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At least 379 records · Page 21

Application of linear stability theory in laminar flow design

The linear stability of fully three-dimensional supersonic boundary layers formed over swept-wing configurations is investigated using a modified version of the linear stability code COSAL. Configurations studied include a highly swept leading-edge model to be utilized for transition studies in the LARC Low-disturbance Mach 3.5 Pilot Tunnel. The model is a representation of the leading edge of a laminar flow control wing for the F-16XL aircraft. In addition, the region over a laminar flow control glove fitted on the midportion of an F-16XL wing was studied. For each configuration, estimates of the location of the onset of transition were computed using linear stability theory and the e exp N method. The effectiveness of suction in stabilizing the boundary layer over the F-16XL wing glove was also investigated.

Iyer, Venkit↗

Measuring Tollmien-Schlichting Instabilities In Laminar Flow

NASA flight experiment conducted to evaluate surface-mounted hot-film sensors designed to detect Tollmien-Schlichting (T-S) instability in boundary layer in flight. New technique has considerable value in applied research aimed at extending regions of natural laminar flow on aircraft. Aids research into mechanisms leading to transition from laminar to turbulent boundary layers. Makes it practical to take measurements in many locations on wing surface for tests in flight. Useful in studying transitions in such flow as those in pipes, ducts, channels, compressors, and diffusers.

Lee, Cynthia C.↗

Structure and Soot Properties of Non-Buoyant Laminar Round-Jet Diffusion Flames

The structure and soot properties of nonbuoyant laminar diffusion flames are being studied experimentally and theoretically in order to better understand the soot and thermal radiation emissions from luminous flames. The measurements involve weakly-buoyant flames at low pressure in normal gravity (ng) and nonbuoyant flames at normal pressures in microgravity (micro g). The objectives of the present investigation are to study the differences of soot properties between nonbuoyant and buoyant diffusion flames, and to evaluate predictions based on the laminar flamelet approach.

Mortazavi, Saeed↗

Laminar flow in a recess of a hydrostatic bearing

The flow in a recess of a hydrostatic journal bearing is studied in detail. The Navier-Stokes equations for the laminar flow of an incompressible liquid are solved numerically in a two-dimensional plane of a typical bearing recess. Pressure- and shear-induced flows, as well as a combination of these two flow conditions, are analyzed. Recess friction, pressure-ram effects at discontinuities in the flow region, and film entrance pressure loss effects are calculated. Entrance pressure loss coefficients over a forward-facing step are presented as functions of the mean flow Reynolds number for pure-pressure and shear-induced laminar flows.

San Andres, Luis A.↗

Laminar flow control - Introduction and overview

A development history and a development-trends evaluation are presented for laminar flow controlled airfoil technologies and design concepts, including the search for 'natural' laminar flow and actively controlled flow via suction through small pores on the airfoil surface. While most NASA activities in this field have been concerned with subsonic aircraft, it has been projected that the control of boundary layer turbulence may be even more critical to the aerodynamic efficiency of supersonic aircraft. Developmental programs for these techniques have been conducted with several modified conventional aircraft.

Hefner, Jerry N.↗

Grid-refinement study of hypersonic laminar flow over a 2-D ramp

Computations were made for those test cases of Problem 3 which were designated as laminar flows, viz., test cases 3.1, 3.2, 3.4, and 3.5. These test cases corresponded to flows over a flat plate and a compression ramp at high Mach number and at high Reynolds number. The computations over the compression ramps indicate a substantial streamwise extent of separation. Based on previous experience with separated laminar flows at high Mach numbers which indicated a substantial effect with spatial grid refinement, a series of computations with different grid sizes were performed. Also, for the flat plate, comparisons of the results for two different algorithms were made.

Thomas, James L.↗

The Effect of Curvature on the Transition from Laminar to Turbulent Boundary Layer

In the flow over the upper surface of a wing, a discrepancy between the predicted and actual point of transition from laminar to turbulent boundary layer was found. This effect may be due to the comparatively small radius of curvature of the upper surface of the wing. Tests were undertaken to investigate this effect. As far as the authors know, the present investigation is the first to show that curvature has a pronounced effect on the transition of the boundary layer from the laminar to the turbulent state. It appears that three important results have been obtained thus far. First, the experimental points for the convex and concave side of the sheet are consistent with each other and, with the experimental accuracy involved, lie on the same curve. Second, this curve can be approximated by a straight line. Third, the order of magnitude of the variation is such that the curvature ordinarily used on the upper surface of an airplane wing might double the critical Reynolds number.

