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At least 361 records · Page 20
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1990

Domain decomposition methods in aerodynamics

Compressible Euler equations are solved for two-dimensional problems by a preconditioned conjugate gradient-like technique. An approximate Riemann solver is used to compute the numerical fluxes to second order accuracy in space. Two ways to achieve parallelism are tested, one which makes use of parallelism inherent in triangular solves and the other which employs domain decomposition techniques. The vectorization/parallelism in triangular solves is realized by the use of a recording technique called wavefront ordering. This process involves the interpretation of the triangular matrix as a directed graph and the analysis of the data dependencies. It is noted that the factorization can also be done in parallel with the wave front ordering. The performances of two ways of partitioning the domain, strips and slabs, are compared. Results on Cray YMP are reported for an inviscid transonic test case. The performances of linear algebra kernels are also reported.

Venkatakrishnan, V.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Efficient ICCG on a shared memory multiprocessor

Different approaches are discussed for exploiting parallelism in the ICCG (Incomplete Cholesky Conjugate Gradient) method for solving large sparse symmetric positive definite systems of equations on a shared memory parallel computer. Techniques for efficiently solving triangular systems and computing sparse matrix-vector products are explored. Three methods for scheduling the tasks in solving triangular systems are implemented on the Sequent Balance 21000. Sample problems that are representative of a large class of problems solved using iterative methods are used. We show that a static analysis to determine data dependences in the triangular solve can greatly improve its parallel efficiency. We also show that ignoring symmetry and storing the whole matrix can reduce solution time substantially.

Hammond, Steven W.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Analysis of shell-type structures subjected to time-dependent mechanical and thermal loading

This report deals with the development of a general mathematical model and solution methodology for analyzing the structural response of thin, metallic shell-like structures under dynamic and/or static thermomechanical loads. In the mathematical model, geometric as well as the material-type of nonlinearities are considered. Traditional as well as novel approaches are reported and detailed applications are presented in the appendices. The emphasis for the mathematical model, the related solution schemes, and the applications, is on thermal viscoelastic and viscoplastic phenomena, which can predict creep and ratchetting.

Simitses, G. J.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Formulation of the nonlinear analysis of shell-like structures, subjected to time-dependent mechanical and thermal loading

The object of the research reported herein was to develop a general mathematical model and solution methodologies for analyzing the structural response of thin, metallic shell structures under large transient, cyclic, or static thermomechanical loads. Among the system responses associated with these loads and conditions are thermal buckling, creep buckling, and ratcheting. Thus geometric and material nonlinearities (of high order) can be anticipated and must be considered in developing the mathematical model. The methodology is demonstrated through different problems of extension, shear, and of planar curved beams. Moreover, importance of the inclusion of large strain is clearly demonstrated, through the chosen applications.

Simitses, George J.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Three-dimensional blade vortex interactions

A three-dimensional time dependent Navier-Stokes analysis was applied to the rotor blade vortex interaction problem. The numerical procedure is an iterative implicit procedure using three point central differences to represent spatial derivatives. A series of calculations were made to determine the time steps, pseudo-time steps, iterations, artificial dissipation level, etc. required to maintain a nondissipative vortex. Results show the chosen method to have excellent non-dissipative properties provided the correct parameters are chosen. This study was used to set parameters for both two- and three-dimensional blade vortex interaction studies. The case considered was the interaction between a vortex and a NACA0012 airfoil. The results showed the detailed physics during the interaction including the pressure pulse propagating from the blade. The simulated flow physics was qualitatively similar to that experimentally observed. The BVI phenomena is the result of the buildup and violent collapse of the shock waves and local supersonic pockets on the blade surfaces. The resulting pressure pulse build-up appears to be centered at the blade leading edge.

