Brayton Cycle Lab Report Essay Example

Brayton Cycle Lab Report Essay Example Brayton Cycle Lab Report Paper Brayton Cycle Lab Report Paper In this one hour course, the open, simple Brannon Cycle used for stationary rower generation is considered providing thrust instead of power output. In order to keep the scope of the thrust analysis simple, the working fluid exiting gas turbine expands to the atmospheric conditions final working fluid exit pressure is equal to the ambient pressure. The Brannon Cycle thermal efficiency is presented only for the air as the working fluid. The thermal efficiency derivation is presented with a simple mathematical approach. The Brannon Cycle is presented in a T s diagram and its major performance trends (specific propulsion output and propulsion output) are looted in a few figures as a function of compression ratio, gas turbine inlet temperature and working fluid mass flow rate. It should be noted that this online course does not deal with costs (capital, operational or maintenance). In this course, the student gets familiar with the Brannon Cycle, its components, T s diagram, operation and major performance trends. This course includes a multiple choice quiz at the end. Brannon Cycle (Gas Turbine) for Propulsion Application Analysis Performance Objectives At the conclusion of this course, the student will: Understand basic energy conversion engineering assumptions and equations Know basic components of the Brannon Cycle (Gas Turbine) and its T s diagram Be familiar with the Brannon Cycle operation Understand general Brannon Cycle performance trends Brannon Cycle (Gas Turbine) for Propulsion Application Analysis Introduction Over the years, gas turbine has become the premier propulsion generation system. Gas turbines are compact, lightweight, easy to operate and come in sizes ranging from several hundred kilowatts to hundreds of megawatts. Gas turbines require relatively low capital investment, have high operating flexibility, high thermal efficiency and can be used for various industrial applications. Gas reburies can help provide reliable propulsion to meet the future demand using both high and low heat content fuels, with low emissions. Table of Contents Brannon Cycle (Gas Turbine) for Propulsion Application 2 Analysis Assumptions. .. 9 Governing Equations 10 Input Data . 10 Results 11 Conclusions.. 12 Brannon Cycle (Gas Turbine) for Propulsion Application This section provides a Brannon Cycle analysis when the working fluid is air. In the presented Brannon Cycle analysis, only air is considered as the working fluid behaving as a perfect gas specific heat has a constant value. Ideal gas state equation is valid pa = ART. A gas turbine is a heat engine that uses a high temperatur e, high pressure gas as the working fluid. Combustion of a fuel in air is usually used to produce the needed temperatures and pressures in the gas turbine, which is why gas turbines are often referred to as combustion turbines. Expansion of the high temperature, high pressure working fluid takes place in the gas turbine. The gas turbine shaft rotation drives an electric generator and a compressor for the working fluid, air, used in the gas turbine combustion. Many gas turbines also use a heat exchanger called a recuperate to impart urbane exhaust heat into the combustions air/fuel mixture. Gas turbines produce high quality heat that can be used to generate steam for combined heat and power and combined-cycle applications, significantly enhancing efficiency. Air is compressed, concentrically, along line 1-2 by a compressor and it enters a combustion. At a constant pressure, combustion takes place (fuel is added to the combustion and the air temperature raises) and/or heat gets added to air. High temperature air exits the combustion at point 3. Then air enters a gas turbine where an isentropic expansion occurs, producing power. Air exits the gas turbine at point 4. It should be mentioned that air at point 1 enters the compressor and the cycle is repeated. Figure 1 presents a Brannon Cycle schematic layout. Figure 1 Brannon Cycle Schematic Layout Figure 2 presents a Brannon Cycle temperature vs.. Entropy diagram. Figure 2 Brannon Cycle Temperature vs.. Entropy Diagram In order to keep the scope of thrust analysis simple, air exiting turbine expands to the atmospheric conditions exit pressure is equal to the ambient pressure (Pl = pa). It should be pointed out that this material deals with the open Brannon Cycle.

Topic Areas of Environmental Sociology

Topic Areas of Environmental Sociology Environmental sociology is a subfield of the wider discipline in which researchers and theorists focus on the relationships between society and the environment. The subfield took shape following the environmental movement of the 1960s. Within this subfield, sociologists might examine specific institutions and structures like law, politics, and economy, and their relationships to environmental conditions; and also on the relationship between group behavior and environmental conditions, like for example the environmental implications of waste disposal and recycling. Importantly, environmental sociologists also study how environmental conditions affect the everyday lives, economic livelihood, and public health of populations. Environmental Sociology Topic Areas Climate change  is arguably the most important topic of research among environmental sociologists today. Sociologists investigate the human, economic, and political causes of climate change, and they investigate the effects that climate change has on many aspects of social life, like behavior, culture, values, and the economic health of populations experiencing its effects. Central to the sociological approach to climate change is the study of the relationship between economy and environment. A key analytic focus within this subfield is the particular effects that a capitalist economyone premised on continual growthhas on the environment. Environmental sociologists who study this relationship might focus on the implications of consumption of natural resources in processes of production, and methods of production and resource recapture that aim to be sustainable, among other things. The relationship between energy and environment is another important topic among environmental sociologists today. This relationship is intimately connected to the first two listed, as the burning of fossil fuels to power industry is recognized by climate scientists to be the central driver of global warming, and thus climate change. Some environmental sociologists who focus on energy study the way different populations think about energy use and its implications, and how their behavior is connected to these ideas; and they might study the way energy policy shapes behavior and outcomes. Politics, law, and public policy, and the relationships these have to environmental conditions and problems are also areas of focus among environmental sociologists. As institutions and structures that shape corporate and individual behavior, they have indirect effects on the environment. Sociologists who focus on these areas investigate topics like the extent to which and through what mechanisms laws regarding emissions and pollution are enforced; how people act collectively to shape them; and the forms of power that might enable or prevent them from doing so, among other things. Many environmental sociologists study the relationship between social behavior and environment. In this area there is a large degree of overlap between environmental sociology and the sociology of consumption, as many sociologists recognize the important and consequential relationships between consumerism  and consumer behavior, and environmental problems and solutions. Environmental sociologists also examine how social behaviors, like the  use of transportation, consumption of energy, and waste and recycling practices, shape environmental outcomes, as well as how environmental conditions shape social behavior. Another important area of focus among environmental sociologists is the relationship between inequality and environment. Numerous studies have documented that income, racial, and gender inequality make the populations that experience them more likely to experience negative environmental outcomes like pollution, proximity to waste, and lack of access to natural resources. The study of environmental racism is, in fact, a specific area of focus within environmental sociology. Environmental sociologists continue to study these relationships today, and the way populations and institutions respond to them, and they also examine them on a global scale, looking at the way populations among nations have differing relationships to the environment based on relative privilege and wealth. Notable Environmental Sociologists Notable environmental sociologists today include John Bellamy Foster, John Foran, Christine Shearer, Richard Widick, and Kari Marie Norgaard. The late Dr. William Freudenberg is considered an important pioneer in this subfield who made great contributions to it, and Indian scientists and activist Vandana Shiva is considered an honorary environmental sociologist by many. Where to Find More Information on Environmental Sociology To learn more about this vibrant and growing subfield of sociology, visit the website for the American Sociological Associations section on Environment and Technology, and review the research published in journals like  Environmental Sociology, Human Ecology, Nature and Culture, Organization and Environment, Population and Environment, Rural Sociology, and Society and Natural Resources. Students interested in pursuing environmental sociology will find many undergraduate programs with a focus in this area, as well as an increasing number of graduate sociology and interdisciplinary programs that offer specialized study and training.