Influence Of Pulse Characteristics Research Articles

Influence of Pulse Characteristics on Turbocharger Radial Turbine

Abstract Turbocharging has been demonstrated as a key technology to enhance fuel efficiency in the automotive field that faces increasingly stringent emission regulations. Due to the reciprocating engine, pulsating flow feds the turbocharger turbine, which experiences conditions far from a continuous flow scenario. In this work, the effects of the characteristics of the mass flow pulse, parameterized through amplitude, frequency, and temporal gradient, are decoupled and studied via unsteady computational fluid dynamics calculations under on-engine operating conditions. First, the model is validated based on comparisons with experimental data in gas-stand conditions. Then, the effect of each parameter on the exergy budget is assessed by considering a ±10% variation with respect to a baseline pulse. The other factors defining the operating conditions (e.g., mass flow, shaft speed, and inflow exergy) are kept the same as the baseline. The adopted approach enables to completely isolate the effects of each parameter in contrast with previous literature studies. Based on the results observed, pulse amplitude is identified as the primary parameter affecting the hot-side system response in terms of turbine performance, heat transfer, and entropy generation, while frequency and temporal gradient show a smaller influence compared to it. As the pulse amplitude increases, the turbine work is reported to improve up to 9.4%. Smaller variations are otherwise observed for the frequency and temporal gradient analysis. With a 10% increase of the pulse frequency, the turbine work is registered to improve by 5.0%, while the same percentage reduction of the temporal gradient leads to an increase of the turbine work equal to 3.6%.

Influence of pulse characteristics and power density on stratum corneum permeabilization by dielectric barrier discharge

BackgroundIn recent years, the medical use of cold atmospheric plasma has received much attention. Plasma sources can be suited for widely different indications depending on their physical and chemical characteristics. Being interested in the enhancement of drug transport across the skin by plasma treatment, we evaluated three dielectric barrier discharges (DBDs) as to their potential use in permeabilizing human isolated stratum corneum (SC). MethodsImaging techniques (electrochemical and redox-chemical imaging, fluorescence microscopy), transepithelial electrical resistance measurements and permeation studies were employed to study the permeabilizing effect of different DBD-treatments on SC. ResultsFilamentous μs-pulsed DBDs induced robust pore formation in SC. Increasing the power of the μs-pulsed DBD lead to more pronounced pore formation but might increase the risk of undesired side-effects. Plasma permeabilization was much smaller for the ns-pulsed DBD, which left SC samples largely intact. ConclusionsThe comparison of different DBDs provided insight into the mechanism of DBD-induced SC permeabilization. It also illustrated the need to tailor electrical characteristics of a DBD to optimize it for a particular treatment modality. For future applications in drug delivery it would be beneficial to monitor the permeabilization during a plasma treatment. General significanceOur results provide mechanistic insight into the potential of an emerging interdisciplinary technology – plasma medicine – as a prospective tool or treatment option. While it might become a safe and pain-free method to enhance skin permeation of drug substances, this is also a mechanism to keep in mind when tailoring plasma sources for other uses.

Simulation of nano-second pulsed phenomena in electrochemical micromachining processes – Effects of the signal and double layer properties

Pulsed electrochemical micromachining is a metal dissolution process where the capacitive behaviour of the double layer enhances the confinement of the machining profile, when very short voltage pulses are applied. During the pulses, the dissolution is confined to electrode regions where the tool–workpiece gap is the smallest. The model used combines the potential distribution in the electrolyte with the load–unload behaviour of the double layer. The model is solved using the Finite Element Method. The pulse and double layer charging are the main focus and therefore no shape change is included in the model at this point. The influence of the double layer, pulse signal parameters and inter-electrode gap size on the dissolution current density (material removal depth), as a function of time, is investigated. An estimation of the double layer loading time is presented, as well as a quantification method for the metal removal confinement, by comparing the calculated error against an ideal removal profile. The influence of pulse characteristics on the dissolution process has also been studied. It was found that a strongly non-linear polarization in combination with nano-second pulses and a small gap size increases the confinement. All the simulation results were obtained on an axisymmetric case by considering several geometrical set-ups.