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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 793 records · Page 44
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1995

Investigation of computational and spectral analysis methods for aeroacoustic wave propagation

Most computational fluid dynamics (CFD) schemes are not adequately accurate for solving aeroacoustics problems, which have wave amplitudes several orders of magnitude smaller yet with frequencies larger than the flow field variations generating the sound. Hence, a computational aeroacoustics (CAA) algorithm should have minimal dispersion and dissipation features. A dispersion relation preserving (DRP) scheme is, therefore, applied to solve the linearized Euler equations in order to simulate the propagation of three types of waves, namely: acoustic, vorticity, and entropy waves. The scheme is derived using an optimization procedure to ensure that the numerical derivatives preserve the wave number and angular frequency of the partial differential equations being discretized. Consequently, simulated waves propagate with the correct wave speeds and exhibit their appropriate properties. A set of radiation and outflow boundary conditions, compatible with the DRP scheme and derived from the asymptotic solutions of the governing equations, are also implemented. Numerical simulations are performed to test the effectiveness of the DRP scheme and its boundary conditions. The computed solutions are shown to agree favorably with the exact solutions. The major restriction appears to be that the dispersion relations can be preserved only for waves with wave lengths longer than four or five spacings. The boundary conditions are found to be transparent to the outgoing disturbances. However, when the disturbance source is placed closer to a boundary, small acoustic reflections start appearing. CAA generates enormous amounts of temporal data which needs to be reduced to understand the physical problem being simulated. Spectral analysis is one approach that helps us in extracting information which often can not be easily interpreted in the time domain. Thus, three different methods for the spectral analysis of numerically generated aeroacoustic data are studied. First, the capabilities of two traditional methods for spectral analysis, namely, the Blackman-Tukey method and periodogram method, are compared in estimating the spectra of a simple-periodic process. The periodogram is then applied to analyze transitory-deterministic processes. Finally, these two methods are compared with a more recent method, referred as the Weighted-Overlapped-Segment-Averaging (WOSA) method, in estimating the spectra of a chaotic (random-like) process. From the demonstrative case for the spectral analyses of data generated by simple-periodic process, the periodogram method is found to give a better estimate of the steep-sloped spectra than the Blackman-Tukey method. Also, for this problem, the Hanning window is found to perform better with the periodogram method than with the Blackman-Tukey method. Finally, for the spectral analysis of data generated by the chaotic process, the periodogram method does not perform well, whereas, the WOSA and Blackman-Tukey methods give equivalently good results.

Vanel, Florence O.↗
NASA NTRS2012

The Exploration Portable Electrostatic Detector (xPED)

Astronauts and rovers, while exploring dynamic environments, can experience charge buildup through Tribo-charging (contact electrification). Charge levels can become substantially high. especially in areas where photoelectric and plasma currents are reduced (e.g. lunar polar crater). Tribo-charging in areas that have little to no charge dissipative path can be severe, leaving an astronaut or roving object to remain charged for extended periods of time. Charge buildup on space suits and/or rovers is expected to present significant hazards to missions, such as electrostatic discharge and arcing, dust adhesion to space suits/equipment, and destruction of equipment. The avoidance of hazards associated with charge buildup is critical for future NASA missions to near earth objects, the Moon and Mars. The Exploration Portable Electrostatic Device (xPED) will allow astronauts to determine their charge state, and also characterize the electrical environment from their excursions. xPED would benefit manned, as well as robotic missions.

Jackson, Telana L.↗
NASA NTRS2018

Observations on Dynamic Qualification Testing of a Component with Nonlinear Deadband Interfaces

Typical flight hardware dynamic qualification tests exhibit nearly linear structural response when exposed to acceleration inputs from low to full qualification levels. Even in these “linear” cases, there is typically a trend of increasing damping with test levels. The nonlinear mechanism behind this increase in energy dissipation well understood – typically stick/slip hysteresis at joint connections. This paper is concerned with a different type of nonlinearity: deadbands at structural interfaces. Deadband nonlinearities can have a significant influence on structural response and modal/spectral characteristics which can present difficulties in test, analysis, and structural certification. This subject nonlinear behaviour is observed during flight qualification testing of the AQUARIUS instrument and discussed here. Simple physical reasoning and analytical model is utilized to explain the behaviour which is consistent with the test findings.

