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The design, development, and performance characterization of a magnetorheological (MR) fluid clutch for automotive limited slip differential (LSD) applications is presented in this study. The controllability of MR fluids provides an adjustable torque transmission and slippage for the LSD application. Three-dimensional electromagnetic finite element analysis (FEA) is performed to optimize the magnetic circuit and clutch design. Based on the results obtained from the FEA, the theoretical torque transfer capacity of the clutch is predicted utilizing Bingham-Plastic constitutive model. The clutch is characterized at different velocities and electromagnet electric input currents. Both the torque transfer capacity, and the response time of the clutch were examined. It was demonstrated that the proposed MR fluid LSD clutch is capable of transferring controllable high torques with a fast response time. [DOI: 10.1115/1.2203308] Keywords: magnetorheological fluid, torque, limited slip differential, clutch, controllable

This work presents vibration control of a scaled bridge using fail-sale magneto-rheological fluid (MRF) dampers. A fail-safe MRF damper refers to a device that retains a minimum required damping capacity in the event of a power or electronic system failure. Energy minimization, Lyapunov, fuzzy logic, and variable structure system (VSS) fuzzy logic control strategies are employed to study the performance of this system under a random base excitation. To better understand the overall system behavior, a theoretical frequency response analysis is also presented. It is experimentally demonstrated that semiactive control systems utilizing MRF dampers can reduce the relative deck displacement while the absolute deck acceleration is relatively unaffected. In addition, it is shown that the fuzzy logic and VSS fuzzy logic methods are simple to implement, effective and require far less input energy than other control cases. CE Database subject headings: Comparative studies; Vibration control: Bridges; Damping.

This paper investigates and compares four commonly used flow transport equation-based cavitation models and their applicability to predict the cavitation performance of an industrial centrifugal pump with a helical inducer. The main purpose of this study is to identify, for this specific application, the most appropriate cavitation model and the associated empirical constants. Each cavitation model is reviewed in detail and the uniqueness of each model is outlined. Each cavitation model is incorporated in a computational fluid dynamics code to study the vaporization and condensation transport rate of the fluid. Experimental tests are conducted on a pump system to determine the true cavitation performance in terms of net positive suction head (NPSH). Experimental results are compared to simulation results for different cavitation models to validate cavitation performance predictions, along with the empirical constants. Lastly, bubble formation, cavitation inception, and bubble growth predicted by each cavitation model are compared with the experimental results. A sensitivity analysis is conducted in order to determine the impact of each set of empirical constants to the condensation and the vaporization rate in the centrifugal pump. Results show that two of the cavitation models exhibit high dependency on the empirical constants in terms of change in vaporization rate. Modifications to empirical constants for two of the four cavitation models are suggested to obtain agreement with the experimentally observed cavitation behavior and better predict NPSH performance for the industrial pump studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The respiratory tract of mammals is lined with a layer of mucus, described as viscoelastic semi-solid, above a layer of watery serous fluid. The interaction of these compliant layers with pulmonary airflow plays a major role in lung clearance by two-phase gas-liquid flow and in increased flow resistance in patients with obstructive airway diseases such as cystic fibrosis, chronic bronchitis and asthma. Experiments have shown that such coupled systems of flow-compliant-layers are quite susceptible to sudden shear instabilities, leading to formation of relatively large amplitude waves at the interface. Although these waves enhance the lung clearance by mobilizing the secretions, they increase the flow resistance in airways. The objective of this paper is to understand the basic interaction mechanism between the two media better by studying airflow through a rigid pipe that is lined by a compliant layer. The mathematical model that has been developed for this purpose is capable of explaining some of the published experimental observations. Wave instability theory is applied to the coupled air-mucus system to explore the stability of the interface. The results show that the onset flow speed for the initiation of unstable surface waves, and the resulting wavelength, are both very sensitive to mucus thickness. The model predicts that the instabilities initiate in the form of propagating waves for the elastic mucus where the wave speed is about 40 percent of the flow speed. The wavelength and phase speed to air velocity ratio are shown to increase with increasing mucus thickness. Also, results show that the mucus viscosity causes the onset air velocity to increase and the wave speed to decrease. The predictions of the model for the viscoelastic case are in good qualitative and quantitative agreement with some of the published experimental observations.

In this paper, the effect of the inducer tip clearance is studied to understand its impact on the cavitating and noncavitating performance of centrifugal pumps. Helical inducers with constant pitch and with variable (progressive) pitch are considered. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations of a single stage pump are conducted on each inducer type to determine the cavitating (two-phase) and noncavitating (single-phase) performance for varying inducer tip clearance. The Rayleigh-Plesset cavitation model is used to understand the bubble dynamics under the assumptions of single fluid undergoing no thermal energy transfer between each phase. Experimental tests are conducted on a pump with the variable pitch inducer to determine the true performance in cavitating and noncavitating operating conditions. Experimental results are compared to the simulations to validate the accuracy of the proposed numerical modeling. Net positive suction head (NPSH) with 3% differential head drop is used as a criterion to identify the true cavitation performance of each inducer configuration. It is found that, as the inducer tip clearance increases, excessive back leakage and larger vortex recirculation occur at the tip location. This results in pressure loss within the inducer and, consequently, degrades the cavitation performance. In addition, the change in cavitation performance with the tip clearance is much more evident for variable pitch inducer geometries as compared to the constant pitch case. Furthermore, the impact on the noncavitating performance of inducer tip clearance is found to be minimal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]