Reverse Boundary Research Articles

Experimental study on the influence of inlet pressure on the flow parameters at the reverse flow boundary of vortex tube and its relation with energy separation performance

The performance of the vortex tube (also known as the Ranque-Hilsch tube) is significantly influenced by the inlet pressure and the internal flow processes, which can be categorized into two distinct flows: the center and the outer flow. The reverse flow boundary, acting as the interface between the two flows, plays a crucial role in energy separation. However, the research on the location of the reverse flow boundary and the associated flow parameters and energy transfer at this boundary are still insufficient. Therefore, this research employs the measurement method of interpolation probe to analyze the distribution of the reverse flow boundary and the specific flow parameters at this boundary. These parameters include static pressure gradient, angular velocity, and static temperature gradient, which substantially impact energy separation. A qualitative analysis of the energy transfer process in the vortex tube by examining mass flow in the reverse area and tangential and axial velocities are further delved. This analysis covers momentum transfer, heat transfer, and turbulent heat transfer processes resulting from the compression and expansion processes. The findings provide a research direction for exploring the energy separation performance of vortex tubes.

LA-Net: layer attention network for 3D-to-2D retinal vessel segmentation in OCTA images

Objective. Retinal vessel segmentation from optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) volumes is significant in analyzing blood supply structures and the diagnosing ophthalmic diseases. However, accurate retinal vessel segmentation in 3D OCTA remains challenging due to the interference of choroidal blood flow signals and the variations in retinal vessel structure. Approach. This paper proposes a layer attention network (LA-Net) for 3D-to-2D retinal vessel segmentation. The network comprises a 3D projection path and a 2D segmentation path. The key component in the 3D path is the proposed multi-scale layer attention module, which effectively learns the layer features of OCT and OCTA to attend to the retinal vessel layer while suppressing the choroidal vessel layer. This module also efficiently captures 3D multi-scale information for improved semantic understanding during projection. In the 2D path, a reverse boundary attention module is introduced to explore and preserve boundary and shape features of retinal vessels by focusing on non-salient regions in deep features. Main results. Experimental results in two subsets of the OCTA-500 dataset showed that our method achieves advanced segmentation performance with Dice similarity coefficients of 93.04% and 89.74%, respectively. Significance. The proposed network provides reliable 3D-to-2D segmentation of retinal vessels, with potential for application in various segmentation tasks that involve projecting the input image. Implementation code: https://github.com/y8421036/LA-Net.

Simultaneous segmentation and classification of colon cancer polyp images using a dual branch multi-task learning network.

Accurate classification and segmentation of polyps are two important tasks in the diagnosis and treatment of colorectal cancers. Existing models perform segmentation and classification separately and do not fully make use of the correlation between the two tasks. Furthermore, polyps exhibit random regions and varying shapes and sizes, and they often share similar boundaries and backgrounds. However, existing models fail to consider these factors and thus are not robust because of their inherent limitations. To address these issues, we developed a multi-task network that performs both segmentation and classification simultaneously and can cope with the aforementioned factors effectively. Our proposed network possesses a dual-branch structure, comprising a transformer branch and a convolutional neural network (CNN) branch. This approach enhances local details within the global representation, improving both local feature awareness and global contextual understanding, thus contributing to the improved preservation of polyp-related information. Additionally, we have designed a feature interaction module (FIM) aimed at bridging the semantic gap between the two branches and facilitating the integration of diverse semantic information from both branches. This integration enables the full capture of global context information and local details related to polyps. To prevent the loss of edge detail information crucial for polyp identification, we have introduced a reverse attention boundary enhancement (RABE) module to gradually enhance edge structures and detailed information within polyp regions. Finally, we conducted extensive experiments on five publicly available datasets to evaluate the performance of our method in both polyp segmentation and classification tasks. The experimental results confirm that our proposed method outperforms other state-of-the-art methods.

