Krishan Kumar Bhatia

Assessing carbon dioxide emissions from energy use at a university

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to assess the carbon dioxide emissions associated with electric, HVAC, and hot water use from a US university.Design/methodology/approach – First, the total on‐campus electrical, natural gas and oil consumption for an entire year was assessed. For each category of energy use, the carbon associated with consumption of a single unit was calculated. Using this, the total carbon dioxide emissions for the entire university were estimated.Findings – It was found that the universitys activities resulted in approximately 4 tons of carbon dioxide emissions per student per year. In total, the university emitted nearly 38,000 tons of carbon dioxide during the 2007 fiscal year. In addition, it was found that emissions from on‐campus steam production, which account for roughly 57 per cent of total CO2 emissions, would be improved with the addition of two proposed cogeneration facilities.Originality/value – The originality and value of this paper is attributed to: the recent inte...

Evaluation of Emissions and Performance of Diesel Locomotives With B20 Biodiesel Blends: Static Test Results

This paper describes the results to date of a study to quantify the exhaust emissions and performance characteristics of 20% soy methyl ester biodiesel blends (B20) in diesel locomotives representative of a typical commuter transit fleet. Testing is performed with #2 diesel summer blend, #2 diesel winter blend, ultra low sulfur diesel (ULSD) summer blend, ULSD winter blend and B20 blends with each of these fuels. Tests are performed on two different diesel locomotive types to determine the differences in performance and emissions between older and newer locomotive engines when operating on biodiesel blends. Specifically, tests are performed on a GP40FH-2 locomotive equipped with an EMD 16-645 engine manufactured from a 1960’s design and a recently manufactured ALSTOM PL42AC locomotive equipped with an EMD 16-710 engine. The tests are being performed in two phases. The first phase of the project is performed by operating the diesel engines statically (using a load bank) over the full test matrix of 8 fuels. During the static testing phase, brake specific exhaust emissions and fuel consumption are computed for each fuel blend using the line-haul and switcher duty cycles as outlined in the CFR Part 40 Title 92 Federal Test Procedure. Each fuel/locomotive test combination is performed 3 times to ensure repeatability. The second phase of the project consists of mobile in-use emissions testing using a simulated, mobile duty cycle based on actual commuter rail routes. To accurately quantify the exhaust emissions, measurements are made using a Sensors SEMTECH-D mobile emissions analyzer to measure CO, CO2 , NO2 , NO, O2 , and total unburned hydrocarbons (HCs), along with a Wager 6500RR Railroad Opacity Meter. Instantaneous fuel consumption is monitored using two AW Company JV-KG positive displacement flow meters, which measure the supply and return fuel flow rate, respectively.Copyright

Identifying and modeling key trade-offs between hydrogen fuel cell and electric vehicles

Abstract Through a sensitivity analysis, the trade-off between vehicle range and CO2 emissions is investigated as a function of electric emissions coefficient. Various powertrains were analysed for use in a small crossover sport utility vehicle. Gasoline, gasoline electric hybrid, diesel, fuel cell and battery electric vehicles (BEVs) were considered. Using various upstream fuel pathways and a model for vehicle performance, emissions and energy use were estimated. The hydrogen fuel cell vehicle was found preferable to BEVs under conditions of high CO2 emissions per kW-hr and a high vehicle range requirement. The BEV was preferable for all other conditions.

CorePal: A standards-based content hub for STEM fields

In an effort to generate and retain student interest in STEM fields, this work focused on providing middle school teachers with resources to engage students using hands-on activities and demonstrations directly related to the state science standards. The project involved generating a library of content for 8th grade physical science standards. The demonstrations and activities were specifically selected to promote interest and engage students, while being easy-to-implement for the teachers. The resources were packaged as a mobile app, called CorePal, to make the content highly accessible. CorePal was designed to allow teachers to track their progress and more importantly serve as a powerful guide to integrate science and engineering activities within their curriculum. Since the project was inspired by feedback from middle school teacher workshops for incorporating hands-on activities in classrooms, local science teachers participated in focus group discussions, workshops and surveys to inform CorePals development. This paper introduces this standards-based hub for middle-school teachers to engage students within the STEM fields. The paper details CorePals design philosophy and development. Initial feedback from teachers is included to provide context for these efforts. Even though the feedback has been positive, success of CorePal rests on its ability to build a collaborative community around it. Upon its launch, CorePal will exist as the only standards-based content tool on a mobile platform.

Integrating Design Throughout the Mechanical Engineering Curriculum: A Focus on the Engineering Clinics

At Rowan University, we have infused design into the curriculum through an eight-semester course sequence called the Engineering Clinic. Through this experience students learn the art and science of design in a multidisciplinary team environment. While many engineering programs currently include a Capstone Design course taken near the end of the college career to meet the design needs, Engineering Clinic at Rowan allows students to hone their design skills throughout their four-year career. This paper will describe in further detail the objectives and execution of each year in the design sequence, types of projects and how the Clinics complement traditional core courses in the curriculum. Impacts and benefits of the Clinics on students and faculty are discussed, as well as comparative data of Rowan Mechanical Engineering students and their peers nationally.Copyright