In order to predict the linear stability of combustion systems in industrial-scale gas turbines, a stability analysis was completed using models generated for each of the major dynamic components. Changes in the combustion process of gas turbines to reduce emissions has resulted in large amplitude pressure oscillations associated with a coupling between the natural acoustic modes of the combustor and the unsteady heat release from the flame. Detailed models of the acoustics and the heat release processes were created and assembled, with a time delay element and the appropriate scaling, into a system block diagram to investigate the stability of the system using linear system theory. Wherever possible the analytical models were validated with experimental data. The main goal of this work was to create a design methodology which could be used by industry to predict where instabilities were likely to occur during the design phase. Results show that the system based stability analysis can predict some of the instability frequencies seen in the experimental data, but more refined models are needed to predict every instability. Future work will involve designing experiments to validate and refine the dynamic models already developed. / Master of Science

Acoustic Transfer Functions Derived from Finite Element Modeling for Thermoacoustic Stability Predictions of Gas Turbine Engines Design and prediction of thermoacoustic instabilities is a major challenge in aerospace propulsion and the operation of power generating gas turbine engines. This is a complex problem in which multiple physical systems couple together. Traditionally, thermoacoustic models can be reduced to dominant physics which depend only on flame dynamics and acoustics. This is the general approach adopted in this research. The primary objective of this thesis is to describe how to obtain acoustic transfer functions using finite element modeling. These acoustic transfer functions can be coupled with flame transfer functions and other dynamics to predict the thermoacoustic stability of gas turbine engines. Results of this research effort can go beyond the prediction of instability and potentially can be used as a tool in the design stage. Consequently, through the use of these modeling tools, better gas turbine engine designs can be developed, enabling expanded operating conditions and efficiencies. This thesis presents the finite element (FE) methodology used to develop the acoustic transfer functions of the Combustion System Dynamics Laboratory (CSDL) gaseous combustor to support modeling and prediction of thermoacoustic instabilities. In this research, several different areas of the acoustic modeling were addressed to develop a representative acoustics model of the hot CSDL gaseous combustor. The first area was the development and validation of the cold acoustic finite element model. A large part of this development entailed finding simple but accurate means for representing complex geometries and boundary conditions. The cold-acoustic model of the laboratory combustor was refined and validated with the experimental data taken on the combustion rig. The second stage of the research involved incorporating the flame into the FE model and has been referred to in this thesis as hot-acoustic modeling. The hot-acoustic model also required the investigation and characterization of the flame as an acoustic source. The detailed mathematical development for the full reacting acoustic wave equation was investigated and simplified sufficiently to identify the appropriate source term for the flame. It was determined that the flame could be represented in the finite element formulation as a volumetric acceleration, provided that the flame region is small compared to acoustic wavelengths. For premixed gas turbine combustor flames, this approximation of a small flame region is generally a reasonable assumption. Both the high temperature effects and the flame as an acoustic source were implemented to obtain a final hot-acoustic FE model. This model was compared to experimental data where the heat release of the flame was measured along with the acoustic quantities of pressure and velocity. Using these measurements, the hot-acoustic FE model was validated and found to correlate with the experimental data very well. The thesis concludes with a discussion of how these techniques can be utilized in large industrial-size combustors. Insights into stability are also discussed. A conclusion is then presented with the key results from this research and some suggestions for future work. / Master of Science

In recent years, revolutionary "hybrid" or "multi-physics" methods of medical imaging have emerged. By combining two or three different types of waves these methods overcome limitations of classical tomography techniques and deliver otherwise unavailable, potentially life-saving diagnostic information. Thermoacoustic (and photoacoustic) tomography is the most developed multi-physics imaging modality. Thermo- and photo-acoustic tomography require reconstructing initial acoustic pressure in a body from time series of pressure measured on a surface surrounding the body. For the classical case of free space wave propagation, various reconstruction techniques are well known. However, some novel measurement schemes place the object of interest between reflecting walls that form a de facto resonant cavity. In this case, known methods cannot be used. In chapter 2 we present a fast iterative reconstruction algorithm for measurements made at the walls of a rectangular reverberant cavity with a constant speed of sound. We prove the convergence of the iterations under a certain sufficient condition, and demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency of the algorithm in numerical simulations. In chapter 3 we consider the more general problem of an arbitrarily shaped resonant cavity with a non constant speed of sound and present the gradual time reversal method for computing solutions to the inverse source problem. It consists in solving back in time on the interval [0, T] the initial/boundary value problem for the wave equation, with the Dirichlet boundary data multiplied by a smooth cutoff function. If T is sufficiently large one obtains a good approximation to the initial pressure; in the limit of large T such an approximation converges (under certain conditions) to the exact solution.

