Improvements and upgrades to the universal water system's communications, operations, and controls

This report details the improvements and upgrades to Murdoch University’s Universal Water Systems (UWS) operations, communications and controls. The UWS can operate as a single integrated control system or as three smaller sub-systems through the manipulation of manual valves. A high level of system interaction is present, which allows the use of single-input-single-output (SISO) or multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) operation, giving students the opportunity to implement various styles of control strategies. This project has focused on improving hardware, Client Software, Master Software, documentation, and the development of Student Software and an automatic operating procedure. Faulty equipment was replaced to ensure the system could perform optimally, as the hardware governed all possible system actions. The Client Software was modified to meet abnormal situation management (ASM) compliance and ensure operators have system-wide control. Further development of the Master Software has allowed an implementation of an automated operating procedure, which can demonstrate the capabilities of the system in a visually spectacular way. The Student Software was developed to create a workspace in which students can customise the user interface as well as design and implement advanced control schemes into the system, with no effect on the underlying system code. The project is now complete, with successful testing and commissioning on all aspects of the UWS. The changes have been thoroughly documented with extensive user and maintenance guides developed. There is still room to improve the UWS; however, these improvements were beyond the scope of this project. At the completion of this project, the system now allows students complete and reliable operation of the UWS through the use of a standardised interface and a fully customisable workspace

Model-Driven Development of Control Applications: On Modeling Tools, Simulations and Safety

Control systems are required in various industrial applications varying from individual machines to manufacturing plants and enterprises. Software applications have an important role as an implementation technology in such systems, which can be based on Distributed Control System (DCS) or Programmable Control System (PLC) platforms, for example. Control applications are computer programs that, with control system hardware, perform control tasks. Control applications are efficient and flexible by nature; however, their development is a complex task that requires the collaboration of experts and information from various domains of expertise.This thesis studies the use of Model-Driven Development (MDD) techniques in control application development. MDD is a software development methodology in which models are used as primary engineering artefacts and processed with both manual work and automated model transformations. The objective of the thesis is to explore whether or not control application development can benefit from MDD and selected technologies enabled by it. The research methodology followed in the thesis is the constructive approach of design science.To answer the research questions, tools are developed for modeling and developing control applications using UML Automation Profile (UML AP) in a model-driven development process. The modeling approach is developed based on open source tools on Eclipse platform. In the approach, modeling concepts are kept extendable. Models can be processed with model transformation techniques that plug in to the tool. The approach takes into account domain requirements related to, for example, re-use of design. According to assessment of industrial applicability of the approach and tools as part of it, they could be used for developing industrial DCS based control applications.Simulation approaches that can be used in conjunction to model-driven development of control applications are presented and compared. Development of a model-in-the-loop simulation support is rationalized to enable the use of simulations early while taking into account the special characteristics of the domain. A simulator integration is developed that transforms UML AP control application models to Modelica Modeling Language (ModelicaML) models, thus enabling closed-loop simulations with ModelicaML models of plants to be controlled. The simulation approach is applied successfully in simulations of machinery applications and process industry processes.Model-driven development of safety applications, which are parts of safety systems, would require taking into account safety standard requirements related to modeling techniques and documentation, for example. Related to this aspect, the thesis focuses on extending the information content of models with aspects that are required for safety applications. The modeling of hazards and their associated risks is supported with fault tree notation. The risk and hazard information is integrated into the development process in order to improve traceability. Automated functions enable generating documentation and performing consistency checks related to the use of standard solutions, for example. When applicable, techniques and notations, such as logic diagrams, have been chosen so that they are intuitive to developers but also comply with recommendations of safety standards

Problem Oriented Engineering for Software Safety

Safety critical systems must satisfy stringent safety standards and there development requires the use of specialist safe software system development (SSSD) approaches as the complexity and penetration of these systems increases. These SSSD approaches satisfy certain useful properties that make them suitable for safety system development. The first objective of this thesis is to select a candidate SSSD approach and evaluate its capabilities against a set of useful properties identified from reviewing a group of existing SSSD approaches, and thus show that this candidate SSSD approach is appropriate for use in safety system development. In addition, a second objective is to use this candidate SSSD approach to improve the early life cycle phase of an existing industrial safety development process used to develop embedded avionics applications. In particular to allow issues to be resolved earlier in the development, which are currently not being uncovered until much later in the development when they are much more difficult and expensive to correct. This involved the identification of further properties and issues that the candidate SSSD approach must address. The overall aim is to demonstrate that this candidate SSSD approach can be used in the early phase of a safety system development to derive a validated specification that can be subjected to safety analysis to show that it satisfies the identified system safety properties and thus forms a viable basis for the rest of the development

NASA/OAI Research Associates program

The intent of this activity was the development of a cooperative program between the Ohio Aerospace Institute and the NASA Lewis Research Center with the objective of better preparing recent university graduates for careers in government aerospace research laboratories. The selected individuals were given the title of research associate. To accomplish the aims of this effort: (1) the research associates were introduced to the NASA Lewis Research Center and its mission/programs, (2) the research associates directly participated in NASA research and development programs, and (3) the research associates were given continuing educational opportunities in specialized areas. A number of individuals participated in this project during the discourse of this cooperative agreement. Attached are the research summaries of eight of the research associates. These reports give a very good picture of the research activities that were conducted by the associates

