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At least 487 records · Page 27

Experimental validation of a numerical model predicting the charging characteristics of Teflon and Kapton under electron beam irradiation

The effect differential charging of spacecraft thermal control surfaces is assessed by studying the dynamics of the charging process. A program to experimentally validate a computer model of the charging process was established. Time resolved measurements of the surface potential were obtained for samples of Kapton and Teflon irradiated with a monoenergetic electron beam. Results indicate that the computer model and experimental measurements agree well and that for Teflon, secondary emission is the governing factor. Experimental data indicate that bulk conductivities play a significant role in the charging of Kapton.

Hazelton, R. C.↗

Design of a 60 GHz beam waveguide antenna positioner

A development model antenna positioner mechanism with an integral 60 GHz radio frequency beam waveguide is discussed. The system features a 2-ft diameter carbon-fiber reinforced epoxy antenna reflector and support structure, and a 2-degree-of-freedom elevation over azimuth mechanism providing hemispherical field of view. Emphasis is placed on the constraints imposed on the mechanism by the radio frequency subsystems and how they impacted the mechanical configuration.

Emerick, Kenneth S.↗

Bursts of gamma rays from Compton scattering at cosmological distances

Compton scattering of the microwave background photons by beams of ultrarelativistic electrons at large redshifts, z much greater than 1, is proposed as a source of some gamma-ray bursts. Such beams may be produced by cusps on superconducting cosmic strings. In the present model, a very narrow beam of ultrarelativistic electron-positron pairs scatters the microwave background photons into a very narrow beam of gamma rays. While the pairs lose energy, the beam of gamma rays opens up and sweeps the observer. The expected time variability and spectra of the resulting gamma-ray burst are calculated. The bursts have a rapid rise time, followed by a more gradual decline. The spectra are initially very hard and become softer during the decline.

Zdziarski, Andrzej A.↗

Beam structure of Jupiter's decametric radiation

Data from concurrent Voyager and earth-based observations demonstrate that the Jovian source A radio emissions are not correlated with Io's position and have a distinct cross-sectional shape. The recordings were made simultaneously at 21.811 and 21.860 MHz in 1979. Voyager 1 and ground-data exhibited 13 highly correlated storms, unlike the Io-B events. Correlations were also identified among storms measured by both spacecraft and the ground station. Start and end times and flux densities for the highly correlated storms were used to calculate the projected beam shape. The data matched predictions of a model of a storm emission beam envelope in the form of a curved sheet that corotates with the planet.

Maeda, K.↗

Theoretical and Experimental Evaluation of the Bond Strength Under Peeling Loads

Reliable applications of adhesively bonded joints require understanding of the stress distribution along the bond-line and the stresses that are responsible for the joint failure. To properly evaluate factors affecting peel strength, effects of defects such as voids on the stress distribution in the overlap region must be understood. In this work, the peel stress distribution in a single lap joint is derived using a strength of materials approach. The bonded joint is modeled as Euler-Bernoulli beams, bonded together with an adhesive. which is modeled as an elastic foundation which can resist both peel and shear stresses. It is found that for certain adhesive and adherend geometries and properties, a central void with the size up to 50 percent of the overlap length has negligible effect on the peak peel and shear stresses. To verify the solutions obtained from the model, the problem is solved again by using the finite element method and by treating the adherends and the adhesive as elastic materials. It is found that the model used in the analysis not only predicts the correct trend for the peel stress distribution but also gives rather surprisingly close results to that of the finite element analysis. It is also found that both shear and peel stresses can be responsible for the joint performance and when a void is introduced, both of these stresses can contribute to the joint failure as the void size increases. Acoustic emission (AE) activities of aluminum-adhesive-aluminum specimens with different void sizes were monitored. The AE ringdown counts and energy were very sensitive and decreased significantly with the void size. It was observed that the AE events were shifting towards the edge of the overlap where the maximum peeling and shearing stresses were occurring as the void size increased.

