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At least 55 records · Page 3

Performance estimation for highly loaded six and ten blade propellers combined with an advanced technology turboshaft engine

Performance estimations, weights, and scaling laws for the six blade and ten blade highly loaded propellers combined with an advanced turboshaft engine are presented. These data are useful for aircraft mission studies using the turboprop system. Comparisons are made between the performance of post 1980 technology turboprop propulsion systems and the performance of both a current technology turbofan and a post 1990 technology turbofan.

Morris, S. J., Jr.↗

The Alternating Surface Segmented Lap Joint: a Design for Thin Highly Loaded Joints

The combination of thin airfoil sections and high aerodynamic loads on many wind tunnel models presents a major problem for attachment of flap elements. Conventional methods of attaching fixed control elements such as lap and tongue-in-groove joints are not rigid enough to provide surface continuity required in high Reynolds number research. For the extreme cases, the solution has been to fabricate separate wings for each flap setting with the flap element being and integral part of the wing. Here an attractive solution to this problem, the alternating surface segmented lap joint, is discussed. This joint provides increased rigidity and lower stress levels than conventional joints. Additionally, attachment fastener loading is low and the joint can be designed to accommodate high shear levels due to bending without the use of dowel pins.

Watkins, V. E., Jr.↗

Capability Extension to the Turbine Off-Design Computer Program AXOD With Applications to the Highly Loaded Fan-Drive Turbines

The axial flow turbine off-design computer program AXOD has been upgraded to include the outlet guide vane (OGV) into its acceptable turbine configurations. The mathematical bases and the techniques used for the code implementation are described and discussed in lengths in this paper. This extended capability is verified and validated with two cases of highly loaded fan-drive turbines, designed and tested in the V/STOL Program of NASA. The first case is a 4 1/2-stage turbine with an average stage loading factor of 4.66, designed by Pratt & Whitney Aircraft. The second case is a 3 1/2-stage turbine with an average loading factor of 4.0, designed in-house by the NASA Lewis Research Center (now the NASA Glenn Research Center). Both cases were experimentally tested in the turbine facility located at the Glenn Research Center. The processes conducted in these studies are described in detail in this paper, and the results in comparison with the experimental data are presented and discussed. The comparisons between the AXOD results and the experimental data are in excellent agreement.

Chen, Shu-cheng S.↗

Single-stage experimental evaluation of low aspect ratio, highly loaded blading for compressors. Part 9: Stage F and stage G, volume 1

Two single-stage, 0.77 hub/tip ratio axial-flow compressors were tested to evaluate the effectiveness of low aspect ratio blading as a means of obtaining higher stage loadings. One compressor, designated Stage F, was comprised of circular arc blading with an aspect ratio of 0.9 for both the rotor and stator. This compressor was tested with uniform inlet flow, hub radial, tip radial, and 180 deg arc circumferential inlet distortion. The second compressor, designated Stage G, was comprised of multiple circular arc blading with an aspect ratio of 1.0 for both the rotor and stator. This compressor was tested with uniform inlet flow only. Design rotor tip speeds for Rotor F and Rotor G were 285 m/sec (934 ft/sec) and 327 m/sec (1,074 ft/sec) respectively. Both stages operated at high loading levels with adequate efficiency and operating range. The peak efficiencies and corresponding average stage diffusion factors for Stages F and G at design rotor speed were 86.4% and 84.1% and 0.59 and 0.55 respectively. The surge margin at peak efficiency for Stage F was 12.6% and the corresponding value for Stage G was 16.5%. Both stages experienced a loss in efficiency with increasing rotor speed; however, the multiple circular arc rotor delayed the characteristic loss in efficiency within increasing Mach number to higher Mach number.

Cheatham, J. G.↗

Effects of Unsteady Flow Interactions on the Performance of a Highly-Loaded Transonic Compressor Stage