The primary purpose of this work was to evaluate the capability of nanoparticles to transform electromagnetic energy at microwave frequencies into therapeutic heating. Targeted nanoparticles, in conjunction with microwave irradiation, can increase the temperatures of the targeted area over the peripheral region. Therefore, to become clinically viable, microwave absorbing nanoparticles must first be identified, and a system to monitor the treatment must be developed. In this study, ultrasound temperature imaging was used to monitor the temperature of deep lying structures. First, a material-dependent quantity to correlate the temperature induced changes in ultrasound images (i.e. apparent time shifts) to differential temperatures was gathered for a tissue-mimicking phantom, porcine longissimus dorsi muscle, and porcine fat. Then microwave nanoabsorbers were identified using an infrared radiometer. The determined nanoabsorbers were then injected into ex-vivo porcine longissimus dorsi muscle tissue. Ultrasound imaging frames were gathered during microwave treatment of the inoculated tissue. Finally, the ultrasound frames were analyzed using the correlation between temperature and apparent shifts in ultrasound for porcine muscle tissue. The outcome was depth-resolved temperature profiles of the ex-vivo porcine muscle during treatment. The results of this study show that magnetite is a microwave nanoabsorber that increases the targeted temperature of microwave hyperthermia treatments. Overall, there is clinical potential to use microwave nanoabsorbers to increase the efficiency of microwave hyperthermia treatments. / text

Since the realisation of the computer, and shortly after the inception of artificial intelligence (AI), there has been an explosion of research solving human-level tasks using autonomous entities that are able to learn about an environment by observing and influencing it, known as intelligent agents (IA). This potent AI technique has yet to filter into the field of thermoscience, where the conceptual design and optimisation of complex energy systems has been a particularly challenging problem. Much of the design process still requires human expertise. But with the continual increase in computational power and the use of IAs, it is now time to shift the responsibility from the human to the computer. This research attempts to answer the question of whether it is possible for a computer to conceptually design a complex energy system autonomously, from inception. The complex energy system to be designed and optimised is a thermoacoustic heat engine (TAHE), which converts thermal to acoustic power. The complexity of its physical behaviour and its many design parameters makes it a challenging energy system for conceptual design and optimisation and consequently an ideal candidate for this particular research. The TAHE is designed for low temperature waste heat utilisation from a baking process. In this work an approach is employed that is based on a reinforcement learning intelligent agent (RLIA). The RLIA is first employed to simultaneously optimise thirteen design parameter values. The RLIA was able to learn key design features of a TAHE which lead to the reduction in acoustic losses and an acoustic power from the engine of 495.32 W, when the thermal power input was 19 kW. For the main experiment, the RLIA must conceptually design the TAHE from scratch, changing both the parameter values and the configuration of the device. The results have shown the remarkable ability of the RLIA to identify several key design features of the TAHE: the correct configuration of the device, selecting designs that reduce acoustic losses, create positive acoustic power in the stack region and determine the region of optimality of the design parameter values. The RLIA has shown a great capacity to learn, even when contending with a complex environment and a vast search space. With this work we have introduced RLIAs as a new way approach to such multidimensional problems in the field of thermoscience/thermal engineering.