Davoudzadeh, Farhad↗
NASA NTRS1990

Two- and three-dimensional blade vortex interactions

A three-dimensional time dependent Navier-Stokes analysis was applied to the rotor blade vortex interaction (BVI) problem. The numerical procedure is an iterative implicit procedure using three point central differences to represent spatial derivatives. A series of calculations were made to determine the time steps, pseudo-time steps, iterations, artificial dissipation level, etc. required to maintain a nondissipative vortex. Results show the chosen method to have excellent non-dissipative properties provided the correct parameters are chosen. This study was used to set parameters for both two- and three-dimensional blade vortex interaction studies. The two-dimensional study considered the interaction between a vortex and a NACA0012 airfoil. The results showed the detailed physics during the interaction including the pressure pulse propagating from the blade. The simulated flow physics was qualitatively similar to that experimentally observed. The 2-D BVI phenomena is the result of the buildup and violent collapse of the shock waves and local supersonic pockets on the blade surfaces. The resulting pressure pulse build-up appears to be centered at the blade leading edge. The three-dimensional interaction study considered the case of a vortex at 20 deg incidence to the blade leading edge. Although the qualitative results were similar to that of the two-dimensional interaction, details clearly showed the three-dimensional nature of the interaction process.

Davoudzadeh, F.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Status of LDEF activation measurements and archive

We review the status of induced radioactivity measurements for the LDEF spacecraft which includes studies of the nuclide, target, directional and depth dependences of the activation. Analysis of the data has focused on extraction of the specific activities for many materials to develop a global picture of the low Earth orbital environment to which the LDEF was subjected. Preliminary comparisons of data in a previous review showed that it was possible to make meaningful intercomparisons between results obtained at different facilities. Generally these comparisons were good and gave results to within 10-20 percent, although some analysis remains. These results clearly provide constraints for recent calculations being performed of the radiation environment of the LDEF. We are not anticipating a period of production of final activation results. An archive is being prepared jointly between NASA/Marshall and Eastern Kentucky University which will include gamma ray spectra and other intermediate results.

Harmon, B. Alan↗
NASA NTRS1993

Monitoring land use and degradation using satellite and airborne data

In July 1990 AVIRIS and AIRSAR data were collected over the Manix Basin Area of the Mojave Desert to study land degradation in an arid area where centerpivot irrigation had been in use. The Manix Basin is located NE of Barstow, California, along Interstate-15 at 34 deg 57 min N 116 deg 35 min W. This region was covered by a series of lakes during the Late Pleistocence and Early Holocene. Beginning in the 1960's, areas were cleared of the native creosote bush-dominated plant community to be used for agricultural purposes. Starting in 1972 fields have been abandoned due to the increased cost of electricity needed to pump the irrigation water, with some fields abandoned as recently as 1988 and 1992. These circumstances provide a time series of abandoned fields which provide the possibility of studying the processes which act on agricultural fields in arid regions when they are abandoned. Ray et al. reported that polarimetric SAR (AIRSAR) could detect that the concentric circular planting furrows plowed on these fields persists for a few years after abandonment and then disappear over time and that wind ripples which form on these fields over time due to wind erosion can be detected with polarimetric radar. Ray et al. used Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) bandpasses to generate NDVI images of the Manix Basin which showed that the fields abandoned for only a few years had higher NDVI's than the undisturbed desert while the fields abandoned for a longer time had NDVI levels lower than that of the undisturbed desert. The purpose of this study is to use a fusion of a time series of satellite data with airborne data to provide a context for the airborne data. The satellite data time series will additionally help to validate the observation and analysis of time-dependent processes observed in the single AVIRIS image of fields abandoned for different periods of time.

Ray, Terrill W.↗
NASA NTRS1996

Some Considerations in the Determination of the Accuracy of a Measurement in Space of the Newtonian Gravitational Constant (G)

