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Increasing the performance of a Salt Washing Machine through Axiomatic Design

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Bibliographic Details
Summary:Systems with fewer design parameters (DPs) than functional requirements (FRs) are coupled or cannot achieve all their FRs simultaneously, as per Axiomatic Design's theorem 1. In that case, production processes have lower productivity and production rate than uncoupled or decoupled designs. This paper reports the upgrading of a salt washing machine concerning its performance, not only on separation of salt from saltwater but also on washed salt production. The machine analysis showed it is a coupled design, with one more functional requirement than the design parameters. A viable enhancement was the addition of one design parameter, which made it possible to control separation and washing independently. This redesign enforced functional independence and allowed increasing the production rate between 20% and 30%. Furthermore, one could perceive increased productivity, quality of the final product, and reduced water and energy consumption.
Main Authors:Gabriel-Santos, António
Other Authors:Fradinho, João Manuel Vicente; Mourão, António José Freire; Martinho, Alberto José Antunes Marques; Cavique, Miguel; Vieira, Gonçalo; Gonçalves-Coelho, António
Subject:SDG 7 - Affordable and Clean Energy
Year:2021
Country:Portugal
Document type:article
Access type:open access
Associated institution:Universidade Nova de Lisboa
Language:English
Origin:Repositório Institucional da UNL
Description
Summary:Systems with fewer design parameters (DPs) than functional requirements (FRs) are coupled or cannot achieve all their FRs simultaneously, as per Axiomatic Design's theorem 1. In that case, production processes have lower productivity and production rate than uncoupled or decoupled designs. This paper reports the upgrading of a salt washing machine concerning its performance, not only on separation of salt from saltwater but also on washed salt production. The machine analysis showed it is a coupled design, with one more functional requirement than the design parameters. A viable enhancement was the addition of one design parameter, which made it possible to control separation and washing independently. This redesign enforced functional independence and allowed increasing the production rate between 20% and 30%. Furthermore, one could perceive increased productivity, quality of the final product, and reduced water and energy consumption.