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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 271 records · Page 15
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1989

Finite element analysis in fluids; Proceedings of the Seventh International Conference on Finite Element Methods in Flow Problems, University of Alabama, Huntsville, Apr. 3-7, 1989

Recent advances in computational fluid dynamics are examined in reviews and reports, with an emphasis on finite-element methods. Sections are devoted to adaptive meshes, atmospheric dynamics, combustion, compressible flows, control-volume finite elements, crystal growth, domain decomposition, EM-field problems, FDM/FEM, and fluid-structure interactions. Consideration is given to free-boundary problems with heat transfer, free surface flow, geophysical flow problems, heat and mass transfer, high-speed flow, incompressible flow, inverse design methods, MHD problems, the mathematics of finite elements, and mesh generation. Also discussed are mixed finite elements, multigrid methods, non-Newtonian fluids, numerical dissipation, parallel vector processing, reservoir simulation, seepage, shallow-water problems, spectral methods, supercomputer architectures, three-dimensional problems, and turbulent flows.

Chung, T. J.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Reduced order models for nonlinear aerodynamics

Reduced order models are needed for reliable, efficient and accurate prediction of aerodynamic forces to analyze fluid structure interaction problems in turbomachinery, including propfans. Here, a finite difference, time marching Navier-Stokes code is validated for unsteady airfoil motion by comparing results with those from classical potential flow. The Navier-Stokes code is then analyzed for calculation of primitive and exact estimates of eigenvalues and eigenvectors associated with fluid-airfoil interaction. A variational formulation for the Euler equations and Navier-Stokes equations will be the basis for reduction of order through an eigenvector transformation.

Mahajan, Aparajit J.↗
DOE OSTI2016

Fractional modeling of viscoelasticity in 3D cerebral arteries and aneurysms

We develop efficient numerical methods for fractional order PDEs, and employ them to investigate viscoelastic constitutive laws for arterial wall mechanics. Recent simulations using one-dimensional models [1] have indicated that fractional order models may offer a more powerful alternative for modeling the arterial wall response, exhibiting reduced sensitivity to parametric uncertainties compared with the integer-calculus-based models. Here, we study three-dimensional (3D) fractional PDEs that naturally model the continuous relaxation properties of soft tissue, and for the first time employ them to simulate flow structure interactions for patient-specific brain aneurysms. To deal with the high memory requirements and in order to accelerate the numerical evaluation of hereditary integrals, we employ a fast convolution method [2] that reduces the memory cost to O(log(N)) and the computational complexity to O(N log(N)). Furthermore, we combine the fast convolution with high-order backward differentiation to achieve third-order time integration accuracy. We confirm that in 3D viscoelastic simulations, the integer order models strongly depends on the relaxation parameters, while the fractional order models are less sensitive. As an application to long-time simulations in complex geometries, we also apply the method to modeling fluid-structure interaction of a 3D patient-specific compliant cerebral artery with an aneurysm. Taken together, our findings demonstrate that fractional calculus can be employed effectively in modeling complex behavior of materials in realistic 3D time-dependent problems if properly designed efficient algorithms are employed to overcome the extra memory requirements and computational complexity associated with the non-local character of fractional derivatives.

Computer Science↗
NASA NTRS2006

Testing of Flexible Ballutes in Hypersonic Wind Tunnels for Planetary Aerocapture

Studies were conducted for the In-Space Propulsion (ISP) Ultralightweight Ballute Technology Development Program to increase the technical readiness level of inflatable decelerator systems for planetary aerocapture. The present experimental study was conducted to develop the capability for testing lightweight, flexible materials in hypersonic facilities. The primary objectives were to evaluate advanced polymer film materials in a high-temperature, high-speed flow environment and provide experimental data for comparisons with fluid-structure interaction modeling tools. Experimental testing was conducted in the Langley Aerothermodynamics Laboratory 20-Inch Hypersonic CF4 and 31-Inch Mach 10 Air blowdown wind tunnels. Quantitative flexure measurements were made for 60 degree half angle afterbody-attached ballutes, in which polyimide films (1-mil and 3-mil thick) were clamped between a 1/2-inch diameter disk and a base ring (4-inch and 6-inch diameters). Deflection measurements were made using a parallel light silhouette of the film surface through an existing schlieren optical system. The purpose of this paper is to discuss these results as well as free-flying testing techniques being developed for both an afterbody-attached and trailing toroidal ballute configuration to determine dynamic fluid-structural stability. Methods for measuring polymer film temperature were also explored using both temperature sensitive paints (for up to 370 C) and laser-etched thin-film gages.

