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At least 181 records · Page 10

Application of the multigrid method to grid generation

The multigrid method (MGM), used to numerically solve the pair of nonlinear elliptic equations commonly used to generate two dimensional boundary-fitted coordinate systems is discussed. Two different geometries are considered: one involving a coordinate system fitted about a circle and the other selected for an impinging jet flow problem. Two different relaxation schemes are tried: one is successive point overrelaxation and the other is a four-color scheme vectorizeable to take advantage of a parallel processor computer for greater computational speed. Results using MGM are compared with those using SOR (doing successive overrelaxations with the corresponding relaxation scheme on the fine grid only). It is found that MGM becomes significantly more effective than SOR as more accuracy is demanded and as more corrective grids, or more grid points, are used. For the accuracy required, it is found that MGM is two to three times faster than SOR in computing time. With the four-color relaxation scheme as applied to the impinging jet problem, the advantage of MGM over SOR is not as great. This may be due to the effect of a poor initial guess on MGM for this problem.

Ohring, S.↗

Application of a self-adaptive grid method to complex flows

A directional-split modular user-friendly grid-point distribution code is applied to several test problems. Grid-point spacing is determined by user-specified constants denoting maximum and minimum grid spacings and relating the relative influence of smoothness and orthogonality. Estimates of truncation error, in terms of flowfield gradients and/or geometric features, are used to determine the point distribution.

Deiwert, G. S.↗

Fast interpolation schemes for moving grids

Search algorithms are developed for efficiently locating interpolation points to facilitate transfer of data in moving grid and related problems. Applications in the construction of adaptive grids and in the solution of problems on composite grids are included.

Mastin, C. Wayne↗

The development and application of the self-adaptive grid code, SAGE

The multidimensional self-adaptive grid code, SAGE, has proven to be a flexible and useful tool in the solution of complex flow problems. Both 2- and 3-D examples given in this report show the code to be reliable and to substantially improve flowfield solutions. Since the adaptive procedure is a marching scheme the code is extremely fast and uses insignificant CPU time compared to the corresponding flow solver. The SAGE program is also machine and flow solver independent. Significant effort was made to simplify user interaction, though some parameters still need to be chosen with care. It is also difficult to tell when the adaption process has provided its best possible solution. This is particularly true if no experimental data are available or if there is a lack of theoretical understanding of the flow. Another difficulty occurs if local features are important but missing in the original grid; the adaption to this solution will not result in any improvement, and only grid refinement can result in an improved solution. These are complex issues that need to be explored within the context of each specific problem.

Davies, Carol B.↗

Application of the FUN3D Unstructured-Grid Navier-Stokes Solver to the 4th AIAA Drag Prediction Workshop Cases

FUN3D Navier-Stokes solutions were computed for the 4th AIAA Drag Prediction Workshop grid convergence study, downwash study, and Reynolds number study on a set of node-based mixed-element grids. All of the baseline tetrahedral grids were generated with the VGRID (developmental) advancing-layer and advancing-front grid generation software package following the gridding guidelines developed for the workshop. With maximum grid sizes exceeding 100 million nodes, the grid convergence study was particularly challenging for the node-based unstructured grid generators and flow solvers. At the time of the workshop, the super-fine grid with 105 million nodes and 600 million elements was the largest grid known to have been generated using VGRID. FUN3D Version 11.0 has a completely new pre- and post-processing paradigm that has been incorporated directly into the solver and functions entirely in a parallel, distributed memory environment. This feature allowed for practical pre-processing and solution times on the largest unstructured-grid size requested for the workshop. For the constant-lift grid convergence case, the convergence of total drag is approximately second-order on the finest three grids. The variation in total drag between the finest two grids is only 2 counts. At the finest grid levels, only small variations in wing and tail pressure distributions are seen with grid refinement. Similarly, a small wing side-of-body separation also shows little variation at the finest grid levels. Overall, the FUN3D results compare well with the structured-grid code CFL3D. The FUN3D downwash study and Reynolds number study results compare well with the range of results shown in the workshop presentations.