Majed, Arya↗
NASA NTRS2013

Comprehensive Modeling and Analysis of Rotorcraft Variable Speed Propulsion System With Coupled Engine/Transmission/Rotor Dynamics

This project develops comprehensive modeling and simulation tools for analysis of variable rotor speed helicopter propulsion system dynamics. The Comprehensive Variable-Speed Rotorcraft Propulsion Modeling (CVSRPM) tool developed in this research is used to investigate coupled rotor/engine/fuel control/gearbox/shaft/clutch/flight control system dynamic interactions for several variable rotor speed mission scenarios. In this investigation, a prototypical two-speed Dual-Clutch Transmission (DCT) is proposed and designed to achieve 50 percent rotor speed variation. The comprehensive modeling tool developed in this study is utilized to analyze the two-speed shift response of both a conventional single rotor helicopter and a tiltrotor drive system. In the tiltrotor system, both a Parallel Shift Control (PSC) strategy and a Sequential Shift Control (SSC) strategy for constant and variable forward speed mission profiles are analyzed. Under the PSC strategy, selecting clutch shift-rate results in a design tradeoff between transient engine surge margins and clutch frictional power dissipation. In the case of SSC, clutch power dissipation is drastically reduced in exchange for the necessity to disengage one engine at a time which requires a multi-DCT drive system topology. In addition to comprehensive simulations, several sections are dedicated to detailed analysis of driveline subsystem components under variable speed operation. In particular an aeroelastic simulation of a stiff in-plane rotor using nonlinear quasi-steady blade element theory was conducted to investigate variable speed rotor dynamics. It was found that 2/rev and 4/rev flap and lag vibrations were significant during resonance crossings with 4/rev lagwise loads being directly transferred into drive-system torque disturbances. To capture the clutch engagement dynamics, a nonlinear stick-slip clutch torque model is developed. Also, a transient gas-turbine engine model based on first principles mean-line compressor and turbine approximations is developed. Finally an analysis of high frequency gear dynamics including the effect of tooth mesh stiffness variation under variable speed operation is conducted including experimental validation. Through exploring the interactions between the various subsystems, this investigation provides important insights into the continuing development of variable-speed rotorcraft propulsion systems.

DeSmidt, Hans A.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Intermittent cluster dynamics and temporal fractional diffusion in a bulk metallic glass

Glassy solids evolve towards lower-energy structural states by physical aging. This can be characterized by structural relaxation times, the assessment of which is essential for understanding the glass’ time-dependent property changes. Conducted over short times, a continuous increase of relaxation times with time is seen, suggesting a time-dependent dissipative transport mechanism. By focusing on micro-structural rearrangements at the atomic-scale, we demonstrate the emergence of sub-diffusive anomalous transport and therefore temporal fractional diffusion in a metallic glass, which we track via coherent x-ray scattering conducted over more than 300,000 s. At the longest probed decorrelation times, a transition from classical stretched exponential to a power-law behavior occurs, which in concert with atomistic simulations reveals collective and intermittent atomic motion. Our observations give a physical basis for classical stretched exponential relaxation behavior, uncover a new power-law governed collective transport regime for metallic glasses at long and practically relevant time-scales, and demonstrate a rich and highly non-monotonous aging response in a glassy solid, thereby challenging the common framework of homogeneous aging and atomic scale diffusion.

42 ENGINEERING↗
NASA NTRS2004

Flow field topology of transient mixing driven by buoyancy

Transient mixing driven by buoyancy occurs through the birth of a symmetric Rayleigh-Taylor morphology (RTM) structure for large length scales. Beyond its critical bifurcation the RTM structure exhibits self-similarity and occurs on smaller and smaller length scales. The dynamics of the RTM structure, its nonlinear growth and internal collision, show that its genesis occurs from an explosive bifurcation which leads to the overlap of resonance regions in phase space. This event shows the coexistence of regular and chaotic regions in phase space which is corroborated with the existence of horseshoe maps. A measure of local chaos given by the topological entropy indicates that as the system evolves there is growth of uncertainty. Breakdown of the dissipative RTM structure occurs during the transition from explosive to catastrophic bifurcation; this event gives rise to annihilation of the separatrices which drives overlap of resonance regions. The global bifurcation of explosive and catastrophic events in phase space for the large length scale of the RTM structure serves as a template for which mixing occurs on smaller and smaller length scales. Copyright 2004 American Institute of Physics.

