Aircraft Ground Dynamics

The state-of-the-art in analysing a number of ground manoeuvring processes on aircraft is described. The mathematical models are as good as the data supplied to them.     

Major sources of hydrocarbon emissions in a premixed charge compression ignition engine

Although premixed charge compression ignition (PCCI) combustion engines are praised for potentially high efficiency and clean exhaust, experimental engines built to date emit more hydrocarbons (HCs) and carbon monoxide (CO) than the conventional machines. These compounds are not only strictly controlled components of the exhaust gas of road vehicles but are also an energy loss indicator. The prime objective of this study was to investigate the major sources of the HCs formed in the combustion chamber of an experimental PCCI engine in order to suggest some effective technologies for HC reduction. In this study, to explore the dominant sources of HC emissions in both operation modes, a single cylinder engine was prepared such that it could operate using either conventional diesel combustion or PCCI combustion. Specifically, the contributions of the top-ring crevice volume in the combustion chamber and the bulk quenching of the lean mixture were investigated. To understand the influence of the shape and magnitude of the crevice on HC emissions, the engine was operated with 12 specially prepared pistons with different top-ring crevices installed one after another. The engine emitted proportionally more HCs as the depth of the crevice increased as long as the width remained narrower than the prevailing quench distance. The top-ring-crevice-originated exhaust HCs comprised approximately 31% of the total HC emissions in the baseline condition. In a series of tests to estimate the effects of bulk quench on exhaust HC emissions, intake air was heated from 300K to 400K in steps of 25K. With the intake air heated, HC and CO emissions decreased with a gradually diminishing rate to zero at 375K. In conclusion, the most dominant sources of HC emissions in PCCI engines were the crevice volumes in the combustion chamber and the bulk quenching of the lean mixtures. The key methods for reducing HC emissions in PCCI engines are minimizing crevice volume in the combustion chamber and maximizing intake air temperature allowed based on the permissible NOx level.     

Study of an optimized gas strut layout to improve opening and closing quality

The most important factor in gas strut design is determining an optimized layout. If the layout is not optimized, vehicle operators will have a suboptimal experience when opening and closing the tailgate. A poor layout of the gas struts causes operators to work excessively when they open/close the tailgate, and vehicle owners will incur additional expenses due to deterioration in the body quality of the vehicle. Thus, an optimized gas strut layout is very important, even if it does not seem interesting. This paper describes the tailgate operation process and focuses on determining an optimized gas strut layout for opening/closing the tailgate easily.     

High-strain-rate fracture of adhesively bonded composite joints in DCB and TDCB specimens

Double-cantilever beam (DCB) and tapered double-cantilever beam (TDCB) specimens are the test configurations most commonly used to measure the fracture toughness of composites and adhesive joints. Strain rates of 1 to 18.47 m/s were applied to the test specimens via high-speed hydraulic test equipment. Because the fracture occurs through the adhesively bonded joints and the cracks grow rapidly, the crack length and beam displacement were recorded by a high-speed camera. An energy range from 0 to 10 J was often observed in the high-strain-rate fracture experiments for nonlinear plastic behavior of the dynamically loaded adhesively bonded DCB and TDCB specimens. The range of energy release rates (fracture energy) for TDCB specimen was 2 to 3 times higher than that of a DCB specimen for all high strain rates. The fracture energy of automotive adhesive joints can be estimated using the experimental results in this study for the fracture toughness (G_IC) under high rates of loading. The crack grows as the applied fracture energy exceeds the value of the critical energy release rate (G_IC) at the crack tip. The energy release rate was calculated using the fracture mechanics formula. The key fracture mechanics parameter, the fracture energy GIC, was ascertained as a function of the test rate and can be used to assess and model the overall joint performance.     

Fuel consumption of fuel cell hybrid vehicles considering battery SOC differences

Fuel cell hybrid vehicles (FCHVs) have become one of the most promising candidates for future transportation due to current energy supply problem and environmental problem. Fuel economy is an important factor in FCHVs. In order to properly evaluate the fuel economy of an FCHV, the initial battery state of charge (SOC) and the final battery SOC have to be identical so that the effect of the battery energy usage on the fuel economy is neglected. In the simulation or in the real driving, however, the final battery SOC is usually different from the initial battery SOC, and the final battery SOC often depends on the power management strategy. To consider the difference between the two battery SOC values, the concept of equivalent fuel consumption is presented by two methods. One is based on the relationship between delta SOC and delta fuel consumption, and the other is based on the optimal control theory. Two rule-based power management strategies for an FCHV are presented, and for each strategy, the fuel economy is evaluated based on the two methods. The characteristics of the two methods are discussed and compared, and the superior one is selected based on the comparison.     

