This study aims to design a novel air cleaning facility which conforms to the current situation in China, and moreover can satisfy our demand on air purification under the condition of poor air quality, as well as discuss the development means of a prototype product. Air conditions in the operating room of a hospital were measured as the research subject of this study. First, a suitable turbulence model and boundary conditions were selected and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software was used to simulate indoor air distribution. The analysis and comparison of the simulation results suggested that increasing the area of air supply outlets and the number of return air inlets would not only increase the area of unidirectional flow region in main flow region, but also avoid an indoor vortex and turbulivity of the operating area. Based on the summary of heat and humidity management methods, the system operation mode and relevant parameter technologies as well as the characteristics of the thermal-humidity load of the operating room were analyzed and compiled. According to the load value and parameters of indoor design obtained after our calculations, the airflow distribution of purifying the air-conditioning system in a clean operating room was designed and checked. The research results suggested that the application of a secondary return air system in the summer could reduce energy consumption and be consistent with the concept of primary humidity control. This study analyzed the feasibility and energy conservation properties of cleaning air-conditioning technology in operating rooms, proposed some solutions to the problem, and performed a feasible simulation, which provides a reference for practical engineering.

Plate fin-tube heat exchangers fins are bonded with tubes by means of brazing or by mechanical expansion of tubes. Various errors made in the process of expansion can result in formation of an air gap between tube and fin. A number of numerical simulations was carried out for symmetric section of plate fin-tube heat exchanger to study the influence of air gap on heat transfer in forced convection conditions. Different locations of air gap spanning 1/2 circumference of the tube were considered, relatively to air flow direction. Inlet velocities were a variable parameter in the simulations (1– 5 m/s). Velocity and temperature fields for cases with air gap were compared with cases without it (ideal thermal contact). For the case of gap in the back of the tube (in recirculation zone) the lowest reduction (relatively to the case without gap) of heat transfer rate was obtained (average of 11%). The worst performance was obtained for the gap in the front (reduction relatively to full thermal contact in the average of 16%).

The joined wing concept is an unconventional airplane configuration, known since the mid-twenties of the last century. It has several possible advantages, like reduction of the induced drag and weight due to the closed wing concept. The inverted joined wing variant is its rarely considered version, with the front wing being situated above the aft wing. The following paper presents a performance prediction of the recently optimized configuration of this airplane. Flight characteristics obtained numerically were compared with the performance of two classical configuration airplanes of similar category. Their computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models were created basing on available documentation, photographs and some inverse engineering methods. The analysis included simulations performed for a scale of 3-meter wingspan inverted joined wing demonstrator and also for real-scale manned airplanes. Therefore, the results of CFD calculations allowed us to assess the competitiveness of the presented concept, as compared to the most technologically advanced airplanes designed and manufactured to date. At the end of the paper, the areas where the inverted joined wing is better than conventional airplane were predicted and new research possibilities were described.

The present study deals with modelling and validation of a planar Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) design fuelled by gas mixture of partially pre-reformed methane. A 3D model was developed using the ANSYS Fluent Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) tool that was supported by an additional Fuel Cell Tools module. The governing equations for momentum, heat, gas species, ion and electron transport were implemented and coupled to kinetics describing the electrochemical and reforming reactions. In the model, the Water Gas Shift reaction in a porous anode layer was included. Electrochemical oxidation of hydrogen and carbon monoxide fuels were both considered. The developed model enabled to predict the distributions of temperature, current density and gas flow in the fuel cell.

Small-scale vertical-axis wind turbines can be used as a source of electricity in rural and urban environments. According to the authors’ knowledge, there are no validated simplified aerodynamic models of these wind turbines, therefore the use of more advanced techniques, such as for example the computational methods for fluid dynamics is justified. The paper contains performance analysis of the small-scale vertical-axis wind turbine with a large solidity. The averaged velocity field and the averaged static pressure distribution around the rotor have been also analyzed. All numerical results presented in this paper are obtained using the SST k-ω turbulence model. Computed power coefficients are in good agreement with the experimental results. A small change in the tip speed ratio significantly affects the velocity field. Obtained velocity fields can be further used as a base for simplified aerodynamic methods.

