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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 757 records · Page 42
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1990

Third-sound propagation in thick films of superfluid He-4

Atkins' (1959) basic theory of third sound in thick films of superfluid He-4 is extended here to include a heat source for exciting third sound. A one-dimensional model obeying periodic boundary conditions is developed which can represent a variety of experimentally important configurations. General solutions for the model equations are found which give a complete description of third-sound waves in terms of displacement of the film surface, superfluid velocity, and temperature change as functions of space and time. Algebraic expressions for quantities that occur in general formulas are found for special excitation signals. The structure of third sound is calculated for the first time and the results are found to be inconsistent with previous findings. A direct method for accurately measuring the vaporization coefficient is also presented.

Jackson, H. W.↗
NASA NTRS1974

Nonlinear finite-element analysis of laminated composite shells

Two aspects of the geometrically nonlinear analysis of laminated composite shells are considered in this paper. The first pertains to the simplifications and computational advantages resulting from the use of group-theoretic methods in conjunction with computerized symbolic (algebraic) manipulation in the element development. The second aspect pertains to the combined effects of shear deformation and nonlinearity on the accuracy and convergence of two-dimensional, shear-flexible stiffness finite element models.

Noor, A. K.↗
NASA NTRS1992

A new method for transonic static aeroelasticity problems

A new method has been developed to calculate the steady flow and structural deformations for fluid/structure interaction problems. The discretized fluid dynamic and structural equations are regarded as a single set of coupled, nonlinear, algebraic equations. The equilibrium solution is directly obtained using Newton's method. The governing equations used for the fluid flow are the two-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations, and a finite-element model is used to represent the structure. This paper describes the analytical method and presents sample calculations demonstrating the technique. The results show rapid convergence and good agreement with experimental data.

Felker, Fort F.↗
NASA NTRS1977

Pure field theories and MACSYMA algorithms

A pure field theory attempts to describe physical phenomena through singularity-free solutions of field equations resulting from an action principle. The physics goes into forming the action principle and interpreting specific results. Algorithms for the intervening mathematical steps are sketched. Vacuum general relativity is a pure field theory, serving as model and providing checks for generalizations. The fields of general relativity are the 10 components of a symmetric Riemannian metric tensor; those of the Einstein-Straus generalization are the 16 components of a nonsymmetric. Algebraic properties are exploited in top level MACSYMA commands toward performing some of the algorithms of that generalization. The light cone for the theory as left by Einstein and Straus is found and simplifications of that theory are discussed.

Ament, W. S.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Optimal matrix approximants in structural identification

Problems of model correlation and system identification are central in the design, analysis, and control of large space structures. Of the numerous methods that have been proposed, many are based on finding minimal adjustments to a model matrix sufficient to introduce some desirable quality into that matrix. In this work, several of these methods are reviewed, placed in a modern framework, and linked to other previously known ideas in computational linear algebra and optimization. This new framework provides a point of departure for a number of new methods which are introduced here. Significant among these is a method for stiffness matrix adjustment which preserves the sparsity pattern of an original matrix, requires comparatively modest computational resources, and allows robust handling of noisy modal data. Numerical examples are included to illustrate the methods presented herein.

Beattie, C. A.↗
NASA NTRS1998

Microwave Imaging on Metal Objects

This final report for the project discusses the attempts to model, using different methods, microwave image reconstruction. Maximum Entropy Method was not successful. Attempts to use Singular Value Decomposition (SVD) got some good results after initial failure. SVD is based upon a theory of linear algebra, to the effect that any M X N Matrix A whose number of rows M is greater than or equal to its number of columns, N can be written as the product of an M X N column-orthogonal matrix U, an N X N diagonal Matrix, W, with m positive or zero elements (the singular values) and the transposition of an N X N orthogonal matrix V. In microwave imaging, the scattered fields can be expressed by the induced current distribution. The SVD method required more contiguous computer memory than was available. Work was also done on the Conjugate Gradient Method (CGM), which didn't work well when tried earlier. It was found that separation of the imaginary part and the real part during calculation may work. This work was considered incomplete as of the end of the grant period.

Tolliver, C. L.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Parameter identification for nonlinear aerodynamic systems

Parameter identification for nonlinear aerodynamic systems is examined. It is presumed that the underlying model can be arranged into an input/output (I/O) differential operator equation of a generic form. The algorithm estimation is especially efficient since the equation error can be integrated exactly given any I/O pair to obtain an algebraic function of the parameters. The algorithm for parameter identification was extended to the order determination problem for linear differential system. The degeneracy in a least squares estimate caused by feedback was addressed. A method of frequency analysis for determining the transfer function G(j omega) from transient I/O data was formulated using complex valued Fourier based modulating functions in contrast with the trigonometric modulating functions for the parameter estimation problem. A simulation result of applying the algorithm is given under noise-free conditions for a system with a low pass transfer function.

