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At least 361 records · Page 20

Unsteady motion and transition to turbulence in developing curved duct flow

An experiment was performed to further the understanding of developing flows in curved ducts of square cross-section. Unlike most earlier works, attention was paid to investigating the time-dependent character of the motion. Mean and unsteady flow characteristics were determined using flow visualization and a laser-Doppler velocimeter. Only one velocity component, that aligned in the longitudinal (streamwise) coordinate direction, was measured. Notwithstanding, the time histories, autocorrelations and spectra derived reveal a time-periodic motion that becomes turbulent with increasing Reynolds number. The results are of intrinsic fundamental value and also illustrate the danger of imposing symmetry of the conservation equations on numerical solutions of this flow.

Arnal, M.↗

An improved flux-split algorithm applied to hypersonic flows in chemical equilibrium

An explicit, finite-difference, shock-capturing numerical algorithm is presented and applied to hypersonic flows assumed to be in thermochemical equilibrium. Real-gas chemistry is either loosely coupled to the gasdynamics by way of a Gibbs free energy minimization package or fully coupled using species mass conservation equations with finite-rate chemical reactions. A scheme is developed that maintains stability in the explicit, finite-rate formulation while allowing relatively high time steps. The codes use flux vector splitting to difference the inviscid fluxes and employ real-gas corrections to viscosity and thermal conductivity. Numerical results are compared against existing ballistic range and flight data. Flows about complex geometries are also computed.

Palmer, Grant↗

Numerical modeling of chemical vapor deposition (CVD) in a horizontal reactor

In the present numerical prediction of the deposition rate of silicon from silane in a CVD process, the conservation equations for mass, momentum, energy, and chemical species are solved on a staggered grid using the SIMPLE algorithm, while the rate of chemical reactions in the gas phase and on the susceptor surface is obtained from an Arrhenius rate equation. Predicted deposition rates as a function of position along the susceptor with and without the gas phase chemical reaction are compared with the available experimental and numerical data; agreement is excellent except at the leading edge of the susceptor, where the deposition rate is overpredicted.

Sheikholeslami, M. Z.↗

An explicit Runge-Kutta method for turbulent reacting flow calculations

The paper presents a numerical method for the solution of the conservation equations governing steady, reacting, turbulent viscous flow in two-dimensional geometries, in both Cartesian and axisymmetric coordinates. These equations are written in Favre-averaged form and closed with a first order model. A two-equation K-epsilon model, where low Reynolds number and compressibility effects are included, and a modified eddy-break up model are used to simulate fluid mechanics turbulence, chemistry and turbulence-combustion interaction. The solution is obtained by using a pseudo-unsteady method with improved perturbation propagation properties. The equations are discretized in space by using a finite volume formulation. An explicit multi-stage dissipative Runge-Kutta algorithm is then used to advance the flow equations in the pseudo-time. The method is applied to the computation of both diffusion and premixed turbulent reacting flows. The computed temperature distributions compare favorably with experimental data.

Boretti, A. A.↗

The free-wake prediction of rotor hover performance using a vortex embedding method

A method is developed to predict the rotor hover performance. This method solves the compressible mass conservation equation much like current full potential codes and can therefore predict the transonic flows on a rotor. However, the newly developed approach also allows for the free convection of shed vorticity and permits the computation of the entire hover wake system. The method uses a vortex embedding scheme in potential flow and has been implemented in a computer code, HELIX -I. To predict power we implement a simple boundary layer and two different induced-drag integration schemes. The induced-drag is obtained from surface pressure integration and an energy flux integral. Comparisons between computations and experiment show good agreement for the prediction of power polars, surface pressure distribution, and tip vortex geometry.

Ramachandran, K.↗

Modeling of hypersonic reacting flows

The importance of thermochemical nonequilibrium in hypersonic flow is studied as well as the breakdown of a one-temperature kinetic model. Consideration is given to vibration relaxation, reaction rates, and conservation equations for chemical variables. Experimental data on the pitching moment characteristics of the raked-off blunted elliptic cone geometry proposed for use with an aeroassisted orbit transfer vehicle are presented.

Park, Chul↗

Analytical study of He II flow characteristics in the SHOOT transfer line

Pressure and temperature profiles for He II flow in the transfer line for the Superfluid Helium On-Orbit Transfer (SHOOT) experiment are determined using a finite difference method to solve the one-dimensional two-fluid conservation equations. For practical purposes, forced flow of He II with Re greater than 10 to the 6th can be treated as a classical turbulent flow For a maximum SHOOT transfer rate of 800 cu dm/h, the temperature rise between the pump outlet and the receiver tank is about 80 mk with a 7-W heat load imposed on the 4-m-long transfer line. A pump outlet pressure of 160 torr is required to sustain the 800 cu dm/h flow without causing vapor formation within the transfer line.

