Sharif Digital Repository

In terms of thermodynamics and heat transfer, heat pipes such as closed two-phase thermosyphon are of great importance in saving energy. In this study, a computational fluid dynamics model for simulation of a thermosyphon heat pipe with two-phase flow including phase change heat transfer was developed. The study has mainly focused on the effects of volume concentrations of Nanoparticles and the operating temperature on the heat transfer performance of the thermosyphon. The analysis was performed to compare heat transfer performance between a solid copper tube and a thermosyphon heat pipe which contained deionized water and graphene oxide(GO)/water Nanofluid as its working fluids. Based on a... 

Reverse osmosis (RO) is by far the most widely used membrane desalination process worldwide. The RO process depends on the properties of semi-permeable membranes which allow the separation of water from a salt solution by applying external pressure higher than the osmotic pressure on the seawater. The main problem in membrane separation process is the fouling of the membrane walls, which decreases the permeate flux. Having spacer filaments in the feed channel has been proven to dynamically change the concentration boundary layer and preventing fouling. The impact of spacer configurations (cavity, zigzag and submerged) on the alleviation of concentration polarization and the enhancement of... 

Nowadays cell-based microfluidic devices have many applications. One of the applications is disease diagnosis according to number of cells. Cell counting has different methods, such as optical cell counting, flow cytometry, hemocytometry, coulter counters,and so on. One of the methods of cells counting is based on measurement of changes in impedance or conductivity of surrounding medium because ions are released from surface-immobilized cells inside a micr of luidic channel.The method of cell lysate impedance spectroscopy is sensitive enough and it was offered for detecting and enumerating CD4+ cells in HIV patients. In this study,... 

With the progress of engineering science, the development of underground spaces and buried tunnels has witnessed remarkable expansion. Considering the frequency of hazardous events such as earthquakes and unforeseen consequences arising from underground activities and geology in underground engineering, the determination of the Dynamic Stress Concentration Factor (DSCF) has been widely recognized as a crucial factor in the study and design of tunnels and underground structures. It is also extensively considered in evaluating their damage. The investigation of wave dispersion and determination of the stress concentration factor was first proposed by Sezawa (1927). In this study, the... 

Concentric steel braces and brace-type dampers are often applied to the upgrading of reinforced concrete frames subjected to lateral loads. These braces may develop High axial tension forces, and transferring them appropriately to the existing beam– Column joints is a key challenge. This paper investigates a solution for connecting the end-plate of the steel brace with the frame, using shear-key plates fixed to the concrete with anchor bolts, and a low friction material inserted between the end-plates and the shear-key plates. The presence of the low friction material impedes the development of tension forces in the anchor bolts and ensures that they are basically subjected to shear forces.... 

Recent earthquakes indicate the importance of retrofitting existing structures to achieve an acceptable level of performance. Use of bracing systems is a cost-effective method for seismic retrofitting of existing steel frames. In particular, Buckling Restrained Braces (BRBs) and Special Concentrically Bracing systems (SCB) are practical choices to be used because of their large energy dissipation capacity especially under moderate to severe earthquakes. Buckling restrained braces which yield in both tension and compression, exhibits stable and predictable hysteretic behavior. In this study several existing steel frames, which are designed based on older versions of the building codes, have... 

This thesis investigates the performance of concentrically braced frames through numerical simulation approaches. During a moderate to severe earthquake, the bracing members and their connections are expected to undergo significant inelastic deformations into the post-buckling range. Recently, provisions for special concentrically braced frames (SCBFs) were developed to exhibit stable and ductile behavior in the event of a major earthquake. Special Concentrically Braced Frames (SCBFs) are distinguished from Ordinary Braced Frames in that they possess improved post-buckling capacity. Performance based evaluation of SCBF system as well as ordinary concentrically braced frame (OCBF) system... 

Buckling-Restrained Braced Frame system (BRBFs) are a new type of steel seismic-load-resisting system that has found use in several countries because of its efficiency and its promise of seismic performance far superior to that of conventional braced frames. The system is addressed in the 2005 edition of the AISC Seismic Provisions for Structural Steel Buildings, also a set of design provisions has been developed by NEHRP. This thesis illustrates the seismic design of buckling-restrained braced frames and compares its seismic performance with the performance of ordinary bracing systems. This work investigates the advantage and disadvantages of this new type of seismic resisting. By having... 

Safety assessment of the final disposal of radioactive waste is crucial to ensure the waste isolation from the biosphere for long periods of time. There are various scenarios for the radionuclide transport from the disposal site to the environment, among which the ground water scenario is considered as the main scenario of the radionuclides migration. In this scenario, the transport parameters of the radionuclides are very important in the safety assessment of the final disposal of radioactive wastes. These parameters are determined using either dynamic or static methods, which usually the dynamic method leads to more realistic results. In the dynamic method, one of the two approaches of... 

The combination of photovoltaic technology and Organic Rankine Cycle reduces the temperature of the solar panel and, on the other hand, generates separate electricity from excess heat. The reason for the use of the Organic Rankine Cycle is the low temperature of the heat source. It is not economical to use other cycles like steam Rankine cycle in low-temperature heat sources. To maximize the plant factor of the Organic Rankine cycle system, especially when there is not enough solar radiation, it is possible to utilize the flue gas heat recovery in office buildings and reduce the cost of electricity generation. In this project, the simulation of this system is carried out for the Energy... 

