suspensions. We model the fibers as inextensible continuous flexible slender bodies with the Euler-Bernoulli beam equation governing their dynamics suspended in an incompressible Newtonian fluid. The fiber dynamics and fluid flow coupling is achieved using the immersed boundary method (IBM). In addition, the fiber surface roughness lead to inter-fiber contacts resulting in normal and tangential forces between the fibers, which follow Coulomb’s law of<br> friction. The surface roughness is modeled as hemispherical protrusions on the fiber surfaces. In addition to the comparison of the computational model to the experimental results, we demonstrate that attractive interactions lead to yield stress and shear thinning rheology.</p> <p>Furthermore, we investigate the effects of fiber aspect ratio, roughness, flexibility, and volume fraction on the rheology of concentrated suspensions. We find that the suspension viscosity increases with increasing the volume fraction, roughness, fiber rigidity, and aspect ratio. The increase in relative viscosity is the macroscopic manifestation of a similar increase  in the microscopic contact contribution with these parameters. In addition, we observe positive and negative first and second normal stress differences, respectively, in agreement with previous experiments. Lastly, we propose a modified Maron-Pierce law to quantify the the jamming volume fraction with varying fiber aspect ratio and roughness. Additionally, we provide a constitutive model to calculate the viscosity at various volume fractions, aspect ratios, and shear rates.</p>

Shell and tube heat exchangers (STHEs) are the most common type of heat exchanger in preheat trains (PHT) of oil refineries and in chemical process plants. Most commercial design software tools for STHE assume uniform distribution over all tubes of a tube bundle. This leads to various challenges in the operation of the affected devices. Flow maldistribution reduces heat duty of STHE in many applications and supports fouling buildup in fluids that tend to particle, bio, and crystallization fouling (Verein Deutscher Ingenieure, ed., 2010, Heat Atlas, 2nd ed., VDI-Buch., Springer-Verlag). In this article, a fluid mechanics study about tube side flow distribution of crude oil and related hydrocarbons in two-pass PHT heat exchangers is described. It is shown that the amount of flow maldistribution varies significantly between the different STHE designs. Therefore, a parameter study was conducted to investigate reasons for maldistribution. For instance, the nozzles diameter, type, and orientation were identified as crucial parameters. In consequence, simple design suggestions for reducing tube side flow maldistribution are proposed.

<p>This study comprises experimental investigations and theoretical/empirical analyses of three forced-convective (pumped) boiling schemes: (i) confined round single jet and jet array impingement boiling, and flow boiling through conventional-sized (ii) concentric circular annuli and (iii) rectangular channels. These schemes could be utilized in the thermal management of various applications including high-heat-flux electronic devices, power devices, electric vehicle charging cables, avionics, future space vehicles, etc.</p>