Analysis of the flow mixing and energy separation in a Ranque–Hilsch vortex tube based on an area ratio study

Ranque-Hilsch vortex tube is a pressure-driven thermal device that is an essential component of waste pressure utilization, especially in gas industry. However, the lack of an effective optimization design method and relative low efficiency restrict its development. In this study, the flow field and energy separation of five area ratios (AR) from 0.02–0.32 with the same inlet areas were analyzed based on the AR study of a vortex tube through experiments and numerical simulation. To determine the correlation of area ratio and energy separation, the basic flow field distributions are obtained and the flow structure is analyzed. The results show that for the fifth tube, denoted by AR5, the inlet mass flowrate remains largely constant (min = 9.27–9.24 g/s) with extremely small changes in the back pressure at hot exit (Ph = 11.2–18 kPa); in contrast, for AR1, the back pressure at hot exit (Ph = 10–148 kPa) and inlet mass flowrate (min = 6.8–4.26 g/s) vary significantly with increasing cold mass fraction. Moreover, despite using the same moderate cold orifice ratio of 0.48 for all the five tubes, back flow can occur at the cold exit even at an extremely large cold mass fraction of 0.82 for AR5. In addition, various flow structures and mixing and their corresponding causes inside the vortex tube are summarized. The comparison of the flow and thermal behaviors under the five ARs reveals opposite working patterns of reverse flow boundary and off-optimization under the non-flow mixing condition. These conflicting working patterns of reverse flow boundary can be attributed to the multi-parameter interaction of vortex tube. Thus, the criteria for tube optimization may unilaterally fail unless the precession frequency is studied. Finally, a performance evaluation index that quantifies the energy separation performance is proposed. The index serves to improve the tube optimization criteria and further develop the optimization of vortex tubes.

Numerical study on the cooling performance and inlet mass flow rate per unit area of Ranque–Hilsch vortex tubes with different area ratios

The development of the Ranque-Hilsch vortex tube has stagnated since the 1950s, when Hilsch improved the vortex tube proposed by Ranque. Consequently, the performance of vortex tubes has remained constant for the past 70 years. In addition to the unclear flow structure and energy separation mechanism of vortex tubes, the lack of a mature design method for vortex tubes has also limited its widespread adoption for industrial applications. The inlet nozzle and main tube parameters have been studied extensively, and matching the inlet with the main tube is considered an important step in the design of a vortex tube; however, this process has not been studied extensively. In addition, although the temperature drop at the cold exit is a commonly adopted performance benchmark, it is not possible to establish a close relationship between this parameter and the geometric parameters of a vortex tube. This study investigates the relationship between the cooling performance and the area ratio of a vortex tube. The results indicate that the inlet mass flowrate per unit area has a positive correlation with the cooling performance, and its influence on the performance of a vortex tube is higher than that of the distribution of the reverse flow boundary. Therefore, the inlet mass flowrate per unit area can potentially be a geometric performance benchmark. However, further studies are required to develop better guidelines for optimizing the design and to obtain a deeper understanding of the energy separation mechanism of vortex tubes.

Effects of Fe-6.5wt.%Si alloys prepared by different cooling methods on ordered structure and mechanical properties

The non-oriented Fe-6.5wt.%Si alloy cast strip with a width of 100 mm and a thickness of 1.7 mm was prepared by the top side-pouring twin-roll-casting (TSTRC) process. The surface quality of the air-cooled and water-cooled cast strip was good. Compared with the Fe-6.5wt.%Si alloy ingot, the Fe-6.5wt.%Si alloy cast strip has a fine solidification structure and exhibits certain plasticity at room temperature. Microhardness, XRD, and TEM investigated the ordered structure and degree of Fe-6.5wt.%Si alloys prepared by three different cooling methods. The results show that the Fe-6.5wt.%Si alloy ingot prepared by the standard method has many B2-ordered phases and D03-ordered phases, and the order degree is high. The Fe-6.5wt.%Si alloy cast strip prepared by the TSTRC process has a low degree of order and only contains a small B2-ordered phase. The faster cooling rate effectively inhibits the formation of the D03-ordered phase and B2-ordered phase. The growth of the ordered phase also reduces the reverse domain boundary energy, reduces the motion resistance of superdislocations, and increases its mobility, thereby improving the room temperature plasticity of Fe-6.5wt.%Si alloy cast strips.

