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At least 775 records · Page 43

Paneling methods with vorticity effects and corrections for nonlinear compressibility

The prediction of missile aerodynamic characteristics is presently undertaken through the application of supersonic paneling methods and nonlinear corrections to the prediction of missile aerodynamic characteristics. Attention is given to supersonic panel methods and line-singularity methods for the modeling of axisymmetric bodies, in combination with corrections for nonlinear flow phenomena, which are applied to complete missile, inlets, and wing-body combinations. The LRCDM2 computer program is used as an example of the methods presented.

Dillenius, Marnix F. E.↗

Turbomachinery aeroelasticity at NASA Lewis Research Center

The turbomachinery aeroelastic effort is focused on unstalled and stalled flutter, forced response, and whirl flutter of both single rotation and counter rotation propfans. It also includes forced response of the Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) turbopump blades. Because of certain unique features of propfans and the SSME turbopump blades, it is not possible to directly use the existing aeroelastic technology of conventional propellers, turbofans or helicopters. Therefore, reliable aeroelastic stability and response analysis methods for these propulsion systems must be developed. The development of these methods for propfans requires specific basic technology disciplines, such as 2-D and 3-D steady and unsteady aerodynamic theories in subsonic, transonic and supersonic flow regimes; modeling of composite blades; geometric nonlinear effects; and passive and active control of flutter and response. These methods are incorporated in a computer program, ASTROP. The program has flexibility such that new and future models in basic disciplines can be easily implemented.

Kaza, Krishna Rao V.↗

Neural control of magnetic suspension systems

The purpose of this research program is to design, build and test (in cooperation with NASA personnel from the NASA Langley Research Center) neural controllers for two different small air-gap magnetic suspension systems. The general objective of the program is to study neural network architectures for the purpose of control in an experimental setting and to demonstrate the feasibility of the concept. The specific objectives of the research program are: (1) to demonstrate through simulation and experimentation the feasibility of using neural controllers to stabilize a nonlinear magnetic suspension system; (2) to investigate through simulation and experimentation the performance of neural controllers designs under various types of parametric and nonparametric uncertainty; (3) to investigate through simulation and experimentation various types of neural architectures for real-time control with respect to performance and complexity; and (4) to benchmark in an experimental setting the performance of neural controllers against other types of existing linear and nonlinear compensator designs. To date, the first one-dimensional, small air-gap magnetic suspension system has been built, tested and delivered to the NASA Langley Research Center. The device is currently being stabilized with a digital linear phase-lead controller. The neural controller hardware is under construction. Two different neural network paradigms are under consideration, one based on hidden layer feedforward networks trained via back propagation and one based on using Gaussian radial basis functions trained by analytical methods related to stability conditions. Some advanced nonlinear control algorithms using feedback linearization and sliding mode control are in simulation studies.

Gray, W. Steven↗

[?]Nonlinear Issues in the Aerothermochemistry of Gases and Materials and the Associated Physics and Dynamics of Interfaces

Our research and technology are focused on nonlinear issues in the aerothermochemistry of gases and materials and the associated physics and dynamics of interfaces. Our program is now organized to aggressively support the NASA Aeronautics Enterprise so as to: (a) develop a new generation of environmentally compatible, economic subsonic aircraft; (b) develop the technology base for an economically viable and environmentally compatible high-speed civil transport; (c) develop the technology options for new capabilities in high-performance aircraft; (d) develop hypersonic technologies for air-breathing flight; and (e) develop advanced concepts, understanding of physical phenomena, and theoretical, experimental, and computational tools for advanced aerospace systems. The implications from our research for aeronautical and aerospace technology have been both broad and deep. For example, using advanced computational techniques, we have determined exact solutions for the Schrodinger equation in electron-molecule scattering allowing us to evaluate atmospheric models important to reentry physics. We have also found a new class of exact solutions for the Navier Stokes equations. In experimental fluid dynamics, we have found explicit evidence of turbulence modification of droplet sizes in shock tube flow with condensation. We have developed a new diagnostic tool for the direct estimation of flow velocities at MHz sampling rates in quasi-one dimensional turbulent flow. This procedure suggests an unexpected confirmation of the possibility of 'natural' closure in Reynolds stresses with deep implications for the development of turbulent models. A transient increase is observed in both the spectral energy decay rate and the degree of chaotic complexity at the interface of a shock wave and a turbulent ionized gas. Even though the gas is apparently brought to rest by the shock wave, no evidence is found either of the expected relaminarization. A unique diamond-shaped nozzle has been designed for a detailed investigation of the effect of significant streamwise vorticity on the acoustic and IR characteristics of supersonic jets. Our results provide convincing evidence of the significant effect of vorticity on the far-field noise for the diamond jet as compared to the conventional round jets. We have found that the countercurrent shear layer mixes much more efficiently than conventional coflowing shear layers. We also developed the fluid thrust vectoring procedures which use counter flow to vector a jet. Our materials research has shown that the steep stress gradients at the fiber-matrix interface could be the primary cause of interface cracks after the processing of metallic and intermetallic matrix composites. New techniques have been evolved for: the microcharacterization of materials including microplastic strain and, point by point, the misorientation and plasticity for matrix composites; thermally induced stress measurements and load relaxation; the growth and characterization of metallic matrix composite interfaces; and for the growth of ferrite materials by pulsed laser deposition. The FAMU commitment to the HBCU Research Center also continues to be broad and deep.

