Analysis of experimental hydrogen engine data and hydrogen vehicle performance and emissions simulation

This paper reports the engine and vehicle simulation and analysis done at Lawrence Livermore (LLNL) as a part of a joint optimized hydrogen engine development effort. Project participants are: Sandia National Laboratory, California (SNLC), responsible for experimental evaluation; Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), responsible for detailed fluid mechanics engine evaluations, and the University of Miami, responsible for engine friction reduction. Fuel cells are considered as the ideal power source for future vehicles, due to their high efficiency and low emissions. However, extensive use of fuel cells in light-duty vehicles is likely to be years away, due to their high manufacturing cost. Hydrogen-fueled, spark-ignited, homogeneous-charge engines offer a near-term alternative to fuel cells. Hydrogen in a spark-ignited engine can be burned at very low equivalence ratios, so that NO{sub x} emissions can be reduced to less than 10 ppm without catalyst. HC and CO emissions may result from oxidation of engine oil, but by proper design are negligible (a few ppm). Lean operation also results in increased indicated efficiency due to the thermodynamic properties of the gaseous mixture contained in the cylinder. The high effective octane number of hydrogen allows the use of a high compression ratio, further increasing engine efficiency

Matter X waves

We predict that an ultra-cold Bose gas in an optical lattice can give rise to a new form of condensation, namely matter X waves. These are non-spreading 3D wave-packets which reflect the symmetry of the Laplacian with a negative effective mass along the lattice direction, and are allowed to exist in the absence of any trapping potential even in the limit of non-interacting atoms. This result has also strong implications for optical propagation in periodic structuresComment: 5 pages, 2 figure

Stochastics theory of log-periodic patterns

We introduce an analytical model based on birth-death clustering processes to help understanding the empirical log-periodic corrections to power-law scaling and the finite-time singularity as reported in several domains including rupture, earthquakes, world population and financial systems. In our stochastics theory log-periodicities are a consequence of transient clusters induced by an entropy-like term that may reflect the amount of cooperative information carried by the state of a large system of different species. The clustering completion rates for the system are assumed to be given by a simple linear death process. The singularity at t_{o} is derived in terms of birth-death clustering coefficients.Comment: LaTeX, 1 ps figure - To appear J. Phys. A: Math & Ge

Making On-Demand Routing Efficient with Route-Request Aggregation

In theory, on-demand routing is very attractive for mobile ad hoc networks (MANET), because it induces signaling only for those destinations for which there is data traffic. However, in practice, the signaling overhead of existing on-demand routing protocols becomes excessive as the rate of topology changes increases due to mobility or other causes. We introduce the first on-demand routing approach that eliminates the main limitation of on-demand routing by aggregating route requests (RREQ) for the same destinations. The approach can be applied to any existing on-demand routing protocol, and we introduce the Ad-hoc Demand-Aggregated Routing with Adaptation (ADARA) as an example of how RREQ aggregation can be used. ADARA is compared to AODV and OLSR using discrete-event simulations, and the results show that aggregating RREQs can make on-demand routing more efficient than existing proactive or on-demand routing protocols

Hybrid and conventional hydrogen engine vehicles that meet EZEV emissions

In this paper, a time-dependent engine model is used for predicting hydrogen engine efficiency and emissions. The model uses basic thermodynamic equations for the compression and expansion processes, along with an empirical correlation for heat transfer, to predict engine indicated efficiency. A friction correlation and a supercharger/turbocharger model are then used to calculate brake thermal efficiency. The model is validated with many experimental points obtained in a recent evaluation of a hydrogen research engine. A The validated engine model is then used to calculate fuel economy and emissions for three hydrogen-fueled vehicles: a conventional, a parallel hybrid, and a series hybrid. All vehicles use liquid hydrogen as a fuel. The hybrid vehicles use a flywheel for energy storage. Comparable ultra capacitor or battery energy storage performance would give similar results. This paper analyzes the engine and flywheel sizing requirements for obtaining a desired level of performance. The results indicate that hydrogen lean-burn spark-ignited engines can provide a high fuel economy and Equivalent Zero Emission Vehicle (EZEV) levels in the three vehicle configurations being analyzed

Lean-burn hydrogen spark-ignited engines: the mechanical equivalent to the fuel cell

