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At least 451 records · Page 25
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2010

Insulation-Testing Cryostat With Lifting Mechanism

The figure depicts selected aspects of an apparatus for testing thermal-insulation materials for cryogenic systems at temperatures and under vacuum or atmospheric conditions representative of those encountered in use. This apparatus, called "Cryostat-100," is based on the established cryogen-boil-off calorimeter method, according to which the amount of heat that passes through an insulation specimen to a cryogenic fluid in a container, and thus the effective thermal conductance of the specimen, is taken to be proportional to the amount of the cryogenic fluid that boils off from the container. The design of Cryostat-100 is based partly on, and incorporates improvements over, the design of a similar prior apparatus called "Cryostat-1" described in "Improved Methods of Testing Cryogenic Insulation Materials" (KSC-12107 & KSC- 12108), NASA Tech Briefs, Vol. 24, No. 12 (December 2000), page 46. The design of Cryostat-100 also incorporates the best features of two other similar prior apparatuses called "Cryostat-2" (also described in the cited prior article) and "Cryostat- 4." Notable among the improvements in Cryostat-100 is the addition of a lifting mechanism that enables safe, rapid, reliable insertion and removal of insulation specimens and facilitates maintenance operations that involve lifting. As in Cryostat-1, the cold mass is a vertical stainless-steel cylindrical vessel subdivided into a larger measurement vessel with smaller thermal-guard vessels at both ends. During operation, all three vessels are kept filled with liquid nitrogen near saturation at ambient pressure (temperature .77.4 K). The cold mass of Cryostat-100 has a length of 1 m and diameter of 168 mm. Each specimen has a corresponding nominal length and inner diameter and a nominal thickness of 25.4 mm. Specimens that are shorter and have thicknesses between 0 and 50 mm are also acceptable. Bulk-fill, foam, clam-shell, multilayer insulation, and layered materials can be tested over a very wide range of thermal transmission: apparent thermal conductivity from 0.01 to 60 mW/m-K and heat flux from 0.1 to 500 W/sq m. A test in Cryostat-100 can be conducted at any desired gas pressure between ambient atmospheric pressure at one extreme and a vacuum with residual pressure <10(exp -5) torr (<1.33 10(exp -3) Pa) at the other extreme. The residual gas (and purge gas) is typically nitrogen, but can be any suitable purge gas (e.g., helium, argon, or carbon dioxide). Usually, the temperature on the warm boundary of the insulation specimen is maintained near the ambient value (approximately 293 K), while the boiling of liquid nitrogen at atmospheric pressure in the cold mass maintains the temperature on the cold boundary of the specimen at approximately 77 K.

Fesmire, James↗
NASA NTRS1957

An Evaluation of Four Experimental Methods for Measuring Mean Properties of a Supersonic Turbulent Boundary Layer

Surveys were made through a turbulent boundary layer on a flat plate by means of a pitot probe, an x-ray densitometer, and hot-wire and cold-wire probes. Results from these surveys were analyzed to determine (a) the reliability of the basic data and hence the methods by which they were obtained, and (b) how well the actual distributions of properties in the boundary layer compare with those commonly assumed in semiempirical and theoretical analyses. All surveys were made at the same longitudinal station on the flat plate. The tests were conducted in a an 8- by 8-inch supersonic nozzle. The free-stream Mach number was 3.03 and the Reynolds number was approximately 210,000 based on boundary-layer thickness.

Nothwang, George J↗
NASA NTRS1974

A boundary-layer analysis of atmospheric motion over a semi-elliptical surface obstruction

Flow over surface obstructions can produce adverse flying conditions for helicopters, V/STOL vehicles, etc. The disturbed boundary-layer concept is applied in approximating the localized flow field induced around a surface obstruction (modeled by a two-dimensional cylinder with elliptical cross section) by an impinging wind. The analysis concludes that: (1) localized wind-speed maxima occur at the top of a surface obstruction, which are expected in physically real flows; (2) increased elliptical aspect ratio decreases with speed within the boundary layer at the top of the ellipse; (3) increased surface roughness decreases velocity in the boundary layer; (4) Reynolds number has a negligible effect on the overall flow for the Re range considered; (5) decreased elliptical aspect ratio and increased surface roughness cause larger separation regions.

Frost, W.↗
NASA NTRS1986

Continuum calculations of continental deformation in transcurrent environments

A thin viscous sheet approximation is used to investigate continental deformation near a strike-slip boundary. The vertically averaged velocity field is calculated for a medium characterized by a power law rheology with stress exponent n. Driving stresses include those applied along boundaries of the sheet and those arising from buoyancy forces related to lateral differences in crustal thickness. Exact and approximate analytic solutions for a region with a sinusoidal strike-slip boundary condition are compared with solutions for more geologically relevant boundary conditions obtained using a finite element technique. The across-strike length scale of the deformation is approximately 1/4pi x sq rt n times the dominant wavelength of the imposed strike-slip boundary condition for both the analytic and the numerical solutions; this result is consistent with length scales observed in continental regions of large-scale transcurrent faulting. An approximate, linear relationship between displacement and rotation is found that depends only on the deformation length scale and the rheology. Calculated displacements, finite rotations, and distribution of crustal thicknesses are consistent with those observed in the region of the Pacific-North America plate boundary in California.