Johnson, Joseph A., III↗

Life prediction and constitutive models for engine hot section

The purpose of this program is to develop life prediction models for coated anisotropic materials used in gas turbine airfoils. In the program, two single crystal alloys and two coatings are being tested. These include PWA 1480, Alloy 185, overlay coating (PWA 286), and aluminide coating (PWA 273). Constitutive models are also being developed for these materials to predict the time independent (plastic) and time dependent (creep) strain histories of the materials in the lab tests and for actual design conditions. This nonlinear material behavior is particularly important for high temperature gas turbine applications and is basic to any life prediction system. Some of the accomplishments of the program are highlighted.

Swanson, G. A.↗

The COREL and W12SC3 computer programs for supersonic wing design and analysis

Two computer codes useful in the supersonic aerodynamic design of wings, including the supersonic maneuver case are described. The nonlinear full potential equation COREL code performs an analysis of a spanwise section of the wing in the crossflow plane by assuming conical flow over the section. A subsequent approximate correction to the solution can be made in order to account for nonconical effects. In COREL, the flow-field is assumed to be irrotional (Mach numbers normal to shock waves less than about 1.3) and the full potential equation is solved to obtain detailed results for the leading edge expansion, supercritical crossflow, and any crossflow shockwaves. W12SC3 is a linear theory panel method which combines and extends elements of several of Woodward's codes, with emphasis on fighter applications. After a brief review of the aerodynamic theory used by each method, the use of the codes is illustrated with several examples, detailed input instructions and a sample case.

Mason, W. H.↗

Guaranteeing Pointing Performance of the SDO Sun-Pointing Controllers in Light of Nonlinear Effects

The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) mission is the first Space Weather Research Network mission, part of NASA s Living With a Star program.1 This program seeks to understand the changing Sun and its effects on the Solar System, life, and society. To this end, the SDO spacecraft will carry three Sun-observing instruments to geosynchronous orbit: Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI), led by Stanford University; Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA), led by Lockheed Martin Space and Astrophysics Laboratory; and Extreme Ultraviolet Variability Experiment (EVE), led by the University of Colorado. Links describing the instruments in detail may be found through the SDO web site.2 The basic mission goals are to observe the Sun for a very high percentage of the 5-year mission (10-year goal) with long stretches of uninterrupted observations and with constant, high-data-rate transmission to a dedicated ground station. These goals guided the design of the spacecraft bus that will carry and service the three-instrument payload. At the time of this publication, the SDO spacecraft bus is well into the integration and testing phase at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). A three-axis stabilized attitude control system (ACS) is needed both to point at the Sun accurately and to keep the roll about the Sun vector correctly positioned. The ACS has four reaction wheel modes and 2 thruster actuated modes. More details about the ACS in general and the control modes in particular can be found in Refs. [3-6]. All four of SDO s wheel-actuated control modes involve Sun-pointing controllers, as might be expected from such a mission. Science mode, during which most science data is collected, uses specialized guide telescopes to point accurately at the Sun. Inertial mode has two sub-modes, one tracks a Sun-referenced target orientation, and another maintains an absolute (star-referenced) target orientation, that both employ a Kalman filter to process data from a digital Sun sensor and two star trackers. However, this paper is concerned only with the other two modes: Safe Hold (SH) and Sun Acquisition (SA).

