Engineering challenges in design, manufacturing, and testing must be overcome for a successful development of micro turbomachinery. This session lists the broad categories and tentative projects for summer 2009. Participants will work in Turbomachinery Lab, Haas Lab, or Micro/nano Manufacturing Lab at TAMU.

ADVANCED MANUFACTURE

1. Micromilling of 316L stainless steel.
   You will investigate and optimize parameters for micromilling of stainless steel, develop models, and predict performance of microtools under minimum lubrication conditions. Advanced UNIST microdroplet injection system, Haas Office Mill system with 50k rpm and sophisticate instruments are available for your study.
   Sponsor: Haas Automation Inc. and Unist Inc.
2. Lasermicrowelding of advanced composites.
   New techniques are explored to join metal matrix composites to enhance unique properties of advanced composites for thermally controlled applications. You will investigate and compare mechanical properties and microstructure of laser welded joints, experience with statistical engineering experiments and material characterization techniques upon completion of the program. You will utilize the state of the art IPG fiber laser in your study.
   Sponsors: Metal Matrix Cast Composites, TAMU-CONACyT, and Agilent Technologies.
3. Five-axis micromachining.
   You will use computer to design and manufacture tiny components with complex three-dimensional shapes. You will first learn the ProE or SolidWorks CAD/CAM software and stretch your creativity to fabricate fun micro objects. You then team with other students designers to manufacture prototypes of microturbines using sophisticate 5-axis Haas micromachining system.
   Sponsor: Haas Automation Inc.


4. Microcasting optimization.
   Turbomachinery comprises of complex shape parts for maximum aerodynamic efficiency. Microcomponents can be cast to final shape to avoid costly machining of superalloys which are difficult to be machined even in macro-scale. You will work with a another student to design a impeller and then help to develop a procedure for micro investment casting of the impeller. The casting process parameters will then be optimized using a statistical approach.
   


5. Electrochemical micromachining (µECM).
   The ECM technology has been used in industry for fabrication of large turbo blades. Preliminary study using high frequency pulses for microscale material removed was successfully completed. You will work in a team to extend the technology to fabricate three dimensional microcomponents of a turbomachinery.
   Sponsor: Agilent Technologies.
6. Design and fabricate an air-driven microturbine.
   You will design and fabricate a working prototype of an air-driven microturbine. Design involves combining form, material, and process to illustrate the principle of microturbine. This project requires you to come up with a design, source for microcomponents, fabricate remaining components for the prototype that fit within 1 cubic inch. You will use computer-aided graphic software for design, and then have hands-on experience with different manufacturing techniques to build microcomponents. Assembling and testing of the prototype would complete the fun project.



DESIGN, ANALYSIS, AND OPTIMIZATION

7. Oil-Free Bearings for Automotive Turbochargers.
   You will assist in the operation of a high speed turbocharger driven test rotor for performance evaluation of metal mesh foil bearings. You will perform measurements to determine the speed of rotor lift off and ultimate load capacity. You will also perform impact load measurements to identify the structural properties of the test bearings (stiffness and damping).
   Sponsors: Turbomachinery Research Consortium (TRC), Honeywell Turbocharging Technologies.
8. High temperature Foil Bearings for Micro Gas Turbines.
   You will assist in the construction, trouble shooting and operation of a high speed, high temperature test rig for evaluation of rotordynamic performance of gas foil bearings to be applied on the hot side of micro gas turbines. You will perform rotordynamic measurements to determine modal damping ratio and critical speeds of test rotor supported on two state of the art foil bearings.
   Sponsors: NASA GRC, Capstone Turbine Corp., Turbomachinery Research Consortium.

9. Forced Performance of Squeeze Film Dampers for Aero Engines.
   You will assist in the assembly, troubleshooting and operation of a newly built test rig to measure the dynamic force response of squeeze film dampers (SFD) in aerospace applications. Large 500 lbf shakers excite the SFD structure to replicate typical maneuver loads and landing. You will use state of the art DAQ systems to characterize the system parameters (stiffness, damping and fluid inertia).
   Sponsors: Pratt & Whitney, TRC.
10. Materials for Turbomachinery.
    You will assist graduate students in conducting tribological evaluation of materials for turbomachinery and bearings. Laboratory experiments will be carried out by the REU students to learn what, how, and why materials behave in a certain way under specific conditions. The experiments will give students first hand experience and understanding of materials, tribology, and turbomachinery engineering.
    Sponsors: NSF and DOE.
11. Development of advanced heat transfer fluids for high temperature applications.
    You will assist in the development of a novel heat transfer fluid for high temperature applications. The new heat transfer fluid will consist of nanoscale components including nanoparticles and carbon nanotubes to enhanced thermal conductivity and other thermal properties. You will be responsible for characterizing the thermophysical properties of the new heat transfer fluids by measuring viscosity, density, thermal conductivity, and convective heat transfer coefficient in laminar conditions. You will be required to analyze the experimental results and formulate appropriate empirical models for simulation purposes.
    Sponsors: Air Force, and Army Corps of Engineers.
12. Ignition and Oxidation of Fuel Blends for Mircroturbines.
    In recent years, power generation gas turbines have been required to operate on fuels of widely varying composition, from exotic natural gases and synthetic gas to hydrogen-enhanced mixtures and liquid hydrocarbons. Synthetic fuels derived from coal are likely candidates for current and future power generation engines. Along with the increasing need for fuel flexibility in energy production comes the increasing likelihood that the combustor designer or field engineer will be faced with combustion instability, higher emissions, unstable flames, and other undesirable anomalies when fuels other than the traditional natural gas are utilized. Such unwanted combustion characteristics are usually application dependent and often ultimately related to the wide variability in flame speed, reactivity, and pollution-formation chemistry that comes from variations in fuel composition. Unfortunately, these fundamental combustion characteristics are not well known for fuels outside of the normal operational envelope, particularly at the elevated pressures that exist in a typical burner. We are conducting experiments using a shock tube to study the ignition and combustion behavior of various fuel compositions using shock tubes. During the summer time period, you will participant in conducting such research using our shock-tube facilities. You will become an active member of our research team, working alongside graduate students as well as other undergraduate students.
    

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