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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 199 records · Page 11

Aerodynamic Performance Predictions of Single and Twin Jet Afterbodies

The multiblock three-dimensional Navier-Stokes method PAB3D was utilized by the Component Integration Branch (formerly Propulsion Aerodynamics Branch) at the NASA-Langley Research Center in an international study sponsored by AGARD Working Group #17 for the assessment of the state-of-the-art of propulsion-airframe integration testing techniques and CFD prediction technologies. Three test geometries from ONERA involving fundamental flow physics and four geometries from NASA-LaRC involving realistic flow interactions of wing, body, tail, and jet plumes were chosen by the Working Group. An overview of results on four (1 ONERA and 3 LaRC) of the seven test cases is presented. External static pressures, integrated pressure drag and total drag were calculated for the Langley test cases and jet plume velocity profiles and turbulent viscous stresses were calculated for the ONERA test case. Only selected data from these calculations are presented in this paper. The complete data sets calculated by the participants will be presented in an AGARD summary report. Predicted surface static pressures compared favorably with experimental data for the Langley geometries. Predicted afterbody drag compared well with experiment. Predicted nozzle drag was typically low due to over-compression of the flow near the trailing edge. Total drag was typically high. Predicted jet plume quantities on the ONERA case compared generally well with data.

Carlson, John R.↗

GSFC Technical Outreach: The Capitol College Model

In February 2005, as part of the National Aeronautic and Space Administration (NASA) Technical Outreach Program, Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) awarded Capitol College of Laurel, Maryland an Educational Grant to establish a Space Operation academic curriculum to meet the future needs of mission operations engineers. This was in part due to the aerospace industry and GSFC concerns that a large number of professional engineers are projected to retire in the near term with evidence showing that current enrollment in engineering schools will not produce sufficient number of space operation trained engineers that will meet industry and government demands. Capitol College, under the agreement of the Educational Grant, established the Space Operations Institute (SOI) with a new curriculum in Space Operations that was approved and certified by the State of Maryland. The SO1 programs focuses on attracting, recruiting, and training a pipeline of highly qualified engineers with experience in mission operations, system engineering and development. The selected students are integrated as members of the engineering support team in any of the missions supported by the institute. The students are mentored by professional engineers from several aerospace companies that support GSFC. Initially, the institute was involved in providing console engineers and mission planning trainees for the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS), the Earth Radiation Budget Satellite (ERBS) and the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer mission (TOMS). Subsequently, the students were also involved in the technology refresh of the TOMS ground system and other mission operations development. Further mission assignment by GSFC management included participation in the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) mission operations and ground system technology refresh. The SOI program has been very successful. Since October 2005, sixty-four students have been enrolled in the SOI program and twenty-five have already graduated from the program, nineteen of whom are employed by company's supporting GSFC. Due to the success of the program, the initial grant period was extended for another period of two years. This paper presents the process that established the SOI as a viable pipeline of mission operations engineers, the lessons learned in the process of dealing with grants, and experience gained in mentoring engineering students that are responsible for particular areas of expertise and functionality. This paper can also be considered a case study and model for integrating a student team with government and industry professionals in the real world of mission operations.

Marius, Julio L.↗

Concept for a high voltage solar array with integral power conditioning.

Description of a general case solution that synthesizes a high voltage solar array system from a switchable building block concept which makes possible system optimization for specific load requirements. A specific optimized solution is demonstrated, with performance estimates relating array area, weight, and power. Significant technology problems peculiar to a high-voltage switchable solar array design are discussed, along with special requirements anticipated during a hardware development effort.

Wiener, P.↗

Ergonomic problems regarding the interactive touch input via screens in onboard and ground-based flight control

A significant problem concerning the integration of display and switching functions is related to the fact that numerous informative data which have to be processed by man must be read from only a few display devices. A satisfactory ergonomic design of integrated display devices and keyboards is in many cases difficult, because not all functions which can be displayed and selected are simultaneously available. A technical solution which provides an integration of display and functional elements on the basis of the highest flexibility is obtained by using a cathode ray tube with a touch-sensitive screen. The employment of an integrated data input/output system is demonstrated for the cases of onboard and ground-based flight control. Ergonomic studies conducted to investigate the suitability of an employment of touch-sensitive screens are also discussed.

Holzhausen, K. P.↗

The Dirichlet problem for the two-dimensional Helmholtz equation for an open boundary

Development of a complete theory of the two-dimensional Dirichlet problem for an open boundary. It is shown that the solution of the Dirichlet problem for an open boundary requires the solution of a Fredholm integral equation of the first kind. Although a Fredholm integral equation of the first kind usually has no solution if the kernel is continuous, owing to the logarithmic singularity of the kernel, the equation in this case is converted to a singular integral equation with a Cauchy kernel. It is proven that the homogeneous adjoint equation of the singular integral equation has no nonzero solution. By virtue of this result, and with the aid of an existence theorem known in the theory of singular integral equations, the existence of solutions of the singular integral equation, and then of the unique solution of the Fredholm integral equation of the first kind is proved.