Fuel cells are considered as the ideal power source for future vehicles, due to their high efficiency and low emissions. However, extensive use of fuel cells in light-duty vehicles is likely to be years away, due to their high manufacturing cost. Hydrogen-fueled, spark-ignited, homogeneous-charge engines offer a near-term alternative to fuel cells. Hydrogen in a spark-ignited engine can be burned at very low equivalence ratios, so that NO[sub x] emissions can be reduced to less than 10 ppm without catalyst. HC and CO emissions may result from oxidation of engine oil, but by proper design are negligible (a few ppm). Lean operation also results in increased indicated efficiency due to the thermodynamic properties of the gaseous mixture contained in the cylinder. The high effective octane number of hydrogen allows the use of a high compression ratio, further increasing engine efficiency. In this paper, a simplified engine model is used for predicting hydrogen engine efficiency and emissions. The model uses basic thermodynamic equations for the compression and expansion processes, along with an empirical correlation for heat transfer, to predict engine indicated efficiency. A friction correlation and a supercharger/turbocharger model are then used to calculate brake thermal efficiency. The model is validated with many 1345 experimental points obtained in a recent evaluation of a hydrogen research engine. The experimental data are used to adjust the empirical constants in the heat release rate and heat transfer correlation. The adjusted engine model predicts pressure traces, indicated efficiency and NO,, emissions with good accuracy over the range of speed, equivalence ratio and manifold pressure experimentally covered

A desiccant dehumidifier for electric vehicle heating

Vehicle heating requires a substantial amount of energy. Engines in conventional cars produce enough waste heat to provide comfort heating and defogging/defrosting, even under very extreme conditions. Electric vehicles (EVs), however, generate little waste heat. Using battery energy for heating may consume a substantial fraction of the energy storage capacity, reducing the vehicle range, which is one of the most important parameters in determining EV acceptability. Water vapor generated by the vehicle passengers is in large part responsible for the high heating loads existing in vehicles. In cold climates, the generation of water vapor inside the car may result in water condensation on the windows, diminishing visibility. Two strategies are commonly used to avoid condensation on windows: windows are kept warm, and a large amount of ambient air is introduced in the vehicle. Either strategy results in a substantial heating load. These strategies are often used in combination, and a trade-off exists between them. If window temperature is decreased, ventilation rate has to be increased. Reducing the ventilation rate requires an increase of the temperature of the windows to prevent condensation. An alternative solution is a desiccant dehumidifier, which adsorbs water vapor generated by the passengers. Window temperatures and ventilation rates can then be reduced, resulting in a substantially lower heating load. This paper explores the dehumidifier heating concept. The first part shows the energy savings that could be obtained by using this technology. The second part specifies the required characteristics and dimensions of the system. The results indicate that the desiccant system can reduce the steady-state heating load by 60% or more under typical conditions. The reduction in heating load is such that waste heat may be enough to provide the required heating under most ambient conditions. Desiccant system dimensions and weight appear reasonable for packaging in an EV

Optimum flywheel sizing for parallel and series hybrid vehicles

Flywheels have the possibility of providing high turnaround efficiency and high specific power output. These characteristics are very important for the successful manufacture of parallel and series hybrid vehicles, which have the potential for providing high fuel economy and very low emissions with range and performance comparable to today`s light-duty vehicles. Flywheels have a high specific power output, but relatively low specific energy output. Therefore, it is of importance to determine energy and power requirements for flywheels applied to light-duty vehicles. Vehicle applications that require an energy storage system with high power and low energy are likely to benefit from a flywheel. In this paper, a vehicle simulation code and a flywheel model are applied to the calculation of optimum flywheel energy storage capacity for a parallel and a series hybrid vehicle. A conventional vehicle is also evaluated as a base-case, to provide an indication of the fuel economy gains that can be obtained with flywheel hybrid vehicles. The results of the analysis indicate that the optimum flywheel energy storage capacity is relatively small. This results in a low weight unit that has a significant power output and high efficiency. Emissions generated by the hybrid vehicles are not calculated, but have the potential of being significantly lower than the emissions from the conventional car

Excitation Thresholds for Nonlinear Localized Modes on Lattices

Breathers are spatially localized and time periodic solutions of extended Hamiltonian dynamical systems. In this paper we study excitation thresholds for (nonlinearly dynamically stable) ground state breather or standing wave solutions for networks of coupled nonlinear oscillators and wave equations of nonlinear Schr\"odinger (NLS) type. Excitation thresholds are rigorously characterized by variational methods. The excitation threshold is related to the optimal (best) constant in a class of discr ete interpolation inequalities related to the Hamiltonian energy. We establish a precise connection among $d$, the dimensionality of the lattice, $2\sigma+1$, the degree of the nonlinearity and the existence of an excitation threshold for discrete nonlinear Schr\"odinger systems (DNLS). We prove that if $\sigma\ge 2/d$, then ground state standing waves exist if and only if the total power is larger than some strictly positive threshold, $\nu_{thresh}(\sigma, d)$. This proves a conjecture of Flach, Kaldko& MacKay in the context of DNLS. We also discuss upper and lower bounds for excitation thresholds for ground states of coupled systems of NLS equations, which arise in the modeling of pulse propagation in coupled arrays of optical fibers.Comment: To appear in Nonlinearit