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At least 325 records · Page 18

Unveiling the Significance of Correlations in K-Space and Configuration Space for Drift Wave Turbulence in Tokamaks

Turbulence and transport phenomena play a crucial role in the confinement and stability of tokamak plasmas. Turbulent fluctuations in certain physical quantities, such as density or temperature fluctuations, can have a wide range of spatial scales, and understanding their correlation length is important for predicting and controlling the behavior of the plasma. The correlation length in the radial direction is identified as the critical length in real space. The dynamics in real space are of significant interest because transport in configuration space is primarily focused on them. When investigating transport caused by the E×B drift, the correlation length in real space represents the size of E×B whirls. It was numerically discovered that in drift wave turbulence, this length is inversely proportional to the normalized mode number of the fastest growing mode relative to the drift frequency. Considerable time was required before a proper analytical derivation of this condition was accomplished. Therefore, a connection has been established between phenomena occurring in real space and those occurring in k-space. Although accompanied by a turbulent spectrum in k-space with a substantial width, transport in real space is uniquely determined by the correlation length, allowing for accurate transport calculations through the dynamics of a single mode. Naturally, the dynamics are subject to nonlinear effects, with resonance broadening in frequency being the most significant nonlinear effect. Thus, mode number space is once again involved. Resonance broadening leads to the detuning of waves from particles, permitting a fluid treatment. It should be emphasized that the consideration here involves the total electric field, including the induction part, which becomes particularly important at higher beta plasmas.

Weiland, Jan (ORCID:0000000253496025)↗

Phenomena of Pneumatic Tire Hydroplaning

Recent research on pneumatic tire hydroplaning has been collected and summarized with the aim of describing what is presently known about the phenomena of tire hydroplaning. A physical description of tire hydroplaning is given along with formulae for estimating the ground speed at which it occurs. Eight manifestations of tire hydroplaning which have been experimentally observed are presented and discussed. These manifestations are: detachment of tire footprint, hydrodynamic ground pressure, spin-down of wheel, suppression of tire bow wave, scouring action of escaping fluid in tire-ground footprint region, peaking of fluid displacement drag, loss in braking traction, and loss of tire directional stability. The vehicle, pavement, tire, and fluid parameters of importance to tire hydroplaning are listed and described. Finally, the hazards of tire hydroplaning to ground and air-vehicle-ground performance are listed, and procedures are given to minimize these effects.

HYDROPLANE↗

Survey of computational methods for three-dimensional supersonic inviscid flows with shocks

Hyperbolic systems of partial differential equations governing supersonic inviscid flows are discussed and analyzed. Finite-difference analogues for integrating these systems in the interior of fluid domains are described from two points of view: a differential form approach and an integral form approach. The algorithms presented are analyzed for stability and accuracy. The concept of time splitting is discussed and supplied to these methods to achieve increased numerical efficiency. Techniques for treating conditions at the boundaries of the fluid domain and shock-wave discontinuities at surfaces within the domain are described.

Maccormack, R. W.↗

The kinetic effects of Alfven wave pressure in the solar wind

The results of a kinetic model for the radial evolution of the proton component of the solar wind in the presence of Alfven waves are presented. The calculation is based on general quasi-linear equations developed to describe the temporal and spatial evolution of the ion distribution functions of a multispecies plasma in presence of waves, using a short wavelength expansion. These equations include new wave-particle interaction terms arising from temporal and spatial inhomogeneities in the plasma. Numerical solutions are obtained of these equations specialized to the case of Alfven waves in a spherically symmetric solar wind. The Alfven wave effects on the proton distribution function vary strongly in velocity space. Protons with small transverse velocities are primarily decelerated with respect to the wave rest frame. This deceleration becomes less important with increasing transverse velocity, as wave induced diffusion to larger transverse velocity becomes the dominant effect. The competition of these effects results in interesting distortions of evolving proton distribution functions which give rise the wave acceleration well known from fluid theory.

Goodrich, C. C.↗

Effects of rotation and magnetic field on the onset of convective instability in a liquid layer due to buoyancy and surface tension

Thermocapillary stability characteristics of a horizontal liquid layer heated from below rotating about a vertical axis and subjected to a uniform vertical magnetic field are analyzed under a variety of thermal and electromagnetic boundary conditions. Results based on analytical solutions to the pertinent eigenvalue problems are discussed in the light of earlier work on special cases of the more general problem considered here to show in particular the effects of the heat transfer, nonzero curvature and gravity waves at the two-fluid interface. Although the expected stabilizing action of the Coriolis and Lorentz force fields in this configuration are in evidence the optimal choice of an appropriate range for the relevant parameters is shown to be critically dependent on the interfacial effects mentioned above.