Hayashi, Y.↗

Variable Step Integration Coupled with the Method of Characteristics Solution for Water-Hammer Analysis, A Case Study

One-dimensional water-hammer modeling involves the solution of two coupled non-linear hyperbolic partial differential equations (PDEs). These equations result from applying the principles of conservation of mass and momentum to flow through a pipe, and usually the assumption that the speed at which pressure waves propagate through the pipe is constant. In order to solve these equations for the interested quantities (i.e. pressures and flow rates), they must first be converted to a system of ordinary differential equations (ODEs) by either approximating the spatial derivative terms with numerical techniques or using the Method of Characteristics (MOC). The MOC approach is ideal in that no numerical approximation errors are introduced in converting the original system of PDEs into an equivalent system of ODEs. Unfortunately this resulting system of ODEs is bound by a time step constraint so that when integrating the equations the solution can only be obtained at fixed time intervals. If the fluid system to be modeled also contains dynamic components (i.e. components that are best modeled by a system of ODEs), it may be necessary to take extremely small time steps during certain points of the model simulation in order to achieve stability and/or accuracy in the solution. Coupled together, the fixed time step constraint invoked by the MOC, and the occasional need for extremely small time steps in order to obtain stability and/or accuracy, can greatly increase simulation run times. As one solution to this problem, a method for combining variable step integration (VSI) algorithms with the MOC was developed for modeling water-hammer in systems with highly dynamic components. A case study is presented in which reverse flow through a dual-flapper check valve introduces a water-hammer event. The predicted pressure responses upstream of the check-valve are compared with test data.

Turpin, Jason B.↗

The inclusion problem with a crack crossing the boundary

A solution is given to the problems of a crack in an elastic inclusion with one or both ends approaching and terminating at the interface, of two collinear cracks (one in the inclusion and one in the matrix), and of a crack crossing the interface. The problems are formulated in terms of a system of singular integral equations. In the second case, the dominant parts of the kernels become generalized Cauchy kernels giving rise to stress singularities of powers other than one over the square root. For this case stress intensity factors are defined and some detailed results are presented for various crack-inclusion geometries and material combinations.

Erdogan, F.↗

The problem of internal and edge cracks in an orthotropic strip

The plane elastostatic problem of internal and edge cracks in an infinite orthotropic strip is considered. The problems for the material types 1 and 2 are formulated in terms of singular integral equations. For the symmetric case the stress intensity factors are calculated and are compared with the isotropic results. The results show that because of the dependence of the Fredholm kernels on the elastic constants, unlike the crack problem for an infinite plane, in the strip the stress intensity factors are dependent on the elastic constants and are generally different than the corresponding isotropic results.

Delale, F.↗

The problem of internal and edge cracks in an orthotropic strip

The plane elastostatic problem of internal and edge cracks in an infinite orthotropic strip is considered. The problems for the material types I and II are formulated in terms of singular integral equations. For the symmetric case the stress intensity factors are calculated and are compared with the isotropic results. The results show that because of the dependence of the Fredholm kernels on the elastic constants, unlike the crack problem for an infinite plane, in the strip the stress intensity factors are dependent on the elastic constants and are generally different from the corresponding isotropic results.

Delale, F.↗

The problem of internal and edge cracks in an orthotropic strip

The plane elastostatic problem of internal and edge cracks in an infinite orthotropic strip is considered. The problems for the material types I and II are formulated in terms of singular integral equations. For the symmetric case the stress-intensity factors are calculated and are compared with the isotropic results. The results show that because of the dependence of the Fredholm kernels on the elastic constants in the strip (unlike the crack problem for an infinite plane) the stress-intensity factors are dependent on the elastic constants and are generally different from the corresponding isotropic results

Delale, F.↗

A cracked beam or plate transversely loaded by a stamp

In this paper the problem of an infinite elastic beam or a plate containing a crack is considered. The medium is loaded transversely through a stamp which may be rigid or elastic. The problem is a coupled crack-contact problem which cannot be solved by treating the crack and contact problems separately and by using a superposition technique. First the Green's functions for the general case are obtained. Then the integral equations for a cracked infinite strip loaded by a frictionless stamp are obtained. With the question of fracture in mind, the primary interest in the paper has been in calculating the stress intensity factors. The results are given for a rigid flat stamp with sharp edges and for an elastic curved stamp. The effect of friction at the supports on the stress intensity factors is also studied and a numerical example is given.