Buck, Gregory M.↗
NASA NTRS2007

Testing of Flexible Ballutes in Hypersonic Wind Tunnels for Planetary Aerocapture

Studies were conducted for the In-Space Propulsion (ISP) Ultralightweight Ballute Technology Development Program to increase the technical readiness level of inflatable decelerator systems for planetary aerocapture. The present experimental study was conducted to develop the capability for testing lightweight, flexible materials in hypersonic facilities. The primary objectives were to evaluate advanced polymer film materials in a high-temperature, high-speed flow environment and provide experimental data for comparisons with fluid-structure interaction modeling tools. Experimental testing was conducted in the Langley Aerothermodynamics Laboratory 20-Inch Hypersonic CF4 and 31-Inch Mach 10 Air blowdown wind tunnels. Quantitative flexure measurements were made for 60 degree half angle afterbody-attached ballutes, in which polyimide films (1-mil and 3- mil thick) were clamped between a 1/2-inch diameter disk and a base ring (4-inch and 6-inch diameters). Deflection measurements were made using a parallel light silhouette of the film surface through an existing schlieren optical system. The purpose of this paper is to discuss these results as well as free-flying testing techniques being developed for both an afterbody-attached and trailing toroidal ballute configuration to determine dynamic fluid-structural stability. Methods for measuring polymer film temperature were also explored using both temperature sensitive paints (for up to 370 C) and laser-etched thin-film gages.

Buck, Gregory M.↗
DOE OSTI2022

High Performance Adaptive Physics Refinement to Enable Large-Scale Tracking of Cancer Cell Trajectory

The ability to track simulated cancer cells through the circulatory system, important for developing a mechanistic understanding of metastatic spread, pushes the limits of today's supercomputers by requiring the simulation of large fluid volumes at cellular-scale resolution. To overcome this challenge, we introduce a new adaptive physics refinement (APR) method that captures cellular-scale interaction across large domains and leverages a hybrid CPU-GPU approach to maximize performance. Through algorithmic advances that integrate multi-physics and multi-resolution models, we establish a finely resolved window with explicitly modeled cells coupled to a coarsely resolved bulk fluid domain. In this work we present multiple validations of the APR framework by comparing against fully resolved fluid-structure interaction methods and employ techniques, such as latency hiding and maximizing memory bandwidth, to effectively utilize heterogeneous node architectures. Collectively, these computational developments and performance optimizations provide a robust and scalable framework to enable system-level simulations of cancer cell transport.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2006

Aerothermodynamic Analyses of Towed Ballutes

A ballute (balloon-parachute) is an inflatable, aerodynamic drag device for application to planetary entry vehicles. Two challenging aspects of aerothermal simulation of towed ballutes are considered. The first challenge, simulation of a complete system including inflatable tethers and a trailing toroidal ballute, is addressed using the unstructured-grid, Navier-Stokes solver FUN3D. Auxiliary simulations of a semi-infinite cylinder using the rarefied flow, Direct Simulation Monte Carlo solver, DSV2, provide additional insight into limiting behavior of the aerothermal environment around tethers directly exposed to the free stream. Simulations reveal pressures higher than stagnation and corresponding large heating rates on the tether as it emerges from the spacecraft base flow and passes through the spacecraft bow shock. The footprint of the tether shock on the toroidal ballute is also subject to heating amplification. Design options to accommodate or reduce these environments are discussed. The second challenge addresses time-accurate simulation to detect the onset of unsteady flow interactions as a function of geometry and Reynolds number. Video of unsteady interactions measured in the Langley Aerothermodynamic Laboratory 20-Inch Mach 6 Air Tunnel and CFD simulations using the structured grid, Navier-Stokes solver LAURA are compared for flow over a rigid spacecraft-sting-toroid system. The experimental data provides qualitative information on the amplitude and onset of unsteady motion which is captured in the numerical simulations. The presence of severe unsteady fluid - structure interactions is undesirable and numerical simulation must be able to predict the onset of such motion.

