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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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We point out that observations of a 5 percent velocity difference between photospheric gas and magnetic structures at a given latitude may simply result from angular momentum conservation by fluid elements in the convection zone. Estimates of the viscosity and magnetic drag are considered, and we conclude that they probably are not large enough to enforce strictly rigid rotation.
This paper presents results of an analysis of low-thrust orbit maintenance of the Space Station. Propellant requirements and transfer times are given for reboost of the station through various altitude increments. The reboost can readily be accomplished with thrust levels that subject the station to an acceleration of less than the desired upper limit of 10 to the -5th g's. The variation in time and the probabilistic aspect of the predicted upper-atmospheric density as well as the variation in time of sun-pointing drag areas were taken into account. Estimates of the propellant requirements at different times during an 11-year solar cycle are given. It is shown that the amount of CO2 available from the station life-support system is sufficient, over most of the solar cycle, to provide the propellant for a resistojet orbit-maintenance system.
The Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) is a crucial component in any sample return campaign. In this paper we present a universal model for a two-stage MAV along with the analytic equations and simple parametric relationships necessary to quickly estimate MAV mass and performance. Ascent trajectories can be modeled as two-burn transfers from the surface with appropriate loss estimations for finite burns, steering, and drag. Minimizing lift-off mass is achieved by balancing optimized staging and an optimized path-to-orbit. This model allows designers to quickly find optimized solutions and to see the effects of design choices.
This paper describes the development of a thermal management system (TMS) concept design and analysis software package called Heat Transport System Simulation (HeaTSSPy). Built within Python using the OpenMDAO framework, HeaTSSPy can be used to size and optimize an active (using liquid/air heat exchangers) or passive (using finned heat sinks) TMS. The package makes use of modular TMS elements that allow for the creation of different system architectures and includes components such as heat sinks, heat exchangers, liquid pumps, fans, ducts, air inlets, air nozzles, and liquid pipes. Modeling methods for these components include a combination of physics-based analytical and empirical equations that relate component sizing criteria to system performance. The HeatSSPy heat sink methods are fully detailed within this paper, while the heat exchanger methods are described and referenced from previous work. This paper also uses high-fidelity simulation to validate two different methods of calculating thermal resistance using CFD results. Once the methods are fully described, the code is exercised to compare an active TMS with that of a passive TMS. Design criteria for this study include rejected heat, system altitude, Mach number, and ambient temperature. These criteria are used to develop a TMS system with estimated performance metrics such as weight, drag, and operational power. Results of this paper show the crossover point when a passive system begins to weigh more than an active system for a given heat rejection.
NASA Dryden Flight Research Center has completed a preliminary performance analysis of the SR-71 aircraft for use as a launch platform for high-speed research vehicles and for carrying captive experimental packages to high altitude and Mach number conditions. Externally mounted research platforms can significantly increase drag, limiting test time and, in extreme cases, prohibiting penetration through the high-drag, transonic flight regime. To provide supplemental SR-71 acceleration, methods have been developed that could increase the thrust of the J58 turbojet engines. These methods include temperature and speed increases and augmentor nitrous oxide injection. The thrust-enhanced engines would allow the SR-71 aircraft to carry higher drag research platforms than it could without enhancement. This paper presents predicted SR-71 performance with and without enhanced engines. A modified climb-dive technique is shown to reduce fuel consumption when flying through the transonic flight regime with a large external payload. Estimates are included of the maximum platform drag profiles with which the aircraft could still complete a high-speed research mission. In this case, enhancement was found to increase the SR-71 payload drag capability by 25 percent. The thrust enhancement techniques and performance prediction methodology are described.
A method for rapidly estimating the overall forces and moments at supercritical speeds, below drag divergence, of transport configurations with supercritical wings is presented. The method was also used for estimating the rolling moments due to the deflection of wing trailing-edge controls. This analysis was based on a vortex-lattice technique modified to approximate the effects of wing thickness and boundary-layer induced camber. Comparisons between the results of this method and experiment indicate reasonably good correlation of the lift, pitching moment, and rolling moment. The method required much less storage and run time to compute solutions over an angle-of-attack range than presently available transonic nonlinear methods require for a single angle-of-attack solution.