Simple model for flow field division and flow structure calculation in a vortex tube

The flow pattern and energy transfer process in the vortex tube are extremely complex, resulting in the difficulty of the direct calculation and prediction of the flow structure and temperature separation performance of a vortex tube. In view of this, research idea of dividing the vortex tube flow field into six regions was proposed, corresponding simplifications were made in different regions according to the flow features, and fluid parameters were coupled at the boundaries. An equation for the axial velocity component in the hot tube region was developed based on the characteristic that the axial velocity profiles under different conditions present similar patterns, the calculation method of reverse flow boundary which separates the working fluid into hot and cold fluids was described, and a set of relatively simple calculation methods for the internal flow field of vortex tubes was established based on the partition model. Three-dimensional velocity distributions inside the vortex tube under different working conditions were computed and analyzed. Further, the model was evaluated and validated through experimental data. The results showed good agreements of calculated data and experimental velocity fields. This work proposed a convenient calculation method for the estimation of the flow behavior inside a vortex tube and provide reliable predictions.

LES study on the working mechanism of large-scale precessing vortices and energy separation process of Ranque-Hilsch vortex tube

In this paper, a large eddy simulation model (LES) was adopted to analyse the large-scale precessing vortices and energy separation in a Ranque–Hilsch vortex tube. By comparing the time-averaged axial velocity field between the Laser Doppler velocimetry data and the numerical results, the feasibility of the LES model was confirmed. The 2D instant flow field presents two vortex structures of secondary circulation flow at the cold end, and precessing vortices inside the tube. It also reveals two opposite flows in the axial and radial directions, and the precessing vortices formed by the reverse flow turn towards the main flow. Then, the 3D coherent structure inside the vortex tube was obtained by the vortex identification method for the first time. The basic vortex structure inside the vortex tube consists of the vortex body, detached vortex, and fragmentised detached vortex. Through the evolution of the 3D vortex structure, it was found that the detached vortices experienced a life cycle of growth, shedding, fragmenting, and vanishing. Benefitting from the vortex shedding processes, the precessing vortices overcame the adverse radial pressure gradient and drove part of the reverse flow towards the main flow from the low-pressure zone to the high-pressure zone. Through these processes, the vortex core precession that drives the reciprocating motion of the gas parcels near the reverse flow boundary was established, and energy could be transferred from the inner layer to the outer layer through a heat pump cycle.

Исследование МГД-стабильности алюминиевого электролизера при различных условиях проведения технологического процесса

Mathematical simulation of industrial aluminium electrolytic cell operation allows us to predict and indicate the causes of magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) instability and bath level skewing, as well as investigate other features of the aluminium electrolysis process. In order to analyse the MHD stability of the electrolytic cell, we adapted a three-dimensional mathematical model that uses a multi-phase approach to describing the media (aluminium, electrolyte and gas) and treats the hydrodynamic, electromagnetic, thermal and electrochemical processes in the bath as interrelated. Our test calculations confirmed that the model is adequate and that the numerical solution proposed converges with sufficient accuracy. The paper describes our numerical investigation results concerning MHD stability of a multi-anode electrolytic cell when its thermal conditions and working space shape configuration change; our simulation included the metal-electrolyte phase interfaces and took into account the MHD instability developing when replacing burnt-out anodes. We estimated how various initial crust configurations affect the MHD stability. We investigated how the process parameters affect the working space shape in the bath, which is a dynamic object, same as the metal-electrolyte interface and the reverse oxidation zone surface. We specifically studied the way changes in potential affect the MHD stable shape of the working space in the bath. We show that varying the potential between any given pair of anodes can change the shape of the working space, that is, crust melts as potential increases, while lowering potential leads to further accretion. As this happens, we note that there is an increase in the vibration magnitudes of the liquid metal and the lower reverse oxidation zone boundary, but these variations are still within the range acceptable in terms of MHD stability of the electrolysis process

