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At least 307 records · Page 17

Numerical study of strong plasma shock waves produced in an electromagnetic shock tube.

A set of two-fluid Navier-Stokes equations with classical physical transport coefficients is used to compute the evolution and structure of collisional plasma shock waves in an electromagnetic shock tube. Shock speeds up to 200 cm/microsec and shocked-plasma temperatures of the order of kilovolts are studied. A strong transverse bias magnetic field is employed, which significantly alters the size and shape of the shock profiles, when compared with the zero bias field case. The wave structure is different from that of a two-fluid gasdynamic shock without transverse magnetic field. Especially significant is the effect of the small ion Larmor radius in reducing the gasdynamic shock thickness by at least an order of magnitude in the transverse shock case, which permits collisional shocks to have thicknesses much smaller than the post-shock mean free path. These collisional shock waves produce very hot ions, the ion temperature increasing with shock speed, although the formation time and distances also increase substantially with shock speed.

Schneider, S. H.↗

Some physical implications of recent solar wind measurements

The physical implications of the existence at about 1 AU of a quiet solar wind particle flux about 90 percent larger than that suggested in the past is investigated within the framework of the two-fluid solar wind model equations. During the spherically symmetric radial expansion of the quiet solar wind, the particle flux is conserved quantity. It is found that a pure collisional two-fluid model provides good particle density and streaming velocity at 1 AU, but predicts too large an electron temperature and too small a proton temperature. When noncollisional contributions to the transport coefficients are incorporated in the model equations, a complete satisfactory agreement with the available observations is obtained. Upper limits to the effective coupling between electrons and protons, as well as to the effective proton thermal conductivity, and both upper and lower limits to the effective electron thermal conductivity in the quiet solar wind, required to provide agreement with observations, are given.

Cuperman, S.↗

Electron avalanche structure determined by random walk theory

A self-consistent avalanche solution which accounts for collective long range Coulomb interactions as well as short range elastic and inelastic collisions between electrons and background atoms is made possible by a random walk technique. Results show that the electric field patterns in the early formation stages of avalanches in helium are close to those obtained from theory based on constant transport coefficients. Regions of maximum and minimum induced electrostatic potential phi are located on the axis of symmetry and within the volume covered by the electron swarm. As formation time continues, however, the region of minimum phi moves to slightly higher radii and the electric field between the extrema becomes somewhat erratic. In the intermediate formation periods the avalanche growth is slightly retarded by the high concentration of ions in the tail which oppose the external electric field. Eventually the formation of ions and electrons in the localized regions of high field strength more than offset this effect causing a very abrupt increase in avalanche growth.

Englert, G. W.↗

Analysis of free turbulent shear flows by numerical methods

Studies are described in which the effort was essentially directed to classes of problems where the phenomenologically interpreted effective transport coefficients could be absorbed by, and subsequently extracted from (by comparison with experimental data), appropriate coordinate transformations. The transformed system of differential equations could then be solved without further specifications or assumptions by numerical integration procedures. An attempt was made to delineate different regimes for which specific eddy viscosity models could be formulated. In particular, this would account for the carryover of turbulence from attached boundary layers, the transitory adjustment, and the asymptotic behavior of initially disturbed mixing regions. Such models were subsequently used in seeking solutions for the prescribed two-dimensional test cases, yielding a better insight into overall aspects of the exchange mechanisms.

Korst, H. H.↗

Experimental and analytical study of one- and two-component flows in spherical chambers

A study was conducted to evaluate techniques for obtaining high inner-gas concentrations in a spherical cavity for application to the open-cycle gaseous-core nuclear rocket. The study included flow visualization tests with water and gases as the working fluids, calculations of the streamline distribution, and calculation and measurement of the inner-gas concentration with air and Freon-11 as the inner-stream gases. The cavity shape, the outer-stream injection conditions, the turbulent transport coefficients, and the buoyancy effects were found to affect the inner-stream flow patterns.

Johnson, B. V.↗

Transport properties of liquid metal hydrogen under high pressures

A theory is developed for the compressibility and transport properties of liquid metallic hydrogen, near to its melting point and under high pressure. The interionic force law is assumed to be of the screened Coulomb type, because hydrogen has no core electrons. The random phase approximation is used to obtain the structure factor S(k) of the system in terms of the Fourier transform of this force law. The long wavelenth limit of the structure factor S(o) is related to the compressibility, which is much lower than that of alkali metals at their melting points. The diffusion constant at the melting point is obtained in terms of the Debye frequency, using a frequency spectrum analogous with the phonon spectrum of a solid. A similar argument is used to obtain the combined shear and bulk viscosities, but these depend also on S(o). The transport coefficients are found to be about the same size as those of alkali metals at their melting points.

Brown, R. C.↗

Simulation of colliding solar wind streams with multifluid codes

The description of a multifluid code with anomalous transport coefficients due to plasma instabilities self consistently followed in space and time is given. As an example, simulations of colliding solar wind streamers are presented. The results compare favorably with the observations.

Papadopoulos, K.↗

Random walk theory applied to electron avalanche formation

Use of microscopic detail in random walk theory describing the initial formations of a large number of avalanches shows that concomitant electron transport coefficients quickly relax to equilibrium values. This enables the use of random walks having step sizes and probabilities based only on local electric field strengths and densities. A self-consistent avalanche solution which accounts for collective long range Coulomb interactions as well as short range elastic and inelastic collisions between electrons and background atoms is demonstrated for helium. Avalanche growth retardation followed by an abrupt growth augmentation as time proceeds is shown to be associated with the formation of regions of charge density extrema near the avalanche axis and within the axial distance covered by the electron swarm.