Thermoacoustics is a field of study which includes devices purpose-built to exploit the phenomenal interaction between heat and sound. Thermoacoustics has been demonstrated as an effective technology which can potentially serve a variety of purposes such as cryogenics, cost-effective domestic refrigeration or electricity generation, without adverse environmental impact or commercial drawbacks such as expensive construction or maintenance costs or high part counts. The mechanisms by which thermoacoustic devices operate at low amplitudes have been identified and effective design tools and methods are available, but the precise heat and mass transfer which occurs deep inside the core of thermoacoustic devices at high amplitudes cannot at present be precisely determined experimentally, and to date have been estimated using only relatively simple or one-dimensional computational domains. It is expected that thermoacoustic devices will need to operate at relatively high pressure amplitudes for commercial and practical applications, to achieve power densities similar to competing technologies. Clearly, advancement of these models and the methods used to investigate them will enable a better understanding of the precise heat and mass transfer that occurs within such devices. Previous numerical studies have modelled a ‘thermoacoustic couple’ which consists of a single or several plates (often modelled with zero thickness) and channels within an oscillatory pressure field. In this thesis several improvements to the ‘thermoacoustic couple’ modelspace are introduced and modelled, and compared with published results. Using the commercial CFD software Fluent, a two-dimensional, segregated and second-order implicit numerical model was developed which solves equations for continuity of mass, momentum and energy. These equations were computed using second-order and double-precision discretisation of time, flow variables and energy. A computational domain is presented which is capable of modelling plates of zero or non-zero thickness, is ‘self-resonant’ and able to capture the entrance and exit effects at the stack plate edges. Studies are presented in which the acoustic pressure amplitude, the thickness of the plate (‘blockage ratio’) and the shape of the plate are varied to determine their influence upon the rate of effective heat transfer, flow structure and overall efficiency. The modelling of thermoacoustic couples with finite thickness presented in this thesis demonstrates that the finite thickness produces new results which show significant disturbances to the flow field and changes to the expected rate and distribution of heat flux along the stack plate. Results indicate that the thickness of the plate, t[subscript]s, strongly controls the generation of vortices outside the stack region and perturbs the flow structure and heat flux distribution at the extremities of the plate. Increases in t[subscript]s are also shown to improve the integral of the total heat transfer rate but at the expense of increased entropy generation. Another contribution of this thesis is the study of the effect that leading and trailing edge shapes of stack plates have on the performance of a thermoacoustic couple. In practice, typical parallel or rectangular section stack plates do not have perfectly square edges. The existing literature considers only rectangular or zero-thickness (1-D) plates. Hence a study was performed to evaluate the potential for gains in performance from the use of non-rectangular cross sections, such as rounded, aerofoil or bulbous shaped edges. Consideration of various types of stack plate edges show that performance improvements can be made from certain treatments to the stack plate tips or if possible, stack plate profiles. This thesis also considers the influence of thermophysical properties and phenomena associated with practical thermoacoustic devices to investigate the applicability of the numerical model to experimental outcomes. Comparisons made between results obtained using the numerical model, linear numerical formulations and experimental results suggest that the numerical model allows comparative study of various thermoacoustic systems for design purposes but is not yet of sufficient scope to fully characterise a realistic system and predict absolute levels of performance. However, the presented method of modelling thermoacoustic couples yields increased insight and detail of flow regimes and heat transportation over previous studies. / http://proxy.library.adelaide.edu.au/login?url= http://library.adelaide.edu.au/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=1316904 / Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Mechanical Engineering, 2008

Thermoacoustic tomography (TAT) is a newly emerging modality in biomedical imaging. It combines the good contrast of electromagnetic and good resolution of ultrasound imaging. The mathematical model of TAT is the observability problem for the wave equation: one observes the data on a hyper-surface and reconstructs the initial perturbation. In this dissertation, we consider several mathematical problems of TAT. The first problem is the inversion formulas. We provide a family of closed form inversion formulas to reconstruct the initial perturbation from the observed data. The second problem is the range description. We present the range description of the spherical mean Radon transform, which is an important transform in TAT. The next problem is the stability analysis for TAT. We prove that the reconstruction of the initial perturbation from observed data is not H¨older stable if some observability condition is violated. The last problem is the speed determination. The question is whether the observed data uniquely determines the ultrasound speed and initial perturbation. We provide some initial results on this issue. They include the unique determination of the unknown constant speed, a weak local uniqueness, a characterization of the non-uniqueness, and a characterization of the kernel of the linearized operator.