Many theoretical and experimental studies have shown that aircraft flying in formation could experience significant reductions in fuel use compared to solo flight. To date, formation flight for aerodynamic benefit has not been thoroughly explored in flight for large transport-class vehicles. This paper summarizes flight data gathered during several two ship, C-17 formation flights at a single flight condition of 275 knots, at 25,000 ft MSL. Stabilized test points were flown with the trail aircraft at 1,000 and 3,000 ft aft of the lead aircraft at selected crosstrack and vertical offset locations within the estimated area of influence of the vortex generated by the lead aircraft. Flight data recorded at test points within the vortex from the lead aircraft are compared to data recorded at tare flight test points outside of the influence of the vortex. Since drag was not measured directly, reductions in fuel flow and thrust for level flight are used as a proxy for drag reduction. Estimated thrust and measured fuel flow reductions were documented at several trail test point locations within the area of influence of the leads vortex. The maximum average fuel flow reduction was approximately 7-8%, compared to the tare points flown before and after the test points. Although incomplete, the data suggests that regions with fuel flow and thrust reduction greater than 10% compared to the tare test points exist within the vortex area of influence.
Many theoretical and experimental studies have shown that aircraft flying in formation could experience significant reductions in fuel use compared to solo flight. To date, formation flight for aerodynamic benefit has not been thoroughly explored in flight for large transport-class vehicles. This paper summarizes flight data gathered during several two ship, C-17 formation flights at a single flight condition of 275 knots, at 25,000 ft MSL. Stabilized test points were flown with the trail aircraft at 1,000 and 3,000 ft aft of the lead aircraft at selected crosstrack and vertical offset locations within the estimated area of influence of the vortex generated by the lead aircraft. Flight data recorded at test points within the vortex from the lead aircraft are compared to data recorded at tare flight test points outside of the influence of the vortex. Since drag was not measured directly, reductions in fuel flow and thrust for level flight are used as a proxy for drag reduction. Estimated thrust and measured fuel flow reductions were documented at several trail test point locations within the area of influence of the leads vortex. The maximum average fuel flow reduction was approximately 7-8%, compared to the tare points flown before and after the test points. Although incomplete, the data suggests that regions with fuel flow and thrust reduction greater than 10% compared to the tare test points exist within the vortex area of influence.
The Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) primary mission will be performed by making measurements of the inter-satellite range change between two co-planar, low altitude, near-polar orbiting satellites. Understanding the uncertainties in the disturbance environment, particularly the aerodynamic drag and torques, is critical in several mission areas. These include an accurate estimate of the spacecraft orbital lifetime, evaluation of spacecraft attitude control requirements, and estimation of the orbital maintenance maneuver frequency necessitated by differences in the drag forces acting on both satellites. The FREEMOL simulation software has been developed and utilized to analyze and suggest design modifications to the GRACE spacecraft. Aerodynamic accommodation bounding analyses were performed and worst-case envelopes were obtained for the aerodynamic torques and the differential ballistic coefficients between the leading and trailing GRACE spacecraft. These analyses demonstrate how spacecraft aerodynamic design and analysis can benefit from a better understanding of spacecraft surface accommodation properties, and the implications for mission design constraints such as formation spacing control.
The Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) primary mission will be performed by making measurements of the inter-satellite range change between two co-planar, low altitude near-polar orbiting satellites. Understanding the uncertainties in the disturbance environment, particularly the aerodynamic drag and torques, is critical in several mission areas. These include an accurate estimate of the spacecraft orbital lifetime, evaluation of spacecraft attitude control requirements, and estimation of the orbital maintenance maneuver frequency necessitated by differences in the drag forces acting on both satellites. The FREEMOL simulation software has been developed and utilized to analyze and suggest design modifications to the GRACE spacecraft. Aerodynamic accommodation bounding analyses were performed and worst-case envelopes were obtained for the aerodynamic torques and the differential ballistic coefficients between the leading and trailing GRACE spacecraft. These analyses demonstrate how spacecraft aerodynamic design and analysis can benefit from a better understanding of spacecraft surface accommodation properties, and the implications for mission design constraints such as formation spacing control.