Sarma, G. S. R.↗

An Analytical Comparison of the Acoustic Analogy and Kirchhoff Formulation for Moving Surfaces

The Lighthill acoustic analogy, as embodied in the Ffowcs Williams-Hawkings (FW-H) equation, is compared with the Kirchhoff formulation for moving surfaces. A comparison of the two governing equations reveals that the main Kirchhoff advantage (namely nonlinear flow effects are included in the surface integration) is also available to the FW-H method if the integration surface used in the FW-H equation is not assumed impenetrable. The FW-H equation is analytically superior for aeroacoustics because it is based upon the conservation laws of fluid mechanics rather than the wave equation. This means that the FW-H equation is valid even if the integration surface is in the nonlinear region. This is demonstrated numerically in the paper. The Kirchhoff approach can lead to substantial errors if the integration surface is not positioned in the linear region. These errors may be hard to identify. Finally, new metrics based on the Sobolev norm are introduced which may be used to compare input data for both quadrupole noise calculations and Kirchhoff noise predictions.

Brentner, Kenneth S.↗

Particle Imaging Velocimetry Used in a Transonic Compressor Facility

Particle Imaging Velocimetry (PIV) is an optical technique whereby a pulsed laser sheet is used to illuminate particles entrained in a fluid across an extended planar cross section of a flow field. Electronic recording of the particle positions at two closely timed laser pulses permits the computation of the flow velocity. PIV captures the instantaneous flow field, permitting the study of unsteady flow phenomena. Mean flow statistics can be computed by acquiring several hundred images and averaging the results. The first-ever successful application of PIV to acquire measurements in a high-speed rotating turbomachinery blade row was completed in NASA Lewis Research Center's W-8 Single Stage Axial Compressor Facility. Measurements were acquired in a 20-in.-diameter transonic compressor rotor operating at 17,188 rpm. A custom-designed light-sheet generating probe was used to insert the high-energy, pulsed light-sheet illumination required for recording the unblurred images of particles entrained in the fluid. Measurements of the shock wave formed within the rotor blade passage and of unsteady structures within the blade wakes were acquired. These measurements provide insight into unsteady spatial structures in the flow field which cannot be measured with the more conventional laser anemometry technique. The PIV technique provides both instantaneous and average velocity data in a transonic compressor in an order of magnitude less time than required for other conventional optical diagnostic techniques.

Wernet, Mark P.↗

Analysis and Modeling of a Two-Phase Jet Pump of a Flow Boiling Test Facility for Aerospace Applications

Jet pumps are devices capable of pumping fluids to a higher pressure employing a nozzle/diffuser/mixing chamber combination. A primary fluid is usually allowed to pass through a converging-diverging nozzle where it can accelerate to supersonic speeds at the nozzle exit. The relatively high kinetic energy that the primary fluid possesses at the nozzle exit is accompanied by a low pressure region in order to satisfy Bernoulli's equation. The low pressure region downstream of the nozzle exit permits a secondary fluid to be entrained into and mixed with the primary fluid in a mixing chamber located downstream of the nozzle. Several combinations may exist in terms of the nature of the primary and secondary fluids in so far as whether they are single or two-phase fluids. Depending on this, the jet pump may be classified as gas/gas, gas/liquid, liquid/liquid, two-phase/liquid, or similar combinations. The mixing chamber serves to create a homogeneous single-phase or two-phase mixture which enters a diffuser where the high kinetic energy of the fluid is converted into pressure energy. If the fluid mixture entering the diffuser is in the supersonic flow regime, a normal shock wave usually develops inside the diffuser. If the fluid mixture is one that can easily change phase, a condensation shock would normally develop. Because of the overall rise in pressure in the diffuser as well as the additional rise in pressure across the shock layer, condensation becomes more likely. Associated with the pressure rise across the shock is a velocity reduction from the supersonic to the subsonic range. If the two-phase flow entering the diffuser is predominantly gaseous with liquid droplets suspended in it, it will transform into a predominantly liquid flow containing gaseous bubbles (bubbly flow) somewhere in the diffuser. While past researchers have been able to model the two-phase flow jet pump using the one-dimensional assumption with no shock waves and no phase change, there is no research known to the authors apart from that of Anand (1992) which accounted for condensation shocks. One of the objectives of this research effort is to develop a comprehensive model in which the effects of phase slip and inter-phase heat transfer as well as the wall friction and shock waves are accounted for. While this modeling effort is predominantly analytical in nature and is primarily intended to provide a parametric understanding of the jet pump performance under different operating scenarios, another parallel effort employing a commercial CFD code is also implemented. The latter effort is primarily intended to model an axisymmetric counterpart of the problem in question. The viability of using the CFD code to model a two-phase flow jet pump will be assessed by attempting to recreate some of the existing performance data of similar jet pumps. The code will eventually be used to generate the jet pump performance characteristics of several scenarios involving jet pump geometries as well as flow regimes in order to be able to determine an optimum design which would be suitable for a two-phase flow boiling test facility at NASA-Marshall. Because of the extensive nature of the analytical model developed, the following section will only provide very brief highlights of it, while leaving the details to a more complete report submitted to the NASA colleague. This report will also contain some of the simulation results obtained using the CFD code.