Nayeb-Hashemi, Hamid↗

Static Aeroelastic Modeling of a Sub-Scale Wind Tunnel Model with Novel Flap Concept

This paper examines the static aeroelastic modeling of a flexible wind tunnel model equipped with a novel control effector known as the Variable Camber Continuous Trailing Edge Flap (VCCTEF) system. The wind tunnel model is an approximately 10 percent sub-scale version of a wing designed to be equipped on a commerical transport aircraft such as the full-scale NASA Generic Transport Model (GTM). The structure of the model is made highly flexible such that a 10 percent of semi-span wing tip deflection is expected at a design lift condition, and a representation of the VCCTEF concept is incorporated on the model. Static aeroelastic modeling is conducted by using a representative single beam structural finite-element model coupled to a vortex-lattice aerodynamic model. The resulting aeroelastic model of the flexible wind tunnel model is compared against experimental wind tunnel test results from the actual model tested at the University of Washington Aeronautical Laboratory (UWAL). Comparison cases are made using reference and VICON measurements of VCCTEF flap deflections from the wind tunnel test data, and percent errors between the lift curve parameters are presented. The results show up to a maximum percent of error of <10% with regards to lift curve slope values between the aeroelastic model and the UWAL test data. The agreement of lift curve slope values from the aeroelastic model and experimental test results serves as validation for the coupled vortex-lattice finite-element static aeroelastic model.

Aeroelasticity↗

The relation between hard X-ray and transition-region line emission in solar flares

Observational evidence suggests that both the hard X-ray and ultraviolet emission from the impulsive phase of flares result from an electron beam. The results of model calculations that are consistent with this theory are presented. The impulsive phase is envisioned as occurring in many small magnetically confined loops, each of which maintains an electron beam for only a few seconds. This model successfully matches several observed aspects of the impulsive phase. The corona is heated to less than 2 million K, maximum enhanced emission occurs in lines formed near 100,000 K, and there is only slight enhancement between 100,000 and 2 million K. The slope of the observed relationship between hard X-ray and Ov 1371 A emission is also matched, but the relative emission is not. The calculations indicate that UV emission lines formed below a temperature of about 100,000 K will arise predominantly from the chromospheric region heated by the electron beam to transition region temperatures. Emission lines formed at higher temperatures will be produced in the transition region. This should be detectable in density-sensitive line ratios. To account successfully for the impulsive UV emission, the peak temperature in the impulsively heated loops must remain below about 2 million K. Thus the model implies that the impulsive heating takes place in different loops from the hotter gradual phase emission.

Mariska, J. T.↗

The period-pulse-width distribution of pulsars and their division into three classes

The period-pulse-width (P-W) distribution of sample of 41 pulsars has been reanalyzed under two versions of a model where radiation is beamed from magnetic polar caps which are isotropically oriented with respect to the rotation axis of the neutron stars (IOPC models). It is found that neither IOPC model can explain the P-W distribution of the entire sample. Pulsars with simple unimodal (U) or complicated multimodal (M) pulse shapes show significantly different P-W distributions. Class M pulsars have a narrower P-W distribution than do class U pulsars and, taken separately, are compatible with either IOPC model. Class U pulsars divide into two subgroups, those with relatively narrower pulses (UN) and those with relatively wider pulses (UW), each of which is compatible with either IOPC model. One interpretation of these results is that the pulsars in classes UN, M, and UW have different intrinsic beam sizes, roughly in the ratios 1:2:4, respectively. The possible origins of the three classes are discussed in terms of the force-balance magnetosphere model (Roberts et al., 1972, 1973), where the differences may be attributed to different-mass neutron stars and the structure of the polar caps. An alternative interpretation is that the angle between the rotation and emission axes is not isotropically distributed, but can take only certain preferred values.