<p>  </p> <p>Part I studies the lubricant sprays and droplets in a rotary compressor. Air conditioning (AC) systems are now widely used in residential and commercial environments, while the compressor is the most important element in the AC system, and rotary compressors are often used in split AC appliances, whose number is estimated to reach 3.7 billion in 2050. In a rotary compressor, the lubricant oil atomizes into small droplets due to the differential pressure in and out of the cylinder. Part of the lubricant oil droplets carried by the refrigerant vapor will ultimately exhaust from the compressor through the discharge pipe. The ratio of the discharged oil volume to the total oil volume is characterized as the Oil Discharge Ratio (ODR). High ODR will reduce the reliability of the compressor and deteriorate the heat transfer of the condenser and the evaporator, resulting in decreased efficiency. Thus, controlling the ODR is a key issue for the design of the rotary compressor.</p> <p>In Part I, rotary compressors were modified to provide optical access into its internal space, i.e., the lower cavity (refers to the space between the cylinder and the motor), above the rotor/stator, and at the discharge tube level. The modified rotary compressors’ operation was supported by a test rig which provided a wide range of operating conditions, e.g., pressure and frequency. Thus, in-situ optical measurements, e.g., shadowgraph and holograph, can be performed to visualize the lubricant sprays and droplets in the rotary compressor. An image processing routine containing the Canny operator and Convolutional Neural-Network was developed to identify droplets from high-resolution shadowgraph images, while Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) and Optical Flow Velocimetry (OFV) were applied to calculate the spray and droplet’s velocities with time-resolved shadowgraph images. Parallel Four-Step Phase Shifting Holograph (PFSPSH) located the droplets’ positions in a three-dimensional volume under the specific operating condition.</p> <p>Both primary and secondary atomization were observed in the rotary compressor, while primary atomization is the major source of droplet production. The droplet size distributions versus the frequency, vertical direction, radial direction, and pressure are obtained. It is observed that the droplet characteristic mean diameters increase with the frequency and pressure. They also become larger in the outer region above the rotor/stator and keep constant in the radial direction at the discharge tube level. The penetration velocity of the lubricant spray is calculated in the lower cavity. An outward shift of the jet core combined with an outward velocity component was observed. Additionally, horizontal swirling velocity above the rotor/stator and at the discharge tube level and the vertical recirculation velocity above the rotor/stator are characterized. The volume fraction of droplets was also characterized under the specific operating condition. The results provide detailed experimental data to set up the boundary conditions used in CFD. They also show that the droplets in the upper cavity are mostly from the discharge process of the cylinder in the lower cavity. The results support a droplet pathway model in the rotary compressor, which can guide the optimization of future rotary compressors.</p> <p>Evaporation is commonly seen in hydrology, agriculture, combustion, refrigeration, welding, etc. And it always accompanies heat and mass transfer at the liquid-gas interface and is affected by the substance’s properties, the environment’s pressure, temperature, convection, and so on. PFSPSH in Part I aims to retrieve the phase information for holograph reconstruction. Part II further explores the application of the PFSPSH technology in Part I to observe the evaporation process of acetone, where the phase disturbance caused by the vapor is used to reconstruct the vapor concentration in space. The method is called Parallel Four-Step Phase Shifting Interferometer (PFSPSI). The first case studies the evaporation process of the acetone contained in a liquid pool with uniform air flow in a low-speed wind tunnel. The mole fractions of the acetone vapor near the liquid-air interface with different air speeds are characterized. The second case studies the evaporation process of acetone droplets levitated by an ultrasound levitator. The mole fraction of the acetone vapor near the liquid-air interface is characterized by assuming an axisymmetric field and using the analytical solution of the inverse Abel transform. The asymmetric pattern of the acetone vapor field is observed, which is considered due to the drastic sound pressure change at the stand wave location produced by the ultrasound levitator. The mass transfer of the evaporation process by the vapor’s mole fraction is calculated and compared with the mass transfer calculated by the droplet size change. It is observed that the mass transfer by the vapor’s mole fraction is generally smaller than the mass transfer calculated by the droplet size change, which can be explained by the convection process induced by the acoustic streaming.</p>

<p dir="ltr">For additive manufacturing to be a viable method to build metal parts for industries such as nuclear, the manufactured parts must be of higher quality and have lower variation in said quality than what can be achieved today. This high variation in quality bars the techniques from being used in high safety tolerance fields, such as nuclear. If this obstacle could be overcome, the benefits of additive manufacturing would be in lower cost for complex parts, as well as the ability to design and test parts in a very short timeframe, as only the CAD model needs to be created to manufacture the part. In this study, work to achieve this lower variation of quality was approached in two ways. The first was in the development of surrogate models, utilizing machine learning, to predict the end quality of additively manufactured parts. This was done by using experimental data for the mechanical properties of built parts as outputs to be predicted, and in-situ signals captured during the manufacturing process as inputs to the model. To capture the in-situ signals, cameras were used for thermal and optical imaging, leveraging the natural layer-by-layer manufacturing method used in AM techniques. The final models were created using support vector machine and gaussian process regression machine learning algorithms, giving high correlations between the insitu signals and mechanical properties of relative density, elongation to fracture, uniform elongation, and the work hardening exponent. The second approach to this study was in the development of a reduced order model for a computer simulation of an AM build. For project, a ROM was built inside the MOOSE framework, and was developed for an AM model designed by the MOOSE team, using proper orthogonal decomposition to project the problem onto a lower dimensional subspace, using POD to design the reduced basis subspace. The ROM was able to achieve a reduction to 1% the original dimensionality of the problem, while only allowing 2-5% relative error associated with the projection.</p>

<p dir="ltr">Powder Sprays such as Direct Energy Deposition and Cold Spray are rapidly growing and promising manufacturing methods in the Additive Manufacturing field, as they allow easy and localized delivery of powder to be fused to a substrate and consecutive layers. The relatively small size of nozzles allows for these methods to be mounted on CNC machines and Robotic Arms for the creation of complex shapes. However, these manufacturing methods are inherently stochastic, and therefore differences in powder size, shape, trajectory, and velocity can drastically affect whether they will deposit on a substrate. This variation results in an inherent reduction of deposition efficiency, leading to waste and the need for powder collection or recycling systems. The design of the nozzles can drastically affect the variation of powder trajectory and velocity on a holistic level, and thus understanding the gas-powder flow of these nozzles in respect to the features of said nozzles is crucial. This paper proposes and examines how changes in the nozzle geometry affect gas-powder flow and powder focusing for Direct Energy Deposition and Cold Spray. In addition, a new Pulsed Cold Spray nozzle design is proposed that will control the amount of gas and powder used by the nozzle via solenoid actuation. By making these changes to the nozzle, it is possible to improve deposition efficiency and reduce powder/gas waste in these processes, while also allowing for improved coating density. Furthermore, the research done in this thesis will also focus on novel applications to powder spray manufacturing methods, focusing on polymer metallization and part identification.</p>