A commonly suggested method for determining the Newtonian constant of universal gravitation (G) is to observe the motion of two bodies of known mass moving about each other in an orbiting laboratory. In low Earth orbit (LEO), bodies constructed of even the densest material available experience a gravitational attraction that is several times smaller than the 'tidal' forces (due to their proximity to the Earth), which tend to pull them apart. While the tidal forces do not preclude stable orbits of the two objects about each other, they and the Coriolis force (in the rotating laboratory) dominate the motion, and the gravitational attraction of the two bodies may be considered a weak (but significant) contribution to the motion. As a result, compared to an experiment that would be performed in a laboratory far from the Earth, greater accuracy of measuring the motion of the two bodies may be required for a given accuracy in the determination of G. We find that the accuracy with which positions must be determined is not much different in an experiment in LEO than in one performed far from the Earth, but that rotational periods must be determined more accurately. Using a curvature matrix analysis, we also find that a value of G may be extracted (with some loss in accuracy, but probably some practical gain) from an analysis of the time dependence of the distance between the bodies rather than of a full specification (distance and direction) of their relative positions. A measurement of the gravitational constant to one part in 10(exp 4) continues to be thinkable, but one part in 10(exp 5) will be very difficult.

Baker, Stephen D.↗
NASA NTRS1997

CARES/Life Software for Designing More Reliable Ceramic Parts

Products made from advanced ceramics show great promise for revolutionizing aerospace and terrestrial propulsion, and power generation. However, ceramic components are difficult to design because brittle materials in general have widely varying strength values. The CAPES/Life software eases this task by providing a tool to optimize the design and manufacture of brittle material components using probabilistic reliability analysis techniques. Probabilistic component design involves predicting the probability of failure for a thermomechanically loaded component from specimen rupture data. Typically, these experiments are performed using many simple geometry flexural or tensile test specimens. A static, dynamic, or cyclic load is applied to each specimen until fracture. Statistical strength and SCG (fatigue) parameters are then determined from these data. Using these parameters and the results obtained from a finite element analysis, the time-dependent reliability for a complex component geometry and loading is then predicted. Appropriate design changes are made until an acceptable probability of failure has been reached.

Nemeth, Noel N.↗
NASA NTRS1997

Kinetics and Thermochemistry of Reversible Adduct Formation in the Reaction of Cl((sup 2)P(sub J)) with CS2

Reversible adduct formation in the reaction of Cl((sup 2)P(sub J)) with CS2 has been observed over the temperature range 193-258 K by use of time-resolved resonance fluorescence spectroscopy to follow the decay of pulsed-laser-generated Cl((sup 2)P(sub J)) into equilbrium with CS2Cl. Rate coefficients for CS2Cl formation and decomposition have been determined as a function of temperature and pressure; hence, the equilbrium constant has been determined as a function of temperature. A second-law analysis of the temperature dependence of Kp and heat capacity corrections calculated with use of an assumed CS2Cl structure yields the following thermodynamic parameters for the association reaction: Delta-H(sub 298) = -10.5 +/- 0.5 kcal/mol, Delta-H(sub 0) = -9.5 +/- 0.7 kcal/mol, Delta-S(sub 298) = -26.8 +/- 2.4 cal/mol.deg., and Delta-H(sub f,298)(CS2Cl) = 46.4 +/- 0.6 kcal/mol. The resonance fluorescence detection scheme has been adapted to allow detection of Cl((sup 2)P(sub J)) in the presence of large concentrations of O2, thus allowing the CS2Cl + Cl + O2 reaction to be investigated. We find that the rate coefficient for CS2Cl + O2 reaction via all channels that do not generate Cl((sup 2)P(sub J)) is less than 2.5 x 10(exp-16) cu cm/(molecule.s) at 293 K and 300-Torr total pressure and that the total rate coefficient is less than 2 x 10 (exp -15) cu cm/(molecule.s) at 230 K and 30-Torr total pressure. Evidence for reversible adduct formation in the reaction of Cl((sup 2)P(sub J)) with COS was sought but not observed, even at temperatures as low as 194 K.