Gnoffo, Peter A.↗
DOE OSTI2020

Reinforcement learning for bluff body active flow control in experiments and simulations

Significance Reinforcement learning (RL) has been applied effectively in games and robotic manipulation. We demonstrate the effectiveness of RL in experimental fluid mechanics by applying it to reduce the drag of circular cylinders in turbulent flow, a canonical fluid–structure interaction problem. Although physics agnostic, RL managed to reduce the drag by 30 % or reach another specified optimum point very quickly. Following this discovery, we used high-fidelity simulations to probe the underlying physical mechanisms so that the discovered control techniques can be generalized to other similar flow problems. More broadly, RL-guided active control can lead to efficient exploration of additional flow-control strategies in experimental fluid mechanics, potentially paving the way for accelerating scientific discovery and different designs in flow-related engineering problems.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2022

Surface fluctuating hydrodynamics methods for the drift-diffusion dynamics of particles and microstructures within curved fluid interfaces

Here we introduce fluctuating hydrodynamics approaches on surfaces for capturing the drift-diffusion dynamics of particles and microstructures immersed within curved fluid interfaces of spherical shape. We take into account the interfacial hydrodynamic coupling, traction coupling with the surrounding bulk fluid, and thermal fluctuations. For fluid-structure interactions, we introduce Immersed Boundary Methods (IBM) and related Stochastic Eulerian-Lagrangian Methods (SELM) for curved surfaces. We use these approaches to investigate the statistics of surface fluctuating hydrodynamics and microstructures. For velocity autocorrelations, we find characteristic power-law scalings $τ^{-1}, τ^{-2}$, and plateaus can emerge. This depends on the physical regime associated with the geometry, surface viscosity, and bulk viscosity. This differs from the characteristic $τ^{-3/2}$ scaling for bulk three dimensional fluids. We develop theory explaining these observed power-laws associated with time-scales for dissipation within the fluid interface and coupling to the surrounding fluid. We then use our introduced methods to investigate a few example systems and roles of hydrodynamic coupling and thermal fluctuations including for the kinetics of passive particles and active microswimmers in curved fluid interfaces.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2017

Evaluation of Thin Plate Hydrodynamic Stability through a Combined Numerical Modeling and Experimental Effort

An experimental and computational effort was undertaken in order to evaluate the capability of the fluid-structure interaction (FSI) simulation tools to describe the deflection of a Missouri University Research Reactor (MURR) fuel element plate redesigned for conversion to lowenriched uranium (LEU) fuel due to hydrodynamic forces. Experiments involving both flat plates and curved plates were conducted in a water flow test loop located at the University of Missouri (MU), at conditions and geometries that can be related to the MURR LEU fuel element. A wider channel gap on one side of the test plate, and a narrower on the other represent the differences that could be encountered in a MURR element due to allowed fabrication variability. The difference in the channel gaps leads to a pressure differential across the plate, leading to plate deflection. The induced plate deflection the pressure difference induces in the plate was measured at specified locations using a laser measurement technique. High fidelity 3-D simulations of the experiments were performed at MU using the computational fluid dynamics code STAR-CCM+ coupled with the structural mechanics code ABAQUS. Independent simulations of the experiments were performed at Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) using the STAR-CCM+ code and its built-in structural mechanics solver. The simulation results obtained at MU and ANL were compared with the corresponding measured plate deflections.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
NASA NTRS2019