Sonder, L. J.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Similarity solution of the boundary-layer equations for laser heated flows

The laminar boundary-layer equations with local similarity approximation are solved in order to estimate the heat transfer rate to the wall in a laser-heated rocket thruster using pure hydrogen, where the average temperature of the hot plasma core is about 14,000 K and the core Reynolds number based on nozzle throat diameter is about 2000. Under these conditions, the density-viscosity product at the wall can be 10 times the freestream value, and the hydrogen is completely dissociated. Hence the boundary layer equations with variable transport properties are solved by a quasi-linearization technique, and the equilibrium properties of hydrogen are used in the calculations. Velocity profiles are obtained, and the wall shear and wall stagnation enthalpy gradient are plotted against the pressure gradient parameter.

Wu, P. K.↗
NASA NTRS2021

Transition Analysis for the CRM-NLF Wind Tunnel Configuration

This paper presents the results of an ongoing study into the linear stability characteristics of the boundary layer flow over the common research model with natural laminar flow (CRMNLF) aircraft configuration. The flow conditions match selected test conditions from a recent wind tunnel experiment in the National Transonic Facility at the NASA Langley Research Center. Previous work involving parallel stability computations of a boundary layer flow based on the conical flow approximation has shown that the measured onset of laminar-turbulent transition during the experiments can be correlated with the linear amplification of Tollmien- Schlichting (TS) and stationary crossflow (CF) instabilities in the swept wing boundary layer. Here, we examine the effects of the simplifying approximations in both basic state computation and the stability analysis, with the goal of quantifying the resulting changes in the N-factor correlations. Specifically, the basic states are computed by using full Navier-Stokes equations and the stability analysis is performed by using a nonorthogonal coordinate system that allows a clear distinction between planar TS and CF instabilities. Furthermore, the effects of curvature and nonparallel mean flow have been included in the stability computations based on the parabolized stability equations (PSE). The fully turbulent Reynolds-Averaged-Navier-Stokes (RANS) mean flow solutions show good agreement with the measured wall pressure distribution. Viscous-inviscid interactive effects are observed to be important because the shock fronts along the suction surface are influenced by the imposed transition front. The stability results confirm the previous findings related to TS amplification within the inboard region of the wing and the dominance of stationary CF modes in the outboard region. However, given the close proximity of the measured transition front and the dual shock system within the outer part of the wing, the onset of transition may well be shock limited within the outboard region. In general, the transition criterion based on the dual N-factor method with N TS = N CF = 6 is reasonably successful at correlating with the measured transition fronts at Re MAC = 15 million and AoA = 1.5, 2 degrees; however, the low values of the correlating N-factors at Re MAC = 17.5 million support the hypothesis that the measured transition at the higher Reynolds number may have been strongly influenced by the merging of turbulent wedges that originate from surface imperfections near the leading edge.

Boundary layer transition↗
NASA NTRS2021

Transition Analysis for the CRM-NLF Wind Tunnel Configuration

This paper presents the results of an ongoing study into the linear stability characteristics of the boundary layer flow over the common research model with natural laminar flow (CRMNLF) aircraft configuration. The flow conditions match selected test conditions from a recent wind tunnel experiment in the National Transonic Facility at the NASA Langley Research Center. Previous work involving parallel stability computations of a boundary layer flow based on the conical flow approximation has shown that the measured onset of laminar-turbulent transition during the experiments can be correlated with the linear amplification of Tollmien- Schlichting (TS) and stationary crossflow (CF) instabilities in the swept wing boundary layer. Here, we examine the effects of the simplifying approximations in both basic state computation and the stability analysis, with the goal of quantifying the resulting changes in the N-factor correlations. Specifically, the basic states are computed by using full Navier-Stokes equations and the stability analysis is performed by using a nonorthogonal coordinate system that allows a clear distinction between planar TS and CF instabilities. Furthermore, the effects of curvature and nonparallel mean flow have been included in the stability computations based on the parabolized stability equations (PSE). The fully turbulent Reynolds-Averaged-Navier-Stokes (RANS) mean flow solutions show good agreement with the measured wall pressure distribution. Viscous-inviscid interactive effects are observed to be important because the shock fronts along the suction surface are influenced by the imposed transition front. The stability results confirm the previous findings related to TS amplification within the inboard region of the wing and the dominance of stationary CF modes in the outboard region. However, given the close proximity of the measured transition front and the dual shock system within the outer part of the wing, the onset of transition may well be shock limited within the outboard region. In general, the transition criterion based on the dual N-factor method with N TS = N CF = 6 is reasonably successful at correlating with the measured transition fronts at Re MAC = 15 million and AoA = 1.5, 2 degrees; however, the low values of the correlating N-factors at Re MAC = 17.5 million support the hypothesis that the measured transition at the higher Reynolds number may have been strongly influenced by the merging of turbulent wedges that originate from surface imperfections near the leading edge.