Clauser, Milton↗

The stability of the laminar boundary layer in a compressible fluid

Report is a continuation of a theoretical investigation of the stability of the laminar boundary layer in a compressible fluid. An approximate estimate for the minimum critical Reynolds number, or stability limit, is obtained in terms of the distribution of the kinematic viscosity and the product of the mean density and mean vorticity across the boundary layer. The extension of the results of the stability analysis to laminar boundary-layer gas flows with a pressure gradient in the direction of the free stream is discussed. (author)

Lees, Lester↗

Laminar-Boundary-Layer Oscillations and Transition on a Flat Plate

This is an account of an investigation in which oscillations were discovered in the laminar boundary layer along a flat plate. These oscillations were found during the course of an experiment in which transition from laminar to turbulent flow was being studied on the plate as the turbulence in the wind stream was being reduced to unusually low values by means of damping screens. The first part of the paper deals with experimental methods and apparatus, measurements of turbulence and sound, and studies of transition. A description is then given of the manner in which oscillations were discovered and how they were found to be related to transition, and then how controlled oscillations were produced and studied in detail.

Schubauer, G B↗

Method for Calculation of Laminar Heat Transfer in Air Flow Around Cylinders of Arbitrary Cross Section (including Large Temperature Differences and Transpiration Cooling)

The solution of heat-transfer problems has become vital for many aeronautical applications. The shapes of objects to be cooled can often be approximated by cylinders of various cross sections with flow normal to the axis as, for instance heat transfer on gas-turbine blades and on air foils heated for deicing purposes. A laminar region always exists near the stagnation point of such objects. A method previously presented by E. R. G. Eckert permits the calculation of local heat transfer around the periphery of cylinders of arbitrary cross section in the laminar region for flow of a fluid with constant property values with an accuracy sufficient for engineering purposes. The method is based on exact solutions of the boundary-layer equations for incompressible wedge-type flow and on the postulate that at any point on the cylinder the boundary-layer growth is the same as that on a wedge with comparable flow conditions. This method is extended herein to take into account the influence of large temperature differences between the cylinder wall and the flow as well as the influence of transpiration cooling when the same medium as the outside flow is used as coolant.

Eckert, E R↗

Calculations of Laminar Heat Transfer Around Cylinders of Arbitrary Cross Section and Transpiration-Cooled Walls with Application to Turbine Blade Cooling

An approximate method for the development of flow and thermal boundary layers in the laminar region on cylinders with arbitrary cross section and transpiration-cooled walls is obtained by the use of Karman's integrated momentum equation and an analogous heat-flow equation. Incompressible flow with constant property values throughout the boundary layer is assumed. The velocity and temperature profiles within the boundary layer are approximated by expressions composed of trigonometric functions. Shape parameters for these profiles and functions necessary for the solution of the boundary-layer equations are presented as graphs so that the calculation for any specific case is reduced to the solution of two first-order differential equations. This method is applied to determine local heat-transfer coefficients and surface temperatures in the laminar flow region of the transpiration-cooled turbine blades for a given coolant flow rate, or to calculate the coolant flow distribution which is necessary in order to keep the blade temperature uniform along the surface.

Eckert, E R G↗

Analysis and calculation by integral methods of laminar compressible boundary-layer with heat transfer and with and without pressure gradient

A survey of integral methods in laminar-boundary-layer analysis is first given. A simple and sufficiently accurate method for practical purposes of calculating the properties (including stability) of the laminar compressible boundary layer in an axial pressure gradient with heat transfer at the wall is presented. For flow over a flat plate, the method is applicable for an arbitrarily prescribed distribution of temperature along the surface and for any given constant Prandtl number close to unity. For flow in a pressure gradient, the method is based on a Prandtl number of unity and a uniform wall temperature. A simple and accurate method of determining the separation point in a compressible flow with an adverse pressure gradient over a surface at a given uniform wall temperature is developed. The analysis is based on an extension of the Karman-Pohlhausen method to the momentum and the thermal energy equations in conjunction with fourth- and especially higher degree velocity and stagnation-enthalpy profiles.

Morduchow, Morris↗

Large-eddy simulation of laminar-turbulent breakdown at high speeds with dynamic subgrid-scale modeling

The laminar-turbulent breakdown of a boundary-layer flow along a hollow cylinder at Mach 4.5 is investigated with large-eddy simulation. The subgrid scales are modeled dynamically, where the model coefficients are determined from the local resolved field. The behavior of the dynamic-model coefficients is investigated through both an a priori test with direct numerical simulation data for the same case and a complete large-eddy simulation. Both formulations proposed by Germano et al. and Lilly are used for the determination of unique coefficients for the dynamic model and their results are compared and assessed. The behavior and the energy cascade of the subgrid-scale field structure are investigated at various stages of the transition process. The investigations are able to duplicate a high-speed transition phenomenon observed in experiments and explained only recently by the direct numerical simulations of Pruett and Zang, which is the appearance of 'rope-like' waves. The nonlinear evolution and breakdown of the laminar boundary layer and the structure of the flow field during the transition process were also investigated.

