A novel power control strategy for induction cooktops designed by means of analytical, circuital and FEM modelling

The main target of this thesis is to provide new, fast and accurate methodologies to model and analyse the operation of a domestic hob, with a focus on the inverter, inductor and load, which represent the cornerstone of all the induction heating systems. A novel control strategy is developed in order to avoid the use of the PDM strategy for the low power levels. In the last part, a special chapter about a new concept of smart pot is presented, with some insights about the system modellization.ope

Sistemi di trasmissione ibridi per applicazioni off-highway: le macchine elettriche, la loro alimentazione e il loro controllo. Analisi dei vantaggi competitivi ottenibili attraverso schemi e soluzioni innovative

Hybridization and electrification of mobile working machinery are becoming promising areas of research and development for the off-highway industry. In this context, numerical modeling plays a fundamental role in predicting the performance of the vehicle transmission system and in optimizing its operation. A good design of the mechanical and electrical components of a hybrid transmission can be achieved only through an integrated approach. Regarding the hybrid electric traction, by means of the Ph.D. with high level training apprenticeship contract, I proceeded to the identification and analysis of some schemes in order to develop innovative solutions for the off-highway industry. I dealt with innovative solutions focusing on the modeling of industrial hybrid electric transmissions and agricultural electric powersplit transmissions. I chose to use AMESim as 1D multi-domain dynamic simulation tool. The results showed that an industrial vehicle equipped with an electric-hydrodynamic hybrid transmission, demonstrates 8% lower fuel consumption than a conventional vehicle. A representative working cycle defined by the author on the basis of the company experience and the data collected in literature was proposed as basis for comparison. Within the agricultural transmissions the electric variator has proved to be more competitive even better than conventional hydrostatic variator for power-split applications. I went into detail about the design of electrical machines and their related power and control technologies adopted for off-highway hybrid transmission considering also their integration into the mechanical system. This activity, aimed at the design of an electric drive for an industrial application, has allowed me to develop a model of electric motor, taking into account iron and copper losses, to be integrated in the simulation model of the complete vehicle. In this way, the electromagnetic and thermal design aspects were examined, identifying the parameters of optimization and the trade-offs that play a role in the design of a permanent magnet synchronous electric machine and in the development of the control algorithms. Having identified and quantified the benefits of hybrid solutions compared to conventional designs, thanks to the skills that I have acquired during the training period inside the company, my research has focused on the development of a preliminary design for a hybrid transmission, addressing also constructive aspects: from mechanical design to manufacturing and assembly. This concept will be tested in the research and development department of the company upon completion of the detailed design

Research on Beer Filterability and Optimisation of Filtration Process

Il presente lavoro ha avuto lo scopo di identificare le caratteristiche di filtrabilità della birra attraverso lo svolgimento di prove tecnologiche di filtrazione in scala di laboratorio e su scala pilota, utilizzando diverse tipologie di sistemi filtranti e sperimentando diversi materiali di membrana. La fase preliminare della caratterizzazione della filtrabilità della birra è stata condotta presso i laboratori del Campden-BRI – The Brewing Research International, Inghilterra, mentre le prove tecnologiche su scala pilota si sono svolte presso il CERB – Centro di Eccellenza per la Ricerca sulla Birra. Le prove di filtrazione e le analisi sui campioni hanno permesso di verificare le performance delle diverse membrane utilizzate in risposta alla variazione dei principali parametri del processo di filtrazione tangenziale. Sono stati analizzati diversi parametri di qualità della birra filtrata attraverso il monitoraggio del processo e lo svolgimento di prove analitiche sul prodotto volte ad evidenziare gli effetti delle differenti tecnologie adottate. Per quanto riguarda le prove di laboratorio per la caratterizzazione della filtrabilità della birra, l’analisi della PCS (Photon Correlation Spectroscopy) è stata utilizzata per verificare l’influenza di diversi trattamenti enzimatici sulla efficienza del processo di filtrazione e la loro influenza sulla stabilità colloidale della birra filtrata. Dai risultati ottenuti è emerso che il PCS è un valido strumento per determinare la distribuzione in classi di diametro e il diametro medio effettivo delle particelle solide in sospensione nella birra e può essere utilizzato sia per predire la stabilità della birra filtrata, sia per monitorare il processo di filtrazione in tempo reale.The purpose of this work was to identify the characteristics of filterability of beer throughout different filtration tests on a laboratory scale and on a pilot scale, using different types of filter systems and experimenting with different membrane materials. The preliminary characterization of beer filterability with the particle size analysis was conducted at the laboratories of Campden-BRI - The Brewing Research International, United Kingdom, while the pilot-scale filtration tests were conducted at the CERB – The Italian Brewing Research Centre, Italy. The filtration tests and the analysis on the samples allowed to verify the performance of the different membranes used in response to the variation of the main process parameters of cross-flow filtration. Several quality parameters were monitored on both filtered and unfiltered beer samples, to highlighting the effects of the different technologies used. With regard to the laboratory tests for the characterization of beer filterability, the analysis of the PCS instrument (Photon Correlation Spectroscopy) was used to verify the influence of various enzymatic treatments (Protease and Cellulase) on the efficiency of the filtration process and their influence on the colloidal stability of filtered beer The results showed that the PCS instrument is a reliable tool for determining the size distribution of suspended particles in beer and can be used to predict the colloidal stability of the filtered beer and to monitor the process filtration in real time