Lee, J. H.↗

Vapor condensation on liquid surface due to laminar jet-induced mixing: The effects of system parameters

The effects of system parameters on the interface condensation rate in a laminar jet induced mixing tank are numerically studied. The physical system consists of a partially filled cylindrical tank with a slightly subcooled jet discharged from the center of the tank bottom toward the liquid-vapor interface which is at a saturation temperature corresponding to the constant tank pressure. Liquid is also withdrawn from the outer part of the tank bottom to maintain the constant liquid level. The jet velocity is selected to be low enough such that the free surface is approximately flat. The effect of vapor superheat is assumed to be negligible. Therefore, the interface condensation rate can be determined from the resulting temperature field in the liquid region alone. The nondimensional form of the steady state conservation equations are solved by a finite difference method for various system parameters including liquid height to tank diameter ratio, tank to jet diameter ratio, liquid inflow to outflow area ratio, and a heat leak parameter which characterizes the uniform wall heat flux. Detailed analyses based on the numerical solutions are performed and simplified equations are suggested for the prediction of condensation rate.

Lin, Chin-Shun↗

LOX manifold tee analysis

A 4000 Hz vibration phenomena was observed during the test firings of several space shuttle main engines (SSME). Experimental studies of this phenomena suggest that the problem might be associated with vortex shedding from the vanes within the LOX tee manifold. The objective of this study was to determine the unsteady, 3-D flow associated with these vanes by computational methods to identify and better understand the 4000 Hz vibration phenomena. A flow solver, FDNS, for the turbulent conservation equations was validated for predicting high frequency vortex dynamics and used to predict 2-D and 3-D flows within the LOX tee. 4000 Hz excitation oscillations were predicted for some flows and the entire 3-D flow structure was predicted for LOX tee flow. The complexity of the flow was revealed by this analysis, and computational methods for predicting these high frequency oscillations in future engine systems were established.

Chen, Yen-Sen↗

Two-dimensional Euler and Navier-Stokes Time accurate simulations of fan rotor flows

Two numerical methods are presented which describe the unsteady flow field in the blade-to-blade plane of an axial fan rotor. These methods solve the compressible, time-dependent, Euler and the compressible, turbulent, time-dependent, Navier-Stokes conservation equations for mass, momentum, and energy. The Navier-Stokes equations are written in Favre-averaged form and are closed with an approximate two-equation turbulence model with low Reynolds number and compressibility effects included. The unsteady aerodynamic component is obtained by superposing inflow or outflow unsteadiness to the steady conditions through time-dependent boundary conditions. The integration in space is performed by using a finite volume scheme, and the integration in time is performed by using k-stage Runge-Kutta schemes, k = 2,5. The numerical integration algorithm allows the reduction of the computational cost of an unsteady simulation involving high frequency disturbances in both CPU time and memory requirements. Less than 200 sec of CPU time are required to advance the Euler equations in a computational grid made up of about 2000 grid during 10,000 time steps on a CRAY Y-MP computer, with a required memory of less than 0.3 megawords.

Boretti, A. A.↗

Numerical investigation of the thermal stratification in cryogenic tanks subjected to wall heat flux

The flow pattern and thermal stratification of a cryogenic cylindrical tank are numerically studied. The tank sidewall is subjected to either a uniform heat-flux or two discrete levels of uniform heat-flux at the upper and lower halves of the tank wall. The tank bottom is kept at a constant temperature controlled by the heat exchanger of a thermodynamic vent system. The tank pressure is also assumed constant resulting in a constant saturation temperature at the interface which is higher than the tank bottom temperature. The effects of vapor motion and vapor superheat on the mass and heat transfer processes at the interface are assumed negligible such that the calculations of liquid region can be decoupled from the vapor region. Dimensionless steady-state conservation equations are solved by a finite-difference method. The effects of modified Rayleigh number, Prandtl number, tank aspect ratio, wall heat-flux parameter, and wall heat-flux distribution on the liquid velocity and temperature fields are investigated. Also, their effects on the rate of heat transfer through the interface and the tank bottom are examined.

Lin, Chin-Shun↗

Vapor condensation on liquid surface due to laminar jet-induced mixing - The effects of system parameters

The effects of system parameters on the interface condensation rate in a laminar jet induced mixing tank are numerically studied. The physical system consists of a partially filled cylindrical tank with a slightly subcooled jet discharged from the center of the tank bottom toward the liquid-vapor interface which is at a saturation temperature corresponding to the constant tank pressure. Liquid is also withdrawn from the outer part of the tank bottom to maintain the constant liquid level. The jet velocity is selected to be low enough such that the free surface is approximately flat. The effect of vapor superheat is assumed to be negligible. Therefore, the interface condensation rate can be determined from the resulting temperature field in the liquid region alone. The nondimensional form of the steady state conservation equations are solved by a finite difference method for various system parameters including liquid height to tank diameter ratio, tank to jet diameter ratio, liquid inflow to outflow area ratio, and a heat leak parameter which characterizes the uniform wall heat flux. Detailed analyses based on the numerical solutions are performed and simplified equations are suggested for the prediction of condensation rate.

