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At least 343 records · Page 19

Behaviour of plate elements based on the first-order shear deformation theory

A new analytical technique to assess the performance of shear deformable elements is presented, which makes it possible to determine a priori whether a given element will lock when used to model thin structures. The role that shear constraints play in determining the behavior of thin elements was established by comparing the results of key numerical tests with the predictions of element behavior made by studying the form of the shear constraints. Conclusions regarding locking behavior and the effects of reduced integration in thin shear deformable elements are presented, including the findings (1) that singularity of the shear stiffness matrix is not sufficient to avoid locking; (2) that the effect of mesh refinement on an element that contains spurious constraints is two-fold; and (3) that reduced integration does not remove spurious constraints but rather relaxes them. The results of the study are in agreement with previous studies of Mindlin plate elements in regarding Lagrangian elements as superior to serendipity elements when either full or reduced integration is employed.

Averill, R. C.↗

Structure of turbulence at high shear rate

The structure of homogeneous turbulence subject to high shear rate has been investigated by using three-dimensional, time-dependent numerical simulations of the Navier-Stokes equations. This study indicates that high shear rate alone is sufficient for generation of the streaky structures, and that the presence of a solid boundary is not necessary. Evolution of the statistical correlations is examined to determine the effect of high shear rate on the development of anisotropy in turbulence. It is shown that the streamwise fluctuating motions are enhanced so profoundly that a highly anisotropic turbulence state with a 'one-component' velocity field and 'two-component' vorticity field develops asymptotically as total shear increases. Because of high-shear rate, rapid distortion theory predicts remarkably well the anisotropic behavior of the structural quantities.

Lee, Moon Joo↗

Parametric analysis of swept-wing geometry with sheared wing tips

A computational parameter study is presented of potential reductions in induced drag and increases in lateral-directional stability due to sheared wing tips attached to an untwisted wing of moderate sweep and aspect ratio. Sheared tips are swept and tapered wing-tip devices mounted in the plane of the wing. The induced-drag results are obtained using an inviscid, incompressible surface-panel method that models the nonlinear effects due to the deflected and rolled-up wake behind the lifting surface. The induced-drag results with planar sheared tips are compared to straight-tapered tip extensions and nonplanar winglet geometries. The lateral-directional static-stability characteristics of the wing with sheared tips are estimated using a quasi-vortex-lattice method. For certain combinations of sheared-tip sweep and taper, both the induced efficiency of the wing and the relevant static-stability derivatives are predicted to increase compared to the wing with a straight-tapered tip modification.

Fremaux, C. M.↗

A novel method of testing the shear strength of thick honeycomb composites

Sandwich composites of aluminum and glass/phenolic honeycomb core were tested for shear strength before and after impact damage. The assessment of shear strength was performed in two ways; by four point bend testing of sandwich beams and by a novel double lap shear (DLS) test. This testing technique was developed so smaller specimens could be used, thus making the use of common lab scale fabrication and testing possible. The two techniques yielded similar data. The DLS test gave slightly lower shear strength values of the two methods but were closer to the supplier's values for shear strength.

Hodge, A. J.↗

The shear modulus of the neutron star crust and nonradial oscillations of neutron stars

Shear moduli are calculated for bcc crystalline and rapidly quenched Coulomb solids produced by the Monte Carlo simulation method. The shear moduli are calculated up to the transition temperature and include the effects of thermal fluctuations. An effective shear modulus appropriate to an approximate 'isotropic' body is introduced. It is found that the values of the 'average shear modulus' for the quenched solids remain about the same as those for the corresponding bcc crystals, although the individual shear moduli of the former, disordered solids deviate considerably from the cubic symmetry of the latter. These results are applied to analyses of neutron star oscillations. It is found that the periods of the two interfacial modes are increased by about 10 percent compared to previous results, and that s-mode periods are increased by about 30 percent. The periods of the f and p modes are hardly affected at all. The surface g-mode periods are not greatly affected, while the t-mode periods are increased by 20-25 percent.