Starin, Scott R.↗

Nonlinear Optical Properties of Organic and Polymeric Thin Film Materials of Potential for Microgravity Processing Studies

In this paper, we will take a closer look at the state of the art of polydiacetylene, and metal-free phthalocyanine films, in view of the microgravity impact on their optical properties, their nonlinear optical properties and their potential advantages for integrated optics. These materials have many attractive features with regard to their use in integrated optical circuits and optical switching. Thin films of these materials processed in microgravity environment show enhanced optical quality and better molecular alignment than those processed in unit gravity. Our studies of these materials indicate that microgravity can play a major role in integrated optics technology. Polydiacetylene films are produced by UV irradiation of monomer solution through an optical window. This novel technique of forming polydiacetylene thin films has been modified for constructing sophisticated micro-structure integrated optical patterns using a pre-programmed UV-Laser beam. Wave guiding through these thin films by the prism coupler technique has been demonstrated. The third order nonlinear parameters of these films have been evaluated. Metal-free phthalocyanine films of good optical quality are processed in our laboratories by vapor deposition technique. Initial studies on these films indicate that they have excellent chemical, laser, and environmental stability. They have large nonlinear optical parameters and show intrinsic optical bistability. This bistability is essential for optical logic gates and optical switching applications. Waveguiding and device making investigations of these materials are underway.

Abdeldayem, Hossin↗

Nonlinear dynamics of drops and bubbles and chaotic phenomena

Nonlinear phenomena associated with the dynamics of free drops and bubbles are investigated analytically, numerically and experimentally. Although newly developed levitation and measurement techniques have been implemented, the full experimental validation of theoretical predictions has been hindered by interfering artifacts associated with levitation in the Earth gravitational field. The low gravity environment of orbital space flight has been shown to provide a more quiescent environment which can be utilized to better match the idealized theoretical conditions. The research effort described in this paper is a closely coupled collaboration between predictive and guiding theoretical activities and a unique experimental program involving the ultrasonic and electrostatic levitation of single droplets and bubbles. The goal is to develop and to validate methods based on nonlinear dynamics for the understanding of the large amplitude oscillatory response of single drops and bubbles to both isotropic and asymmetric pressure stimuli. The first specific area on interest has been the resonant coupling between volume and shape oscillatory modes isolated gas or vapor bubbles in a liquid host. The result of multiple time-scale asymptotic treatment, combined with domain perturbation and bifurcation methods, has been the prediction of resonant and near-resonant coupling between volume and shape modes leading to stable as well as chaotic oscillations. Experimental investigations of the large amplitude shape oscillation modes of centimeter-size single bubbles trapped in water at 1 G and under reduced hydrostatic pressure, have suggested the possibility of a low gravity experiment to study the direct coupling between these low frequency shape modes and the volume pulsation, sound-radiating mode. The second subject of interest has involved numerical modeling, using the boundary integral method, of the large amplitude shape oscillations of charged and uncharged drops in the presence of a static or time-varying electric field. Theoretically predicted non linearity in the resonant frequency of the fundamental quadrupole mode has been verified by the accompanying experimental studies. Additional phenomena such as hysteresis in the frequency response of ultrasoncially levitated droplets in the presence of a time varying electric field, and mode coupling in the oscillations of ultrasonically modulated droplets, have also been uncovered. One of the results of this ground-based research has been the identification and characterization of phenomena strictly associated with the influence of the gravitational field. This has also allowed us to identify the specific requirements for potential microgravity investigations yielding new information not obtainable on Earth.

Trinh, Eugene H.↗

Large displacements and stability analysis of nonlinear propeller structures

The use of linear rigid formats in COSMIC NASTRAN without DMAP procedures for the analysis of nonlinear propeller structures is described. Approaches for updating geometry and applying follower forces for incremental loading are demonstrated. Comparisons are made with COSMIC NASTRAN rigid formats and other independent finite element programs. Specifically, the comparisons include results from the four approaches for updating the geometry using RIGID FORMAT 1, RIGID FORMATS 4 and 13, MARC and MSC/NASTRAN. It is shown that 'user friendly' updating approaches (without DMAPS) can be used to predict the large displacements and instability of these nonlinear structures. These user friendly approaches can be easily implemented by the user and predict conservative results.

Aiello, R. A.↗

SPAR thermal analysis processors reference manual, system level 16. Volume 1: Program executive. Volume 2: Theory. Volume 3: Demonstration problems. Volume 4: Experimental thermal element capability. Volume 5: Programmer reference

User instructions are given for performing linear and nonlinear steady state and transient thermal analyses with SPAR thermal analysis processors TGEO, SSTA, and TRTA. It is assumed that the user is familiar with basic SPAR operations and basic heat transfer theory.