The primary focus of this paper is to investigate the loss sources in an advanced GE transonic compressor design with high reaction and high stage loading. This advanced compressor has been investigated both experimentally and analytically in the past. The measured compressor efficiency is significantly lower than the efficiency calculated with various existing tools based on RANS and URANS. The general understanding is that some important flow physics in this modern compressor design are not represented in the current tools. To pinpoint the source of the efficiency miss, an advanced test with detailed flow traverse was performed for the front one and a half stage at the NASA Glenn Research Center. In the present paper, a Large Eddy Simulation (LES) is employed to determine whether a higher-fidelity simulation can pick up any additional flow physics that can explain past efficiency miss with RANS and URANS. The results from the Large Eddy Simulation were compared with the NASA test results and the GE interpretation of the test data. LES calculates lower total pressure and higher total temperature on the pressure side of the stator, resulting in large loss generation on the pressure side of the stator. On the other hand, existing tools based on the RANS and URANS do not calculate this high total temperature and low total pressure on the pressure side of the stator. The calculated loss through the stator from LES seems to match the measured data and the GE data interpretation. Detailed examination of the unsteady flow field from LES indicates that the accumulation of high loss near the pressure side of the stator is due to the interaction of the rotor wake with the stator blade. The strong rotor wake interacts quite differently with the pressure side of the stator than with the suction side of the stator blade. The concave curvature on the pressure side of the stator blade increases the mixing of the rotor wake with the pressure side boundary layer significantly. On the other hand, the convex curvature on the suction side of the stator blade decreases the mixing and the suction side blade boundary layer remains thin. The jet velocity in the rotor wake in the stator frame seems to magnify the curvature effect in addition to inviscid redistribution of wake fluid toward the pressure side of the blade.

LES↗

Scuffing Characteristics of High-Load Rolling/Sliding Contacts Operating in Liquid Oxygen: Effects of Materials and Surface Roughness

This research reports on an experimental study of the effects of materials and surface roughness on the scuffing characteristics of rolling/sliding contacts cooled and lubricated with liquid oxygen. Experiments were carried out under heavy loading with a Hertzian pressure in the range of 2.0 GPa to 3.0 GPa and with a high rolling velocity of up to 48 m/s. For contacts between AISI 440 C stainless-steel elements, the results showed that the scuffing behavior of the system was fairly consistent under a wide range of rolling velocity. Scuffing commenced at a small slide-to-roll ratio of around 0.02, and the scuffing behavior of the contact was not sensitive to surface roughness for the test-sample RMS roughness ranging from 0.02 microns to 0.10 microns. For contacts between 440 C and Si3N4 elements, on the other hand, the scuffing behavior of the system was not very consistent and somewhat unpredictable. The results were sensitive to surface roughness particularly that of the Si3N4 test sample. With well polished test samples, consistent results were obtained; the level of traction was lower than that with a 440 C toroid and scuffing did not take place up to a slide-to-roll ratio of near 0.03. The results strongly suggest that significant hydrodynamic effect can be generated by liquid oxygen under heavy loading and high velocity conditions. The results also suggest that the hydrodynamic action is likely generated by the conventional viscous mechanism as it can be largely destroyed by a narrow circumferential surface scratch running through the central region of the contact.

Chang, L.↗

Unsteady Loss in the Stator Due to the Incoming Rotor Wake in a Highly-Loaded Transonic Compressor

The present paper reports an investigation of unsteady loss generation in the stator due to the incoming rotor wake in an advanced GE transonic compressor design with a high-fidelity numerical method. This advanced compressor with high reaction and high stage loading has been investigated both experimentally and analytically in the past. The measured efficiency in this advanced compressor is significantly lower than the design intention/goal. The general understanding is that the current generation of compressor design/analysis tools miss some important flow physics in this modern compressor design. To pinpoint the source of the efficiency miss, an advanced test with a detailed flow traverse was performed for the front one and a half stage at the NASA Glenn Research Center. Detailed data-match analysis by GE identified an unexpected high loss generation in the pressure side of the stator passage. Higher total temperature and lower total pressure are measured near the pressure side of the stator. Various analyses based on the RANS and URANS of the compressor stage do not calculate the measured higher total temperature and lower total pressure on the pressure side of the stator. In the present paper, a Large Eddy Simulation (LES) is applied to find the fundamental mechanism of this unsteady loss generation in the stator due to the incoming rotor wake. The results from the LES were first compared with the NASA test results and the GE interpretation of the test data. LES calculates lower total pressure and higher total temperature on the pressure side of the stator, as the measured data showed, resulting in large loss generation on the pressure side of the stator. Detailed examination of the unsteady flow field from LES shows that the rotor wake, which has higher total temperature and higher total pressure relative to the free stream, interacts quite differently with the pressure side of the blade compared to the suction side of the blade. The higher temperature in the wake remains high as the wake passes through the pressure side of the blade. On the other hand, the total temperature diffuses as it passes through near the suction surface. For the presently investigated compressor, the classical intra-stator wake transport to the pressure side of the blade by the slip velocity in the wake seems to be minor. The main causes of this phenomenon are three-dimensional unsteady vortex interactions near the blade surface. The stabilizing effect of the concave curvature on the suction side keeps the rotor wake thin. On the other hand, the destabilizing effect of the convex curvature of the pressure side makes the rotor wake thicker, which results in a higher total temperature measurement at the stator exit. Additionally, wake stretching through the stator seems to contribute to the redistribution of the total temperature and the loss generation.

