CHARACTERISTICS OF FLOW IN A PARTIALLY DYNAMIC HELICOPTER INLET

An experimental study of the flow in a helicopter inlet with front output shaft and partial flow dynamic head is conducted in low speed wind tunnel. The flow characters of the inlet in the range of the yaw angle from 0~135°are presented in this paper. The static pressure distributions along the duct, distortions of the flow field at the outlet section and total pressure recovery coefficients are measured and analyzed. The results show that this type of inlet has high total pressure recovery coefficients at a wide range of yaw angle. The regions of local flow separation and distortion are closely related to the yaw angle. It′s also found that the outlet section has the best characteristics at sideslip, and sharply deteriorated characteristics at the yawed flight with a yaw angle of more than 90°

SCRAMJET INLET MULTI-OBJECTIVE OPTIMIZATION BASED ON RESPONSE SURFACE METHODOLOGY

The uniform design and response surface methodology （RSM） are applied to the multi-objective optimization of a 2-D mixed compression scramjet inlet. The set of experimental design points on the design space is selected by the uniform design, and the inlet performance is analyzed by computational fluid dynamics （CFD）. Then complete quadratic polynomial response surface approximation models are constructed based on the performance analysis results and then used to replace theoriginal complex inlet performance model. The optimization is conducted using a multi-objective genetic algorithm NSGA-Ⅱ, and the Pareto optimal solution set is obtained. Results show that the uniform design and RSM can reduce the computational complexity of numerical simulation and improve the optimization efficiency.

Creation method for bi-level positive airway pressure based on pressure and flow feedback

An airway pressure and flow data acquisition system is developed to investigate the approach to building the bi-level positive airway pressure BiPAP in a ventilator.A number of experiments under different breathing situations and states are conducted and the experimental data are recorded.According to the data from these experiments the variation characteristics of the pressure and flow are analyzed using Matlab. The data analysis results show that the pressure increases while the flow decreases in the expiratory phase contrarily the pressure decreases while the flow increases in the inspiratory phase during the apnea state both the pressure and the flow remain unchanged. According to the above variation characteristics of breath a feedback-based method for creating bi-level positive airway pressure is proposed. Experiments are implemented to verify the BiPAP model. Results demonstrate that the proposed method works effectively in following respiration and caters well to most polypnea and apnea events.

In situ experimental study on TBM excavation with high-pressure water-jet-assisted rock breaking

China’s first high-pressure hydraulically coupled rock-breaking tunnel boring machine(TBM) was designed to overcome the rock breaking problems of TBM in super-hard rock geology, where high-pressure water jet system is configured, including high-flow pump sets, high-pressure rotary joint and high-pressure water jet injection device. In order to investigate the rock breaking performance of high-pressure water-jet-assisted TBM, in situ excavation tests were carried out at the Wan’anxi Water Diversion Project in Longyan, Fujian Province, China, under different water jet pressure and rotational speed. The rock-breaking performance of TBM was analyzed including penetration, cutterhead load, advance rate and field penetration index. The test results show that the adoption of high-pressure water-jet-assisted rock breaking technology can improve the boreability of rock mass, where the TBM penetration increases by 64% under the water jet pressure of 270 MPa. In addition, with the increase of the water jet pressure, the TBM penetration increases and the field penetration index decreases. The auxiliary rock-breaking effect of high-pressure water jet decreases with the increase of cutterhead rotational speed. In the case of the in situ tunneling test parameters of this study, the advance rate is the maximum when the pressure of the high-pressure water jet is 270 MPa and the cutterhead rotational speed is 6 r/min. The technical superiority of high-pressure water-jet-assisted rock breaking technology is highlighted and it provides guidance for the excavation parameter selection of high-pressure hydraulically coupled rock-breaking TBM.

TBM tunneling in extremely hard and abrasive rocks:Problems,solutions and assisting methods

Extremely hard and abrasive rocks pose great challenges to the past and ongoing TBM projects by increasing cutter wear and reducing penetration rates.A considerable amount of research has been conducted to improve the performance of TBMs in those challenging grounds by either improving the capacity of TBMs or developing assisting rock breakage methods.This paper first highlights the challenges of hard and abrasive rocks on TBM tunneling through case studies.It then presents the development of hard rock TBMs and reviews the technologies that can be used individually or as assistance to mechanical excavators to break hard rocks.Emphases are placed on technologies of high pressure waterjet,laser and microwave.The state of the art of field and laboratory research,problems and research directions of those technologies are discussed.The assisting methods are technically feasible;however,the main challenges of using those methods in the field are that the energy consumption can be over 10 times high and that the existing equipments have robustness problems.More research should be conducted to study the overall energy consumption using TBMs and the assisting methods.Pulsed waterjet,laser and microwave technologies should also be developed to make the assistance economically viable.