Strohmayer, T.↗

Turbulization of shear flows in astrophysics

The problem of instability in shear flows is treated in a number of works which present a global analysis of irrotational (potential) modes in a 2-D compressible shear flow, implying that, in the presence of reflecting boundaries, those modes can increase and that the characteristic time of the increase is several orders as high as the dynamic time in the medium. Due to the slowness of the increase of irrotational modes and to the problematic character of the theory's applicability for thin accretion disks, an attempt was made to develop an alternative theory of turbulization shear flows. It is quite contrary to the above theory. Instead of the global analysis, a local one is made far from the flow boundaries. Instead of irrotational perturbations, vortical ones are examined. Lastly, the medium is considered to be incompressible. The flow in the accretion disk can be modeled by a plane Couette flow, without regard for boundary conditions: it can be modeled by a plane shear flow in infinite incompressible fluid. According to this scenario, there is a critical perturbation level in the free shear flow. If the level of initial perturbations exceeds the critical one, the flow is turbulized.

Chagelishvili, G. D.↗

A comparison of three popular test methods for determining the shear modulus of composite materials

Three popular shear tests (the 10 degree off-axis, the plus or minus 45 degree tensile, and the Iosipescu specimen tested in the modified Wyoming fixture) for shear modulus measurement are evaluated for a graphite-epoxy composite material system. A comparison of the shear stress-strain response for each test method is made using conventional strain gage instrumentation and moire interferometry. The uniformity and purity of the strain fields in the test sections of the specimens are discussed, and the shear responses obtained from each test technique are presented and compared. For accurate measurement of shear modulus, the 90 degree Iosipescu specimen is recommended.

Ho, Henjen↗

Real-time decision aiding - Aircraft guidance for wind shear avoidance

Modern control theory and artificial intelligence technology are applied to the Wind Shear Safety Advisor, a conceptual airborne advisory system to help flight crews avoid or survive encounter with hazardous low-altitude wind shear. Numerical and symbolic processes of the system fuse diverse, time-varying data from ground-based and airborne measurements. Simulated wind-shear-encounter scenarios illustrate the need to consider a variety of factors for optimal decision reliability. The wind-shear-encounter simulations show the Wind Shear Safety Advisor's potential for effectively integrating the available information, highlighting the benefits of the computational techniques employed.

Stratton, D. A.↗

A comparison of three shear test methods for composite materials

A graphite-epoxy composite material system is used to evaluate the performance of three popular shear tests - the 10-deg off-axis, the +/-45-deg tension, and the Iosipescu specimen tested in the modified Wyoming fixture. A comparison of the shear stress-strain response for each test method is made using a conventional strain gage instrument and moire interferometry. The uniformity and purity of the strain fields in the test sections of the specimens are discussed, and the shear responses obtained from each test are presented and compared. It is shown that the shear stress-strain responses obtained by instrumenting only one face of the 90-deg Iosipescu specimen could give erroneous results. The +/-45-deg tensile and 0-deg Iosipescu specimens were not affected by front-to-back face shear strain variations. Correction factors could be applied to bring all responses together, within the limits of the material uniformity, which was itself documented in the moire fringe patterns.

Ho, H.↗

An evaluation of the +/-45 deg tensile test for the determination of the in-plane shear strength of composite materials

The applicability of the +/-45 deg tensile test for the determination of the in-plane shear strength of advanced composite laminates is studied. The assumptions used for the development of the shear strength formulas were examined, and factors such as the specimen geometry and stacking sequence were assessed experimentally. It was found that the strength of symmetric and balanced +/-45 deg laminates depends primarily upon the specimen thickness rather than the specimen width. These findings have important implications for the +/-45 deg tensile test which is recommended by several organizations for the determination of the in-plane shear stress/strain response and the shear strength of continuous fiber reinforced composites. Modifications to the recommended practices for specimen selection and shear strength determination are suggested.

