Advanced sensor development program for the pulp and paper industry

This report describes experimental and theoretical studies toward development of a remote sensing technique for non-intrusive temperature measurement based on optical spectroscopic analysis of recovery boiler. The overall objectives were (a) construction of a fiber-optic system for measurement of spectroscopic emission intensities at several wavelengths and (b) development of a computer program relating these intensities to temperatures of the emitting species. The emitting species for temperature measurements in flames can be either naturally occurring free radicals (OH, CH, C{sub 2}) or atoms which, in turn, can be either naturally occurring or seeded into flames. Sodium atoms, the obvious emitters in recovery boilers, are not promising as thermometric species because of their high concentration. At high concentrations, strong self-absorption results cause optical depths to be much smaller than the sampling depths desired for recovery boilers. An experimental program was, therefore, undertaken with the objective of identification and spectroscopic detection and measurement of other naturally occurring thermometric species. The program consisted of several laboratory studies and four field trips to different recovery boilers. 19 refs., 43 figs., 8 tabs

Mixing in the dome region of a staged gas turbine combustor

Many modifications to the combustion process are being proposed and evaluated to lower NOr emissions from gas turbine engines in both stationary and propulsion applications. A promising technique is staged combustion, wherein the fuel is mixed into a fuel-rich region and the final air is injected downstream to an overall lean mixture. This article examines the effect of dome design and operational changes on the mixing quality in the fuel-rich region. A statistical analysis is employed to establish the parametric sensitivity in this complex flow. A mixing effectiveness index is defined and used to optimize the gas species uniformity and the extent of reaction at the exit plane of the dome. The results reveal that mixing effectiveness is intimately tied to the fuel and air injection locations, the macroscale structure of the dome aerodynamics, and the level of turbulence. Increases in nozzle/air to fuel ratio, reference velocities, and the dome expansion angle increased the level of turbulence. The optimum configuration featured counterswirling fuel and airstreams and produced a strong torroidal recirculation zone, an effective spray angle of 45 deg, and azimuthal velocities that decayed to zero inside of two duct diameters. Due to the intimate relationship between variables, the response of mixing to changes in any single variable cannot be considered independently of the other variables. The results underscore the system specific nature of mixing optimization. © 1993 by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc

The 4th AIST Advisory Board meeting

The 4th AIST Advisory Board Meeting was held on 6 and 7 February, 2006, at the AIST Tsukuba Headquarters. The agenda of the 4th meeting was the 'second term strategy for AIST as an innovation engine'. The discussions focused on the President's presentation, entitled 'Vision for AIST's Second Mid-term Period', and on the presentation of the Director of Planning Headquarters, entitled 'Establishing the innovation hub at AIST'. A total number of fifteen people were selected for the 4th Advidory Board meeting, which went on for one and a half days. The innovative strategies discussed in the meeting include collaboration between industry and acedemia, human resource development, and venture creation. The Advisory board members and AIST executives also held active discussions on various issues regarding the operation of AIST including research management, intellectual property, safety management, security management, and public relations