Lee-Rausch, Elizabeth M.↗

Multiple grid problems on concurrent-processing computers

Three computer codes were studied which make use of concurrent processing computer architectures in computational fluid dynamics (CFD). The three parallel codes were tested on a two processor multiple-instruction/multiple-data (MIMD) facility at NASA Ames Research Center, and are suggested for efficient parallel computations. The first code is a well-known program which makes use of the Beam and Warming, implicit, approximate factored algorithm. This study demonstrates the parallelism found in a well-known scheme and it achieved speedups exceeding 1.9 on the two processor MIMD test facility. The second code studied made use of an embedded grid scheme which is used to solve problems having complex geometries. The particular application for this study considered an airfoil/flap geometry in an incompressible flow. The scheme eliminates some of the inherent difficulties found in adapting approximate factorization techniques onto MIMD machines and allows the use of chaotic relaxation and asynchronous iteration techniques. The third code studied is an application of overset grids to a supersonic blunt body problem. The code addresses the difficulties encountered when using embedded grids on a compressible, and therefore nonlinear, problem. The complex numerical boundary system associated with overset grids is discussed and several boundary schemes are suggested. A boundary scheme based on the method of characteristics achieved the best results.

Eberhardt, D. S.↗

Weekly Gridded Aquarius L-band Radiometer-scatterometer Observations and Salinity Retrievals over the Polar Regions - Part 1: Product Description

Passive and active observations at L band (frequency (is) approximately 1.4 GHz) from the Aquarius/SAC-D mission offer new capabilities to study the polar regions. Due to the lack of polar-gridded products, however, applications over the cryosphere have been limited. We present three weekly polar-gridded products of Aquarius data to improve our understanding of L-band observations of ice sheets, sea ice, permafrost, and the polar oceans. Additionally, these products intend to facilitate access to L-band data, and can be used to assist in algorithm developments. Aquarius data at latitudes higher than 50 degrees are averaged and gridded into weekly products of brightness temperature (TB), normalized radar cross section (NRCS), and sea surface salinity (SSS). Each grid cell also contains sea ice fraction, the standard deviation of TB, NRCS, and SSS, and the number of footprint observations collected during the seven-day cycle. The largest 3 dB footprint dimensions are 97 km×156 km and 74 km×122 km (along × across track) for the radiometers and scatterometer, respectively. The data is gridded to the Equal-Area Scalable Earth version 2.0 (EASE2.0) grid, with a grid cell resolution of 36 km. The data sets start in August 2011, with the first Aquarius observations and will be updated on a monthly basis following the release schedule of the Aquarius Level 2 data sets. The weekly gridded products are distributed by the US National Snow and Ice Data Center at http://nsidc.org/data/aquarius/index.html

Aquarius↗

Grids for Dummies: Featuring Earth Science Data Mining Application

This viewgraph presentation discusses the concept and advantages of linking computers together into data grids, an emerging technology for managing information across institutions, and potential users of data grids. The logistics of access to a grid, including the use of the World Wide Web to access grids, and security concerns are also discussed. The potential usefulness of data grids to the earth science community is also discussed, as well as the Global Grid Forum, and other efforts to establish standards for data grids.

Hinke, Thomas H.↗

A Study of the Aligned-Grid Retarding Potential Analyzer for Electric Propulsion Applications

During the development of energy analyzers for NASA’s Solar Electric Propulsion Plasma Diagnostics Package, detailed studies were performed to compare the benefits and drawbacks of different types of gridded potential analyzers. In particular, modeling and testing were performed on three types of retarding potential analyzer with aligned grids, and one type with unaligned grids. Additionally, a type of gridded energy analyzer was tested. Analyses of the model and test results showed that manufacturing an analyzer with aligned grids required greater precision and knowledge than other analyzers. A properly designed analyzer with aligned grids exhibited superior signal level, acceptance angle control, energy resolution, and compactness compared to an analyzer with unaligned grids. Additionally, the gridded energy analyzer was found to accept a broad range of incidence angles while having superior signal, energy resolution, and compactness compared to retarding potential analyzer with unaligned grid. This article describes the basic design principles deployed in the study, the associated modeling work, and the characterization tests that were performed. The article summarizes the benefits and drawbacks associated with each type of energy analyzer tested.

Electric Propulsion↗

Unstructured Grid Generation for Complex 3D High-Lift Configurations

The application of an unstructured grid methodology on a three-dimensional high-lift configuration is presented. The focus of this paper is on the grid generation aspect of an integrated effort for the development of an unstructured-grid computational fluid dynamics (CFD) capability at the NASA Langley Research Center. The meshing approach is based on tetrahedral grids generated by the advancing-front and the advancing-layers procedures. The capability of the method for solving high-lift problems is demonstrated on an aircraft model referred to as the energy efficient transport configuration. The grid generation issues, including the pros and cons of the present approach, are discussed in relation to the high-lift problems. Limited viscous flow results are presented to demonstrate the viability of the generated grids. A corresponding Navier-Stokes solution capability, along with further computations on the present grid, is presented in a companion SAE paper.

