Environmental and chemical sensors in optical fiber sensor technology The nature of the environment in which we live and work, and the precarious state of many aspects of the natural environment, has been a major lesson for scientists over the last few decades. Public awareness of the issues involved is high, and often coupled with a scepticism of the ability of the scientist and engineer to provide an adequate, or even rapid solution to the preservation of the environment before further damage is done, and to achieve this with a mini­ mum of expenditure. Monitoring of the various aspects of the environment, whether it be external or internal to ourselves and involving chemical, physical or biomedical parameters is an essential process for the well-being of mankind and of the individual. Legis­ lative requirements set new standards for measurement and control all around us, which must be met by the most appropriate of the technologies available, commensurate with the costs involved. Optical fiber sensor technology has a major part to play in this process, both to complement existing technologies and to promote new solutions to difficult measurement issues. The developments in new sources and detectors covering wider ranges of the electromagnetic spectrum, with higher sensitivity, allow the use of techniques that some time ago would have been considered inappropriate or lacking in sufficient sensitivity.

Systems and Applications in Optical Fiber Sensor Technology The essential technology which underpins developments in optical fiber sensors continues to expand, and continues to be driven to a very large extent by advances in optoelectronics which have been produced for the ever-expanding optical com­ munications systems and networks of the world. The steps forward in the technol­ ogy, often accompanied by a reduction in the price of associated components, have been, and continue to be, adapted for use in a wide variety of optical fiber sensor systems. These include, for example, the use of photoinduced gratings as fiber sensor components, coupled with the wider availability of shorter wavelength lasers, bright luminescent sources and high-sensitivity detectors which have opened up new possibilities for both novel fiber optic sensor applications and new sensing systems. This is to be welcomed at a time when, coupled with integrated optic miniaturized devices and detectors, real possibilities of systems integration, at lower cost and increased utility, can be offered. The fiber laser, and the expansions of the types and availability of the doped fiber on which it is based, offer further examples of the integration of the essential components of advanced optical sensor systems, fitted for a new range of applications.

This book is the most comprehensive treatment yet of the problems faced by the engineer caused by static electricity. Written in as non-technical a manner as possible, given the depth of the material, this book discusses the material from the beginner level to many advanced topics for engineers and designers. It discusses not only the harmful and damaging known effects of static electricity on electrical and electronic equipment, but the possible solutions and applications that can be used to stop it.

Modern manufacturing systems involve many processes and operations at various hierarchical levels of decision, control and execution. New applications for systems are arising from the synergy of machines, tools, robots and computers with management and information technologies. Novel systems are designed and put into operation to manufacture old and new high-quality products with speed, accuracy and economy. This book contains over thirty papers that examine state-of-the-art and how-to-do issues, as well as new solutions. Topics covered include: Process planning/scheduling and machine-cell design Process monitoring, inspection, diagnosis and maintenance Forecasting, optimization and control Design and control of robotic automated crane systems Applications: including laser material processing, stereolithography systems, alimentary pasta processes and automated/robotic road construction and maintenance. The book explores key elements and critical factors, presents new results and tools that are applicable to real situations.

Capillary Forces in Microassembly discusses the use of capillary forces as a gripping principle in microscale assembly. Clearly written and well-organized, this text brings together physical concepts at the microscale with practical applications in micromanipulation. Throughout this work, the reader will find a review of the existing gripping principles, elements to model capillary forces as well as descriptions of the simulation and experimental test bench developed to study the design parameters. Using well-known concepts from surface science (such as surface tension, capillary effects, wettability, and contact angles) as inputs to mechanical models, the amount of effort required to handle micro-components is predicted. These developments are then applied in a case study concerning the pick and place of balls in a watch ball bearing.

Modelling, Monitoring and Diagnostic Techniques for Fluid Power Systems covers the background theory of fluid power and indicates the range of concepts needed for a modern approach to condition monitoring and fault diagnosis. The theory is leavened by 15-years-worth of practical measurements by the author, working with major fluid power companies, and real industrial case studies.

Thermal Separation Technology is a key discipline for many industries and lays the engineering foundations for the sustainable and economic production of high-quality materials. This book provides fundamental knowledge on this field and may be used both in university teaching and in industrial research and development. Furthermore, it is intended to support professional engineers in their daily efforts to improve plant efficiency and reliability. Previous German editions of this book have gained widespread recognition. This first English edition will now make its content available to the international community of students and professionals. In the first chapters of the book the fundamentals of thermodynamics, heat and mass transfer, and multiphase flow are addressed. Further chapters examine in depth the different unit operations distillation and absorption, extraction, evaporation and condensation, crystallization, adsorption and chromatography, and drying, while the closing chapter provides valuable guidelines for a conceptual process development.

The numerical simulation of combustion processes in internal combustion engines, including also the formation of pollutants, has become increasingly important in the recent years, and today the simulation of those processes has already become an indispensable tool when - veloping new combustion concepts. While pure thermodynamic models are well-established tools that are in use for the simulation of the transient behavior of complex systems for a long time, the phenomenological models have become more important in the recent years and have also been implemented in these simulation programs. In contrast to this, the thr- dimensional simulation of in-cylinder combustion, i. e. the detailed, integrated and continuous simulation of the process chain injection, mixture formation, ignition, heat release due to combustion and formation of pollutants, has been significantly improved, but there is still a number of challenging problems to solve, regarding for example the exact description of s- processes like the structure of turbulence during combustion as well as the appropriate choice of the numerical grid. While chapter 2 includes a short introduction of functionality and operating modes of internal combustion engines, the basics of kinetic reactions are presented in chapter 3. In chapter 4 the physical and chemical processes taking place in the combustion chamber are described. Ch- ter 5 is about phenomenological multi-zone models, and in chapter 6 the formation of poll- ants is described.

Pumps are one of the mechanical devices that are widely used in many industries throughout the world. Turbopumps which are common types of pumps are used mainly for transporting water in agricultural units, industrial processes, cooling and heating systems, and power plants. But their application is not limited only for h- dling water. Turbopumps can be used for transporting oil products in oil and gas industries and re neries, as well as byproductsin pulp and paper industry, food and beverage in food industry, and contaminated water in sewage systems. Because of the versatility of pump usage, the numberof turbopumpsin operation worldwide is very large and as a result the total energy consumption of these units can be considerable. To reduce the energy consumption by turbopumps, it is imp- tant to increase the ef ciency of the pumps, as well as the system they are working in. The pump manufacturing companies and design engineers are constantly trying to improve the performances of pumps by designing more ef cient pumps and by using the latest technologies available in terms of design software, new developed materials, and state of the art manufacturing tools. Today, computational uid - namics and sophisticated design software tools help designers to optimize the uid ow inside the pumps and to design different pump elements with better hydraulic ef ciencies. However, the operation of turbopumps can be optimized a well by effectively using proper pumps and designing ef cient piping systems.