EU Clearinghouse on NPP OEF Summary Report on Fuel Related Events

Fuel performance and reliability, especially fuel integrity, is one of the important aspects of the safe operation of nuclear power plants. The fuel rod cladding surrounding the fuel pellets represents the first barrier to the release of radioactive fission products. Fuel integrity must be maintained during normal operation and expected transients, and fuel damage must be limited during postulated accidents. Over the years, a very significant effort has been put into analysing and understanding the causes of fuel failures, and important strategies in design, engineering, manufacture, inspection, operation and management have been developed to try to avoid them. The results of this effort are reflected in improvements regarding the use of new materials, a more robust design, new fabrication methods, more efficient inspections of newly built fuel assemblies, quality assurance and better operational strategies. More demanding operational conditions for the fuel, or singular interventions like system decontamination or fuel cleaning, have raised concerns about fuel performance. The result of these counteracting trends is that fuel performance has improved significantly over the years, but there are still some issues which need to be addressed, such as fretting, corrosion, fuel handling, and in storage events. Based on the fuel failure events reported to the IRS database operated by the NEA/IAEA, and on the work performed under the EU Clearinghouse on Nuclear Power Plant Operational Experience Feedback, this summary report lists the main causes of actual and potential nuclear fuel failures in three situations: in-core, during handling, and during storage. The report also includes the main recommendations to fuel designers and manufacturers, nuclear power plant operators and regulatory authorities to reduce the incidence of fuel related events, and a list of actions now widely and systematically applied in nuclear power plants that were originated by operational experience exchanges and now constitute a set of good actions that help reduce the number of reported fuel related events.JRC.DDG.F.5-Safety of present nuclear reactor

Operations planning and analysis handbook for NASA/MSFC phase B development projects

Current operations planning and analysis practices on NASA/MSFC Phase B projects were investigated with the objectives of (1) formalizing these practices into a handbook and (2) suggesting improvements. The study focused on how Science and Engineering (S&E) Operational Personnel support Program Development (PD) Task Teams. The intimate relationship between systems engineering and operations analysis was examined. Methods identified for use by operations analysts during Phase B include functional analysis, interface analysis methods to calculate/allocate such criteria as reliability, Maintainability, and operations and support cost

Investing American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Funds to Advance Capability, Reliability, and Performance in NASA Wind Tunnels

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Aeronautics Test Program (ATP) is implementing five significant ground-based test facility projects across the nation with funding provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The projects were selected as the best candidates within the constraints of the ARRA and the strategic plan of ATP. They are a combination of much-needed large scale maintenance, reliability, and system upgrades plus creating new test beds for upcoming research programs. The projects are: 1.) Re-activation of a large compressor to provide a second source for compressed air and vacuum to the Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel at the Ames Research Center (ARC) 2.) Addition of high-altitude ice crystal generation at the Glenn Research Center Propulsion Systems Laboratory Test Cell 3, 3.) New refrigeration system and tunnel heat exchanger for the Icing Research Tunnel at the Glenn Research Center, 4.) Technical viability improvements for the National Transonic Facility at the Langley Research Center, and 5.) Modifications to conduct Environmentally Responsible Aviation and Rotorcraft research at the 14 x 22 Subsonic Tunnel at Langley Research Center. The selection rationale, problem statement, and technical solution summary for each project is given here. The benefits and challenges of the ARRA funded projects are discussed. Indirectly, this opportunity provides the advantages of developing experience in NASA's workforce in large projects and maintaining corporate knowledge in that very unique capability. It is envisioned that improved facilities will attract a larger user base and capabilities that are needed for current and future research efforts will offer revenue growth and future operations stability. Several of the chosen projects will maximize wind tunnel reliability and maintainability by using newer, proven technologies in place of older and obsolete equipment and processes. The projects will meet NASA's goal of integrating more efficient, environmentally safer, and less energy consuming hardware and processes into existing tunnel systems. These include Environmental Protection Agency-approved refrigerants, energy efficient motors, and faster, flexible tunnel data systems

Identification of dynamic properties of materials for the spent nuclear fuel package at elevated temperatures

This thesis attempts to experimentally identify the dynamic properties of materials for the spent nuclear fuel package at elevated temperatures. The implementation of the project involves a number of steps. First, candidate materials for the nuclear fuel package and the appropriate testing systems were identified [15]. Second, fixtures for tensile testing at elevated temperatures using two machines, namely MTS and Instron Dynatup testing machines were designed and manufactured to make them compatible with the room temperature fixture. Third, experimental procedures for elevated temperature testing of materials are proposed for the two testing machines. Finally, impact testing for the candidate materials and verification of these testing results using finite element analysis is performed. Tests showed that yield and ultimate strength of the three candidate materials decreased with temperature. Tests also showed that strain at failure increases with temperature for Titanium Grade 7 and Alloy 22, but decreased for Steel 316L. Verification of these results using FEA had less than 10% error