The vibro-acoustic analysis of built-up systems using a hybrid method with parametric and non-parametric uncertainties

An existing hybrid finite element (FE)/statistical energy analysis (SEA) approach to the analysis of the mid- and high frequency vibrations of a complex built-up system is extended here to a wider class of uncertainty modeling. In the original approach, the constituent parts of the system are considered to be either deterministic, and modeled using FE, or highly random, and modeled using SEA. A non-parametric model of randomness is employed in the SEA components, based on diffuse wave theory and the Gaussian Orthogonal Ensemble (GOE), and this enables the mean and variance of second order quantities such as vibrational energy and response cross-spectra to be predicted. In the present work the assumption that the FE components are deterministic is relaxed by the introduction of a parametric model of uncertainty in these components. The parametric uncertainty may be modeled either probabilistically, or by using a non-probabilistic approach such as interval analysis, and it is shown how these descriptions can be combined with the non-parametric uncertainty in the SEA subsystems to yield an overall assessment of the performance of the system. The method is illustrated by application to an example built-up plate system which has random properties, and benchmark comparisons are made with full Monte Carlo simulations. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Numerical study of the shielding properties of macroscopic hybrid ferromagnetic/superconductor hollow cylinders

We study the magnetic shielding properties of hybrid ferromagnetic/ superconductor (F/S) structures consisting of two coaxial cylinders, with one of each material. We use an axisymmetric finite-element model in which the electrical properties of the superconducting tube are modeled by a nonlinear E-J power law with a magnetic-field-dependent critical current density whereas the magnetic properties of the ferromagnetic material take saturation into account. We study and compare the penetration of a uniform axial magnetic field in two cases: 1) a ferromagnetic tube placed inside a larger superconducting tube (Ferro-In configuration) and 2) a ferromagnetic tube placed outside the superconducting one (Ferro-Out configuration). In both cases, we assess how the ferromagnetic tube improves the shielding properties of the sole superconducting tube. The influence of the geometrical parameters of the ferromagnetic tube is also studied: It is shown that, upon an optimal choice of the geometrical parameters, the range of magnetic fields that are efficiently shielded by the high-temperature superconductor tube alone can be increased by a factor of up to 7 (2) in a Ferro-Out (Ferro-In) configuration. The optimal configuration uses a 1020 carbon steel with a thickness of 2 mm and a height that is half that of the superconducting cylinder (80 mm). © 2009 IEEE.

Photoconductive hybrid films via directional self-assembly of C 60 on aligned carbon nanotubes

Hybrid nanostructured materials can exhibit different properties than their constituent components, and can enable decoupled engineering of energy conversion and transport functions. Novel means of building hybrid assemblies of crystalline C 60 and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are presented, wherein aligned CNT films direct the crystallization and orientation of C 60 rods from solution. In these hybrid films, the C 60 rods are oriented parallel to the direction of the CNTs throughout the thickness of the film. High-resolution imaging shows that the crystals incorporate CNTs during growth, yet grazing-incidence X-ray diffraction (GIXD) shows that the crystal structure of the C 60 rods is not perturbed by the CNTs. Growth kinetics of the C 60 rods are enhanced 8-fold on CNTs compared to bare Si, emphasizing the importance of the aligned, porous morphology of the CNT films as well as the selective surface interactions between C 60 and CNTs. Finally, it is shown how hybrid C 60-CNT films can be integrated electrically and employed as UV detectors with a high photoconductive gain and a responsivity of 10 5 A W -1 at low biases (± 0.5 V). The finding that CNTs can induce rapid, directional crystallization of molecules from solution may have broader implications to the science and applications of crystal growth, such as for inorganic nanocrystals, proteins, and synthetic polymers. © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Development of a hybrid ferrofluid seal technology for miniature pneumatic and hydraulic actuators

Future microrobotic applications require actuators that can generate a high actuation force and stroke in a limited volume. Up to now, little research has been performed on the development of pneumatic and hydraulic microactuators, although they offer great prospects in achieving high force densities. One of the main technological barriers in the development of these actuators is the fabrication of powerful seals with low leakage. This paper presents a seal technology for linear fluidic microactuators based on ferrofluids. A design and simulation method for these seals has been developed and validated by measurements on miniaturized actuator prototypes. These actuators have an outside diameter of 2 mm, a length of 13 mm and have been tested using both pressurized air and water. Our current actuator prototypes are able to operate at pressures up to 1.6 MPa without leakage. At these pressures, forces up to 0.65 N have been achieved. The stroke of the actuators is 10 mm. © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A hybrid surface tension seal for pneumatic and hydraulic microactuators

Recent research revealed that microactuators driven by pressurized fluids are able to generate high power and force densities at microscale. One of the main technological barriers in the development of these actuators is the fabrication low friction seals. This paper presents a novel scalable seal technology, which resists the actuation pressure relying on a combination of a clearance seal and a surface tension seal. This approach allows to seal pressures of more than 800 kPa without leakage. The seal is tested on an actuator with a bore of 0.8 mm2 and a length of 13 mm, which was able to generate forces up to 0.32 N. © 2008 Springer-Verlag.

