UCONN Mechanical Engineering Senior Design Job Ticket
Sponsoring Company: Pratt & Whitney
Project Title: Sonic inspection tank algae elimination
Prime Contacts: Hank Sikorski (860) 565-0149
Bob Merry (860) 565-8334
This may be a joint project between Mechanical Engineering and Chemical and Environmental Engineering students.
The Engineering Challenge:
The Pratt & Whitney forging facility located in Columbus, GA is experiencing excessive down time of their sonic inspection tanks due to water contamination resulting from algae growth. Immersion sonic inspection involves placing a part underwater and transmitting sound into the part and evaluating the return sound signal to determine if flaws exist within the part. The water is the medium that allows the sound to pass from the transducer into the part and then back to the transducer. Both the high frequency sound emitting transducer and the part are under water. Both the parts and the sonic system are sensitive to the water chemistry so cleanliness and a stable chemistry is important.
Non-potable water from a local water source is used to fill and replenish the sonic inspection tanks. These tanks also have contamination in the form of biodegradable coolant from operations prior to sonic inspection that remains on the parts. The current process used to eliminate contamination and algae is to drain the tanks, clean the algae and then refill the tanks from the non potable source (see figures 1 and 2).
Figure 1 Algae in Tank Figure 2 Clean Tank
A cost effective system that eliminates the need to replace the water in the sonic inspection tanks, by maintaining a level of cleanliness and eliminating algae growth, is desirable to enable all sonic inspection tanks (currently 10) to remain operative 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Approximate volume of water in each tank: 1500 gallons
Water temperature must be maintained at factory ambient temperature
Water chemistry must have balanced pH and filtration to 10 microns
Description of Problem/Project:
The objective of this project is to research, design and demonstrate a process or device to maintain a level of cleanliness and eliminate algae in the sonic inspection tanks.
Expected Deliverables/Approach:
Research the conditions that promote the algae growth.
Research and understand the sonic inspection process and all of its requirements.
Identify candidate approaches for algae control.
Analyze and conduct necessary experiments to down select the best approach based on efficiency, complexity and cost to implement.
Design and Fabricate a scalable prototype model and demonstrate its performance.
All CAD models, schematics, analysis and test data.
Operational requirements and parts and materials lists
Approximate cost to implement.
· Is there a specific software package required for the projects? Y ___ N _X_
Which package (name/version) ______
· U.S. Citizen/Person (green card) Required? Y____ N _X__
· Will Export Controlled data be used in project (EAR/ITAR) Y ___ N_X__
· NDA/IP Agreements required? Y _X__ N __
· Other considerations:
Additional Information; Several trips to the Georgia facility to observe the process and obtain necessary data may be required.