The paper presents studies of mathematical modelling in transonic flow through the first stage rotor of the axial compressor of homogenous and heterogeneous condensation. The condensation phenomena implemented into a commercial software is based on the classical theory of nucleation and molecular-kinetic droplet growth model. Model is validated against experimental studies available in the literature regarding the flow through the first stage of turbine compressor, i.e. the rotor37 transonic compressor benchmark test. The impact of air humidity and air contamination on the condensation process for different flow conditions is examined. The influence of latent heat release due to condensation exerts a significant impact on the flow structure, thus the analysis of the air humidity and contamination influence on the condensation is presented. The results presented indicate the non-negligible influence of air humidity on the flow structure in the transonic flow regime, thus it is recommended to take condensation phenomenon under consideration in high-velocity airflow simulations.

Development of new or upgrading of existing airplanes requires many different analyses, e.g., thermal, aerodynamical, structural, and safety. Similar studies were performed during re-design of two small aircrafts, which were equipped with new turboprop engines. In this paper thermo-fluid analyses of interactions of new propulsion systems with selected elements of airplane skin were carried out. Commercial software based numerical models were developed. Analyses of heat and fluid flow in the engine bay and nacelle of a single-engine airplane with a power unit in the front part of the fuselage were performed in the first stage. Subsequently, numerical simulations of thermal interactions between the hot exhaust gases, which leave the exhaust system close to the front landing gear, and the bottom part of the fuselage were investigated. Similar studies were carried out for the twin-engine airplane with power units mounted on the wings. In this case thermal interactions between the hot exhaust gases, which were flowing out below the wings, and the wing covers and flaps were studied. Simulations were carried out for different airplane configurations and operating conditions. The aim of these studies was to check if for the assumed airplane skin materials and the initially proposed airplane geometries, the cover destruction due to high temperature is likely. The results of the simulations were used to recommend some modifications of constructions of the considered airplanes.

The aim of this work was to achieve a deeper understanding of the heat transfer in a microtubular Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (mSOFC) stack based on the results obtained by means of a Computational Fluid Dynamics tool. Stack performance predictions were based on simulations for a 16 anodesupported mSOFCs sub-stack, which was a component of the overall stack containing 64 fuel cells. The emphasis of the paper was put on steady-state modelling, which enabled identification of heat transfer between the fuel cells and air flow cooling the stack and estimation of the influence of stack heat losses. Analysis of processes for different heat losses and the impact of the mSOFC reaction heat flux profile on the temperature distribution in the mSOFC stack were carried out. Both radiative and convective heat transfer were taken into account in the analysis. Two different levels of the inlet air velocity and three different values of the heat losses were considered. Good agreement of the CFD model results with experimental data allowed to predict the operation trends, which will be a reliable tool for optimisation of the working setup and ensure sufficient cooling of the mSOFC stack.

The paper deals with numerical modelling of carbon dioxide capture by amine solvent from flue gases in post-combustion technology. A complex flow system including a countercurrent two-phase flow in a porous region, chemical reaction and heat transfer is considered to resolve CO2 absorption. In order to approach the hydrodynamics of the process a two-fluid Eulerian model was applied. At the present stage of model development only the first part of the cycle, i.e. CO2 absorption was included. A series of parametric simulations has shown that carbon dioxide capture efficiency is mostly influenced by the ratio of liquid (aqueous amine solution) to gas (flue gases) mass fluxes. Good consistency of numerical results with experimental data acquired at a small-scale laboratory CO2 capture installation (at the Institute for Chemical Processing of Coal, Zabrze, Poland) has proved the reliability of the model.