Aeroelastic Indicial Response Reduced-Order Modeling for Flexible Flight Vehicles

A reduced-order modeling method capable of providing computationally efficient predictions of the nonlinear, unsteady aerodynamics encountered by flexible flight vehicles under- going forced oscillations is presented. Models are developed using indicial response theory, which characterizes a vehicle’s dynamics through identification of time-accurate aerodynamic responses due to step changes in the vehicle-state parameters, e.g., angle-of-attack, pitch rate. A coupled computational fluid dynamics aeroelastic analysis is proposed for identifying step (indicial) responses of flexible vehicles. In this approach, aeroelastic indicial responses are simulated via prescribed rigid body motions, while fluid-structure interactions are captured at the subiterative level through coupling to a linear modal structural solver. A nonlinear extension of indicial response theory is applied through time-dependent linear interpolation of a database of locally linear aeroelastic step responses. Reduced-order models are then created using the mathematical principle of convolution applied to the interpolated aeroelastic indicial responses to predict the time-dependent aerodynamic response of a flexible vehicle to any arbitrary prescribed flight maneuver. The NASA FUN3D computational fluid dynamics solver is utilized for simulating full-order trajectories and indicial response functions. Aerodynamic predictions were generated for the X-56A aircraft undergoing a series of harmonic forced oscillations. The s are shown to provide a practical option for evaluating the unsteady aerodynamics of flexible vehicles using high-fidelity simulations.

Hiller, Brett↗
DOE OSTI2023

Enhancing Adaptive Physics Refinement Simulations Through the Addition of Realistic Red Blood Cell Counts

Simulations of cancer cell transport require accurately modeling mm-scale and longer trajectories through a circulatory system containing trillions of deformable red blood cells, whose intercellular interactions require submicron fidelity. Using a hybrid CPU-GPU approach, we extend the advanced physics refinement (APR) method to couple a finely-resolved region of explicitly-modeled red blood cells to a coarsely-resolved bulk fluid domain. We further develop algorithms that: capture the dynamics at the interface of differing viscosities, maintain hematocrit within the cell-filled volume, and move the finely-resolved region and encapsulated cells while tracking an individual cancer cell. Comparison to a fully-resolved fluid-structure interaction model is presented for verification. Finally, we use the advanced APR method to simulate cancer cell transport over a mm-scale distance while maintaining a local region of RBCs, using a fraction of the computational power required to run a fully-resolved model.

Roychowdhury, Sayan↗
NASA NTRS1993

Compressibility effects on rotor forces in the leakage path between a shrouded pump impeller and its housing

A modified approach to Childs' previous work on fluid-structure interaction forces in the leakage path between an impeller shroud and its housing is presented in this paper. Three governing equations consisting of continuity, path-momentum, and circumferential-momentum equations were developed to describe the leakage path inside a pump impeller. Radial displacement perturbations were used to solve for radial and circumferential force coefficients. In addition, impeller-discharge pressure disturbances were used to obtain pressure oscillation responses due to precessing impeller pressure wave pattern. Childs' model was modified from an incompressible model to a compressible barotropic-fluid model (the density of the working fluid is a function of the pressure and a constant temperature only). Results obtained from this model yielded interaction forces for radial and circumferential force coefficients. Radial and circumferential forces define reaction forces within the impeller leakage path. An acoustic model for the same leakage path was also developed. The convective, Coriolis, and centrifugal acceleration terms are removed from the compressible model to obtain the acoustics model. A solution due to impeller discharge pressure disturbances model was also developed for the compressible and acoustics models. The results from these modifications are used to determine what effects additional perturbation terms in the compressible model have on the acoustic model. The results show that the additional fluid mechanics terms in the compressible model cause resonances (peaks) in the force coefficient response curves. However, these peaks only occurred at high values of inlet circumferential velocity ratios greater than 0.7. The peak pressure oscillation was shown to occur at the wearing ring seal. Introduction of impeller discharge disturbances with n = 11 diametral nodes showed that maximum peak pressure oscillations occurred at nondimensional precession frequencies of f = 6.4 and f = 7.8 for this particular pump. Bolleter's results suggest that for peak pressure oscillations to occur at the wearing ring seal, the nondimensional excitation frequency should be on the order of f = 2.182 for n = 11. The resonances found in this research do not match the excitation frequencies predicted by Bolleter. At the predicted peak excitation frequencies given by Bolleter, the compressible model shows an attenuation of the pressure oscillations at the seal exit. The compressibility of the fluid does not have a significant influence on the model at low values of nondimensional excitation frequency. At high values of nondimensional frequency, the effects of compressibility become more significant. For the acoustic analysis, the convective, Coriolis, and centrifugal acceleration terms do affect the results to a limited extent for precession excitation and to a large extent for a pressure excitation when the fluid operates at relatively high Mach numbers.