Nicovich, J. M.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Modeling of SiC Lateral Resonant Devices Over a Broad Temperature Range

Finite-element analysis (FEA) modal results of 3C-SiC lateral resonant devices anchored to a Si substrate are presented as resonant frequency versus temperature. The suspended elements are etched from a 2 micron, 3C-SiC film grown at 1600 K on a 500 micron-thick, Si substrate. The analysis includes, temperature-dependent properties, shape change due to volume expansion with temperature, and thermal stress caused by differential thermal expansion of different materials. Two designs are considered: type I has anchor locations close to the geometric centroid and a small shuttle; type 11 has a large shuttle with anchors far from the centroid, The resonant frequency decreases approximately 3.5% over a 1000 K temperature increase for the type-I device, and behaves according to theory. The resonant frequency of the type-11 device decreases by 2% over the first 400 K, then rises slightly over the remaining 600 K. This device deviates from theory because of the high thermal stress induced in the beams. The thermal stress is caused by the differential thermal expansion of the suspended element relative to the substrate. The results show that the device geometry must be properly chosen if the resonant frequency of that device will be used to calculate the temperature coefficient of Young's modulus. These results apply only to resonators of one material on a substrate of a different material.

DeAnna, Russell G.↗
NASA NTRS1998

Surface Micromachined Silicon Carbide Accelerometers for Gas Turbine Applications

A finite-element analysis of possible silicon carbide (SIC) folded-beam, lateral-resonating accelerometers is presented. Results include stiffness coefficients, acceleration sensitivities, resonant frequency versus temperature, and proof-mass displacements due to centripetal acceleration of a blade-mounted sensor. The surface micromachined devices, which are similar to the Analog Devices Inc., (Norwood, MA) air-bag crash detector, are etched from 2-pm thick, 3C-SiC films grown at 1600 K using atmospheric pressure chemical vapor deposition (APCVD). The substrate is a 500 gm-thick, (100) silicon wafer. Polysilicon or silicon dioxide is used as a sacrificial layer. The finite element analysis includes temperature-dependent properties, shape change due to volume expansion, and thermal stress caused by differential thermal expansion of the materials. The finite-element results are compared to experimental results for a SiC device of similar, but not identical, geometry. Along with changes in mechanical design, blade-mounted sensors would require on-chip circuitry to cancel displacements due to centripetal acceleration and improve sensitivity and bandwidth. These findings may result in better accelerometer designs for this application.

DeAnna, Russell G.↗
NASA NTRS2001

Reliability Analysis for AFTI-F16 SRFCS Using ASSIST and SURE

This paper reports the results of a study on reliability analysis of an AFTI-16 Self-Repairing Flight Control System (SRFCS) using software tools SURE (Semi-Markov Unreliability Range Evaluator and ASSIST (Abstract Semi-Markov Specification Interface to the SURE Tool). The purpose of the study is to investigate the potential utility of the software tools in the ongoing effort of the NASA Aviation Safety Program, where the class of systems must be extended beyond the originally intended serving class of electronic digital processors. The study concludes that SURE and ASSIST are applicable to reliability, analysis of flight control systems. They are especially efficient for sensitivity analysis that quantifies the dependence of system reliability on model parameters. The study also confirms an earlier finding on the dominant role of a parameter called a failure coverage. The paper will remark on issues related to the improvement of coverage and the optimization of redundancy level.

Wu, N. Eva↗
NASA NTRS2004

Thermal-Structural Optimization of Integrated Cryogenic Propellant Tank Concepts for a Reusable Launch Vehicle

A next generation reusable launch vehicle (RLV) will require thermally efficient and light-weight cryogenic propellant tank structures. Since these tanks will be weight-critical, analytical tools must be developed to aid in sizing the thickness of insulation layers and structural geometry for optimal performance. Finite element method (FEM) models of the tank and insulation layers were created to analyze the thermal performance of the cryogenic insulation layer and thermal protection system (TPS) of the tanks. The thermal conditions of ground-hold and re-entry/soak-through for a typical RLV mission were used in the thermal sizing study. A general-purpose nonlinear FEM analysis code, capable of using temperature and pressure dependent material properties, was used as the thermal analysis code. Mechanical loads from ground handling and proof-pressure testing were used to size the structural geometry of an aluminum cryogenic tank wall. Nonlinear deterministic optimization and reliability optimization techniques were the analytical tools used to size the geometry of the isogrid stiffeners and thickness of the skin. The results from the sizing study indicate that a commercial FEM code can be used for thermal analyses to size the insulation thicknesses where the temperature and pressure were varied. The results from the structural sizing study show that using combined deterministic and reliability optimization techniques can obtain alternate and lighter designs than the designs obtained from deterministic optimization methods alone.