Pearson, Allan E.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Order reduction of z-transfer functions via multipoint Jordan continued-fraction expansion

The order reduction problem of z-transfer functions is solved by using the multipoint Jordan continued-fraction expansion (MJCFE) technique. An efficient algorithm that does not require the use of complex algebra is presented for obtaining an MJCFE from a stable z-transfer function with expansion points selected from the unit circle and/or the positive real axis of the z-plane. The reduced-order models are exactly the multipoint Pade approximants of the original system and, therefore, they match the (weighted) time-moments of the impulse response and preserve the frequency responses of the system at some characteristic frequencies, such as gain crossover frequency, phase crossover frequency, bandwidth, etc.

Lee, Ying-Chin↗
NASA NTRS1991

Diurnal forcing of planetary atmospheres

A free convection parameterization has been introduced into the Mars Planetary Boundary Layer Model (MPBL). Previously, the model would fail to generate turbulence under conditions of zero wind shear, even when statically unstable. This in turn resulted in erroneous results at the equator, for example, when the lack of Coriolis forcing allowed zero wind conditions. The underlying cause of these failures was the level 2 second-order turbulence closure scheme which derived diffusivities as algebraic functions of the Richardson number (the ratio of static stability to wind shear). In the previous formulation, the diffusivities were scaled by the wind shear--a convenient parameter since it is non-negative. This was the drawback that all diffusivities are zero under conditions of zero shear (viz., the free convection case). The new scheme tests for the condition of zero shear in conjunction with static instability and recalculates the diffusivities using a static stability scaling. The results for a simulation of the equatorial boundary layer at autumnal equinox are presented. (Note that after some wind shear is generated, the model reverts to the traditional diffusivity calculation.)

Houben, Howard C.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Iterative optical vector-matrix processors (survey of selected achievable operations)

An iterative optical vector-matrix multiplier with a microprocessor-controlled feedback loop capable of performing a wealth of diverse operations was described. A survey and description of many of its operations demonstrates the versatility and flexibility of this class of optical processor and its use in diverse applications. General operations described include: linear difference and differential equations, linear algebraic equations, matrix equations, matrix inversion, nonlinear matrix equations, deconvolution and eigenvalue and eigenvector computations. Engineering applications being addressed for these different operations and for the IOP are: adaptive phased-array radar, time-dependent system modeling, deconvolution and optimal control.

Casasent, D.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Software design as a problem in learning theory (a research overview)

Our interest in automating software design has come out of our research in automated reasoning, inductive inference, learnability, and algebraic machine theory. We have investigated these areas extensively, in connection with specific problems of language representation, acquisition, processing, and design. In the case of formal context-free (CF) languages we established existence of finite learnable models ('behavioral realizations') and procedures for constructing them effectively. We also determined techniques for automatic construction of the models, inductively inferring them from finite examples of how they should 'behave'. These results were obtainable due to appropriate representation of domain knowledge, and constraints on the domain that the representation defined. It was when we sought to generalize our results, and adapt or apply them, that we began investigating the possibility of determining similar procedures for constructing correct software. Discussions with other researchers led us to examine testing and verification processes, as they are related to inference, and due to their considerable importance in correct software design. Motivating papers by other researchers, led us to examine these processes in some depth. Here we present our approach to those software design issues raised by other researchers, within our own theoretical context. We describe our results, relative to those of the other researchers, and conclude that they do not compare unfavorably.

Fass, Leona F.↗
NASA NTRS1993

A representation for the turbulent mass flux contribution to Reynolds-stress and two-equation closures for compressible turbulence

The turbulent mass flux, or equivalently the fluctuating Favre velocity mean, appears in the first and second moment equations of compressible kappa-epsilon and Reynolds stress closures. Mathematically it is the difference between the unweighted and density-weighted averages of the velocity field and is therefore a measure of the effects of compressibility through variations in density. It appears to be fundamental to an inhomogeneous compressible turbulence, in which it characterizes the effects of the mean density gradients, in the same way the anisotropy tensor characterizes the effects of the mean velocity gradients. An evolution equation for the turbulent mass flux is derived. A truncation of this equation produces an algebraic expression for the mass flux. The mass flux is found to be proportional to the mean density gradients with a tensor eddy-viscosity that depends on both the mean deformation and the Reynolds stresses. The model is tested in a wall bounded DNS at Mach 4.5 with notable results.