Investigations on integration of optoelectronic components with LTCC (low temperature co-fired ceramics) microfluidic module are presented. Design, fabrication and characterization of the ceramic structure for optical absorbance is described as well. The geometry of the microfluidic channels has been designed according to results of the CFD (computational fluid dynamics) analysis. A fabricated LTCC-based microfluidic module consists of an U-shaped microchannel, two optical fibers and integrated light source (light emitting diode) and photodetector (light-to-voltage converter). Properties of the fabricated microfluidic system have been investigated experimentally. Several concentrations of potassium permanganate (KMnO4) in water were used for absorbance/transmittance measurements. The test has shown a linear detection range for various concentrations of heavy metal ions in distilled water. The fabricated microfluidic structure is found to be a very useful system in chemical analysis.

An ancient forging device in Spain has been studied, namely the forge with a waterwheel and air-blowing tube or hydraulic trompe, found near the village of Santa Eulalia de Oscos (province of Asturias, Spain). Three procedures using ad hoc methods were applied: 3D modelling, finite element analysis (FEA), and computational-fluid dynamics (CFD). The CFD results indicated the proper functioning of the trompe, which is a peculiar device based on the Venturi effect to take in air. The maximum air volume flow rate supplied to the forge by the trompe was shown to be 0.091 m3/s, and certain parameters of relevance in the trompe design presented optimal values, i.e. offering maximum air-flow supply. Furthermore, the distribution of stress over the motion-transmission system revealed that the stress was concentrated most intensely in the cogs of the transmission shaft (a kind of camshaft), registering values of up to 7.50 MPa, although this value remained below half of the maximum admissible work stress. Therefore, it was confirmed that the oak wood from which the motion system and the trompe were made functioned properly, as these systems never exceeded the maximum admissible working stress, demonstrating the effectiveness of the materials used in that period.

FEM (finite element method) is an essential and powerful numerical method that can explicitly optimize the design process of electrical devices. In this paper, the employment of FEM tools such as SolidWorks, COMSOL and ANSYS is proposed in order to aid electrical apparatuses engineering and modeling – those are arc chambers of modular circuit breakers. Procured models of arc chambers have been undergoing simulations concerning heating, electric potential distribution, electric charge velocity and traverse paths. The data acquired has been juxta-positioned against experimental data procured in the Short-Circuit Laboratory, Warsaw University of Technology. The reflection of the theoretical approach was clearly noted in the experimental results. Mutual areas of the modeled element expressed the same physical properties and robustness errors when tested under specific conditions – faithfully reflecting those which were experimented with. Moreover, the physical phenomena essential for electrical engineering could be determined already at the model stage. This procedure proved highly valuable during designing/engineering work in terms of material economy.

This paper presents a study on flowmeters oscillatory motion when subjected to periodical, enforced vibrations induced by vortex-shedding. The proposed mathematical modelling of flow was compared to corresponding numerical simulation, in form of modal analysis. The frequencies of vortices generation and detachment were calculated for a number of flow velocities in two different flowmeter profile variants. The performed modal evaluation enabled estimating their natural frequencies, and in consequence the acquired data helped us to determine flow velocity for which the analyzed structures were prone to resonant vibrations.

The paper addresses the issues of quantification and understanding of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFC) based on numerical modelling carried out under four European, EU, research projects from the 7FP within the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking, FCH JU, activities. It is a short review of the main projects’ achievements. The goal was to develop numerical analyses at a single cell and stack level. This information was integrated into a system model that was capable of predicting fuel cell phenomena and their effect on the system behaviour. Numerical results were analysed and favourably compared to experimental results obtained from the project partners. At the single SOFC level, a static model of the SOFC cell was developed to calculate output voltage and current density as functions of fuel utilisation, operational pressure and temperature. At the stack level, by improving fuel cell configuration inside the stack and optimising the operation conditions, thermal stresses were decreased and the lifetime of fuel cell systems increased. At the system level, different layouts have been evaluated at the steady-state and by dynamic simulations. Results showed that increasing the operation temperature and pressure improves the overall performance, while changes of the inlet gas compositions improve fuel cell performance.