Cao, Nhai The↗
NASA NTRS1993

The middeck 0-gravity dynamics experiment

The Middeck 0-Gravity Dynamics Experiment (MODE), flown onboard the Shuttle STS-48 Mission, consists of three major elements: the Experiment Support Module, a dynamics test bed providing computer experiment control, analog signal conditioning, power conditioning, an operator interface consisting of a keypad and display, experiment electrical and thermal control, and archival data storage: the Fluid Test Article assembly, used to investigate the dynamics of fluid-structure interaction in 0-gravity; and the Structural Test Article for investigating the open-loop dynamics of structures in 0-gravity. Deployable, erectable, and rotary modules were assembled to form three one- and two-dimensional structures, in which variations in bracing wire and rotary joint preload could be introduced. Change in linear modal parameters as well as the change in nonlinear nature of the response is examined. Trends in modal parameters are presented as a function of force amplitude, joint preload, and ambient gravity. An experimental study of the lateral slosh behavior of contained fluids is also presented. A comparison of the measured earth and space results identifies and highlights the effects of gravity on the linear and nonlinear slosh behavior of these fluids.

Crawley, Edward F.↗
DOE OSTI2021

Modelling a Heaving Point-Absorber with a Closed-Loop Control System Using the DualSPHysics Code

The present work addresses the need for an efficient, versatile, accurate and open-source numerical tool to be used during the design stage of wave energy converters (WECs). The device considered here is the heaving point-absorber developed and tested by Sandia National Laboratories. The smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) method, as implemented in DualSPHysics, is proposed since its meshless approach presents some important advantages when simulating floating devices. The dynamics of the power take-off system are also modelled by coupling DualSPHysics with the multi-physics library Project Chrono. A satisfactory matching between experimental and numerical results is obtained for: (i) the heave response of the device when forced via its actuator; (ii) the vertical forces acting on the fixed device under regular waves and; (iii) the heave response of the WEC under the action of both regular waves and the actuator force. This proves the ability of the numerical approach proposed to simulate accurately the fluid–structure interaction along with the WEC’s closed-loop control system. In addition, radiation models built from the experimental and WAMIT results are compared with DualSPHysics by plotting the intrinsic impedance in the frequency domain, showing that the SPH method can be also employed for system identification.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2023

Influence of Blood Rheology and Turbulence Models in the Numerical Simulation of Aneurysms

An aneurysm is a vascular malformation that can be classified according to its location (cerebral, aortic) or shape (saccular, fusiform, and mycotic). Recently, the study of blood flow interaction with aneurysms has gained attention from physicians and engineers. Shear stresses, oscillatory shear index (OSI), gradient oscillatory number (GON), and residence time have been used as variables to describe the hemodynamics as well as the origin and evolution of aneurysms. However, the causes and hemodynamic conditions that promote their growth are still under debate. The present work presents numerical simulations of three types of aneurysms: two aortic and one cerebral. Simulation results showed that the blood rheology is not relevant for aortic aneurysms. However, for the cerebral aneurysm case, blood rheology could play a relevant role in the hemodynamics. The evaluated turbulence models showed equivalent results in both cases. Lastly, a simulation considering the fluid–structure interaction (FSI) showed that this phenomenon is the dominant factor for aneurysm simulation.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2011