Ristorcelli, J. R.↗
NASA NTRS1996

There aren't Non-Standard Solutions for the Braid Group Representations of the QYBE Associated with 10-D Representations of SU(4)

It is well known that the quantum Yang-Baxter equations (QYBE) play an important role in various theoretical and mathematical physics, such as completely integrable system in (1 + 1)-dimensions, exactly solvable models in statistical mechanics, the quantum inverse scattering method and the conformal field theories in 2-dimensions. Recently, much remarkable progress has been made in constructing the solutions of the QYBE associated with the representations of lie algebras. It is shown that for some cases except the standard solutions, there also exist new solutions, but the others have not non-standard solutions. In this paper by employing the weight conservation and the diagrammatic techniques we show that the solution associated with the 10-D representations of SU (4) are standard alone.

Yijun, Huang↗
NASA NTRS1986

Computing Relative Joint Positions of Robot Arms

Vector-algebra method developed for extracting Denavit-Hartenberg parameters for any assembled robot arm. Method for extracting relative joint geometry of robot arms useful to researchers who need data for existing robot arms for either validation of mathematical models or for studies involving actual control of these devices. Method, does not require robot arm to be disassembled, also useful in recalibration of misalined or bent robot arm and becomes useful industrial procedure. Merit of method is errors not propagated.

Barker, L. K.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Maxwell's second- and third-order equations of transfer for non-Maxwellian gases

Condensed algebraic forms for Maxwell's second- and third-order equations of transfer are developed for the case of molecules described by either elastic hard spheres, inverse-power potentials, or by Bird's variable hard-sphere model. These hardly reduced, yet exact, equations provide a new point of origin, when using the moment method, in seeking approximate solutions in the kinetic theory of gases for molecular models that are physically more realistic than that provided by the Maxwell model. An important by-product of the analysis when using these second- and third-order relations is that a clear mathematical connection develops between Bird's variable hard-sphere model and that for the inverse-power potential.

Baganoff, D.↗
NASA NTRS1981

An experimental investigation into the feasibility of a thermoelectric heat flux gage

An experiment was conducted to determine the feasibility of using a commerically available thermoelectric device as a heat flux gage. In certain research applications, the thermoelectric heat flux gage can provide a relatively simple means to model a warm fluid--cold wall. The experiment showed that heat flux through the gage could be correlated within two percent to the applied thermoelectric current through the device and the hot and cold side temperature with a simple algebraic equation.

Jones, J. C.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Studies of implicit and explicit solution techniques in transient thermal analysis of structures

Studies aimed at an increase in the efficiency of calculating transient temperature fields in complex aerospace vehicle structures are reported. The advantages and disadvantages of explicit and implicit algorithms are discussed and a promising set of implicit algorithms with variable time steps, known as GEARIB, is described. Test problems, used for evaluating and comparing various algorithms, are discussed and finite element models of the configurations are described. These problems include a coarse model of the Space Shuttle wing, an insulated frame tst article, a metallic panel for a thermal protection system, and detailed models of sections of the Space Shuttle wing. Results generally indicate a preference for implicit over explicit algorithms for transient structural heat transfer problems when the governing equations are stiff (typical of many practical problems such as insulated metal structures). The effects on algorithm performance of different models of an insulated cylinder are demonstrated. The stiffness of the problem is highly sensitive to modeling details and careful modeling can reduce the stiffness of the equations to the extent that explicit methods may become the best choice. Preliminary applications of a mixed implicit-explicit algorithm and operator splitting techniques for speeding up the solution of the algebraic equations are also described.

Adelman, H. M.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Relative control effectiveness technique with application to airplane control coordination

A method to select optimal combinations of the control variables of a linear system is reported. The combinations are chosen so that the control channels have their principal influences on selected fundamental modes of the system. A series of algebraic maximization problems is used to maximize the effects of the control channels on selected modes while simultaneously minimizing the effects on the remaining modes. The method is applied to the lateral and directional control of a linearized airplane model having ailerons, a rudder, and differential tail surfaces. Integration of these control eliminates oscillations present in the roll rate for a step lateral-control input and improves the sideslip response with reduced rolling motions for a step directional-control input. Inclusion of thrust-vectoring engine nozzles improves the roll rate capability of the airplane.

Lallman, F. J.↗