6,946 research outputs found
Contributions of divergent and nondivergent winds to the kinetic energy balance of a severe storm environment
Divergent and rotational components of the synoptic scale kinetic energy balance are presented using rawinsonde data at 3 and 6 h intervals from the Atmospheric Variability Experiment (AVE 4). Two intense thunderstorm complexes occurred during the period. Energy budgets are described for the entire computational region and for limited volumes that enclose and move with the convection. Although small in magnitude, the divergent wind component played an important role in the cross contour generation and horizontal flux divergence of kinetic energy. The importance of V sub D appears directly to the presence and intensity of convection within the area. Although K sub D usually comprised less than 10 percent of the total kinetic energy content within the storm environment, as much as 87 percent of the total horizontal flux divergence and 68 percent of the total cross contour generation was due to the divergent component in the upper atmosphere. Generation of kinetic energy by the divergent component appears to be a major factor in the creation of an upper level wind maximum on the poleward side of one of the complexes. A random error analysis is presented to assess confidence limits in the various energy parameters
An analytical investigation of NO sub x control techniques for methanol fueled spark ignition engines
A thermokinetic SI engine simulation was used to study the effects of simple nitrogen oxide control techniques on performance and emissions of a methanol fueled engine. As part of this simulation, a ring crevice storage model was formulated to predict UBF emissions. The study included spark retard, two methods of compression ratio increase and EGR. The study concludes that use of EGR in high turbulence, high compression engines will both maximize power and thermal efficiency while minimizing harmful exhaust pollutants
Transient flow characteristics of a high speed rotary valve
Pressing economic and environmental concerns related to the performance of fossil fuel burning internal combustion engines have revitalized research in more efficient, cleaner burning combustion methods such as homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI). Although many variations of such engines now exist, several limiting factors have restrained the full potential of HCCI. A new method patented by West Virginia University (WVU) called Compression Ignition by Air Injection (CIBAI) may help broaden the range of effective HCCI operation. The CIBAI process is ideally facilitated by operating two synchronized piston-cylinders mounted head-to-head with one of the cylinders filled with a homogeneous mixture of air and fuel and the other cylinder filled with air. A specialized valve called the cylinder connecting valve (CCV) separates the two cylinders, opens just before reaching top dead center (TDC), and allows the injection air into the charge to achieve autoignition. The CCV remains open during the entire power stroke such that upon ignition the rapid pressure rise in the charge cylinder forces mass flow back through the CCV into the air-only cylinder. The limited mass transfer between the cylinders through the CCV limits the theoretical auto ignition timing capabilities and thermal efficiency of the CIBAI cycle. Research has been performed to: (1) Experimentally measure the transient behavior of a potential CCV design during valve opening between two chambers maintained at constant pressure and again at constant volume; (2) Develop a modified theoretical CCV mass flow model based upon the measured cold flow valve performance that is capable of predicting the operating conditions required for successful mixture autoignition; (3) Make recommendations for future CCV designs to maximize CIBAI combustion range.;Results indicate that the modified-ball CCV design offers suitable transient flow qualities required for application to the CIBAI concept. Mass injection events were experimentally mapped as a function of valve speed, inter-cylinder pressure ratios and volume ratios and the results were compared to compressible flow theoretical models. Specifically, the transient behavior suggested a short-lived loss-mode initiation closely resembled by shock tube theory followed by a quasi-steady flow regime resembling choked flow behavior. An empirical model was then employed to determine the useful range of the CCV design as applied to a four-stroke CIBAI engine cycle modeled using a 1-D quasi-steady numerical method, with particular emphasis on the cyclic timing of the CCV opening. Finally, a brief discussion of a high-temperature version of the CCV design is presented
Research into the feasibility of thin metal and oxide film capacitors
Feasibility of thin metal and oxide film capacitor
Research into the feasibility of thin metal and oxide film capacitors Interim scientific report
Feasibility of thin metal and oxide film capacitor
The Year\u27s at the Spring
The year’s at the spring, And day’s at the morn; Morning’s at seven; The hillside’s dew pearled;
The lark’s on the wing; The snail’s on the thorn; God’s in his heaven, God’s in his heaven, All’s right, All’s right with the world
Inferring physical conditions in interstellar clouds of H_2
We have developed a code that models the formation, destruction, radiative
transfer, and vibrational/rotational excitation of H_2 in a detailed fashion.
We discuss how such codes, together with FUSE observations of H_2 in diffuse
and translucent lines of sight, may be used to infer various physical
parameters. We illustrate the effects of changes in the major physical
parameters (UV radiation field, gas density, metallicity), and we point out the
extent to which changes in one parameter may be mirrored by changes in another.
We provide an analytic formula for the molecular fraction, f_H2, as a function
of cloud column density, radiation field, and grain formation rate of H_2. Some
diffuse and translucent lines of sight may be concatenations of multiple
distinct clouds viewed together. Such situations can give rise to observables
that agree with the data, complicating the problem of uniquely identifying one
set of physical parameters with a line of sight. Finally, we illustrate the
application of our code to an ensemble of data, such as the FUSE survey of H_2
in the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds (LMC/SMC), in order to constrain the
elevated UV radiation field intensity and reduced grain formation rate of H_2
in those low- metallicity environments.Comment: 33 pages (aastex, manuscript), 9 figures (3 color). accepted to Ap
Initialization of the shallow water equations with open boundaries by the bounded derivative method
The shallow water equations are a symmetric hyperbolic system with two time scales. In meteorological terms, slow and fast scale motions are referred to as Rossby and inertial/gravity waves, respectively. We prove the existence of smooth solutions (solutions with a number of space and time derivatives on the order of the slow time scale) of the open boundary problem for the shallow water equations by the bounded derivative method. The proof requires that a number of initial time derivatives be of the order of the slow time scale and that the boundary data be smooth. If the boundary data are smooth and only have small errors, then we show that the solution of the open boundary problem is smooth and that only small errors are produced in the interior. If the boundary data are smooth but have large errors, then we show that the solution of the open boundary problem is still smooth. Unfortunately the boundary error propagates into the interior at the speed associated with the fast time scale and destroys the solution in a short time. Thus it is necessary to keep the boundary error small if the solution is to be computed correctly. We show that this restriction can be relaxed so that only the large-scale boundary data need be correct. We demonstrate the importance of these conclusions in several numerical experiments
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