El-Hady, Nabil M.↗

Results for the hybrid laminar flow control experiment conducted in the NASA Langley 8-foot transonic pressure tunnel on a 7-foot chord model

A description is given of the development of, and results from, the hybrid laminar flow control (HLFC) experiment conducted in the NASA LaRC 8 ft Transonic Pressure Tunnel on a 7 ft chord, 23 deg swept model. The methods/codes used to obtain the contours of the HLFC model surface and to define the suction requirements are outlined followed by a discussion of the model construction, suction system, instrumentation, and some example results from the wind tunnel tests. Included in the latter are the effects of Mach number, suction level, and the extent of suction. An assessment is also given of the effect of the wind tunnel environment on the suction requirements. The data show that, at or near the design Mach number, large extents of laminar flow can be achieved with suction mass flows over the first 25 percent, or less, of the chord. Top surface drag coefficients with suction extending from the near leading edge to 20 percent of the chord were approximately 40 percent lower than those obtained with no suction. The results indicate that HLFC can be designed for transonic speeds with lift and drag coefficients approaching those of LFC designs but with much smaller extents and levels of suction.

Bobbitt, Percy J.↗

The Structure and Stability of Laminar Flames

This review paper on the structure and stability of laminar flames considers such phenomena as heterogeneous mixtures, acoustic instabilities, flame balls and related phenomena, radiation effects, the iodate oxidation of arsenous acid and 'liquid flame fronts', approximate kinetic mechanisms and asymptotic approximations, and tribrachial or triple flames. The topics examined here indicate three themes that may play an important role in laminar flame theory in the coming years: microgravity experiments, kinetic modeling, and turbulence modeling. In the discussion of microgravity experiments it is pointed out that access to drop towers, the Space Shuttle and, in due course, the Space Station Freedom will encourage the development of experiments well designed to isolate the fundamental physics of combustion.

Buckmaster, John↗

Development of quiet-flow supersonic wind tunnels for laminar-turbulent transition research

This grant supported research into quiet-flow supersonic wind-tunnels, between May 1990 and December 1994. Quiet-flow nozzles operate with laminar nozzle-wall boundary layers, in order to provide low-disturbance flow for studies of laminar-turbulent transition under conditions comparable to flight. Major accomplishments include: (1) the design, fabrication, and performance-evaluation of a new kind of quiet tunnel, a quiet-flow Ludweig tube; (2) the integration of preexisting codes for nozzle design, 2D boundary-layer computation, and transition-estimation into a single user-friendly package for quiet-nozzle design; and (3) the design and preliminary evaluation of supersonic nozzles with square cross-section, as an alternative to conventional quiet-flow nozzles. After a brief summary of (1), a description of (2) is presented. Published work describing (3) is then summarized. The report concludes with a description of recent results for the Tollmien-Schlichting and Gortler instability in one of the square nozzles previously analyzed.

Schneider, Steven P.↗

Supersonic quiet-tunnel development for laminar-turbulent transition research

This grant supported research into quiet-flow supersonic wind-tunnels, between February 1994 and February 1995. Quiet-flow nozzles operate with laminar nozzle-wall boundary layers, in order to provide low-disturbance flow for studies of laminar-turbulent transition under conditions comparable to flight. Major accomplishments include: (1) development of the Purdue Quiet-Flow Ludwieg Tube, (2) computational evaluation of the square nozzle concept for quiet-flow nozzles, and (3) measurement of the presence of early transition on the flat sidewalls of the NASA LaRC Mach 3.5 supersonic low-disturbance tunnel. Since items (1) and (2) are described in the final report for companion grant NAG1-1133, only item (3) is described here. A thesis addressing the development of square nozzles for high-speed, low-disturbance wind tunnels is included as an appendix.

Schneider, Steven P.↗

Coupling of wrinkled laminar flames with gravity

The overall objective of our research is to understand flame-gravity coupling processes in laminar and low turbulent Reynolds number, Re(sub l), premixed flames (i.e. wrinkled- laminar flames). The approach we have developed is to compare the flowfields and mean flame properties under different gravitational orientations. Key to our study is the investigation of microgravity (mu g) flames. These mu g experiments provide vital information to reconcile the differences between flames in normal gravity (+g, flame pointing upward) and reverse gravity (-g, flame pointing downwards). Traditionally, gravity effects are assumed to be insignificant or circumvented in the laboratory, therefore, not much is available in the literature on the behavior of -g flames.

Bedat, Benoit↗