Sharif Digital Repository

With the daily increasing demand for energy, we are facing many crises, such as environmental pollution and global warming, etc. Geopolitical issues can also lead to problems for some countries in reaching the energy demand considered in their development plan of them. For this purpose, a part of the global research is focused on removing these obstacles. One of the methods that can be used to produce cleaner fuel, or more precisely "biofuel", is the gaseous fermentation of synthesis gas by microorganisms and algae. A rod-shaped, anaerobic microorganism called Clostridium ljungdahlii uses synthesis gas for its reproduction. In other words, this bacterium can ferment carbon monoxide, carbon... 

In the present thesis, the movement of the clusters of fullerenes and nanocars are separately investigated on graphene surface, using molecular dynamics simulations. Investigating the fullerene clusters with different populations, it is concluded that, as the number of molecules inside the cluster increases, the displacement range of the motion decreases. In fact, some parts of the energy of the fullerene cluster are wasted through the intermolecular interactions, and as a result, the mobility of the cluster diminishes. During the investigation of the three-dimensional structures of fullerene, the wetting property of the clusters is revealed relative to the graphene surface. The decrease of... 

Space debris have increasing importance for space missions. The towing removal scheme is one of the most promising ways for active removal of these debris from LEO orbits. In this approach, an active propelled satellite captures the debris via a space tether and a tethered net which by producing a force opposite to its velocity, it will cause deorbiting and burning the debris in the dense atmosphere. One of the issues with this technique is the danger of tether rupture which for solving that two tethers instead of one can be used. In this research study of active removal of flexible space debris via double tethered towing system has been done. Dynamic modeling has been done with Newton’s and... 

The focus of this project was on gaining the knowledge of design characteristics and manufacturing of a hydraulic servo valve. Hence, in the first stage, the model of the valve was considered. After investigating the important parameters which influence the performance of the valve, the effect of each parameter on the valve's efficiency was examined. One of the most important characteristics of the valve is the amount of lapping between the spool and sleeve. Numerical analysis was done and all the characteristic curves were elicited. Equations governing the dynamics of the plant including a servo valve, servo actuator and dynamic model of the turbine and waterway were presented. Then the... 

Nowadays, single-crystal nickel-based superalloys are widely used in the manufacture of gas turbine blades in the aerospace industry due to their high resistance to creep, fatigue and corrosion at high temperatures. The superior behavior of these materials at elevated temperatures is a result of their two-phase microstructure, which includes the matrix phase (γ) of nickel and the precipitate phase (γ') of Ni3Al intermetallic compounds with a high volume fraction. The aim of this thesis is to develop computational modeling tools to study the creep deformation of single-crystal Ni-based superalloys. At high temperatures, the creep deformation of Ni-based superalloys is determined by the atomic... 

Dynamic modeling and process control, especially the equipment of bioreactors and fermenters, have always faced many challenges due to the complexity and high uncertainty of the kinetics of environmental reactions. Among these, semi-continuous fermentation for bioethanol production is one of the important technologies in biochemical industries. The problem of modeling as well as controlling the use of the main discontinuous and semi-continuous methods of ethanol production is the lack of uniform state conditions and the possibility of aerobic and non-aerobic multiplication conditions in two ways. The main goal of this research is to obtain a new method in modeling bioethanol fermentation and... 

CFD models are accurate but time-consuming for simulation and optimization of steam methane reformer and controlling the tube wall temperature, and syngas production rate and unsuitable for online optimization. Empirical data-driven models are less accurate when there are wide variations in operating conditions. The physics-based model presented in this thesis overcomes these limitations. In this model, the furnace side and the process side are divided into zones with uniform temperature and composition, and for each zone, mass, energy and momentum balances are derived. Radiative heat transfer modeling and calculation of exchange areas are accomplished with the zone method. The system of... 

Renewable energies and their various types have been recognized as sustainable solutions to address the challenges arising from increasing energy consumption and environmental issues. The use of wind energy as one of the renewable energy sources has particular advantages, considering it as one of the most sustainable energy sources. One of the key factors in wind turbine development is the diversity and multiplicity in their structural designs. Therefore, the design of wind turbine structures with characteristics such as suitable strength, high energy efficiency, optimal cost, and high reliability is of great importance. By employing various sciences such as vibrations and optimization in...