Thermoacoustic instability is of fundamental and applied interest in both scientific research and practical applications. This study aims to explore several very important sub-aspects in this field and contribute to a better understanding of thermoacoustic instability as encountered in typical gas turbines and rocket engines. Atomization has been recognized as a key mechanism in driving applied thermoacoustic instability. In this regard, this study mainly focuses on the atomization process relevant for delineation of thermoacoustic instability, contributing to a comprehensive understanding of the effect of acoustics on primary and secondary atomization. Firstly, a tree-based adaptive solver and VOF method are employed to simulate the jet primary atomization. The code is validated by theoretical, numerical and experimental results to demonstrate its capability and accuracy in terms of atomization in both low-speed and high-speed regime. Perturbation frequency and amplitude have shown to affect the atomization significantly. Besides, the effect of acoustic forcing on liquid ligament has also been numerically investigated. A volume source term is introduced to extend the solver to model the compressible effects in the presence of acoustic forcing. The influence of acoustic wave number, amplitude and frequency has been examined in detail. In terms of modelling the thermoacoustic instability, bifurcation analysis is carried out for a time-delayed thermoacoustic system using the Method of Line approach. Good predictions have been obtained to capture the nonlinear behaviors inherent in the system. Moreover, model-based simulation and control of thermoacoustic instability have been conducted. A low-order wave-based network model for acoustics is coupled with nonlinear flame describing function to predict the nonlinear instability characteristics in both frequency and time domain. Furthermore, active feedback control is implemented. Two different controllers have been designed to eliminate the thermoacoustic instability to an acceptably low level and may be employed in a practical manner.

Cette thèse se concentre sur l’étude des instabilités de combustion dans un brûleur prémélangé. Les instabilités sont généralement issues d’un couplage entre la combustion et les modes propres du système. La mise en résonance qui en résulte peut avoir des conséquences qui sont souvent dommageables, entraînant des vibrations, une fatigue des matériaux soumis à des charges acoustiques élevées et une intensification des flux de chaleur vers les parois de la chambre. Un premier objectif de cette thèse est de poursuivre le développement de méthodes de prévision des instabilités et des phénomènes non-linéaires qui en résultent comme par exemple le développement de cycles limites, les processus de déclenchement (“triggering”), la commutation de modes. Le cadre général adopté est celui de «°l’équivalent harmonique » bien connu dans le domaine du contrôle et qui a été exploré dans le domaine des instabilités de combustion dans des travaux récents du laboratoire EM2C, CNRS. Par le biais de ce concept il est possible de tenir compte de l’´evolution de la réponse de la flamme suivant l’amplitude à laquelle elle est soumise. Cette réponse de flamme en fréquence et amplitude généralise la notion de fonction de transfert et elle est désignée sous le nom de “Flame Describing Function” (FDF). Le système est ouvert à son extrémité aval. Cette géométrie permet de simplifier l’analyse et d’obtenir une large gamme de configurations au moyen d’une variation continue de la longueur du conduit d’alimentation qui est limité en amont par un piston. On peut aussi échanger le tube à flamme et utiliser des longueurs différentes de cet élément. Une étude exhaustive est réalisée pour répertorier les oscillations observées et déduire leurs propriétés. On montre que les cycles limites qui possèdent une amplitude constante sont bien décrits par la méthode unifiée fondée sur la FDF. Pour certaines configurations l’expérience fait apparaître des cycles limites dont l’amplitude et la fréquence ne se stabilisent pas au cours du temps. On observe notamment des oscillations plus complexes couplées par plusieurs modes pouvant soit donner lieu à des variations régulières ou à des fluctuations plus irrégulières avec un caractère “galopant” dans le temps. Pour ces oscillations particulières, la FDF fournit des indications sur les domaines d’apparition mais n’est pas en mesure de décrire complètement ces cycles limites complexes. Il faut dans ce cas recourir à une représentation temporelle qui n’est pas développée dans ce document. La base de données expérimentales pourra être utilisée pour guider ultérieurement ce type d’analyse. Le deuxième grand objectif de cette thèse