Johnson, Theodore F.↗
NASA NTRS2004

Density, Electrical Conductivity and Viscosity of Hg(sub 0.8)Cd(sub 0.2)Te Melt

The density, viscosity, and electrical conductivity of Hg(sub 0.8)Cd(sub 0.2)Te melt were measures as a function of temperature. A pycnometric method was used to measure the melt density in the temperature range of 1072 to 1122 K. The viscosity and electrical conductivity were determined using a transient torque method from 1068 to 1132 K. The density result from this study is within 0.3% of the published data. However, the current viscosity result is approximately 30% lower than the existing data. The electrical conductivity of Hg(sub 0.8)Cd(sub 0.2)Te melt as a function of temperature, which is not available in the literature, is also determined. The analysis of the temperature dependent electrical conductivity and the relationship between the kinematic viscosity and density indicated that the structure of the melt appeared to be homogeneous when the temperature was above 1090 K. A structural transition occurred in the Hg(sub 0.8)Cd(sub 0.2)Te melt as the temperature was decreased to below 1090 K.

Li, C.↗
NASA NTRS2001

Streptococcus pneumoniae PstS production is phosphate responsive and enhanced during growth in the murine peritoneal cavity

Differential display-PCR (DDPCR) was used to identify a Streptococcus pneumoniae gene with enhanced transcription during growth in the murine peritoneal cavity. Northern dot blot analysis and comparative densitometry confirmed a 1.8-fold increase in expression of the encoded sequence following murine peritoneal culture (MPC) versus laboratory culture or control culture (CC). Sequencing and basic local alignment search tool analysis identified the DDPCR fragment as pstS, the phosphate-binding protein of a high-affinity phosphate uptake system. PCR amplification of the complete pstS gene followed by restriction analysis and sequencing suggests a high level of conservation between strains and serotypes. Quantitative immunodot blotting using antiserum to recombinant PstS (rPstS) demonstrated an approximately twofold increase in PstS production during MPC from that during CCs, a finding consistent with the low levels of phosphate observed in the peritoneum. Moreover, immunodot blot and Northern analysis demonstrated phosphate-dependent production of PstS in six of seven strains examined. These results identify pstS expression as responsive to the MPC environment and extracellular phosphate concentrations. Presently, it remains unclear if phosphate concentrations in vivo contribute to the regulation of pstS. Finally, polyclonal antiserum to rPstS did not inhibit growth of the pneumococcus in vitro, suggesting that antibodies do not block phosphate uptake; moreover, vaccination of mice with rPstS did not protect against intraperitoneal challenge as assessed by the 50% lethal dose.

Non-NASA Center↗
NASA NTRS2004

Density, Electrical Conductivity and Viscosity of Hg(0.8)Cd(0.2)Te Melt

The density, viscosity, and electrical conductivity of Hg(0.8)Cd(0.2)Te melt were measured as a function of temperature. A pycnometric method was used to measure the melt density in the temperature range of 1072 to 1122 K. The viscosity and electrical conductivity were determined using a transient torque method from 1068 to 1132 K. The density result from this study is within 0.3% of the published data. However, the current viscosity result is approximately 30% lower than the existing data. The electrical conductivity of Hg(0.8)Cd(0.2)Te melt as a function of temperature, which is not available in the literature, is also determined. The analysis of the temperature dependent electrical conductivity and the relationship between the kinematic viscosity and density indicated that the structure of the melt appeared to be homogeneous when the temperature was above 1090 K. A structural transition occurred in the Hg(0.8)Cd(0.2)Te melt as the temperature was decreased to below 1090 K

Li, C.↗