Lightweight aircraft design has received a considerable attention in recent years as a means for improving cruise efficiency. Reducing aircraft weight results in lower lift requirements which directly translate into lower drag, hence reduced engine thrust requirements during cruise. The use of lightweight materials such as advanced composite materials has been adopted by airframe manufacturers in current and future aircraft. Modern lightweight materials can provide less structural rigidity while maintaining load-carrying capacity. As structural flexibility increases, aeroelastic interactions with aerodynamic forces and moments become an increasingly important consideration in aircraft design and aerodynamic performance. Furthermore, aeroelastic interactions with flight dynamics can result in issues with vehicle stability and control. Abstract This paper describes a recent aeroelastic modeling effort for an elastically shaped aircraft concept (ESAC). The aircraft model is based on the rigid-body generic transport model (GTM) originally developed at NASA Langley Research Center. The ESAC distinguishes itself from the GTM in that it is equipped with highly flexible wing structures as a weight reduction design feature. More significantly, the wings are outfitted with a novel control effector concept called variable camber continuous trailing edge (VCCTE) flap system for active control of wing aeroelastic deflections to optimize the local angle of attack of wing sections for improved aerodynamic efficiency through cruise drag reduction and lift enhancement during take-off and landing. The VCCTE flap is a multi-functional and aerodynamically efficient device capable of achieving high lift-to-drag ratios. The flap system is comprised of three chordwise segments that form the variable camber feature of the flap and multiple spanwise segments that form a piecewise continuous trailing edge. By configuring the flap camber and trailing edge shape, drag reduction could be achieved. Moreover, some parts of the flap system can be made to have a high frequency response for roll control, gust load alleviation, and aeroservoelastic (ASE) modal suppression control. Abstract The aeroelastic model of the ESAC is based on one-dimensional structural dynamic theory that captures the aeroelastic deformation of a wing structure in a combined motion that involves flapwise bending, chordwise bending, and torsion. The model includes the effect of aircraft propulsion due to wing flexibility which causes the propulsive forces and moments to couple with the wing elastic motion. Engine mass is also accounted in the model. A fuel management model is developed to describe the wing mass change due to fuel usage in the main tank and wing tanks during cruise. Abstract The model computes both static and dynamic responses of the wing structures. The static aeroelastic deflections are used to estimate the effect of wing flexibility on induced drag and the potential drag reduction by the VCCTE flap system. A flutter analysis is conducted to estimate the flutter speed boundary. Gust load alleviation via adaptive control has been recently investigated to address flexibility of aircraft structures. A multi-objective flight control approach is presented for drag reduction control. The approach is based on an optimal control framework using a multi-objective cost function. Future studies will demonstrate the potential benefits of the approach.
The results of altitude-wind-tunnel tests conducted to determine the performance of an axial-flow-type 4000.pound-thrust turboJet engine for a range of pressure altitudes from 5000 to 40,000 feet and ram pressure ratios from 1.02 to 1.86 are presented and the experimental and analytical methods employed are discussed. By means of suitable generalizing factors applied to the measured performance data, curves were obtained from which the engine performance at any altitude for a given ram pressure ratio can be estimated. The data presented include the windmilling drag characteristics of the turbojet engine for the ranges of altitudes and ram pressure ratios covered by the performance data.
Tests were made in the Langley 7- by 10-foot tunnel on a 0.182-scale model of an F4U-1 airplane with external stores. This paper is concerned mainly with presenting the data obtained in this investigation and with a comparison of some of these data with flight-test results determining the feasibility of estimating flight buffet Mach number from tunnel data. The results of this investigation indicate that the incremental drag coefficient due to external stores may be used to estimate the maximum Mach number that the F4U-1 airplane may reach in flight when it is equipped with external stores. This estimation is conservative for the five configurations investigated by mounts varying from 0 to 10 percent of the flight limit Mach number. The free-stream tunnel Mach number corresponding to sonic flow over the lower surface of the wing in the region of the store is a good indication of the lower limit of buffet in flight of the F4U-1 airplane when equipped with external stores. The fluctuations of total pressure over the horizontal tail are not sufficiently large (maximum of 1 percent q(sub o) to cause buffeting of the airplane.