Boundary layer transition↗
NASA NTRS1993

Solution of free-boundary problems using finite-element/Newton methods and locally refined grids - Application to analysis of solidification microstructure

A new method is presented for the solution of free-boundary problems using Lagrangian finite element approximations defined on locally refined grids. The formulation allows for direct transition from coarse to fine grids without introducing non-conforming basis functions. The calculation of elemental stiffness matrices and residual vectors are unaffected by changes in the refinement level, which are accounted for in the loading of elemental data to the global stiffness matrix and residual vector. This technique for local mesh refinement is combined with recently developed mapping methods and Newton's method to form an efficient algorithm for the solution of free-boundary problems, as demonstrated here by sample calculations of cellular interfacial microstructure during directional solidification of a binary alloy.

Tsiveriotis, K.↗
NASA NTRS1972

Precipitation of low energy electrons at high latitudes: Effects of substorms, interplanetary magnetic field and dipole tilt angle

Data from the auroral particles experiment on OGO-4 were used to study effects of substorm activity, interplanetary magnetic field latitutde, and dipole tilt angle on high-latitude precipitation of 700 eV electrons. It was found that: (1) The high-latitude zone of 700 eV electron precipitation in late evening and early morning hours moves equatorward by 5 to 10 deg during substorms. (2) The low-latitude boundary of polar cusp electron precipitation at 9 to 15 hours MLT also moves equatorward by several degrees during substorms and, in the absence of significant substorm activity, after a period of southward interplanetary magnetic field. (3) With times containing substorm activity or a southward interplanetary magnetic field eliminated, the low-latitude boundary of polar cusp electron precipitation is found to move by approximately 4 deg over the total yearly range of tilt angles. At maximum winter and summer conditions the invariant latitude of the boundary is shown to shift by approximately -3 deg and +1 deg respectively from its equinox location.

Burch, J. L.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Thermocapillary Bubble Migration - An Oseen-Like Analysis of the Energy Equation

The thermocapillary migration of a bubble in a liquid possessing a temperature gradient is analyzed in the limit of large Reynolds and Marangoni numbers. Crespo and Manuel (1983) performed an analysis in this limit wherein energy conduction is completely neglected and obtained the bubble migration velocity using energy dissipation arguments. In the present analysis, performed in a coordinate system moving with the bubble, the velocity field in the convection term in the energy equation is approximated in an Oseen-like manner by replacing it with the velocity field far away from the bubble (i.e., the migration velocity of the bubble). Conduction is retained to satisfy the zero conductive heat flux boundary condition on the bubble surface. An approximate solution has been obtained for the Oseen-like energy equation. The bubble velocity obtained using energy dissipation considerations is in agreement with the result of Crespo and Manuel. The solution shows the thermal boundary layer and wake structure in the vicinity of the bubble. The Oseen-like analysis, however, has inherent limitations, as the flow penetrates the bubble surface. These issues are discussed and the result are compared to those in the literature.

Balasubramaniam, R.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Solution of linear systems by a singular perturbation technique

An approximate solution is obtained for a singularly perturbed system of initial valued, time invariant, linear differential equations with multiple boundary layers. Conditions are stated under which the approximate solution converges uniformly to the exact solution as the perturbation parameter tends to zero. The solution is obtained by the method of matched asymptotic expansions. Use of the results for obtaining approximate solutions of general linear systems is discussed. An example is considered to illustrate the method and it is shown that the formulas derived give a readily computed uniform approximation.

Ardema, M. D.↗
NASA NTRS1993

A hybrid Pade-Galerkin technique for differential equations

A three-step hybrid analysis technique, which successively uses the regular perturbation expansion method, the Pade expansion method, and then a Galerkin approximation, is presented and applied to some model boundary value problems. In the first step of the method, the regular perturbation method is used to construct an approximation to the solution in the form of a finite power series in a small parameter epsilon associated with the problem. In the second step of the method, the series approximation obtained in step one is used to construct a Pade approximation in the form of a rational function in the parameter epsilon. In the third step, the various powers of epsilon which appear in the Pade approximation are replaced by new (unknown) parameters (delta(sub j)). These new parameters are determined by requiring that the residual formed by substituting the new approximation into the governing differential equation is orthogonal to each of the perturbation coordinate functions used in step one. The technique is applied to model problems involving ordinary or partial differential equations. In general, the technique appears to provide good approximations to the solution even when the perturbation and Pade approximations fail to do so. The method is discussed and topics for future investigations are indicated.