A hybrid systems approach to trajectory tracking control for juggling systems

From a hybrid systems point of view, we provide a modeling framework and a trajectory tracking control design methodology for juggling systems. We present the main ideas and concepts in a one degree-of-freedom juggler, which consists of a ball bouncing on an actuated robot. We design a hybrid control strategy that, with only information of the ball's state at impacts, controls the ball to track a reference rhythmic pattern with arbitrary precision. We extend this hybrid control strategy to the case of juggling multiple balls with different rhythmic patterns. Simulation results for juggling of one and three balls with a single actuated robot are presented. © 2007 IEEE.

Hybrid and passive mode-locking of a monolithic two-section MQW InGaN/GaN laser diode

We report the first hybrid mode-locking of a monolithic two-section multiple quantum well InGaN based laser diode. This device, with a length of 1.5 mm, has a 50-μm-long absorber section located at the back facet and generates a continuous stable 28.6 GHz pulse train with an average output power of 9.4 mW at an emission wavelength of 422 nm. Under hybrid mode-locking, the pulse width reduces to 4 ps, the peak power increases to 72 mW, and the microwave linewidth reduces by 13 dB to <500 kHz. We also observe the passive mode-locking with pulse width and peak power of 8 ps and 37 mW, respectively. © 1989-2012 IEEE.

Hybrid microstrip and carbon nanotubes based patch antenna for wireless applications

In this we have looked at the concept of introducing carbon nanotubes on the surfaces of the microstrip patch antennas. We examined the performance improvements in a patch antenna through finite difference time domain simulations to increase the efficiency of the antenna. The results suggest that carbon nanotubes lead to a higher gain due to their electrical properties. A high gain antenna with low power requirements resulted in achieving a higher overall bandwidth. The designed antenna's gain, bandwidth and directivity are analyzed before and after introducing carbon nanotubes. © 2013 IEEE.

Hybrid deterministic-statistical modelling of built-up structures

When used correctly, Statistical Energy Analysis (SEA) can provide good predictions of high frequency vibration levels in built-up structures. Unfortunately, the assumptions that underlie SEA break down as the frequency of excitation is reduced, and the method does not yield accurate predictions at "medium" frequencies (and neither does the Finite Element Method, which is limited to low frequencies). A basic problem is that parts of the system have a short wavelength of deformation and meet the requirements of SEA, while other parts of the system do not - this is often referred to as the "mid-frequency" problem, and there is a broad class of mid-frequency vibration problems that are of great concern to industry. In this paper, a coupled deterministic-statistical approach referred to as the Hybrid Method (Shorter & Langley, 2004) is briefly described, and some results that demonstrate how the method overcomes the aforementioned difficulties are presented.

Hybrid-electric propulsion for aircraft

Against a background of increasing energy demand and rising fuel prices, hybrid-electric propulsion systems (HEPS) have the potential to significantly reduce fuel consumption in the aviation industry, particularly in the lighter sectors. By taking advantage of both Electric Motor (EM) and Internal Combustion Engine (ICE), HEPS provide not only a benefit in fuel saving but also a reduction in take-off noise and the emission levels. This research considers the design and sizing process of a hybrid-electric propulsion system for a single-seat demonstrator aircraft, the experimental derivation of the ICE map and the EM parameters. In addition to the experimental data, a novel modeling approach including several linked desktop PC software packages is presented to analyze and optimize hybrid-electric technology for aircraft. Further to the analysis of a parallel hybrid-electric, mid-scale aircraft, this paper also presents a scaling approach for a 20 kg UAV and a 50 tonne inter-city airliner. At the smaller scale, two different mission profiles are analyzed: an ISR mission profile, where the simulation routine optimizes the component size of the hybrid-electric propulsion system with respect to fuel saving, and a maximum duration profile; where the flight endurance is determined as a function of payload weight. At the larger scale, the performance of a 50 tonne inter-city airliner is modeled, based on a hybrid-electric gas-turbine, assuming a range of electric boost powers and battery masses.