Sherif, S. A.↗

Effect of Baffle on Gravity-Gradient-Excited Slosh Waves and Spacecraft Moment and Angular-Momentum Fluctuations in Microgravity

The dynamical behavior of fluids affected by the asymmetric gravity gradient acceleration has been investigated. In particular, the effects of surface tension on partially filled rotating fluids applicable to a full-scale Gravity Probe-B Spacecraft dewar tank with and without baffles are studied. Results of slosh wave excitation along the liquid-vapor interface induced by gravity gradient acceleration indicate that the gravity gradient acceleration is equivalent to the combined effect of a twisting force and a torsional moment acting on the spacecraft. The results are clearly seen from one-up one-down and one-down one-up oscillations in the cross-section profiles of two bubbles in the vertical (r, z)-plane of the rotating dewar, and from the eccentric contour of the bubble rotating around the axis of the dewar in a horizontal (r, theta)-plane. As the viscous force, between liquid and solid interface, greatly contributes to the damping of slosh wave excitation, a rotating dewar with baffles provides more areas of liquid-solid interface than that of a rotating dewar without baffles. Results show that the damping effect provided by the baffles reduces the amplitude of slosh wave excitation and lowers the degree of asymmetry in liquid-vapor distribution. Fluctuations of angular momentum and fluid moment caused by the slosh wave excited by gravity gradient acceleration with and without baffle boards are also investigated. It is also shown that the damping effect provided by the baffles greatly reduces the amplitudes of angular momentum and fluid moment fluctuations.

Hung, R. J.↗

Validation of finite element analysis strategy to investigate acoustic levitation in a two-axis acoustic levitator

A two-axis acoustic levitator can be used to generate a standing pressure wave capable of levitating solid and liquid particles at appropriate input conditions. This work proposes a simulation framework to investigate the two-axis levitation particle stability using a commercial, computational fluid dynamics software based on the harmonic solution to the acoustic wave equation. The simulation produced predictions of the standing wave that include a strong "+" shaped pattern of nodes and anti-nodes that are aligned with the levitator axes. To verify the simulation, a levitator was built and used to generate the standing wave. The field was probed with a microphone and a motorized-scanning system. After scaling the simulated pressure to the measured pressure, the magnitudes of the sound pressure level at corresponding high-pressure locations were different by no more than 5%. This is the first time a measurement of a two-axis levitator standing pressure wave has been presented and shown to verify simulations. Furthermore, as an additional verification, the authors consulted high speed camera measurements of a reference-levitator transducer, which was found to have a maximum peak-to-peak displacement of 50 +/- 5 mu m. The reference-levitator is known to levitate water at 160 dB. The system for this work was simulated to match the operation of the reference-levitator so that it produced sound pressure levels of 160 dB. This pressure was achieved when the transducer maximum peak-to-peak displacement was 50.8 mu m. The agreement between the two levitators' displacements provides good justification that the modeling approach presented here produces reliable results.