Roberts, D. H.↗

Maneuver simulations of flexible spacecraft by solving TPBVP

The optimal control of large angle rapid maneuvers and vibrations of a Shuttle mast reflector system is considered. The nonlinear equations of motion are formulated by using Lagrange's formula, with the mast modeled as a continuous beam. The nonlinear terms in the equations come from the coupling between the angular velocities, the modal coordinates, and the modal rates. Pontryagin's Maximum Principle is applied to the slewing problem, to derive the necessary conditions for the optimal controls, which are bounded by given saturation levels. The resulting two point boundary value problem (TPBVP) is then solved by using the quasilinearization algorithm and the method of particular solutions. In the numerical simulations, the structural parameters and the control limits from the Spacecraft Control Lab Experiment (SCOLE) are used. In the 2-D case, only the motion in the plane of an Earth orbit or the single axis slewing motion is discussed. In the 3-D slewing, the mast is modeled as a continuous beam subjected to 3-D deformations. The numerical results for both the linearized system and the nonlinear system are presented to compare the differences in their time response.

Bainum, Peter M.↗

Of narrow lines and beaming in the strong-field SSC emission model

The synchrotron self-Compton (SSC) emission model for gamma-ray bursts is capable of producing narrow line features for a variety of modelled field strengths, primary electron injection distributions and burst luminosities. Multiple resonant scattering with synchrotron continuum photons efficiently traps and cools pairs in the ground state to an average energy where the Compton energy loss rate is zero. Annihilation between pairs in these cooled distributions can be very efficient. For isotropic injection of primary electrons, there is an anti-correlation of the intensity of the angular-binned emission between the portions of the continuum spectrum below the cyclotron peak and above the annihilation line feature. Small-angle emission dominates the continuum above the annihilation line feature and is smooth through the line up to the pair production cut-off, which can be above several MeV for small enough angles. The angle-averaged annihilation line is made of components which can have peak emission centered at energies away from 511 keV, due to Doppler shifting. For beamed injection,the annihilation line breaks up into relatively narrow components in the angular emission, which sum into a broad feature in the angle-averaged emission.

Preece, Robert D.↗

Boundary Layer Measurements in a Supersonic Wind Tunnel Using Doppler Global Velocimetry

A modified Doppler Global Velocimeter (DGV) was developed to measure the velocity within the boundary layer above a flat plate in a supersonic flow. Classic laser velocimetry (LV) approaches could not be used since the model surface was composed of a glass-ceramic insulator in support of heat-transfer measurements. Since surface flare limited the use of external LV techniques and windows placed in the model would change the heat transfer characteristics of the flat plate, a novel approach was developed. The input laser beam was divided into nine equal power beams and each transmitted through optical fibers to a small cavity within the model. The beams were then directed through 1.6-mm diameter orifices to form a series of orthogonal beams emitted from the model and aligned with the tunnel centerline to approximate a laser light sheet. Scattered light from 0.1-micron diameter water condensation ice crystals was collected by four 5-mm diameter lenses and transmitted by their respective optical fiber bundles to terminate at the image plane of a standard two-camera DGV receiver. Flow measurements were made over a range from 0.5-mm above the surface to the freestream at Mach 3.51 in steady state and heat pulse injected flows. This technique provides a unique option for measuring boundary layers in supersonic flows where seeding the flow is problematic or where the experimental apparatus does not provide the optical access required by other techniques.

Meyers, James F.↗

Proof-mass actuator placement strategies for regulation of flexure during the SCOLE slew

An analysis was performed in order to find the best placement for proof-mass actuators and to determine the importance of placement, i.e., what is the sensitivity of beam flexure to actuator placement. The analysis was performed by using the NASTRAN finite element model for a flexible beam with 21 grid points on beam, by using the nonlinear DISCOS simulation of 20 deg slew and the use of a closed-loop linear quadratic regulator (lqr). Some conclusions reached are: (1) proof-mass actuators can reduce flexure amplitude and damp oscillations; (2) amplitude of deformations during slew is relatively insensitive to placement of actuators; (3) damping factor of oscillations is sensitive to actuator placement; and (4) the degree of controllability method indicates most effective placement for actuators.