In this study, the determination of the distribution and the differences concentration of hydrogen in containment of Bushehr power plant by modeling of containment and Hydrogen removal system of Bushehr power plant during LB-LOCA accident is accomplished. In Bushehr nuclear power plant, which has a unique design, the containment is similar to PWR power plants with a metal sphere, but the installed reactor is a VVER-1000. After a full study on the containment and its systems, the required data for modeling is gathered and afterwards, the engineering handbook is prepared for MELCOR input code and then the modeling and size classification of the containment is done in 4 different ways,... 

Dish-stirling system with an efficiency of nearly 30% is the most efficient technology among solar energy technologies. This system includes four main parts; Parabolic dish, solar tracker, receiver and Stirling engine and generator. In this system, first parabolic dish concentrates sun rays on its focus. A receiver is put on the focus to receive the heat radiated from dish. This receiver transfers the heat to a Stirling engine. In Stirling engine, expansion and contraction of gas helps piston to move and finally rotational mechanical work is done. With coupling a generator and Stirling engine we can generate electricity. Also for keeping the focus of sun rays on receiver we should have sun... 

Considering high potential of solar energy and exhaustibility of fossil fuels in Iran, using solar energy seems to be inevitable. But one of the main problems in the application of these systems is high investment and maintenance costs. So, in this thesis, suitable solution is presented for decreasing cost and optimizing of a solar absorption refrigerator based on developed energy model. This system consists of two CPC solar collectors and a thermal energy storage system using phase change materials that provides input energy to the generator of absorption refrigerator. The exergy efficiency of system components is calculated by relations of energy model and exergy analysis. Then... 

Direct steam generation (DSG) process using linear FRESNEL collectors has been developed widely in recent years and is one of the most promising solar technologies for thermal power generation, Industrial processes and domestic usage. In this process water as heat transfer fluid (HTF) is heated through a solar field. Continuous breakthroughs are being achieved on improvement of these collectors. A multi-phase CFD model is developed to calculate the wall temperature of linear Fresnel absorber tubes and fluid properties including temperature, velocity, and pressure. In order to design the collector field and identify the critical condition such as overheating of the absorber tubes, modeling of... 

Although financial theory recommends investors to diversify their portfolios to reduce their overall unsystematic risk, some fund managers hold their portfolios concentrated in specific industries. This thesis study the relation between the industry concentration and the performance of Iranian equity funds in the period from 1392 to mid-1397. This relationship has been investigated in two approaches of dividing funds into portfolios by their industry concentration index and multivariate regression model approach by considering some characteristics of funds. To measure the performance of funds, two sets of measures based on the analysis of information of fund holdings and time series of fund... 

This study aimed at using industrial organization approach for banks and the use of models of determining the market structure and the level of competition in Iran’s banking industry. Models of market structure determination are divided into two categories: structural models that are the same as calculation of concentration indices using market share and non-structural models that are the same as revenue-cost nature of economic enterprises. Structural models have been established based on two theories of structure-conduct-performance (SCP) and efficient structure (ES). The difference between these two perspectives depends on the good or bad nature of concentration in banking services market.... 

In this research, we answer that whether trade liberalization increase market competition. First, we discuss this problem using inter-temporal comparison. To do this, we set a control variable group and a test variable group. The control variable group includes the industries that did not report trading and non-tradable industry in 1379 and 1386 (non-trading industries) and the test variable group includes industries that have entered the the trade in recent two years and are named trading industries. In this research, we study the effect of Herfindahl Index and markup on industry Openness,controlling for some factors. Using abovementioned influences, the relation between trade... 

Concentration brings a twofold result to the market. From one side, it reduces the competition and then the number of varieties in the market, which discourages consumption; from another side, however, it reduces the price of goods due to increasing returns to scale and so encourages consumption. This controversial role of concentration raises the question that which degree of concentration might be, say, optimum for the market. Based on the Krugman approach, this study makes a relation between the number of firms, export volume, marginal and average fixed cost of production. We show that when number of firms reduces in the market, export volume could increase because of a reduction in... 

This study presents the advantages of using unsymmetrical buckling restrained braces in zipper frames for simultaneous improvement of peak and residual response of low- and mid-rise buildings. It is demonstrated that such combination allows for the usage of benefits of each of these systems, namely the significant energy dissipation capacity of buckling restrained braces and better distribution of hysteretic energy dissipation demands through the elevation observed in zipper frames. It has already been shown that using buckling restrained braces of varying yield strengths within each story of a building can improve the residual response of buckling-restrained-braced frames without severely... 

Concrete-filled FRP tubes have gained popularity among structures in areas with harsh environmental condition. Despite their unique material properties such as resistance to corrosion, noticeable axial stiffness, and durability, FRP materials have poor resistance to elevated temperatures. This paper presents numerical investigations on the behavior and capacity of concrete-filled pultruded GFRP tubes (CFGFTs) after exposure to elevated temperatures under concentric compression. Variables in this study were the tube’s thickness of 3, 5, and 7mm, the infill concrete’s compressive strengths of 30 and 60MPa, and the exposure temperature of 25, 100, 200, 300, and 400°C. The results in this study...