<p dir="ltr">Interest in using detonation-based combustion cycles for use propulsion and power generation has gained considerable attention in the last 10 years or so. The rotating detonation engine (RDE), in particular, has garnered the most attention as a possible replacement for current generation combustion systems. RDEs are continuous flow devices that typically operate in a non-premixed fashion. Reactants are injected into an annular combustion chamber that is usually several millimeters wide. One or more detonation waves propagate azimuthally around the annulus, consuming the reactants. The products then expand out of the combustor where it can produce thrust or be passed into a turbine. The detonation wave front in RDEs travel at speeds between 1-3 km/s which poses additional complexity beyond traditional combustors. There are large gaps in the research community for RDEs that use one or more liquid based propellants. Questions regarding liquid breakup, atomization, breakup, recovery all remain unanswered both experimentally and numerically. This work seeks to understand these fundamental physical phenomena that drive these devices by applying advanced, high-speed laser and other optical diagnostics. </p><p dir="ltr"> A 120 mm nominal diameter rotating detonation combustor that operates on non-premixed hydrogen-air was modified to remove a hydrogen orifice and was replaced with a single liquid fuel injector. This simple, yet important, modification enables the study of a one-way coupling between a liquid fuel jet and a detonation wave at relevant spatio-temporal scales. Planar laser-induced fluorescence was performed at rates up to 1 MHz to quantify the quasi-steady jet dynamics and the recovery behavior of the single liquid jet. Long-duration PLIF imaging lasting 30-40 detonation periods at 300 kHz was also performed for statistical significance. A diesel liquid-in-crossflow injector was observed to breakup or be removed from the PLIF plane within only a few microseconds. After the detonation wave passes through the spray there is a significant dwell period can last between 20-40% of the detonation period before the new fuel is issued into the channel. The quasi-steady liquid jet trajectory was also compared to a jet-in-crossflow from literature and there is decent agreement in the jet near-field. </p><p dir="ltr"> The same hardware scheme with a different liquid fuel injector was tested in conjunction with an alternative imagine scheme. The first technique was able to capture details in the radial-axial plane but could not resolve any motion in the azimuthal direction. A volume-based illumination scheme was used for LIF to image a liquid fuel jet in the azimuthal-axial plane. For this experiment the location of the liquid fuel jet was moved into a different position and as a result experiences significantly different behavior than the jet in crossflow. The breakup and evaporation process takes place over a much longer period of time and there is no pause of liquid fuel injection. Similarly, LIF was performed at 300 kHz for 30 detonation cycles to enable sadistically quantification and phase averaging. Filtered OH* and CH* chemiluminescence imaging was also performed over the same field of view as the LIF imaging. Estimation of the velocity field was calculated using optical flow from the Jet-A LIF images. The velocity results agree well with the recovery analysis from the PLIF measurements.</p><p dir="ltr"> Using the same liquid fuel injection scheme, Jet-A droplet diameter and velocity was measured <i>in-situ</i> during a hot-fire experiment using phase Doppler interferometry (PDI). Although a point technique, PDI was used to measure thousands of droplets during a single test at multiple locations and with multiple conditions. As a means of comparison, cold flow experiments were performed with water in the exit plume. Droplet diameters were measured between 1-20 µs in both cases. PDI results were compared with the optical flow results and there is agreement in median velocities and some differences in the minimum and maximum velocity values. Possible sources of error in the diameter measurement are discussed as well.</p>

<p dir="ltr">The foundation of numerical codes used in engineering analyses of two-phase flows is the two-fluid model (TFM). However, the TFM codes use artificial regularization to remove the high frequency ill-posed instability in the numerical solution. This work demonstrates that incorporating variational inertial coupling terms to the numerical two-fluid model code, makes it more complete, objective and well-posed without the need for any regularization. The variational TFM is implemented in an industrial CFD code and the two-fluid Burgers problem is used to verify the numerical TFM against analytic solutions.</p>