Structure function tensor equations in inhomogeneous turbulence

Exact budget equations for the second-order structure function tensor ⟨𝛿u$_{i}$𝛿u$_{j}$⟩, where 𝛿u is the difference of the i th fluctuating velocity component between two points, are used to study the two-point statistics of velocity fluctuations in inhomogeneous turbulence. The anisotropic generalised Kolmogorov equations (AGKE) describe the production, transport, redistribution and dissipation of every Reynolds stress component occurring simultaneously among different scales and in space, i.e. along directions of statistical inhomogeneity. The AGKE are effective to study the inter-component and multi-scale processes of turbulence. In contrast to more classic approaches, such as those based on the spectral decomposition of the velocity field, the AGKE provide a natural definition of scales in the inhomogeneous directions, and describe fluxes across such scales too. Compared to the generalised Kolmogorov equation, which is recovered as their half-trace, the AGKE can describe inter-component energy transfers occurring via the pressure–strain term and contain also budget equations for the off-diagonal components of ⟨𝛿u$_{i}$𝛿u$_{j}$⟩. The non-trivial physical interpretation of the AGKE terms is demonstrated with three examples. First, the near-wall cycle of a turbulent channel flow at a friction Reynolds number of Re$_{𝜏}$ = 200 is considered. The off-diagonal component ⟨-𝛿u𝛿υ⟩, which cannot be interpreted in terms of scale energy, is discussed in detail. Wall-normal scales in the outer turbulence cycle are then discussed by applying the AGKE to channel flows at Re$_{𝜏}$ = 500 and 1000. In a third example, the AGKE are computed for a separating and reattaching flow. The process of spanwise-vortex formation in the reverse boundary layer within the separation bubble is discussed for the first time.

The second order of ADS for reverse parabolic boundary value problem with integral condition

The second order of ADS for reverse parabolic boundary value problem with integral condition

Simulation and Mechanical Stress Analysis of the Lower Link Arm of a Tractor Using Finite Element Method

The lower link arms are used for attaching tools to agricultural tractors, and different forces act on those while working. Awareness about the safety and deformed shape of the lower link under these forces can help us to reduce failures and financial losses. In this study, the lower arms of MF399 and MF285 tractors were simulated and mechanical analysis was discussed using the finite element method. Three-dimensional models for both of the lower arms were designed using reverse engineering, and constraints, boundary conditions and loads were applied on the models considering the tensile force at the maximum work depth of the equipment. Then, the finite element method was used for static, modal and fatigue analysis in ANSYS software and then safety factor obtained for the lower arms. The FEM of static analysis results showed that the maximum value of Von-Mises stress occurred at the junction point of the lower arms to the attachments. These results indicate the lower arm is safe enough for working with a usual furrower and chisel plow, but while working with a drill planter, the possibility of breaking is higher. Also to prevent resonance frequency, the natural frequencies of the lower arms were calculated using modal analysis. Fatigue analysis for the lower arms showed that the probability of failure is high around the hole of inhibitory chains. These results can be useful to optimize design process of the lower arms.

Model Dispersion Analysis of Circular Waveguide in Normal and Reverse Boundary Condition

The dispersion characteristics of the circular step index fiber with helical windings between the core-cladding region is investigated. Sheath helix is wounded between the core and cladding using two directions, namely in the clock wise and anticlockwise direction. Substituting the field components into the modified boundary conditions due to the addition of the helical windings the modal characteristics are derived for both fibers. Representations of the helical windings are done by using normal boundary conditions and reverse boundary conditions. The Eigen equation is obtained in the form of Bessel functions and modified Bessel functions for both the waveguides. The dispersion curves are plotted for two specific pitch angles ψ=0° and ψ=90 for each fiber and the results are compared. The direction of wrapping the helical material results in a change in the dispersion properties with regards to the way the modes propagate in both fibers. These changes are seen by the presents and absence of (1) band gap,(2) splitting of modes and (3) adjacent modes depending on the direction and pitch angle of the helical windings. Results obtained in this work suggest that direction and pitch angle of the helical winding are parameters that are able to control the behavior of the modes.