Kellas, S.↗

A comparison of three popular test methods for determining the shear modulus of composite materials

Three popular shear tests - the 10 deg off-axis, the +/- 45 deg tensile and the Iosipescu specimen tested in the modified Wyoming fixture - for shear modulus measurement are evaluated for a graphite-epoxy composite material system. A comparison of the shear stress-strain response for each test method is made using conventional strain gage instrumentation and moire interferometry. The uniformity and purity of the strain fields in the test sections of the specimens are discussed, and the shear responses obtained from each test technique are presented and compared. For accurate measurement of the shear modulus, the 90 deg Iosipescu specimen is recommended.

Ho, H.↗

Air/ground wind shear information integration: Flight test results

An element of the NASA/FAA wind shear program is the integration of ground-based microburst information on the flight deck, to support airborne wind shear alerting and microburst avoidance. NASA conducted a wind shear flight test program in the summer of 1991 during which airborne processing of Terminal Doppler Weather Radar (TDWR) data was used to derive microburst alerts. High level microburst products were extracted from TDWR, transmitted to a NASA Boeing 737 in flight via data link, and processed to estimate the wind shear hazard level (F-factor) that would be experienced by the aircraft in the core of each microburst. The microburst location and F-factor were used to derive a situation display and alerts. The situation display was successfully used to maneuver the aircraft for microburst penetrations, during which in situ 'truth' measurements were made. A total of 19 penetrations were made of TDWR-reported microburst locations, resulting in 18 airborne microburst alerts from the TDWR data and two microburst alerts from the airborne in situ measurements. The primary factors affecting alerting performance were spatial offset of the flight path from the region of strongest shear, differences in TDWR measurement altitude and airplane penetration altitude, and variations in microburst outflow profiles. Predicted and measured F-factors agreed well in penetrations near microburst cores. Although improvements in airborne and ground processing of the TDWR measurement would be required to support an airborne executive-level alerting protocol, the feasibility of airborne utilization of TDWR data link data has been demonstrated.

Hinton, David A.↗

Vibration of compressively loaded shear deformable flat panels exhibiting initial geometric imperfections

Numerical study results are presented which indicate that, in the prebuckling range, the natural frequency predicted by the shear-deformable plate theory is smaller than that associated with its transverse-shear rigid counterpart. The opposite behavior occurs in the postbuckling/postcritical range. With increasing transverse shear flexibility, greater differences between frequencies predicted by shear deformation and infinitely rigid transverse shear theories emerge. The character of in-plane boundary conditions is a determinant of both increasing/decreasing buckling loads and increasing/decreasing vibratory frequencies.

Librescu, L.↗

Experimental investigations of the time and flow-direction responses of shear-stress-sensitive liquid crystal coatings

Time and flow-direction responses of shearstress-sensitive liquid crystal coatings were explored experimentally. For the time-response experiments, coatings were exposed to transient, compressible flows created during the startup and off-design operation of an injector-driven supersonic wind tunnel. Flow transients were visualized with a focusing Schlieren system and recorded with a 1000 frame/sec color video camera. Liquid crystal responses to these changing-shear environments were then recorded with the same video system, documenting color-play response times equal to, or faster than, the time interval between sequential frames (i.e., 1 millisecond). For the flow-direction experiments, a planar test surface was exposed to equal-magnitude and known-direction surface shear stresses generated by both normal and tangential subsonic jet-impingement flows. Under shear, the sense of the angular displacement of the liquid crystal dispersed (reflected) spectrum was found to be a function of the instantaneous direction of the applied shear. This technique thus renders dynamic flow reversals or flow divergences visible over entire test surfaces at image recording rates up to 1 KHz. Extensions of the technique to visualize relatively small changes in surface shear stress direction appear feasible.

