Abstract
The use of compressed air as an alternative source of clean energy requires an air expander to extract work. A new design, known as the revolving vane mechanism, has been proposed in an effort to develop high efficiency rotary machines. This paper provides an in-depth analysis by including the vibration characteristics of the revolving vane air expander to evaluate the steady-state operating output torque. A generic model for describing the revolving vane rotational vibration is first derived and subsequently modified to describe the prototype tested. Measurements show that the output torque is bimodal; arising from a tolerance gap between the vane and its slot during fabrication. This effect was found to be less pronounced at high operating speeds. The model is found to be in good agreement with the measured output torques. Further analysis with the validated model showed that extracting shaft work from the cylinder would result in better performance.
Highlights
With growing concerns over the ever-increasing global energy consumption with respect to finite fossil fuel resources, alternative clean energy systems have since piqued the interests of many researchers.Compressed air can be used to power pneumatic engines, otherwise known as air expanders, and essentially function as a clean energy source
The measurement data was used to validate the vibration model and the model was found to be accurate for predicting the output torque variations of the revolving vane expander with an accuracy of ±10% for the peak torque values at operating speeds above 240 rev min−1
This correlation was validated by Tan and Ooi [39] to be suitable for modelling heat transfer in the revolving vane mechanism
Summary
With growing concerns over the ever-increasing global energy consumption with respect to finite fossil fuel resources, alternative clean energy systems have since piqued the interests of many researchers. Compressed air can be used to power pneumatic engines, otherwise known as air expanders, and essentially function as a clean energy source It requires no electrical power input and has been proposed as an alternative power source for hybrid vehicles in which it is employed in conjunction with an internal combustion engine, replacing the electric motor in conventional hybrid vehicles [1,2,3]. A new rotary mechanism design called the revolving vane (RV) has been introduced, which shows a lot of promise in terms of overall efficiency. It is an improvement over the traditional rolling piston machine as the cylinder rotates together with the rotor. The measurement data was used to validate the vibration model and the model was found to be accurate for predicting the output torque variations of the revolving vane expander with an accuracy of ±10% for the peak torque values at operating speeds above 240 rev min−1
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