est de rechercher des méthodes de contrôle des instabilités. On considère plus particulièrement des systèmes dynamiques utilisant des plaques perforées polarisées par un écoulement (BFP : “bias flow perforate”). Ces systèmes sont particulièrement intéressants pour atténuer les oscillations basse fréquence qui sont difficiles à réduire par des systèmes passifs. La conception de ces BFPs est fondée sur des travaux récents menés au laboratoire EM2C, CNRS avec notamment l’objectif de robustesse, c’est-à-dire la possibilité de couvrir une large bande de fréquences. L’´etude expérimentale et les calculs fondés sur la FDF menés en parallèle permettent de voir les possibilités de tels systèmes et de comprendre les conditions nécessaires à leur efficacité. Cette étude peut permettre de guider les applications qui pourraient être envisagées en pratique. / This thesis is concerned with an investigation of combustion instabilities in premixed combustors. This problem has been the subject of a continuous effort in relation with the many issues encountered in practical systems like those used in propulsion and energy production. Combustion instabilities usually arise from the coupling between combustion and acoustic eigenmodes of the system. In most cases such resonances lead to vibrations, structural fatigue and intensified heat fluxes to the chamber walls. The first part of this thesis pursues the development of prediction methods for combustion instabilities and the associated nonlinear phenomena such as limit cycles establishment, triggering, mode switching and hysteresis. The aim is to delineate physical mechanisms and develop analytical methods dedicated to prediction. The theoretical framework relies on the “harmonic balance” formalism well known in the domain of control and which has been adopted more recently in combustion instability studies carried out at EM2C, CNRS laboratory. Through this concept, it is possible to take into account the evolution of the flame response as a function of amplitude. This flame response, depending on frequency and amplitude, extends the flame transfer function principle and is designated as the “Flame Describing Function” (FDF). The development of the FDF framework is pursued in the present study. The experimental setup which exemplifies combustion instabilities and serves to validate the method has generic features as it comprises in an idealized version, all the parts found in practical systems : a feeding manifold delivering a mixture of methane and air, a multipoint injector made of a perforated plate anchoring a collection of small laminar conical flames and a flame tube made of quartz which confines the combustion zone. The downstream boundary of the system is open. This device allows a simplified analysis and provides a wide variety of configurations through the continuous modification of the feeding manifold length which is bounded by a piston on the upstream and through changes of the flame tube lengths. Systematic comparison between theoretical results and well controlled experiments is undertaken. Depending on the geometry, the setup exhibits a large variety of unstable modes which are classified in terms of their limit cycle behavior using tools from dynamical system theory. It is shown that limit cycles with constant amplitude are well predicted by the unified FDF methodology. For some configurations, the experiment reveals limit cycles characterized by time variable amplitude and frequency. One finds situations where the oscillation is coupled by multiple modes leading either to regular amplitude variations or more irregular evolutions with a “galloping” pattern as a function of time. For this special type of limit cycle, the FDF indicates the range of the onset, but is not able to fully describe these complex limit cycles. These oscillations require a time domain state space analysis which is not addressed in this manuscript. The experimental database may be of value for further work in this direction. The second part of this thesis deals with control methods for instabilities. One specifically considers damping systems relying on perforated plates biased by a flow (BFP : “Bias Flow Perforate”). These systems are particularly interesting because they can be used to cancel low frequency oscillations which are otherwise difficult to reduce through passive control methods. This BFP design relies on recent work carried out at EM2C, CNRS laboratory which extends the frequency range where the system is effective. The experimental study and the associated FDF calculations are used to delineate the possibilities of such systems and uncover conditions required for an effective damping of oscillations. This study provides indications on the practical application of BFPs.