Efficiency↗

Unsteady Loss in the Stator Due to the Incoming Rotor Wake in a Highly-Loaded Transonic Compressor

The present paper reports an investigation of unsteady loss generation in the stator due to the incoming rotor wake in an advanced GE transonic compressor design with a high-fidelity numerical method. This advanced compressor with high reaction and high stage loading has been investigated both experimentally and analytically in the past. The measured efficiency in this advanced compressor is significantly lower than the design intention goal. The general understanding is that the current generation of compressor design analysis tools miss some important flow physics in this modern compressor design. To pinpoint the source of the efficiency miss, an advanced test with a detailed flow traverse was performed for the front one and a half stage at the NASA Glenn Research Center.

Compressor↗

Highly loaded multi-stage fan drive turbine: Leaned stator configuration design

The results of the high lift blade configuration design study are reported. The three-stage constant-inside-diameter turbine utilizes a ten degree tangentially leaned stator in stage three. All other bladerows use plain blades. Analysis of the leaned stator is discussed, and detailed design data are summarized. Steady-state stresses are discussed, and the results of the mechanical design analysis are presented.

Evans, D. C.↗

High-Temperature, High-Load-Capacity Radial Magnetic Bearing

A radial heteropolar magnetic bearing capable of operating at a temperature as high as 1,000 F (=540 C) has been developed. This is a prototype of bearings for use in gas turbine engines operating at temperatures and speeds much higher than can be withstood by lubricated rolling-element bearings. It is possible to increase the maximum allowable operating temperatures and speeds of rolling-element bearings by use of cooling-air systems, sophisticated lubrication systems, and rotor-vibration- damping systems that are subsystems of the lubrication systems, but such systems and subsystems are troublesome. In contrast, a properly designed radial magnetic bearing can suspend a rotor without contact, and, hence, without need for lubrication or for cooling. Moreover, a magnetic bearing eliminates the need for a separate damping system, inasmuch as a damping function is typically an integral part of the design of the control system of a magnetic bearing. The present high-temperature radial heteropolar magnetic bearing has a unique combination of four features that contribute to its suitability for the intended application: 1. The wires in its electromagnet coils are covered with an insulating material that does not undergo dielectric breakdown at high temperature and is pliable enough to enable the winding of the wires to small radii. 2. The processes used in winding and potting of the coils yields a packing factor close to 0.7 . a relatively high value that helps in maximizing the magnetic fields generated by the coils for a given supplied current. These processes also make the coils structurally robust. 3. The electromagnets are of a modular C-core design that enables replacement of components and semiautomated winding of coils. 4. The stator is mounted in such a manner as to provide stable support under radial and axial thermal expansion and under a load as large as 1,000 lb (.4.4 kN).

Provenza, Andrew↗

Investigation of the jet-wake flow of a highly loaded centrifugal compressor impeller

Investigations, aimed at developing a better understanding of the complex flow field in high performance centrifugal compressors were performed. Newly developed measuring techniques for unsteady static and total pressures as well as flow directions, and a digital data analysis system for fluctuating signals were thoroughly tested. The loss-affected mixing process of the distorted impeller discharge flow was investigated in detail, in the absolute and relative system, at impeller tip speeds up to 380 m/s. A theoretical analysis proved good coincidence of the test results with the DEAN-SENOO theory, which was extended to compressible flows.

Eckardt, D.↗

Aerodynamic design and analysis of a highly loaded turbine exhaust

The aerodynamic design and analysis of a turbine exhaust volute manifold is described. This turbine exhaust system will be used with an advanced gas generator oxidizer turbine designed for very high specific work. The elevated turbine stage loading results in increased discharge Mach number and swirl velocity which, along with the need for minimal circumferential variation of fluid properties at the turbine exit, represent challenging volute design requirements. The design approach, candidate geometries analyzed, and steady state/unsteady CFD analysis results are presented.