Englert, G. W.↗

Nonequilibrium boundary layer at a stagnation point for a hydrogen-helium stream over ablating graphite

The nonequilibrium axisymmetric stagnation point boundary layer over an ablating graphite surface is considered. The external stream is a high temperature mixture of hydrogen and helium. Variable thermodynamic and transport properties are assumed. Lennard-Jones potential model is used to calculate the transport coefficients of each species. Although the mixture rules for viscosity of the gas mixture are used, the weighting functions are more sophisticated than those commonly employed. For the conductivity of the mixture, generalized Wassiljewa coefficients are used. Seven species with 28 dissociation/recombination reactions are considered. Hansen's model for the dissociation rate constants is employed. The recombination rate constants are obtained by invoking detailed balance principles assisted by the JANAF thermodynamic data and the Hansen-Pearson thermodynamic data for C3.

Liu, T.-M.↗

Computer program for calculating thermodynamic and transport properties of fluids

Computer code has been developed to provide thermodynamic and transport properties of liquid argon, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, fluorine, helium, methane, neon, nitrogen, oxygen, and parahydrogen. Equation of state and transport coefficients are updated and other fluids added as new material becomes available.

Hendricks, R. C.↗

The absorption of trapped particles by the inner satellites of Jupiter and the radial diffusion coefficient of particle transport

The process of trapped particle absorption by the inner Jovian satellites is considered in detail taking into account both the particle and satellite motions in a magnetic dipole field which is displaced from the center of the planet and tilted with respect to the planetary rotation axis. An expression is derived for computing the sweeping time at a given satellite, defined as the time required for the satellite to sweep up a given fraction of the trapped particles within its sweeping region. By making use of the sweeping time and the radial diffusion equation of particle transport approximate expressions for the diffusion coefficient are derived. Measurements obtained by Pioneer 10 are then used to obtain estimates of the diffusion coefficient at the orbits of Io and Europa. We find that the diffusion coefficient is a function of energy and magnetic latitude for electrons in the energy range 0.7-14 MeV.

Mogro-Campero, A.↗

Some effects of combustion on turbulent mixing

Ceramic-heated tunnel experiments were performed to study mixing and combustion of near-sonic central hydrogen jets and coaxial supersonic air or nitrogen streams. Results of concentration measurements in these flows are presented. Larger concentrations of hydrogen were observed near the axis in the presence of combustion. Results of flowfield calculations and of low-speed free jet experiments reported by Chigier and Strokin (1974) suggest that this behavior is caused primarily by lower density in the burning case producing lower turbulent mass transport coefficients.

Bangert, L. H.↗

The distribution of ammonia and its photochemical products on Jupiter

Altitude profiles of ammonia and its photochemical products are generated in the light of measurements of the Jovian temperature structure, eddy transport coefficient, improved chemical scheme, and rate constants. Realistic limits are placed on the concentration of hydrazine which may participate in the recycling of ammonia on Jupiter. The maximum hydrazine-ice production rate is calculated to be about 1.3 mg/sq m per Jovian day. The distribution of nitrogen gas is presented with and without supersaturation of hydrazine. The nitrogen mixing ratio near the ammonia cloud top is estimated to be in the range between 10 to the -9th and 10 to the -11th power. An appreciable latitudinal variation in the ammonia concentration is expected.

Atreya, S. K.↗

The phase diagram and transport properties for hydrogen-helium fluid planets

The properties of pure hydrogen and helium are examined, taking into account metallic hydrogen, molecular hydrogen, and the molecular-metallic transition. Metallic hydrogen-helium mixtures are considered along with molecular hydrogen-helium mixtures, the total phase diagram, and minor constituents, including deuterium. The transport properties of the metallic and the molecular phase are also discussed, giving attention to electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, viscosity, self-diffusion, interdiffusion, radiative opacity, and second-order transport coefficients.

Stevenson, D. J.↗

Closure of a kinetic model of plasma in strong turbulence by relaxation

A Fokker-Planck kinetic equation for a turbulent plasma is derived by a repeated cascade decomposition. Calculation of the propagator and the kinetic equation determine the transport coefficients (diffusivity and turbulent viscosity) by means of a closure based on a relaxation procedure governing the approach to equilibrium. The k to the minus third power spectral law is obtained, which governs the coupling between the velocity and the electrostatic field fluctuations.

Tchen, C. M.↗

Ionospheric wave spectrum measurements

The local spectrum S(k, omega) of either potential or electron-density fluctuations can be used to determine macroscopic-plasma characteristics such as the local density and temperature, transport coefficients, and drift current. This local spectrum can be determined by measuring the cross-power spectrum. The paper examines the practicality of using the cross-power spectrum analyzer on the Space Shuttle to measure ionospheric parameters. Particular attention is given to investigating the integration time required to measure the cross-power spectral density to a desired accuracy.

Harker, K. J.↗

An approximate factorization solution of the Navier-Stokes equations for transonic flow using body-fitted coordinates with application to NACA 64A010 airfoils

The implementation of the approximate factorization algorithm and its ability to efficiently and accurately describe transonic flow about an NACA 64A010 airfoil section is examined. The approximate factorization algorithm is developed from the nondimensional, conservative, vectorized Navier-Stokes equations expressed in curvilinear coordinates. Equations of state and transport coefficient relations appropriate to atmospheric air are appended to close the system of partial differential equations. An algebraic turbulence model is also incorporated into the equation set. This algorithm was verified by investigating the flow about an NACA 64A010 airfoil at 0, 2, and 3.5 deg angle of attack for free-stream conditions of 2,000,000 Reynolds number and 0.8 Mach number. Overall results were in good qualitative agreement with wind tunnel data sets. However, while nondimensional times of six were attained, numerical difficulties prevented any case from reaching a true steady state.

Copper, G. K.↗