Safe retaining pressures for pressurized tunnel face using nonlinear failure criterion and reliability theory

Based on the active failure mechanism and passive failure mechanism for a pressurized tunnel face, the analytical solutions of the minimum collapse pressure and maximum blowout pressure that could maintain the stability of pressurized tunnel faces were deduced using limit analysis in conjunction with nonlinear failure criterion under the condition of pore water pressure. Due to the objective existence of the parameter randomness of soil, the statistical properties of random variables were determined by the maximum entropy principle, and the Monte Carlo method was employed to calculate the failure probability of a pressurized tunnel. The results show that the randomness of soil parameters exerts great influence on the stability of a pressurized tunnel, which indicates that the research should be done on the topic of determination of statistical distribution for geotechnical parameters and the level of variability. For the failure probability of a pressurized tunnel under multiple failure modes, the corresponding safe retaining pressures and optimal range of safe retaining pressures are calculated by introducing allowable failure probability and minimum allowable failure probability. The results can provide practical use in the pressurized tunnel engineering.

Modeling the Axial Balancing Mechanism of Orbit Annular Hydraulic Machines

A customized combined methodology based on both 2D CFD （computational fluid dynamics） and lumped parameters numerical modeling, useful for simulating the hydraulic behavior of orbit annular machines, has been developed and here presented. More in details, the predictive capabilities of this CAE （computer-aided engineering） tool can be applied for the study of both roller and gerotor architectures and considering both pumping and motoring operating mode. First of all, an in-house developed 2D CFD methodology, based on the integration of the stationary form of the Reynolds equation for the determination of the pressure distribution inside the lateral clearances bounded by the sides of the stator-rotor group and the valve plate, as well as the internal manifold surface, is firstly presented and applied. The same computational procedure has been also involved for the investigation of the leakages through the clearance between the valve plate and the balancing ring. After that, a lumped and distributed parameters numerical model has been involved for the simulation of a typical orbit roller motor operation. In this case, particular care has been devoted to the modeling of the axial leakage clearances, adopting analytical interpolation functions deducted from the numerical results calculated applying the previously described 2D CFD methodology. Finally, the whole CAE approach has been validated by means of a comprehensive numerical versus experimental comparison, obtaining a general good accordance for the overall operating field of this particular type of hydraulic unit.

Instability mechanism and control technology of soft rock roadway affected by mining and high confined water

Based on deformation and failure characteristics of the second belt conveyor roadway at level II of Zhuxianzhuang coal mine, laboratory experiments, numerical calculation and field test were adopted to analyze the composition and microstructure of mudstone, the law of mudstone hydration and its strength weakening induced by water, the characteristics of surrounding rock deformation and failure under the action of confined water. Results showed that montmorillonite clay minerals accounted for as much as 76% of mudstone, with a large number of pores existing in the microstructure. Besides, as the molecular structure of montmorillonite changed, mudstone microstructure damage occurred with the macroscopic manifestation of its theological instability. Weakening degree of confined water on residual strength of mudstone was almost 50%. The instability mechanism of soft rock roadway caused by high confined water is that surrounding rock circulates the process of ＂fracture-seepage-mud ding-closed＂ twice, which weakens its strength and leads to roadway instability. A combined support technology, namely the, ＂high-toughness sealing layer ＋ hollow grouting cables ＋ full-length anchoring bolts with deep borehole＂ was proposed. Based on field observation, the soft rock roadway was controlled effectively, which also verified the effectiveness of new control technology for surrounding rock.

Model test to investigate failure mechanism and loading characteristics of shallow-bias tunnels with small clear distance

Based on the similarity theory,a tunnel excavation simulation testing system under typical unsymmetrical loading conditions was established.Using this system,the failure mechanism of surrounding rock of shallow-bias tunnels with small clear distance was analyzed along with the load characteristics.The results show that:1) The failure process of surrounding rock of shallow-bias tunnels with small clear distance consists of structural and stratum deformation induced by tunnel excavation; Microfracture surfaces are formed in the tunnel surrounding rock and extend deep into the rock mass in a larger density; Tensile cracking occurs in shallow position on the deep-buried side,with shear slip in deep rock mass.In the meantime,rapid deformation and slip take place on the shallow-buried side until the surrounding rocks totally collapse.The production and development of micro-fracture surfaces in the tunnel surrounding rock and tensile cracking in the shallow position on the deep-buried side represent the key stages of failure.2) The final failure mode is featured by an inverted conical fracture with tunnel arch as its top and the slope at tunnel entrance slope as its bottom.The range of failure on the deep-buried side is significantly larger than that on the shallow-buried side.Such difference becomes more prominent with the increasing bias angle.What distinguishes it from the "linear fracture surface" model is that the model proposed has a larger fracture angle on the two sides.Moreover,the bottom of the fracture is located at the springing line of tunnel arch.3) The total vertical load increases with bias angle.Compared with the existing methods,the unsymmetrical loading effect in measurement is more prominent.At last,countermeasures are proposed according to the analysis results: during engineering process,1) The surrounding rock mass on the deep-buried side should be reinforced apart from the tunnel surrounding rock for shallow-buried tunnels with small clear distance; moreover,the scope of consolidation should go beyond the midline of tunnel(along the direction of the top of slope) by 4 excavation spans of single tunnel.2) It is necessary to modify the load value of shallow-bias tunnels with small clear distance.