Lin, Chin-Shun↗

Theory of Influence of a Low-Volatility, Soluble Impurity on Spherically-Symmetric Combustion of Fuel Droplets

Analyses are given for the evolution of liquid-phase mass fraction profiles and temperature during combustion of fuel droplets composed of binary miscible mixtures of low-volatility and high-volatility constituents, with small initial mass fractions of the low-volatility material, or slow introduction of low-volatility material into the liquid phase by absorption from the gas phase. The gas phase is assumed to remain quasi-steady and the liquid temperature spatially uniform. The ratio of the liquid-phase diffusion coefficient to the initial burning-rate constant is treated as a small parameter. Asymptotic analyses in this parameter are developed, and the conservation equations are integrated numerically in obtaining descriptions of the combustion history. It is shown that at the surface of the droplet a boundary layer arises in which the mass fraction of the low-volatility component increases with time. The results are used to explain qualitatively some observed conditions of flame contraction and liquid disruption in droplet combustion.

Shaw, B. D.↗

Boundary-layer heat and moisture budgets from FIFE

Aircraft stacks were flown upwind and downwind of the First International Satellite Land Surface Climatology Project Field Experiment site in Kansas to measure the heat and moisture budgets of the boundary layer under fairly clear skies for four daytime periods. The terms in the conservation equation are evaluated. The vertical flux divergence and advection do not account for the difference between surface and low-level aircraft flux estimates. Budget estimates of the surface fluxes using the aircraft data agree well with surface flux measurements, but extrapolation of the aircraft fluxes gives surface fluxes that are too low.

Desjardins, R. L.↗

A hybrid Reynolds averaged/PDF closure model for supersonic turbulent combustion

A hybrid Reynolds averaged/assumed pdf approach has been developed and applied to the study of turbulent combustion in a supersonic mixing layer. This approach is used to address the 'laminar-like' treatment of the thermochemical terms that appear in the conservation equations. Calculations were carried out for two experiments involving H2-air supersonic turbulent mixing. Two different forms of the pdf were implemented. In general, the results show modest improvement from previous calculations. Moreover, the results appear to be somewhat independent of the form of the assumed pdf.

Frankel, Steven H.↗

A diagonal implicit scheme for computing flows with finite-rate chemistry

A new algorithm for solving steady, finite-rate chemistry, flow problems is presented. The new scheme eliminates the expense of inverting large block matrices that arise when species conservation equations are introduced. The source Jacobian matrix is replaced by a diagonal matrix which is tailored to account for the fastest reactions in the chemical system. A point-implicit procedure is discussed and then the algorithm is included into the LU-SGS scheme. Solutions are presented for hypervelocity reentry and Hydrogen-Oxygen combustion. For the LU-SGS scheme a CFL number in excess of 10,000 has been achieved.

Eberhardt, Scott↗

Evolution and interaction of two- and three-dimensional instability waves

The present work is concerned with the nonlinear interactions of high-amplitude two- and three-dimensional instability waves in jets. A jet is excited by multifrequency axisymmetric and helical modes. Formulations are presented here for the nonlinear development of both the amplitudes and phases of the instability waves. The development of these waves are also coupled with the development of the mean flow and the background turbulence. In formulating this model it is assumed that each flow component can be characterized by conservations equations supplemented by closure models.

Mankbadi, R. R.↗

Numerical investigation of the thermal stratification in cryogenic tanks subjected to wall heat flux

The flow pattern and thermal stratification of a cryogenic cylindrical tank are numerically studied. The tank sidewall is subjected to either a uniform heat-flux or two discrete levels of uniform heat-flux at the upper and lower halves of the tank wall. The tank bottom is kept at a constant temperature controlled by the heat exchanger of a thermodynamic vent system. The tank pressure is also assumed constant resulting in a constant saturation temperature at the interface which is higher than the tank bottom temperature. The effects of vapor motion and vapor superheat on the mass and heat transfer processes at the interface are assumed negligible such that the calculations of liquid region can be decoupled from the vapor region. Dimensionless steady-state conservation equations are solved by a finite-difference method. The effects of modified Rayleigh number, Prandtl number, tank aspect ratio, wall heat-flux parameter, and wall heat-flux distribution on the liquid velocity and temperature fields are investigated. Also, their effects on the rate of heat transfer through the interface and the tank bottom are examined.

Lin, Chin-Shun↗