Surface Instability of Liquid Propellant under Vertical Oscillatory Forcing

Fluid motion in a fuel tank produced during thrust oscillations can circulate sub-cooled hydrogen near the liquid-vapor interface resulting in increased condensation and ullage pressure collapse. The first objective of this study is to validate the capabilities of a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) tool, CFD-ACE+, in modeling the fundamental interface transition physics occurring at the propellant surface. The second objective is to use the tool to assess the effects of thrust oscillations on surface dynamics. Our technical approach is to first verify the CFD code against known theoretical solutions, and then validate against existing experiments for small scale tanks and a range of transition regimes. A 2D axisymmetric, multi-phase model of gases, liquids, and solids is used to verify that CFD-ACE+ is capable of modeling fluid-structure interaction and system resonance in a typical thrust oscillation environment. Then, the 3D mode is studied with an assumed oscillatory body force to simulate the thrust oscillating effect. The study showed that CFD modeling can capture all of the transition physics from solid body motion to standing surface wave and to droplet ejection from liquid-gas interface. Unlike the analytical solutions established during the 1960 s, CFD modeling is not limited to the small amplitude regime. It can extend solutions to the nonlinear regime to determine the amplitude of surface waves after the onset of instability. The present simulation also demonstrated consistent trends from numerical experiments through variation of physical properties from low viscous fluid to high viscous fluids, and through variation of geometry and input forcing functions. A comparison of surface wave patterns under various forcing frequencies and amplitudes showed good agreement with experimental observations. It is concluded that thrust oscillations can cause droplet formation at the interface, which results in increased surface area and enhanced heat transfer between the liquid and gas phases as the ejected droplets travel well into the warmer gas region.

Yang, H. Q.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Phase 2: HGM air flow tests in support of HEX vane investigation

Following the start of SSME certification testing for the Pratt and Whitney Alternate Turbopump Development (ATD) High Pressure Oxidizer Turbopump (HPOTP), cracking of the leading edge of the inner HEX vane was experienced. The HEX vane, at the inlet of the oxidizer bowl in the Hot Gas Manifold (HGM), accepts the HPOTP turbine discharge flow and turns it toward the Gaseous Oxidizer Heat Exchanger (GOX HEX) coil. The cracking consistently initiated over a specific circumferential region of the hex vane, with other circumferential locations appearing with increased run time. Since cracking had not to date been seen with the baseline HPOTP, a fluid-structural interaction involving the ATD HPOTP turbine exit flowfield and the HEX inner vane was suspected. As part of NASA contract NAS8-36801, Pratt and Whitney conducted air flow tests of the ATD HPOTP turbine turnaround duct flowpath in the MSFC Phase 2 HGM air flow model. These tests included HEX vane strain gages and additional fluctuating pressure gages in the turnaround duct and HEX vane flowpath area. Three-dimensional flow probe measurements at two stations downstream of the turbine simulator exit plane were also made. Modifications to the HPOTP turbine simulator investigated the effects on turbine exit flow profile and velocity components, with the objective of reproducing flow conditions calculated for the actual ATD HPOTP hardware. Testing was done at the MSFC SSME Dynamic Fluid Air Flow (Dual-Leg) Facility, at air supply pressures between 50 and 250 psia. Combinations of turbine exit Mach number and pressure level were run to investigate the effect of flow regime. Information presented includes: (1) Descriptions of turbine simulator modifications to produce the desired flow environment; (2) Types and locations for instrumentation added to the flow model for improved diagnostic capability; (3) Evaluation of the effect of changes to the turbine simulator flowpath on the turbine exit flow environment; and (4) Comparison of the experimental turbine exit flow environment to the environment calculated for the ATD HPOTP.

Cox, G. B., Jr.↗