The use of estimators or observers is discussed as applied to satellite attitude control and the control of drag-free satellites. The practical problems of implementation are discussed, and the relative advantages of full and reduced state estimators are compared, particularly in terms of their effectiveness and bandwidth as filters. Three applications are used to illustrate the principles. They are: (1) a reaction wheel control system, (2) a spinning attitude control system, and (3) a drag-free satellite translational control system. Fixed estimator gains are shown to be adequate for these (and many other) applications. Our experience in the hardware realization of estimators has led to categorize the error sources in terms of those that improve with increased estimator gains and those that get worse with increased estimator gains.
The High Velocity Airflow System (HIVAS) facility at the Naval Air Warfare Center (NAWC) at China Lake was successfully used as an alternative to flight test to determine parachute drag performance of two small Capsule Parachute Assembly System (CPAS) canopies. A similar parachute with known performance was also tested as a control. Realtime computations of drag coefficient were unrealistically low. This is because HIVAS produces a non-uniform flow which rapidly decays from a high central core flow. Additional calibration runs were performed to characterize this flow assuming radial symmetry from the centerline. The flow field was used to post-process effective flow velocities at each throttle setting and parachute diameter using the definition of the momentum flux factor. Because one parachute had significant oscillations, additional calculations were required to estimate the projected flow at off-axis angles. The resulting drag data from HIVAS compared favorably to previously estimated parachute performance based on scaled data from analogous CPAS parachutes. The data will improve drag area distributions in the next version of the CPAS Model Memo.
The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) was launched in 2009 and, with itsseven science instruments, has made numerous contributions to our understandingof the moon. LRO is in an elliptical, polar lunar orbit and nominally maintainsa nadir orientation. There are frequent slews off nadir to observe various sciencetargets. LRO attitude control system (ACS) has two star trackers and a gyro forattitude estimation in an extended Kalman filter (EKF) and four reaction wheelsused in a proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller. LRO is equipped withthrusters for orbit adjustments and momentum management. In early 2018, thegyro was powered off following a fairly rapid decline in the laser intensity on theX axis. Without the gyro, the EKF has been disabled. Attitude is provided by asingle star tracker and a coarse rate estimate is computed by a back differencingof the star tracker quaternions. Slews have also been disabled. A new rate estimationapproach makes use of a complementary filter, combining the quaterniondifferentiated rates and the integrated PID limited control torque (with reactionwheel drag and feedforward torque removed). The filtered rate estimate replacesthe MIMU rate in the EKF, resulting in minimal flight software changes. The paperwill cover the preparation and testing of the new gyroless algorithm, both inground simulations and inflight.
This paper presents a real-time drag optimization study of the aspect ratio 13.5 Common Research Model (CRM) with a distributed mini-plain flap system. A surrogate aerodynamic model of the aspect ratio 13.5 CRM is developed based on an aerodynamic database computed by a transonic panel method to capture the aerodynamic coefficients as functions of the angle of attack, flap deflections, and Mach number. A recursive least-squares parameter estimation algorithm is designed to estimate the aerodynamic parameters of the surrogate model. The estimated surrogate model is then used in an on-line drag optimization strategy based on an adjoint method. The results of the real-time drag optimization indicate a drag reduction of 2.46% for Mach 0.80, 3.37% for Mach 0.85, and 1.95% for Mach 0.88. The results show the convergence of all parameter estimates.
A comparison of stress observations to predictions of driving force models for the South American plate is presented. Conditions for dynamical equilibrium are used to estimate the magnitudes of forces as a function of age, with ridge push and slab pull as active forces, and plate drag and slab resistance as passive forces. The results are consistent with earlier published models, and it is found that the primary balance for an oceanic plate is between slab pull and the resisting drag forces. The model is generalized for the possible forces driving the South American plate, and it is compared with observed stress measurements and kinematics. The plate balance is found to be largely between ridge push and plate drag. The magnitude of a possible trench suction force is estimated using a model with an eddy between the Nazca slab and the overlying South American plate.