New lead-acid battery management system based on generator regulation

A novel regulation system for a vehicle generator and lead-acid battery is proposed in this paper. By integrating the regulation method, the output voltage of the generator is determined and controlled by the algorithm to save electrical energy and protect the lead-acid battery. The regulation algorithm is implemented in Matlab/Simulink, and the logic function of the system is verified using the dSPACE/AutoBox workbench. The experimental results show that the new algorithm improves the performance of the fuel economy of the vehicle and the battery state-of-health compared to the traditional control method.     

Course stability and yaw motion of a ship in steady wind

In order to achieve safe navigation, it is important to be able to understand and calculate the effects of an external force on the maneuvering behavior of a ship. This paper analyzes the course stability and yaw motion of a ship traveling under steady wind conditions. A course stability criterion and approximate formulae for the yaw motion in steady wind, including the aero/hydrodynamic force derivatives for the ship, are derived. To confirm the reliability of the criterion and formulae, they were used to investigate a pure car carrier in steady wind. The results of this investigation revealed that course instability appears in the head and following wind directions, mainly under the influence of aerodynamic derivatives with respect to the yaw restoring forces. However, this course instability can be reduced by applying steering control. For winds ranging from head winds to beam winds, yaw oscillation appears when the period is relatively long and the damping is small. The analytical formulae derived here can be used to gain a better understanding of ship maneuvering behavior in steady wind.     

A citation network analysis of sustainability development in liner shipping management: a review of the literature and policy implications

ABSTRACT

Based on an analysis of 253 related papers drawn from the Web of Science database, this study examines holistic sustainability research in liner shipping management literature using a citation network analysis (CNA) approach followed by a qualitative analysis of findings. We identify four major research domains, namely shipping performance, port selection and management, shipping markets, and environment, as well as related sub-domains of shipping performance. We discuss the current research trends and focal issues in these domains with a focus on their implications for policy development. Our results indicate that while the sustainability discourse in the literature has developed and matured significantly over the last decade, generating valuable insights for practitioners and regulators alike, it still struggles with blurry terminology and a lack of holistic frameworks jointly addressing the different aspects of sustainability: Economic considerations of liner shipping are still the main concern, while environmental and social issues are less regarded in the academic discourse. Furthermore, we identify a dearth of studies rooted in managerial or economic theory. In this regard, our study provides insights on the scope of the holistic sustainability discourse in liner shipping management, its contributions to theory and practice, and its implications for the further development of policies addressing sustainability in liner shipping management. We advocate further construct development for sustainability in liner shipping, as well as empirical tests of the antecedents of sustainability practice adoption in the industry for future research.     

Numerical analysis of the dynamic interaction between wheel set and turnout crossing using the explicit finite element method

A three-dimensional (3-D) explicit dynamic finite element (FE) model is developed to simulate the impact of the wheel on the crossing nose. The model consists of a wheel set moving over the turnout crossing. Realistic wheel, wing rail and crossing geometries have been used in the model. Using this model the dynamic responses of the system such as the contact forces between the wheel and the crossing, crossing nose displacements and accelerations, stresses in rail material as well as in sleepers and ballast can be obtained. Detailed analysis of the wheel set and crossing interaction using the local contact stress state in the rail is possible as well, which provides a good basis for prediction of the long-term behaviour of the crossing (fatigue analysis). In order to tune and validate the FE model field measurements conducted on several turnouts in the railway network in the Netherlands are used here. The parametric study including variations of the crossing nose geometries performed here demonstrates the capabilities of the developed model. The results of the validation and parametric study are presented and discussed.     

One-dimensional model on fuel penetration in diesel sprays with gas flow

In diesel engine, spray penetration is usually changed by in-cylinder gas flow. Accurate prediction on diesel spray with gas flow is important to the optimal design of diesel fuel injection system. This paper presents a theory investigation focusing on the penetration of diesel spray with gas flow. In order to understand the effect of gas flow on the penetration of diesel spray, a one-dimensional spray model is developed from an idealized diesel spray, which is able to predict the spray behavior under different gas flow conditions. The ambient gas flow is simplified as ideal flow that has only constant flow velocity along x-axial and y-axial directions of spray. The x-axial and y-axial directions are respectively defined as along and vertical spray directions. The main assumption is that the y-axial direction gas flow has no effect on the penetration of spray along x-axial direction. The principles of conservation of mass and momentum are used in the derivation. Momentum of in-cylinder air flow is also taken into consideration. Validation of the model at stable condition is achieved by comparing model predictions with experimental measurements of diesel spray without gas flow from Naber's experiments. Furthermore, CFD simulations on penetration of diesel spray with gas flow were performed with the commercial code AVL-fire. The onedimensional model is validated by the penetration results with gas flow from CFD calculation. Results show that a reasonable estimation of the spray evolution can be obtained for both with and without ambient gas flow conditions.