Pirzadeh, Shahyar Z.↗

A nested grid, nonhydrostatic, elastic model using a terrain-following coordinate transformation - The radiative-nesting boundary conditions

This study presents a nested-grid nonhydrostatic and elastic model using a terrain-following coordinate transformation as well as a unique application of grid-nesting techniques to the time-splitting elastic model. A simulation of the 10-m-high Witch of Agnesi Mountain provides the control to test this new model. The results show that the model produces the same solution as that derived from a simple linear analytic model. It is demonstrated that the new nested-grid model improves model resolution without resorting to the costly method of placing a fine-resolution grid over the entire domain. Since the wave reflection from the boundaries of the fine-grid model is well controlled, the boundary of the nested fine-grid model can be located even at the wave-active region. The model can be used to simulate various weather systems in which scale interactions are important.

Chen, Chaing↗

Noise reduction evaluation of grids in a supersonic air stream with application to Space Shuttle

Near field acoustic measurements were obtained for a model supersonic air jet perturbed by a screen. Noise reduction potential in the vicinity of the space shuttle vehicle during ground launch when the rocket exhaust flow is perturbed by a grid was determined. Both 10 and 12 mesh screens were utilized for this experiment, and each exhibited a noise reduction only at very low frequencies in the near field forward arc. A power spectrum analysis revealed that a modest reduction of from 3 to 5 decibels exists below a Strouhal number S sub t = 0.11. Above S sub t = 0.11 screen harmonics increased the observed sound pressure level. The favorable noise reductions obtained with screens for S sub t 0.11 may be of substantial interest for the space shuttle at ground launch.

Seiner, J. M.↗

Navier-Stokes Solutions of Rotor and Rotor-Body Flows

This paper will review the advances made recently in the Navier-Stokes CFD methods to simulate aerodynamics and aeroacoustics of helicopter rotors and rotor-body flows. Although a complete flowfield simulation of full helicopter is currently not feasible with these methods, impressive gains have been made in analyzing individual components of this complex problem in a very detailed manner. The use of the state-of-the-art numerical algorithms in solution methods, in conjunction with powerful supercomputers, like the Cray-2, have enabled noticeable progress to be made in modeling viscous-inviscid interactions, blade-vortex interactions, tip-vortex: simulation and wake effects, as well as high speed impulsive noise in hover and forward flight for isolated rotor blades. This paper will critically evaluate the presently available Euler and Navier-Stokes methods, both finite-difference and finite volume methods using structured and unstructured grids for helicopter applications for accuracy, suitability, and computational efficiency. The review will also include the recent progress made using overset grids to model rotor-body flows. All the material for this review will be drawn from the published material shown below.

Srinivasan, G. R.↗

An Assessment of the Differences Between Spatial Resolution and Grid Size for the SMAP Enhanced Soil Moisture Product over Homogeneous Sites

Satellite-based passive microwave remote sensing typically involves a scanning antenna that makes measurements at irregularly spaced locations. These locations can change on a day to day basis. Soil moisture products derived from satellite-based passive microwave remote sensing are usually resampled to a fixed Earth grid that facilitates their use in applications. In many cases the grid size is finer than the actual spatial resolution of the observation, and often this difference is not well understood by the user. Here, this issue was examined for the Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) enhanced version of the passive-based soil moisture product, which has a grid size of 9-km and a nominal spatial resolution of 33-km. In situ observations from core validation sites were used to compute comparison metrics. For sites that satisfied the established reliability and scaling criteria, the impact of validating the 9-km grid product with in situ data collected over a 9-km versus a 33-km domain was very small for the sites studied (0.039 cu. m/cu. m unbiased root mean square difference for the 9-km case versus 0.037 cu. m/cu. m for the 33-km case). This result does not mean that the resolution of the product is 9-km but that for the conditions studied here the soil moisture estimated from in situ observations over 9-km is a close approximation of the soil moisture estimated from in situ observations over the 33-km resolution. The implication is that using the enhanced SMAP product at its grid resolution of 9-km should not introduce large errors in most applications.

Soil moisture↗