Evaluation of embankment foundation creep in conditions of deep bedding of roof in permafrost soils

Railroad operating experience in permafrost conditions has shown that deformations of embankments on thawing foun- dations last for a long time. After an initial period of heat settlement due to permafrost degradation, the determining factor is the plastic flow of seasonal thawed soils of the foundation upper layer under the embankment. This paper provides a method to evaluate these deformations, and calculation examples using data from line sections of the Chum-Labytnangi Railway in northwestern Russia. It also discusses several methods of embankment stabilization, including the use of ver- tical thermosiphons.

Performance investigation of solar thermal collector with auxiliary heater for space heating

In this paper,the performance of a solar thermal system with a focus on space heating was investigated.A 70 m^(2) detached house was considered in the weather conditions of the city of Tehran,Iran.A thermosyphon solar water heater with a flat plate collector combined with an auxiliary electrical heater supplies the heating demand of the house.The proposed system was modeled and analyzed using TRNSYS software.In this regard,the TRNBuild module was employed for the building load calculation.The model has been simulated for one year of operation.The effects of the solar collector’s surface area and storage volume were assessed.The results show that for a solar collector with a 15 m^(2) surface area,the solar fraction is 0.29 in January,during which the solar radiation is the lowest.Using solar collectors of10 m^(2) and 5 m^(2) surface areas,the solar fraction falls to 0.23 and 0.14,respectively in January.Besides,two cases of 150 L and 300 L storage tanks are taken into account.Eventually,it is found that using a 15 m^(2) solar collector and a 150 L storage tank can appropriately provide the building’ s heating demand taking the thermal performance and economic aspects into consideration.

Modelling of a Two-Phase Thermosyphon Loop for Passive Air-Conditioning of a House in Hot and Dry Climate Countries

The two-phase thermosyphon loop is an efficient solution for space cooling. This paper presents the simulation results of numerical studies on the heat transfer and thermal performance of a two-phase thermosiphon loop for passive air-conditioning of a house. The fluid considered in this study is methanol, which is compatible with copper and is environmentally friendly. These numerical results show that the temperature at the evaporator wall drops from 23°C to 13°C and increases at the condenser. The solar flux density has a strong influence on the condenser temperature. The mass flow rates and masses at the evaporator and condenser increase with temperature. The variation of evaporating and condensing temperature affects the performance of the system. For a constant evaporating and condensing temperature of 2°C and 29°C, the COP is 0.77 and 0.84 respectively. With these results, the use of the two-phase thermosyphon loop in air conditioning is possible to obtain a thermal comfort of the occupants acceptable by the standards but with a large exchange surface of the evaporator.

Numerical Study of the Effect of Thermosiphon on the Vertical Dispersion of Pollutants

The dispersion of pollutants in urban environments is a major problem. Because of this fact our study comes to propose prevention and security system against the dispersion of releases and fumes from industrial smokestacks. The system is modeled by a plume-thermosiphon interaction flow resulting from a vertical cylinder open at both ends with a generating source of the plume centered at the opening of the cylinder. The cylindrical wall heats under the effect of the thermal radiation emitted by the generator source, which causes a flow of thermosiphon around the flow of the thermal plume. In order to determine the radiosity of radiation leaving the wall we have been used the Simpson quadrature and the Gaussian elimination method with a dominant pivot. Numerical simulations have been executed for different positions of the thermosiphon compared to the plume source, and for a number of Rayleigh fixed Ra = 10＋7, and a radius of the hot source corresponds to R＊ = 0.46. The results oftbe numerical model that we have been developed, help first identify the behavior of pollutants from the dynamic and thermal point of view and then explore the different locations of the thermosiphon compared to the source of the plume which causes a major influence on the dispersion of pollutants.