Fisher, Shalom (mike)↗

Complete tank tests of two flying-boat hulls with pointed steps - N.A.C.A. Models 22-A and 35

This note presents the results of complete tank test of N.A.C.A. Models 22-A and 35, two flying-boat hulls of the deep pointed-step type with low dead rise. Model 22-A is a form derived by modification of Model 22, the test results of which are given in N.A.C.A. Technical Note No. 488. Model 35 is a form of the same type but has a higher length-beam ratio than either Model 22 or 22-A. Take-off examples are worked out using data from these tests and a previous test of a conventional model applied to an arbitrary set of design specifications for a 15,000-pound flying boat. The comparison of these examples shows both pointed-step models to be superior to the conventional form, and Model 35 to be the better of the two. Model 35 is applied to a hypothetical 100,000-pound flying boat of the twin-hull type and performance calculations are made both for take-off and range. The results indicate that the high performance of this type of hull will enable the designer to use higher wing and power loadings than are found in current practice, with a resulting increase in range and pay load.

Shoemaker, James M↗

Beam-return current systems in nonthermal solar flare models

It is shown here that the generation of return current in large-scale astrophysical plasmas such as solar flares is quite different from the laboratory environment. Whereas in the laboratory the return current is established inductively and subsequently decays on a resistive timescale, the return current in a solar flare is established electrostatically and therefore does not decay. An explanation of the difference is given in terms of the characteristics of the laboratory circuit.

Larosa, T. N.↗

Damage-mitigating control of a reusable rocket engine for high performance and extended life

The goal of damage mitigating control in reusable rocket engines is to achieve high performance with increased durability of mechanical structures such that functional lives of the critical components are increased. The major benefit is an increase in structural durability with no significant loss of performance. This report investigates the feasibility of damage mitigating control of reusable rocket engines. Phenomenological models of creep and thermo-mechanical fatigue damage have been formulated in the state-variable setting such that these models can be combined with the plant model of a reusable rocket engine, such as the Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME), for synthesizing an optimal control policy. Specifically, a creep damage model of the main thrust chamber wall is analytically derived based on the theories of sandwich beam and viscoplasticity. This model characterizes progressive bulging-out and incremental thinning of the coolant channel ligament leading to its eventual failure by tensile rupture. The objective is to generate a closed form solution of the wall thin-out phenomenon in real time where the ligament geometry is continuously updated to account for the resulting deformation. The results are in agreement with those obtained from the finite element analyses and experimental observation for both Oxygen Free High Conductivity (OFHC) copper and a copper-zerconium-silver alloy called NARloy-Z. Due to its computational efficiency, this damage model is suitable for on-line applications of life prediction and damage mitigating control, and also permits parametric studies for off-line synthesis of damage mitigating control systems. The results are presented to demonstrate the potential of life extension of reusable rocket engines via damage mitigating control. The control system has also been simulated on a testbed to observe how the damage at different critical points can be traded off without any significant loss of engine performance. The research work reported here is built upon concepts derived from the disciplines of Controls, Thermo-fluids, Structures, and Materials. The concept of damage mitigation, as presented in this report, is not restricted to control of rocket engines. It can be applied to any system where structural durability is an important issue.

Ray, Asok↗

Distributed structural control using multilayered piezoelectric actuators. I - Analysis

Timoshenko beam theory is applied to beams with multiple layers of piezoelectric material attached. The model is developed using a Hamiltonian approach, and includes a model of the external electrical circuits to which the piezoelectric layers are attached, as well as a complete set of boundary conditions. The resulting model is then formulated in state space, and compared to a state space model of the standard Timoshenko beam.

Cudney, H. H.↗