2 axis levitator↗

Some wave-particle effects on large-scale Alfven wave propagation and damping

Phase mixing can reduce greatly the torsional Alfven wave's dissipation length for propagation in complex magnetic field-line geometries. This phase mixing causes significant energy transfers from large to small scales where a conversion from ordered wave energy into a particle kinetic form occurs. This conversion during its initial stages is an entropy conserving process well described by Vlasov theory, Nonlinear stages of wave-particle resonance, particle trapping, and collisional resistivity are often invoked as processes eventually responsible for converting ordered wave motions into random thermal motion. Strictly speaking, this entropy producing phase cannot be described within Vlasov theory, and the large-scale effects of these microscopic events resides at the difficult frontier between generalized fluid and kinetic theories. We attempt to describe certain aspects of such resonances within the framework of fluid theory focusing on torsional Alfven wave energy transport and deposition within flux tubes.

Siregar, E.↗

Effects of viscosity and constraints on the dispersion and dissipation of waves in large blood vessels. II.

Comparison of previously described theoretical predictions with in vivo data from anesthetized dogs. It is shown that the observed attenuation of the pressure and axial waves cannot be accounted for by fluid viscosity alone. For large values of the frequency parameter alpha, the previous analysis is extended to include the effects of viscoelasticity of the vessel wall. The results indicate that the speeds of both types of waves are essentially unaffected by a realistic viscoelasticity model while the attenuation per wavelength is significantly increased and becomes frequency independent. There is fair agreement between theory and experiment.

Jones, E.↗

Passive Scalar Transport by Travelling Wave Fields

We study passive scalar transport by a stochastic travelling wave field in the physically relevant limit were typical fluid velocities, are much smaller than the typical group velocity, of the waves.

Scalar Transport Stochastic wave field↗

Quasi-periodic travelling gravity–capillary waves

We present a numerical study of spatially quasi-periodic travelling waves on the surface of an ideal fluid of infinite depth. This is a generalization of the classic Wilton ripple problem to the case when the ratio of wavenumbers satisfying the dispersion relation is irrational. We propose a conformal mapping formulation of the water wave equations that employs a quasi-periodic variant of the Hilbert transform to compute the normal velocity of the fluid from its velocity potential on the free surface. We develop a Fourier pseudo-spectral discretization of the travelling water wave equations in which one-dimensional quasi-periodic functions are represented by two-dimensional periodic functions on the torus. This leads to an overdetermined nonlinear least-squares problem that we solve using a variant of the Levenberg–Marquardt method. We investigate various properties of quasi-periodic travelling waves, including Fourier resonances, time evolution in conformal space on the torus, asymmetric wave crests, capillary wave patterns that change from one gravity wave trough to the next without repeating and the dependence of wave speed and surface tension on the amplitude parameters that describe a two-parameter family of waves.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

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.↗

Aero-thermal numerical characterization of blunt fin-induced shock wave–boundary layer interaction and its control through leading-edge cooling injection

This study represents a novel evaluation of active flow control to alleviate the aerothermal penalties created by the blunt fin-induced shock wave–boundary layer interaction. The manuscript analyzes the effect of flow injection on a blunt fin-induced shock wave–boundary layer interaction via computational fluid dynamics simulations with various degrees of resolution. The impact on the mean flow topology and wall variables was investigated utilizing Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes simulations. Detached-eddy simulations revealed the low-frequency shock motion, shock wave–boundary layer, and horseshoe vortex interaction. The test article was exposed to two different incoming boundary layer thicknesses; the thicker boundary layer led to the appearance of larger turbulent scales. The Detached-eddy simulations revealed the time history of the shock wave–boundary layer interaction, focusing on the inception and development of the recirculated flow regions. Ultimately, spectral proper orthogonal decomposition was employed to identify the structures associated with the low-frequency shock motion caused by the shock wave–boundary layer interaction.

Lozano, Francisco (ORCID:0000000277871125)↗

Arterial pulse wave pressure transducer

An arterial pulse wave pressure transducer is introduced. The transducer is comprised of a fluid filled cavity having a flexible membrane disposed over the cavity and adapted to be placed on the skin over an artery. An arterial pulse wave creates pressure pulses in the fluid which are transduced, by a pressure sensitive transistor in direct contact with the fluid, into an electric signal. The electrical signal is representative of the pulse waves and can be recorded so as to monitor changes in the elasticity of the arterial walls.

Kim, C.↗