Deep Learning methods to study the Auxiliary Channels in the Advanced Virgo Detector

Gravitational Waves (GW) are a prediction of Einsteins General theory of relativity and were first detected by the advanced-LIGO interferometers in 2015, almost 100 years after they were theorized. The detection of Gravitational Waves is affected by the background noise, which can be non-stationary and non-Gaussian. Short duration noise bursts, also called ”glitches” can be quite detrimental to the search, since they can affect data quality and mimic the gravitational waves signal itself. To assert the quality of the measurements, thousands of sensors monitor the state of the detector continuosly, but the large amount of Data and the complex nature of the couplings between channels render any kind of analysis quite challenging. Deep Learning offers an opportunity to efficiently analyze and handle the large amounts of data related to the Auxiliary Channels. In particular, Variational Autoencoders (VAE) can help in the task of reducing the dimensionality of the data without losing any relevant information, by projecting the samples on a lower dimensional manyfold, called the latent space, on which the analysis can be run instead. The aim of this thesis was to apply Deep Learning tools such as VAEs to the study of the Auxiliary Channels to better characterize and gain further insight in to the noise of the Advanced Virgo detector. In this thesis we exploit the latent space representation of a multi-channel Variational Autoencoder trained on Auxiliary Channels spectrograms, coupled with a clustering algorithm to find patterns in this complex data landscape. The main focus was to study the response of the interferometer’s mirrors suspensions, called Super Attenuators, to microseismic events, and to explore the correlation with data quality and low frequency glitches in the main channel. The results are promising for the characterization of the performances of Super Attenuators during microseisms and in identifying the causes of some glitches, which is a step towards improving the detector sensitivity in the low frequency domain

Aplicativo móvil utilizando la metodología XP para la gestión de mantenimiento de equipos informáticos en la Empresa Ebsan International S.A.C.

En la situación actual, en la que muchas empresas carecen de tecnología de software que pueda mejorar los procesos críticos de la organización. Esto dificulta la reducción de tiempo en la realización de cada actividad, disminuye la tasa de éxito en la ejecución de las tareas, retrasa el cumplimiento de las actividades y afecta la satisfacción del cliente nuestro objetivo es optimizar la gestión de mantenimiento de equipos informáticos en la empresa Ebsan International S.A.C. mediante el desarrollo de un aplicativo móvil utilizando la Metodología XP. Para el desarrollo de la aplicación, se utilizó el software Android Studio y se codificó en el lenguaje Java. El enfoque de la investigación es cualitativo y su diseño es experimental puro. Se logró alcanzar varios objetivos importantes. En primer lugar, se pudo reducir considerablemente el tiempo promedio de mantenimientos con una disminución media de 2:49:17 del Ge comparado con el Gc. Además, se observó una mejora significativa en la tasa de éxito en la realización de los mantenimientos de un incremento del 37%. De igual manera se observa un incremento de 38% en el porcentaje de mantenimientos cumplidos, lo que permitió cumplir con un mayor número de ellos en un período determinado. Asimismo, se logró disminuir el tiempo requerido para generar los reportes correspondientes en un 97%. Uno de los aspectos más destacados fue el impacto positivo en la satisfacción del cliente. La utilización de la aplicación móvil permitió una experiencia más eficiente y efectiva para los clientes, lo que se tradujo en una mejora en su nivel de satisfacción donde el 100% de las ocasiones es buena. En conclusión, la investigación demuestra que el desarrollo de la aplicación móvil, ha logrado una optimización significativa en la gestión de mantenimiento en la empresa