Advances in Applied Mechanics draws together recent, significant advances in various topics in applied mechanics. Published since 1948, the book aims to provide authoritative review articles on topics in the mechanical sciences. While the book is ideal for scientists and engineers working in various branches of mechanics, it is also beneficial to professionals who use the results of investigations in mechanics in various applications, such as aerospace, chemical, civil, environmental, mechanical, and nuclear engineering.

Since the earliest days of human existence, the clash of thunder and trembling of the hills has struck fear into the hearts of seasoned warriors and tribal villagers alike. Great gods, demi-gods, and heroes were created to explain the awesome, mysterious, and incomprehensibly powerful forces of Nature in a feeble attempt to make sense of the world around them. To our advanced scientific minds today, these explanations seem childish and ridiculous; however, the power to flatten thousands of square miles of ancient forest, create massive holes in the Earth itself, and cause mountains to tremble to their very roots are more than enough reason to believe. Indeed, perhaps our scientific advancement has caused us to not fully or completely appreciate the awesome scale and power that Nature can wield against us. The study of shock wave formation and dynamics begins with a study of waves themselves. Simple harmonic motion is used to analyze the physical mechanisms of wave generation and propagation, and the principle of superposition is used to mathematically generate constructive and destructive interference. Further development leads to the shock singularity where a single wave of immense magnitude propagates and decays through various media. Correlations with the fields of thermodynamics, meteorology, crater formation, and acoustics are made, as well as a few special applications. Direct correlation is made to events in Arizona, Siberia, and others. The mathematical requirement for this text includes trigonometry, differential equations, and large series summations, which should be accessible to most beginning and advanced university students. This text should serve well as supplementary material in a course covering discrete wave dynamics, applied thermodynamics, or extreme acoustics.

Polymeric materials have been and continue to be a focus of research in the development of materials for energy conversion, storage and delivery applications (fuel cells, batteries, photovoltaics, capacitors, etc.). Significant growth in this field started in the early 1990s and has continued to grow quite substantially since that time. Polymeric materials now have a prominent place in energy research.
For polymers, particularly polyelectrolytes, being used in fuel cell and battery applications, the importance of chain microstructure, chain dynamics, and nanoscale morphology on the overall performance characteristics of these materials cannot be overstated. As further advancements are made in polymer chemistry, control of nanostructure and characterization, there is a necessity for organized forums that foster cross-fertilization of knowledge and ideas between experts in polymer chemistry, chemical engineering, and polymer physics. This volume is the result of such a forum.
Most of the chapters in this book are based on a cross-section of the oral presentations in a symposium on Polymers for Energy Storage and Delivery held in March of 2011 as part of the 241st ACS National Meeting & Exposition (Anaheim, CA). The book contains 17 chapters presented in two parts. Part one focuses on polymers for battery applications and will cover theory and modeling, novel materials, and materials characterization. Professor Janna Maranas has provided an excellent review of the current state of understanding in polyelectrolytes as ion conductors in batteries. Part two will focus on polymers for fuel cells and will cover novel materials, transport, and materials characterization with a brief introduction into the history of polyelectrolytes for fuel cells and the classes of materials being pursued. Realizing the common role that nanostructure plays in both battery and fuel cell applications, Professor Moon Jeong Park and coworkers have also contributed a chapter demonstrating the role of nanostructured polyelectrolyte systems in energy storage and delivery. In addition, the editors are pleased to have a chapter-contributed by Professor Howard Wang and staff scientists of the NIST Center for Neutron Research-on the most state-of-art, in-situ neutron methods for studying lithium ion batteries.

A world-recognized expert in the science of vehicle dynamics, Dr. Thomas Gillespie has created an ideal reference book that has been used by engineers for 30 years, ranging from an introduction to the subject at the university level to a common sight on the desks of engineers throughout the world. As with the original printing, Fundamentals of Vehicle Dynamics, Revised Edition, strives to find a middle ground by balancing the need to provide detailed conceptual explanations of the engineering principles involved in the dynamics of ground vehicles with equations and example problems that clearly and concisely demonstrate how to apply such principles. A study of this book will ensure that the reader comes away with a solid foundation and is prepared to discuss the subject in detail. Ideal as much for a first course in vehicle dynamics as it is a professional reference, Fundamentals of Vehicle Dynamics, Revised Edition, maintains the tradition of the original by being easy to read and while receiving updates throughout in the form of modernized graphics and improved readability.

Instant Physics pulls together all the pivotal physics knowledge and thought into one concise volume. Each page contains a discrete 'cheat sheet', which tells you the most important facts in bite-sized chunks, meaning you can become an expert in an instant. From black holes to black body radiation, telescopes to microscopes, quantum mechanics to general relativity, every key figure, discovery or idea is explained with succinct and lively text and graphics. Perfect for the knowledge hungry and time poor, this collection of graphic-led lessons makes psychology interesting and accessible. Everything you need to know is here.

Most modern systems involve various engineering disciplines. Mechatronic systems are designed to be dependable and efficient; however, mechatronics engineering faces multiple challenges at the design and exploitation stages. It is essential for engineers to be aware of these challenges and remain up to date with the emerging research in the mechatronics engineering field. Trends, Paradigms, and Advances in Mechatronics Engineering presents the latest advances and applications of mechatronics. It highlights the recent challenges in the field and facilitates understanding of the subject. Covering topics such as the construction industry, design optimization, and low-cost fabrication, this premier reference source is a crucial resource for engineers, computer scientists, construction managers, students and educators of higher education, librarians, researchers, and academicians.