Reda, Daniel C.↗

Vortex-induced disturbance field in a compressible shear layer

The disturbance field induced by a small isolated vortex in a compressible shear layer is studied using direct simulation in a convected frame. The convective Mach number, M(sub c), is varied from 0.1 to 1.25. The vorticity perturbation is rapidly sheared by the mean velocity gradient. The resulting disturbance pressure field is observed to decrease both in magnitude and extent with increasing M(sub c), becoming a narrow transverse zone for M(sub c) greater than 0.8. A similar trend is seen for the perturbation velocity magnitude and for the Reynolds shear stress. By varying the vortex size, we verified that the decrease in perturbation levels is due to the mean-flow Mach number and not the Mach number across the vortex. At high M(sub c), the vortex still communicates with the edges of the shear layer, although communication in the mean-flow direction is strongly inhibited. The growth rate of perturbation kinetic energy declines with M(sub c) primarily due to the reduction in shear stress. For M(sub c) greater than or equal to 0.6, the pressure dilatation also contributes to the decrease of growth rates. Calculation of the perturbation field induced by a vortex doublet revealed the same trends as in the single-vortex case, illustrating the insensitivity of the Mach-number effect to the specific form of initial conditions.

Papamoschou, D.↗

Ignition dynamics of a laminar diffusion flame in the field of a vortex embedded in a shear flow

The role of streamwise-spanwise vorticity interactions that occur in turbulent shear flows on flame/vortex interactions is examined by means of asymptotic analysis and numerical simulation in the limit of small Mach number. An idealized model is employed to describe the interaction process. The model consists of a one-step, irreversible Arrhenius reaction between initially unmixed species occupying adjacent half-planes which are then allowed to mix and react in the presence of a streamwise vortex embedded in a shear flow. It is found that the interaction of the streamwise vortex with shear gives rise to small-scale velocity oscillations which increase in magnitude with shear strength. These oscillations give rise to regions of strong temperature gradients via viscous heating, which can lead to multiple ignition points and substantially decrease ignition times. The evolution in time of the temperature and mass-fraction fields is followed, and emphasis is placed on the ignition time and structure as a function of vortex and shear strength.

Macaraeg, Michele G.↗

Nonlinear Instability of a Uni-directional Transversely Sheared Mean Flow

It is well known that the presence of a weak cross flow in an otherwise two-dimensional shear flow results in a spanwise variation in the mean streamwise velocity profile that can lead to an amplification of certain three-dimensional disturbances through a kind of resonant-interaction mechanism (Goldstein and Wundrow 1994). The spatial evolution of an initially linear, finite-growth-rate, instability wave in such a spanwise-varying shear flow is considered, The base flow, which is governed by the three-dimensional parabolized Navier-Stokes equations, is initiated by imposing a spanwise- periodic cross-flow velocity on an otherwise two-dimensional shear flow at some fixed streamwise location. The resulting mean-flow distortion initially grows with increasing streamwise distance, reaches a maximum and eventually decays through the action of viscosity. This decay, which coincides with the viscous spread of of the shear layer, means that the local growth rate of the instability wave will eventually decrease as the wave propagates downstream. Nonlinear effects can then become important within a thin spanwise-modulated critical layer once the local instability-wave amplitude and growth rate become sufficiently large and small, respectively. The amplitude equation that describes this stage of evolution is shown to be a generalization of the one obtained by Goldstein and Choi (1989) who considered the related problem of the interaction of two oblique modes in a two-dimensional shear layer.

Wundrow, David W.↗

Method for determining shear direction using liquid crystal coatings

A method is provided for determining shear direction wherein a beam of white light is directed onto the surface of a liquid crystal coating to cause the white light to be dispersed (reflected) from the surface in a spectrum having bands of different colors in a fixed spatial 2 (angular) sequence. The system is calibrated by locating an observer, e.g., a video and movie camera, such that a particular color band (preferably at or near the center of the reflected spectrum) is observed to thereby provide a reference color band. Because the application of shear causes either clockwise or counterclockwise rotation of the reflected spectrum dependent on the direction of the shear, a determination is then made of the reflected color band observed by the observer when the surface of the liquid crystal is subjected to shear to thereby determine the direction of the shear based on the directional (rotation) relation of the observed color band with respect to the reference color band in the spatial sequence of color bands.

Reda, Daniel C.↗