Design of Process Centrifugal Compressor： an Adapted Algorithm

Considering the essential and influential role of centrifugal compressors in a wide range of industries makes most of engineers research and study on design and optimization of centrifugal compressors. Centrifugal compressors are the key to part ofoil, gas and petrochemical industries as well as gas pipeline transports. Since complete 3D design of the compressor consumes a considerable amount of time, most of active companies in the field, are profoundly interested in obtaining a design outline before taking any further steps in designing the entire machine. In this paper, a numerical algorithm, named ACDA （adapted compressor design algorithm） for fast and accurate preliminary design of centrifugal compressor is presented. The design procedure is obtained under real gas behavior, using an appropriate equation of state. Starting from impeller inlet, the procedure is continued on by resulting in numerical calculation for other sections including impeller exit, volute and exit diffuser. Clearly, in any step suitable correction factors are employed in order to conclude in precise numerical results. Finally, the achieved design result is compared with available reference data.

Experimental study on barrel viscous dampers and pipe hoops in pipeline vibration reduction

The centrifugal air compressor outlet pipeline vibration was not decreased after barrel viscous dampers were installed in a petrochemical plant in Tianjin.A pipeline-damper experiment apparatus was built for studying the influence factors of the barrel viscous damper and pipe hoop in pipeline vibration reduction.The performance of the damper under different frequency and amplitude was researched respectively,the results showed that damping effect dependsed mainly on frequency and was not related to amplitude.Damper will fail when its vibration frequency exceeds its limit working frequency which was 40 Hz in test.The mechanical properties and energy dissipation were analyzed by using the Maxwell model,which explains experimental results well.According to damping effect and calculation of stiffness with ANSYS in different hoop width,hoop stiffness should match pipe stiffness and keep uniform along transfer path.Damping effect will get worse when local stiffness is too small or too large.Finally,the outlet pipeline vibration was decreased by 70%after using appropriate pipe hoop width and replacing the original damping liquid.

Relationship between the Flow Blockage of Tip Leakage Vortex and its Evolutionary Procedures inside the Rotor Passage of a Subsonic Axial Compressor

The near casing flow fields inside the rotor passage of a 1.5 stage axial compressor with different blade-loading levels and tip gap sizes were measured by using stereoscopic particle image velocimetry(SPIV). Based on a carefully defined blockage extracting method, the variations of blockage parameter inside the blade passage were analyzed. It was found that the variation of blockage parameter appeared as a non-monotonic behavior inside the blade passage in most cases. This non-monotonic behavior became much more remarkable as the blade loading increases or mass flow rate decreases.The variations of the blockage parameter inside the blade passage had close relation to the evolutionary procedures of the tip leakage vortex(TLV). The destabilization of the TLV caused a rapid increasing of the blockage parameter. After the TLV lost the features of a concentrated streamwise vortex,the blockage parameter usually got a peak value. And then, because of the intense turbulent mixing between the TLV low momentum flow and its surrounding flows, the flow deficit inside the TLV recovered.

Imbalance and dysfunction of transient receptor potential channels contribute to the pathogenesis of hypertension

Intracellular Ca2+homeostasis is essential for vascular function and blood pressure regulation.Because of their unique roles in regulating intracellular Ca2+concentration and vascular function,a novel class of non-selective cation channels,called transient receptor potential(TRP)channels,have emerged at the frontier of hypertension research.Based on their role in vasculature function regulation,TRP channels can be divided into two functional subtypes:one that participates in vasoconstriction and one that participates in vasodilatation.A functional imbalance of these two subtypes of TRP channels may disturb intracellular calcium([Ca2+]i)homeostasis,and the consequent vascular dysfunction may contribute to the development of hypertension.The potential of these TRP channels as novel pharmacological targets for the treatment of human hypertension is of great interest.

Effect of a Curved Duct Upstream on Performance of Small Centrifugal Compressors for Automobile Turbochargers

Since the automobile turbochargers are installed in an engine compartment with limited space, the ducts upstream of the turbocharger compressor may be curved in a complex manner. In the present paper, the effect of a curved duct upstream on performance of small centrifugal compressors for automobile turbochargers is discussed. The computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis of a turbocharger compressor validated for the compressor model with the straight pipe applied to the compressor with the curved pipe are executed, and the deterioration of the performance for the curved pipe is confirmed. It is also found that the deterioration of compressor performance is caused by the interaction of the secondary flow and the impeller.