Huber, F. W.↗

Friction and oxidative wear of 440C ball bearing steels under high load and extreme bulk temperatures

Unlubricated sliding friction and wear of 440C steels in an oxygen environment have been studied under a variety of load, speed, and temperature ranging from approximately -185 to 675 deg C. A specially designed test apparatus with a ball-on-flat geometry has been used for this purpose. The observed dependencies of the initial coefficient of friction, the average dynamic coefficient of friction, and the wear rate on load, speed, and test temperatures have been examined from the standpoint of existing theories of friction and wear. High contact temperatures are generated during the sliding friction, causing rapid oxidation and localized surface melting. A combination of fatigue, delamination, and loss of hardness due to tempering of the martensitic structure is responsible for the high wear rate observed and the coefficient of friction.

Chaudhuri, Dilip K.↗

Highly loaded multi-stage fan drive turbine-cascade test program

Test results are presented for 19 cascades involving five plain and two tandem blade sections. High camber and/or negative reaction is associated with six of the sections. Exit Mach numbers range up to slightly above sonic. Cascade efficiency, exit flow angle and static pressure, and blade surface pressure data are reported with incidence angle, Mach number, solidity, and relative position of the tandem blades as independent variables.

Cherry, D. G.↗

Hybrid Superconducting Magnetic Bearing (HSMB) for high load devices

Lifting capacities greater than 41 N/cm(exp 2) (60 psi) at 77 K have been achieved with a new type of levitation (hybrid) using a combination of permanent magnets and high quality melt-mixtured YBa2Cu3O(7-delta) (YBCO). The key concept of the hybrid superconducting magnetic bearing (HSMB) is the use of strong magnetic repulsion and attraction from permanent magnets for high levitation or suspension forces in conjunction with a superconductor's flux pinning characteristics to counteract the inherent instabilities in a system consisting of magnets only. To illustrate this concept, radial and axial forces between magnet/superconductor, magnet/magnet, and magnet/superconductor/magnet, were measured and compared for the thrust bearing configuration

Mcmichael, C. K.↗

CFD Simulations for the Effect of Unsteady Wakes on the Boundary Layer of a Highly Loaded Low-Pressure Turbine Airfoil (L1A)

This report is the third part of a three-part final report of research performed under an NRA cooperative Agreement contract. The first part was published as NASA/CR-2012-217415. The second part was published as NASA/CR-2012-217416. The study of the very high lift low-pressure turbine airfoil L1A in the presence of unsteady wakes was performed computationally and compared against experimental results. The experiments were conducted in a low speed wind tunnel under high (4.9%) and then low (0.6%) freestream turbulence intensity for Reynolds number equal to 25,000 and 50,000. The experimental and computational data have shown that in cases without wakes, the boundary layer separated without reattachment. The CFD was done with LES and URANS utilizing the finite-volume code ANSYS Fluent (ANSYS, Inc.) under the same freestream turbulence and Reynolds number conditions as the experiment but only at a rod to blade spacing of 1. With wakes, separation was largely suppressed, particularly if the wake passing frequency was sufficiently high. This was validated in the 3D CFD efforts by comparing the experimental results for the pressure coefficients and velocity profiles, which were reasonable for all cases examined. The 2D CFD efforts failed to capture the three dimensionality effects of the wake and thus were less consistent with the experimental data. The effect of the freestream turbulence intensity levels also showed a little more consistency with the experimental data at higher intensities when compared with the low intensity cases. Additional cases with higher wake passing frequencies which were not run experimentally were simulated. The results showed that an initial 25% increase from the experimental wake passing greatly reduced the size of the separation bubble, nearly completely suppressing it.

Vinci, Samuel, J.↗

Fast approach for calculating film thicknesses and pressures in elastohydrodynamically lubricated contacts at high loads

The film thicknesses and pressures in elastohydrodynamically lubricated contacts have been calculated for a line contact by using an improved version of Okamura's approach. The new approach allows for lubricant compressibility, the use of Roelands' viscosity, a general mesh (nonconstant step), and accurate calculations of the elastic deformation. The new approach is described, and the effects on film thickness, pressure, and pressure spike of each of the improvements are discussed. Successful runs have been obtained at high pressure (to 4.8 GPa) with low CPU times.

Houpert, L. G.↗