Nonlinear Dynamics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Experiments and Simulations of the Dusty Properties of Hypervelocity Impact Plasmas

Hypervelocity impacts, referring to impacts occurring at several times the speed of sound in the target, result in inertial stresses greatly exceeding the material strength and produce behavior that is not fully understood. These impact phenomena are seen in space through impacts of orbital debris and meteoroids on spacecraft and airless natural bodies but can also be produced in laboratory environments using light-gas guns and electrostatic dust accelerators. When a hypervelocity impact occurs, plasma is generated both from thermal ionization and from pressure ionization, producing a wide range of plasma densities depending on the impactor’s velocity. This plasma is initially formed in the warm dense matter (WDM) regime and governed by high energy density (HED) hydrodynamics before it rapidly expands and dissipates, spanning many orders of magnitude in density and length scale. The plasma can also contain a dust component, which is particularly relevant for the lower-velocity range of hypervelocity impacts with parameters that are particularly relevant to Tokamak plasmas. Therefore, the properties and dynamics of these plasmas cannot be fully characterized without considering dusty plasma effects, which are ubiquitous but poorly understood.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
NASA NTRS1991

Near-wall modeling of compressible turbulent flow

A near-wall two-equation model for compressible flows is proposed. The model is formulated by relaxing the assumption of dynamic field similarity between compressible and incompressible flows. A postulate is made to justify the extension of incompressible models to ammount for compressibility effects. This requires formulation the turbulent kinetic energy equation in a form similar to its incompressible counterpart. As a result, the compressible dissipation function has to be split into a solenoidal part, which is not sensitive to changes of compressibility indicators, and a dilatational part, which is directly affected by these changes. A model with an explicit dependence on the turbulent Mach number is proposed for the dilatational dissipation rate.

So, Ronald M. C.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Investigation of forced unsteady separated flows using velocity-vorticity form of Navier-Stokes equations

The phenomenon of forced unsteady separation and eruption of boundary-layer vorticity is a highly-complex, high-Reynolds number flow phenomenon, which abruptly leads to the formation of a dynamic stall vortex as demonstrated earlier by the authors for a NACA 0015 airfoil undergoing constant rate pitch-up motion. This, as well as the results of other researchers, have convincingly demonstrated a complex vortical structure within the state of unsteady separation prior to the evolution of dynamic stall. This phenomenon of vortex eruption, although observed in studying dynamic stall phenomena, is also associated with transition from laminar to turbulence flow and its generic nature has been stressed by many researchers including the present investigators. An unsteady Navier-Stokes (NS) analysis is developed for arbitrarily maneuvering bodies using velocity-vorticity variables; this formulation is nearly form-invariant under a generalized non-inertial coordinate transformation. A fully-implicit uniformly second-order accurate method is used, with the nonlinear convective terms approximated using a biased third-order upwind differencing scheme to be able to simulate higher-Re flows. No explicit artificial dissipation is added. The numerical method is fully vectorized and currently achieves a computational index of 7 micro-seconds per time step per mesh point, using a single processor on a CRAY Y-MP. The simulation results show that the energetic free shear from the leading edge is responsible for the wall viscous layer to abruptly erupt near the center of the counterclockwise rotating eddy in the unsteady boundary layer. Primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary vortices have been observed before the dynamic stall vortex evolves and gathers its maximum strength. This study will discuss the simulation results of Reynolds number up to Re = 45,000 and will also discuss the efforts of initial acceleration in a specific maneuver, on the evolution of the stall vortex.