Geer, James F.↗
NASA NTRS1973

Hypersonic aerodynamic characteristics of a family of power-law, wing body configurations

The configurations analyzed are half-axisymmetric, power-law bodies surmounted by thin, flat wings. The wing planform matches the body shock-wave shape. Analytic solutions of the hypersonic small disturbance equations form a basis for calculating the longitudinal aerodynamic characteristics. Boundary-layer displacement effects on the body and the wing upper surface are approximated. Skin friction is estimated by using compressible, laminar boundary-layer solutions. Good agreement was obtained with available experimental data for which the basic theoretical assumptions were satisfied. The method is used to estimate the effects of power-law, fineness ratio, and Mach number variations at full-scale conditions. The computer program is included.

Townsend, J. C.↗
NASA NTRS1993

On the instability of flow in a streamwise corner

The linear stability of an incompressible laminar flow in the blending boundary layer between the boundary layer in a 90 deg streamwise corner and a Blasius boundary layer well away from the corner is examined using a locally parallel flow approximation. It is shown that the influence of the outer boundary conditions associated with oblique modes of disturbances which are anti-symmetric about the bisector plane have a profound effect on the stability of the flow. As a result, in good agreement with observation, the critical streamwise Reynolds number, associated with a spanwise location is significantly reduced as the corner is approached, being R(sub Cr) = 60 approximately for spanwise distance of z* = 6x*R(sup -1) from the corner compared with R(sub Cr) = 322 approximately for z* = 20x*R(sup -1), where x* measures downstream distance from the leading edges. At R = 600, the growth rate of the most amplified mode of disturbance at the former location is over six times greater than that at the latter; the corresponding wave angle at the two locations is respectively 44 deg and 5 deg, approximately.

Dhanak, Manhar R.↗
NASA NTRS2018

Transition Induced by Tandem Rectangular Roughness Elements on a Supersonic Flat Plate

The flow behind two rectangular roughness elements with a height approximately 38-41 percent of the boundary layer thickness was examined with a hot-wire probe. The rectangular roughness elements are oriented so that one element was at a plus 45-degree angle relative to the leading edge of the plate. A second roughness element was placed 7.16 millimeters downstream of the first one with either the same orientation relative to the leading edge of the plate, or an opposing orientation of minus 45 degrees from the leading edge. Mean mass-flux and total-temperature profiles of the flow field downstream of the tandem roughness elements were examined for mean-flow distortion. Using streak strength as a measure of mean-flow distortion, the tandem roughness elements had approximately the same amount of distortion, regardless of their relative orientation. Mass-flux fluctuation profiles show that the dominant mode downstream of the tandem roughness elements with the same orientation was similar to that of a single roughness element and centered at a frequency of approximately 55 kilohertz (kHz). The dominant instability downstream of the tandem roughness elements with opposing orientation was centered at a frequency of 65 kHz and grew more slowly than the instabilities behind the single roughness element.

Chou, Amanda↗
NASA NTRS1988

Ocean alkalinity and the Cretaceous/Tertiary boundary

A biogeochemical cycle model resolving ocean carbon and alkalinity content is applied to the Maestrichtian and Danian. The model computes oceanic concentrations and distributions of Ca(2+), Mg(2+), and Sigma-CO2. From these values an atmospheric pCO2 value is calculated, which is used to estimate rates of terrestrial weathering of calcite, dolomite, and calcium and magnesium silicates. Metamorphism of carbonate rocks and the subsequent outgassing of CO2 to the atmosphere are parameterized in terms of carbonate rock reservoir sizes, total land area, and a measure of overall tectonic activity, the sea-floor generation rate. The ocean carbon reservoir computed by the model is used with Deep Sea Drilling Project (DSDP) C-13 data to estimate organic detrital fluxes under a variety of ocean mixing rate assumptions. Using Redfield ratios, the biogenic detrital flux estimate is used to partition the ocean carbon and alkalinity reservoirs between the mixed layer and deep ocean. The calcite flux estimate and carbonate ion concentrations are used to determine the rate of biologically mediated CaCO3 titration. Oceanic productivity was severely limited for approximately 500 kyr following the K/T boundary resulting in significant increases in total ocean alkalinity. As productivity returned to the ocean, excess carbon and alkalinity was removed from the ocean as CaCO3. Model runs indicate that this resulted in a transient imbalance in the other direction. Ocean chemistry returned to near-equilibrium by about 64 mybp.

Caldeira, K. G.↗
NASA NTRS1947

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↗