Browsing Doctoral Degrees (Mechanical Engineering) by Issue Date
Now showing items 1-20 of 60
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The development of instrumentation for the direct measurement of heat loss from man in a normal working mode.
(1974)Based on a theoretical analysis of the heat transfer process between the human body and its environment, graphs are presented for determining the theoretical skin surface temperatures and sweat rates as a function of the ... -
Communication, mapping and navigational aspects for a free-ranging, automated guided vehicle.
(1992)A free-ranging automated guided vehicle incorporating navigation and radio communication for use in a fully automated flexible manufacturing system has been developed. A vehicle, operating as a complete subsystem, was built ... -
Modelling saturated tearing modes in tokamaks.
(1992)In this thesis a model for saturated tearing mode islands is developed. The equations for the mode amplitudes are essentially those of R B White et al,after a pertubation expansion has been made. It is well known that ... -
The performance of a one and a half stage axial turbine including various tip clearance effects.
(1993)The necessary clearance at the tip of unshrouded rotors of axial turbines allows fluid to leak from the pressure to the suction side of the blade and produces an important component of loss that is ultimately responsible ... -
Analysis and design optimization of laminated composite structures using symbolic computation.
(1994)The present study involves the analysis and design optimization of thin and thick laminated composite structures using symbolic computation. The fibre angle and wall thickness of balanced and unbalanced thin composite ... -
The optimal design of laminated plates for maximum buckling load using finite element and analytical methods.
(1994)In the first part of the study, finite element solutions are presented for the optimal design of symmetrically laminated rectangular plates subject to a combination of simply supported, clamped and free boundary conditions. ... -
Computational and analytical modelling of composite structures based on exact and higher order theories.
(1995)The objective of the present study is the computational and analytical modelling of a stress and strain state of the composite laminated structures. The exact three dimensional solution is derived for laminated anisotropic ... -
Investigation into on-line optimization of cutting tool geometry.
(1996)Metal cutting is an important process used to manufacture components with machined surfaces or holes. Due to the wide usage o f this manufacturing process, research with the aim to optimize the cutting processes is ... -
Finite element and analytical solutions for the optimal design of laminated composites.
(1996)The present study involves the analysis and design optimisation of composite structures using analytical and numerical methods. Five different problems are considered. The first problem considers the design of laminated ... -
The effect of tip clearance and tip gap geometry on the performance of a one and a half stage axial gas turbine.
(1996)In a previous work of a similar nature, the performance of a low speed axial turbine with a second stage nozzle was examined with respect to the effect of the variation of tip clearance for various tip shapes. Present ... -
Non-stationary responses on hoisting cables with slowly varying length.
(1999)Cables in hoisting installations, due to their flexibility, are susceptible to vibrations. A common arrangement in industrial hoisting systems comprises a driving winder drum, a steel wire cable, a sheave mounted in headgear, ... -
Optimisation of the process parameters of the resin film infusion process.
(1999)The resin film infusion process or RFI is a vacuum assisted moulding method for producing high quality fibre reinforced components. The goals of this research have been to investigate this new process, with the aim of ... -
A mechanistic evaluation and design of tunnel support systems for deep level South African mines.
(1999)The design of support systems, comprising rock bolt reinforcement and fabric containment components for tunnels in deep level mining environments does not currently cater well for adverse rock mass conditions. This often ... -
Optimum design of grid structures of revolution using homogenised model.
(2000)The present study involves analysis and design optimisation of lattice composite structures using symbolic computation. The concept of a homogenised model is used to represent heterogeneous composite isogrid structure as ... -
Coriolis effect on the stability of convection in mushy layers during the solidification of binary alloys.
(2000)We consider the solidification of a binary alloy in a mushy layer subject to Coriolis effects. A near-eutectic approximation and large far-field temperature is employed in order to study the dynamics of the mushy layer ... -
Influence of wagon structure on the vertical response of freight.
(2002)Historically, wagons have been designed according to the American Association of Railroads specifications. These require that wagons be designed to withstand a static load between the couplers of 350 tons. This implies ... -
Smart materials for structural health monitoring.
(2003)A new philosophy in structural health monitoring was explored, with the view to the creation of a smart mining bolt: one which would bear the normal load of any bolt used in South African gold mining tunnels, but at the ... -
Smart structural health monitoring of mining support units.
(2003)In the South African mining industry, the design of tunnel support systems is generally based on empirical methodologies that consider rockmass characteristics as well as the type of loading (e.g. seismic) that the ... -
Best practice for personnel, material and rock transportation in ultra deep level gold mines.
(2003)Ultra deep mining presents many challenges to the mining engineer, one of which is the logistics to support mining operations quickly and efficiently. Typically, Witwatersrand gold mines operate at depths in excess of 2000 ... -
Crashworthiness modelling of thin-walled composite structures.
(2003)This thesis is concerned with the study of the crashworthiness of thin-walled composite structures. Composites are being used more and more in different fields of engineering, particularly, in aerospace and automotive ...