Hydrodynamic Lubricant Film Separation During Codirectional and Counter-Directional Rotations of Disengaged Wet Clutch Packs

Abstract The parasitic drag losses incurred by wet clutches, used in transmission systems, can significantly affect vehicular powertrain efficiency. This paper presents a novel implicit solution for hydrodynamic parasitic drag losses of disengaged clutches. These are generated by conjunctional friction, taking into account lubricant film separation during codirectional and counter-directional disk pair rotations. Lubricant film rupture is considered through application of incipient reverse flow boundary condition, which is representative of lubricant film separation. The results point to the operating conditions at which significant power losses occur. In particular, the time efficient model is able to represent the small losses incurred during codirectional rotation of disk pairs.

Numerical study of bluntness effects on laminar leading edge separation in hypersonic flow

Bluntness effects on laminar hypersonic leading edge separation are investigated numerically at Mach number $M\approx 10$, unit Reynolds number $Re=1.3\times 10^{6}~\text{m}^{-1}$, specific enthalpy $h_{o}=3.1~\text{MJ}~\text{kg}^{-1}$ and wall-to-stagnation temperature ratio $T_{w}/T_{o}=0.1$. Such effects are important from an experimental point of view and because bluntness can affect a separated flow favourably or adversely. In this study, two blunt leading edge cases of small radius ($15~\unicode[STIX]{x03BC}\text{m}$) and large radius ($100~\unicode[STIX]{x03BC}\text{m}$) are investigated. A comparison with the idealised sharp leading edge case is also given. General flow features and surface parameters such as the shear stress, pressure and heat flux are presented and analysed. The results have also been interpreted in terms of Cheng’s displacement-bluntness similitude parameter affecting the size of separation. Previous experiments by Holden delineated small and large bluntness effects based on Cheng’s parameter and considering small to moderate separated regions. In this study, leading edge separation was found to suppress the favourable effect of bluntness in delaying separation. Bluntness, furthermore, seemed to promote the appearance of secondary vortices within a main separated region. Analysis of reverse flow boundary layer profiles such as velocity, pressure and temperature is also given. It is shown that bluntness accentuates large transverse gradients. This in turn adversely effects the reverse flow boundary layer leading to the appearance of secondary vortices.

Flow structures and their impact on single and dual inlets hydrocyclone performance for oil\u2013water separation

With many of today’s oil wells located offshore, the production of high volumes of water compared to oil poses major challenges to oil operators. The use of liquid–liquid hydrocyclone (LLHC) is one effective way to arrest these uphill problems of produced water. However, the nature of fluid flow within the LLHC device is very vital to the separation process and performance. This study through numerical simulation lends understanding to the way oil–water fluid migrates within LLHC device and shows how the flow structure can affect the efficiency of the separation process. Unsteady wavering flow was realized for the use of the single inlet due to flow imbalance just after entry into the cyclone. This affected the efficiency of separation as water droplets in the vicinity of the reverse flow core boundary could be carried to the overflow. In addition, there was the realization of frequent recirculation zones which cause some fluid droplets to be unseparated. Uniform unwavering fluid flow structure was observed in the case of dual inlet LLHC which assisted in the segregation of the oil and water into their respective core regions as oil-rich core (inner) and water-rich core (outer). The separation efficiency achieved from the use of the dual inlet LLHC outperformed that from the single inlet LLHC. An efficiency of 82.3% was obtained for the dual inlet LLHC as against 73.7% for the single inlet LLHC at 0.5 m3/h. At 1.0 m3/h, a great separation performance of 93.6% was achieved from the dual inlet LLHC, whereas separation efficiency of 88.5% was obtained when the same feed was treated in the single inlet LLHC.