Marlowe, M. B.↗

Performance analysis of wideband data and television channels

Several aspects are discussed of space shuttle communications, including the return link (shuttle-to-ground) relayed through a satellite repeater (TDRS). The repeater exhibits nonlinear amplification and an amplitude-dependent phase shift. Models were developed for various link configurations, and computer simulation programs based on these models are described. Certain analytical results on system performance were also obtained. For the system parameters assumed, the results indicate approximately 1 db degradation relative to a link employing a linear repeater. While this degradation is dependent upon the repeater, filter bandwidths, and modulation parameters used, the programs can accommodate changes to any of these quantities. Thus the programs can be applied to determine the performance with any given set of parameters, or used as an aid in link design.

Geist, J. M.↗

Averaged initial Cartesian coordinates for long lifetime satellite studies

A set of initial Cartesian coordinates, which are free of ambiguities and resonance singularities, is developed to study satellite mission requirements and dispersions over long lifetimes. The method outlined herein possesses two distinct advantages over most other averaging procedures. First, the averaging is carried out numerically using Gaussian quadratures, thus avoiding tedious expansions and the resulting resonances for critical inclinations, etc. Secondly, by using the initial rectangular Cartesian coordinates, conventional, existing acceleration perturbation routines can be absorbed into the program without further modifications, thus making the method easily adaptable to the addition of new perturbation effects. The averaged nonlinear differential equations are integrated by means of a Runge Kutta method. A typical step size of several orbits permits rapid integration of long lifetime orbits in a short computing time.

Pines, S.↗

Hierarchy of simulation models for a turbofan gas engine

Steady-state and transient performance of an F-100-like turbofan gas engine are modeled by a computer program, DYNGEN, developed by NASA. The model employs block data maps and includes about 25 states. Low-order nonlinear analytical and linear techniques are described in terms of their application to the model. Experimental comparisons illustrating the accuracy of each model are presented.

Longenbaker, W. E.↗

Nonlinear analysis of rotor-bearing systems using component mode synthesis

The method of component mode synthesis is developed to determine the forced response of nonlinear, multishaft, rotor-bearing systems. The formulation allows for simulation of system response due to blade loss, distributed unbalance, base shock, maneuver loads, and specified fixed frame forces. The motion of each rotating component of the system is described by superposing constraint modes associated with boundary coordinates and constrained precessional modes associated with internal coordinates. The precessional modes are truncated for each component and the reduced component equations are assembled with the nonlinear supports and interconnections to form a set of nonlinear system equations of reduced order. These equations are then numerically integrated to obtain the system response. A computer program, which is presently restricted to single shaft systems, has been written and results are presented for transient system response associated with blade loss dynamics with squeeze film dampers, and with interference rubs.

Nelson, H. D.↗

DEAN - A program for Dynamic Engine ANalysis

The Dynamic Engine Analysis Program, DEAN, is a FORTRAN code implemented on the IBM/370 mainframe at NASA Lewis Research Center for digital simulation of turbofan engine dynamics. DEAN is an interactive program which allows the user to simulate engine subsystems as well as full engine systems with relative ease. The nonlinear first order ordinary differential equations which define the engine model may be solved by one of four integration schemes, a second order Runge-Kutta, a fourth order Runge-Kutta, an Adams Predictor-Corrector, or Gear's method for still systems. The numerical data generated by the model equations are displayed a specified intervals between which the user may choose to modify various parameters affecting the model equations and transient execution. Following the transient run, versatile graphics capabilities allow close examination of the data. DEAN's modeling procedure and capabilities are demonstrated by generating a model of simple compressor rig.

Sadler, G. G.↗

Experimental validation of Order (n) DISCOS

An order (n) algorithm is developed for use in the industry-standard DISCOS (Dynamics Interaction Simulation of Controls and Structures) program for flexible multibody system dynamics simulation. This version should be more computationally efficient than conventional DISCOS for problems where a large number of bodies are involved. Program-dependent changes to DISCOS are described for reducing the number of bodies required to model gear reduction and nonlinear stiffness as internal effects. The gear reduction modification can be extended to general applications, such as gear box, rack and pinion, lever joint, and screw rotation models. Upgrading DISCOS for future use include the addition of robotics capabilities such as event-driven topology changes, surface sliding, pick-and-place, and multiarm hand-off.

Chun, Hon M.↗

A Comparison of Experimental and Theoretical Results for Magnetic Bearings

A comprehensive program was undertaken to experimentally characterize the static and dynamic characteristics of a heteropolar magnetic bearing and to develop nonlinear theoretical models capable of accurately predicting magnetic bearing performance. This paper presents the results for the static characteristics of the magnetic bearing and a comparison with the predictions from the analytical model. The results indicate that the nonlinear theoretical model can accurately predict the static characteristics of the magnetic bearing.

Hibbs, Robert I., Jr.↗