Les effets non linéaires de l’acoustique et en particulier le streaming de Rayleigh sont étudiés depuis les années 1850 où Lord Rayleigh fit l’observation d’un écoulement quasi permanent se superposant à l’onde acoustique qui se propageait dans un résonateur. Ce phénomène n’est donc pas nouveau et il a par ailleurs été le sujet de nombreuses études. Il a néanmoins été adopté comme point de départ de cette thèse, à ceci près que nous avons choisi de l’appliquer ici au cas particulier de la thermoacoustique. Cette nouvelle discipline qui a commencé à se développer dans les années 1980 met en œuvre un processus (basé sur la conversion réciproque entre énergie acoustique et énergie thermique) utilisé dans les systèmes thermoacoustiques tels que les moteurs ou réfrigérateurs. C’est une nouvelle technologie propre et fiable qui a de nombreux avantages. Cependant lorsque ces machines fonctionnent à forts niveaux acoustiques des effets indésirables viennent perturber le fonctionnement et réduire le rendement. Au cours de cette thèse nous nous sommes efforcés à analyser et évaluer expérimentalement ces effets indésirables et non linéaires qui se caractérisent entre autres par l’apparition du streaming de Rayleigh. Un objectif pas si élémentaire car ces phénomènes du second ordre amènent généralement à des situations délicates où les interactions et couplages entre les différents effets rencontrés sont très présents. L’interaction d’un gradient de température au sein du résonateur, de la géométrie de ce dernier ou encore l’interaction d’un stack thermoacoustique sur le streaming de Rayleigh sont autant de points sur lesquels nous nous sommes concentrés. Pour mener à terme cette étude, un premier résonateur acoustique muni d’une cellule de mesure a été utilisé pour valider la méthode expérimentale retenue. La PIV (Velocimétrie par Image de Particules) a été retenue comme technique la plus appropriée à la mesure des non linéarités de l’écoulement et du streaming de Rayleigh. Un second résonateur a ensuite été réalisé puis mis en place au laboratoire afin d’effectuer des mesures de plus grande envergure. Les résultats confirment les conclusions tirées de précédentes études et montrent la présence de quatre cellules contrarotatives au sein du résonateur. Par ailleurs la totalité du résonateur a pu être cartographiée permettant ainsi de visualiser l’ensemble des écoulements secondaires présents. L’intrication du streaming avec la température se révèle complexe. L’introduction de nouveaux éléments dans le résonateur (tels que les échangeurs) vient en effet créer des phénomènes qui se superposent aux effets déjà présents. Afin de continuer le travail débuté au cours de cette thèse, de nouveaux essais sont prévus. Ils permettront d’analyser plus finement les diverses interactions entre phénomènes. / Nonlinear acoustic effects and Rayleigh streaming in particular are studied since the 1850s when Lord Rayleigh made the observation of a quasi-steady flow superimposed on the acoustic wave propagating in a resonator. This phenomenon may not be new and it has moreover been the subject of numerous studies. However, it was adopted as the starting point of this thesis, except that we have chosen to apply it to the particular case of thermoacoustics. This new discipline that has started raising interest in the 1980s features a process –based on reverse conversion between thermal and acoustic energy- used in systems such as thermoacoustic engines and refrigerators. This is a new, clean and reliable technology that has many advantages. However, when these machines operate at high acoustic levels unwanted and nonlinear effects appear reducing the machine performances. In this thesis we therefore have tried to analyze and experimentally evaluate these effects which among other things are characterized by the appearance of Rayleigh streaming. This goal is not so elementary as these second-order phenomena generally lead to tricky situations where interactions and couplings between the different effects encountered are very present. The interaction of a temperature gradient within the resonator, the geometry of the latter or the interaction of a thermoacoustic stack on Rayleigh streaming are many points on which we focused. To complete this study, an acoustic resonator with a measurement cell was first used to validate the experimental method chosen. PIV (Particle Image Velocimetry) has proven to be an appropriate technique for the measurement of acoustical nonlinearities and Rayleigh streaming. A second resonator was then achieved and implemented in the laboratory to make measurements on a larger scale. The results confirm the findings of previous studies and show the presence of two counter-rotating cells within the resonator. Moreover the entire resonator has been mapped allowing visualizing all secondary flows. The interaction of streaming with temperature is complex. The introduction of new elements in the resonator such as heat exchangers has indeed created additional phenomena that superimposed on already existing effects. To continue the work started in this thesis, further tests are planned. They will further analyze the interactions between theses various phenomena.