Experimental study of the impacts of cold mass fraction on internal parameters of a vortex tube

In order to get the internal parameters of a vortex tube, a large-scale vortex tube was designed and an experimental device was built. A five-hole probe and thermocouples were used to obtain the three-dimensional velocities, the static pressure, static temperature and total temperature distributions inside the vortex tube. Four different cold mass fraction conditions (0.2, 0.4, 0.6 and 0.8) were chosen and the impacts on the internal parameters of the vortex tube were discussed. Different from the traditional view, the tangential velocity was considered to be the steady Burgers vortex form. A reverse flow boundary was found, and the location of which was changed at different operation conditions and axial positions. Further, it was found that the lowest static temperature existed near the nozzle outlet, and a new static temperature difference distribution law was firstly proposed experimentally.

Experimental investigation of flow structure and energy separation of Ranque–Hilsch vortex tube with LDV measurement

In this study, transparent vortex tubes of diameter 30 mm were designed for the main tube visualisation and a 2D laser Doppler velocimetry (LDV) measurement was adopted to investigate the mean flow field on the meridian plane. The distributions of the axial and radial velocities, and particularly the reverse flow boundary, were obtained for understanding the characteristics of large-scale vortex structures. Various operation conditions with different cold mass fractions (0.1–0.9), tube lengths (360 mm, 600 mm, and 900 mm), and inlet pressures (0.1 bar and 0.2 bar) were studied to reveal how the reverse flow boundary affects the energy separation performance. The LDV results show that the mean axial velocity distribution present good axial symmetry, and increasing the cold mass fraction results in an expansion of the reverse flow boundary as reported for previous numerical calculations. A deterioration in the energy separation performance due to an excessively short or long tube was revealed, and the proposed tube optimization criteria were proven.

Processing Information During Regressions: An Application of the Reverse Boundary-Change Paradigm.

Although 10–15% of eye-movements during reading are regressions, we still know little about the information that is processed during regressive episodes. Here, we report an eye-movement study that uses what we call the reverse boundary change technique to examine the processing of lexical-semantic information during regressions, and to establish the role of this information during recovery from processing difficulty. In the critical condition of the experiment, an initially implausible sentence (e.g., There was an old house that John had ridden when he was a boy) was rendered plausible by changing a context word (house) to a lexical neighbor (horse) using a gaze-contingent display change, at the point where the reader's gaze crossed an invisible boundary further on in the sentence. Due to the initial implausibility of the sentence, readers often launched regressions from the later part of the sentence. However, despite this initial processing difficulty, reading was facilitated, relative to a condition where the display change did not occur (i.e., the word house remained on screen throughout the trial). This result implies that the relevant lexical semantic information was processed during the regression, and was used to aid recovery from the initial processing difficulty.

Analysis of the unsteady heat and mass transfer processes in a Ranque–Hilsch vortex tube: Tube optimization criteria

Although numerous experiments and numerical calculations have been carried out in order to study, with different parameters, the relationship between the flow structure and energy separation performance in a vortex tube, there has been less progress on its design optimization, which is due to the lack of a systematic analysis of the flow structure inside the vortex tube. According to the evidence, the large-scale vortex structures resulting from the vortex breakdown and vortex core precession determine the heat and mass transfer processes and flow structure in the vortex tube, and they are sensitive to the operation conditions. To study the vortex structure, attention can be paid to the shape of the reverse flow boundary and the location of the stagnation point, because they are the bond between the hot and cold streams. Based on the understanding of the energy separation mechanism and different flow structures inside a vortex tube, this study proposed a flow structure inside the main tube that bears the best energy separation performance as the optimization criteria for the main tube design. Based on a basic description of the counter flow structure in a confined slender tube, a preliminary quantitative tube design procedure can be realized to achieve the key parameters of the main tube, such as length, diameter, and diameter of the cold exit.