Nied, H. F.↗

Radiative transfer in the surfaces of atmosphereless bodies. I - Theory. II - Interpretation of phase curves

A generalized theory of radiative transfer is presented which includes single and multiple scattering of light in particulate surfaces, and is applicable to both the surfaces of atmosphereless bodies and to laboratory samples. Single scattering is described in terms of the effects of porosity and roughness, and is formulated by means of a probabilistic method. It is shown that, for low-albedo surfaces, the effects of porosity and roughness are separable, the opposition effect is caused by the former, and the slope of the linear part of the phase curve is mainly controlled by the latter. The theory, which is applicable to all albedos and phase angles, may be used in both surface brightness and integrated brightness studies. The limiting case of roughness and volume density tending to zero yields the results of classical radiative transfer theory.

Lumme, K.↗

Mesoscale density variability in the mesosphere and thermosphere: Effects of vertical flow accelerations

A mechanistic one dimensional numerical (iteration) model was developed which can be used to simulate specific types of mesoscale atmospheric density (and pressure) variability in the mesosphere and the thermosphere, namely those due to waves and those due to vertical flow accelerations. The model was developed with the idea that it could be used as a supplement to the TGCMs (thermospheric general circulation models) since such models have a very limited ability to model phenomena on small spatial scales. The simplest case to consider was the integration upward through a time averaged, height independent, horizontally divergent flow field. Vertical winds were initialized at the lower boundary using the Ekman pumping theory over flat terrain. The results of the computations are summarized.

Revelle, D. O.↗

Stochasticity in numerical solutions of the nonlinear Schroedinger equation

The cubically nonlinear Schroedinger equation is an important model of nonlinear phenomena in fluids and plasmas. Numerical solutions in a spatially periodic system commonly involve truncation to a finite number of Fourier modes. These solutions are found to be stochastic in the sense that the largest Liapunov exponent is positive. As the number of modes is increased, the size of this exponent appears to converge to zero, in agreement with the recent demonstration of the integrability of the spatially periodic case.

Shen, Mei-Mei↗

The constitutive representation of high-temperature creep damage

The elastic-viscoplastic constitutive equations of Bodner-Partom were applied to modeling creep damage in a high temperature Ni-alloy, B1900 + Hf. Both tertiary creep in bulk materials and creep crack growth in flawed materials were considered. In the latter case, the energy rate line integral was used for characterizing the crack driving force, and the rate of crack extension was computed using a local damage formulation that assumed fracture was controlled by cavitation occurring within the crack-tip process zone. The results of this investigation were used to assess the evolution equation for isotropic damage utilized in the Bodner-Partom constitutive equations.

Chan, K. S.↗

Numerical derivative techniques for trajectory optimization

The adoption of robust numerical optimization techniques in trajectory simulation programs has resulted in powerful design and analysis tools. These trajectory simulation/optimization programs are widely used, and a representative list includes the GTS system, the POST program, and newer collocation methods such as OTIS and FONPAC. All of these programs rely on optimization algorithms which require objective function and constraint gradient data during the iteration process. However, most trajectory optimization problems lack simple analytical expressions for these derivatives. In the general case a function evaluation involves integrating aerodynamic, propulsive, and gravity forces over multiple trajectory phases with complex control models. With the newer collocation methods, the integration is replaced by defect constraints and cubic approximations for the state. While analytic gradient expressions can sometimes be derived for trajectory optimization problems, the derivation is cumbersome, time consuming, and prone to mistakes. Fortunately, an alternate method exists for the gradient evaluation, namely finite difference approximations. In this paper some finite difference gradient techniques developed for use with the GTS system are presented. These techniques include methods for computing first and second partial derivatives of single and multiple sets of functions. A key feature of these methods is an error control mechanism which automatically adjusts the perturbation size to obtain accurate derivative values.

Hallman, Wayne P.↗

The Clementine instrument complement

The recent successes of the Galileo solid-state imaging (SSI) experiment at the Moon and Gaspra show the utility of multispectral imaging of planetary objects. 'Clementine' is the planetary community's 'code name' for the SDIO (Space Defense Initiative Organization), mission to the Moon and the asteroid Geographos. This mission is designed as a long term stressing test on sensors and space systems developed for SDIO. In the course of this test Clementine will obtain science data using a varied and powerful array of remote sensing instruments which were developed by or for Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in Livermore, California. Clementine carries five cameras, one for navigation and four for science experiments. In addition, a laser ranger is included which will serve as a laser altimeter. The Clementine cameras cover a wider range of spatial resolutions and wavelength range than did Galileo and are almost ideally suited to mapping of mafic rock types as are present on the Moon and expected at Geographos. Calibration of the cameras will occur at the sensor calibration laboratory at LLNL. In flight calibrations, using standard stars and other standards should improve the stated accuracies. Signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) include the following noise sources: shot noise, calibration error, digitization noise, readout noise, and frame transfer noise (where applicable). The achieved SNRs are a balance between detector saturation and acceptable image smear. The 'worst' case uses the longest possible integration times.

Lucey, Paul G.↗