Bioengineering is a rapidly expanding interdisciplinary field that encompasses application engineering techniques in the field of mechanical engineering, electrical, electronics and instrumentation engineering, and computer science and engineering to solve the problems of the biological world. With the advent to digital computers and rapidly developing computational techniques, computer simulations are widely used as a predictive tool to supplement the experimental techniques in engineering and technology. Computational biomechanics is a field where the movements biological systems are assessed in the light of computer algorithms describing solid and fluid mechanical principles. This book outlines recent developments in the field of computational biomechanics. It presents a series of computational techniques that are the backbone of the field that includes finite element analysis, multi-scale modelling, fluid-solid interaction, mesh-less techniques and topological optimization. It also presents a series of case studies highlighting applications of these techniques in different biological system and different case studies detailing the application of the principles described earlier and the outcomes. This book gives an overview of the current trends and future directions of research and development in the field of computational biomechanics. Overall, this book gives insight into the current trends of application of intelligent computational techniques used to analyse a multitude of phenomena the field of biomechanics. It elaborates a series of sophisticated techniques used for computer simulation in both solid mechanics, fluid mechanics and fluid-solid interface across different domain of biological world and across various dimensional scales along with relevant case studies. The book elucidates how human locomotion to bacterial swimming, blood flow to sports science, these wide range of phenomena can be analyzed using computational methods to understand their inherent mechanisms of work and predict the behavior of the system. The target audience of the book will be post-graduate students and researchers in the field of Biomedical Engineering. Also industry professionals in biomedical engineering and allied disciplines including but not limited to kinesiologists and clinicians, as well as, computer engineers and applied mathematicians working in algorithm development in biomechanics.

Power Electronics and Motor Drive Systems is designed to aid electrical engineers, researchers, and students to analyze and address common problems in state-of-the-art power electronics technologies. Author Stefanos Manias supplies a detailed discussion of the theory of power electronics circuits and electronic power conversion technology systems, with common problems and methods of analysis to critically evaluate results. These theories are reinforced by simulation examples using well-known and widely available software programs, including SPICE, PSIM, and MATLAB/SIMULINK. Manias expertly analyzes power electronic circuits with basic power semiconductor devices, as well as the new power electronic converters. He also clearly and comprehensively provides an analysis of modulation and output voltage, current control techniques, passive and active filtering, and the characteristics and gating circuits of different power semiconductor switches, such as BJTs, IGBTs, MOSFETs, IGCTs, MCTs and GTOs.

Satellite Gravimetry and the Solid Earth: Mathematical Foundations presents the theories behind satellite gravimetry data and their connections to solid Earth. It covers the theory of satellite gravimetry and data analysis, presenting it in a way that is accessible across geophysical disciplines. Through a discussion of satellite measurements and the mathematical concepts behind them, the book shows how various satellite measurements, such as satellite orbit, acceleration, vector gravimetry, gravity gradiometry, and integral energy methods can contribute to an understanding of the gravity field and solid Earth geophysics. Bridging the gap between geodesy and geophysics, this book is a valuable resource for researchers and students studying gravity, gravimetry and a variety of geophysical and Earth Science fields.

"Advanced Power Generation Systems" examines the full range of advanced multiple output thermodynamic cycles that can enable more sustainable and efficient power production from traditional methods, as well as driving the significant gains available from renewable sources. These advanced cycles can harness the by-products of one power generation effort, such as electricity production, to simultaneously create additional energy outputs, such as heat or refrigeration. Gas turbine-based, and industrial waste heat recovery-based combined, cogeneration, and trigeneration cycles are considered in depth, along with Syngas combustion engines, hybrid SOFC/gas turbine engines, and other thermodynamically efficient and environmentally conscious generation technologies. The uses of solar power, biomass, hydrogen, and fuel cells in advanced power generation are considered, within both hybrid and dedicated systems.

The detailed energy and exergy analysis of each type of system provided by globally recognized author Dr. Ibrahim Dincer will inform effective and efficient design choices, while emphasizing the pivotal role of new methodologies and models for performance assessment of existing systems. This unique resource gathers information from thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, heat transfer, and energy system design to provide a single-source guide to solving practical power engineering problems.
The only complete source of info on the whole array of multiple output thermodynamic cycles, covering all the design options for environmentally-conscious combined production of electric power, heat, and refrigerationOffers crucial instruction on realizing more efficiency in traditional power generation systems, and on implementing renewable technologies, including solar, hydrogen, fuel cells, and biomass Each cycle description clarified through schematic diagrams, and linked to sustainable development scenarios through detailed energy, exergy, and efficiency analysesCase studies and examples demonstrate how novel systems and performance assessment methods function in practice

It was not until 1971 that the authority for defining scientific units, the General Conference of Weights and Measures got around to defining the unit that is the basis of chemistry (the mole, or the quantity of something). Yet for all this tardiness in putting the chemical sciences on a sound quantitative basis, chemistry is an old and venerable subject and one naturally asks the question, why? Well, the truth is that up until the mid-1920s, many physicists did not believe in the reality of molecules. Indeed, it was not until after the physics community had accepted Ernest Rutherford's 1913 solar-system-like model of the atom, and the quantum mechanical model of the coupling of electron spins in atoms that physicists started to take seriously the necessity of explaining the chemical changes that chemists had been observing, investigating and recording since the days of the alchemists.