Ghia, K. N.↗
DOE OSTI2024

Simulations of divertor designs that spatially separate power and particle exhaust using mid-leg divertor particle pumping

Predictive design modeling of a Dissipation-Focused Divertor for future operation in DIII-D reveals that increasing the poloidal distance of the pump duct entrance from the target surface along the low-field side divertor baffle increases neutral compression and modifies the spatial distribution of power dissipation. With a divertor pump located mid-leg between the target and the X-point, SOLPS-ITER boundary plasma simulations without drifts predict the formation of a dense neutral cloud near the target with > 30x higher neutral compression in detachment, a more stable detachment front located further from the target, and ~25% lower outer midplane separatrix density required for detachment onset, compared to a pump located in the scrape-off layer at the target surface. Up to 19 MW of power flowing into the divertors is modeled using the following two numerical implementations for particle pumping: a specified fraction of particles incident on variable wall sections of the plasma grid is removed from the computational domain (so-called albedo pumping), and a pump duct is modeled which includes dynamics of kinetic neutrals in the duct. The simulations show that the detachment front is located between the divertor target and the X-point and is relatively stable near the pump entrance, without a strong dependence on gas puff rate or injected power. The mid-leg pump design spatially separates the two primary functions of a divertor (power handling and particle exhaust), with the majority of power dissipation occurring near the target plate and particle exhaust taking place further upstream. The benefit of enhanced dissipation using mid-leg pumping comes at the cost of a higher outer midplane separatrix density for a given amount of particle injection.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
NASA NTRS1981

On the utility of finite element theory for computational fluid dynamics

An implicit finite element numerical solution algorithm is derived for the compressible Navier-Stokes equations expressed in generalized coordinates. The theoretical basis utilizes a Galerkin-Weighted Residuals formulation, and extremization of approximation error within the context of a multipole expansion. A von Neumann analysis for a simplified form indicates the algorithm fourth- to sixth-order phase accurate, with third-order dissipation for the elementary linear element construction. Performance is improved for the algorithm constructed using quadratic interpolation. Numerical experiments for shocked duct flows are employed to optimize the several algorithm parameters. Additional numerical solutions validate algorithm accuracy and utility for aerodynamics applications.

Baker, A. J.↗
DOE OSTI2023

Real-time imaging of acoustic waves in bulk materials with X-ray microscopy

The dynamics of lattice vibrations govern many material processes, such as acoustic wave propagation, displacive phase transitions, and ballistic thermal transport. The maximum velocity of these processes and their effects is determined by the speed of sound, which therefore defines the temporal resolution (picoseconds) needed to resolve these phenomena on their characteristic length scales (nanometers). Here, we present an X-ray microscope capable of imaging acoustic waves with subpicosecond resolution within mm-sized crystals. We directly visualize the generation, propagation, branching, and energy dissipation of longitudinal and transverse acoustic waves in diamond, demonstrating how mechanical energy thermalizes from picosecond to microsecond timescales. Bulk characterization techniques capable of resolving this level of structural detail have previously been available on millisecond time scales—orders of magnitude too slow to capture these fundamental phenomena in solid-state physics and geoscience. As such, the reported results provide broad insights into the interaction of acoustic waves with the structure of materials, and the availability of ultrafast time-resolved dark-field X-ray microscopy opens a vista of new opportunities for 3D imaging of materials dynamics on their intrinsic submicrosecond time scales.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Ion Conductivity and Correlations in Model Salt-Doped Polymers: Effects of Interaction Strength and Concentration

Correlated anion and cation motion can greatly reduce the overall ion conductivity in electrolytes versus the ideal conductivity calculated based on the diffusion constants alone. Using coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations, we calculate conductivity and the degree of uncorrelated ion motion in salt-doped homopolymers and block copolymers as a function of concentration and interaction strengths. Calculating conductivity from ion mobility under an applied electric field increases accuracy versus the typical use of fluctuation dissipation relationships in equilibrium simulations. In typical electrolytes, correlation in cation-anion motion is often expected to be reduced at low ion concentrations. Yet, for these polymer electrolytes with strong ion-polymer and ion-ion interactions, we find cation-anion motion is more correlated at lower concentrations when other variables are held constant. We show this phenomenon is related to the slower ion cluster relaxation rate at low concentrations rather than the static spatial state of ion aggregation or the fraction of free ions.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Dynamic Subgrid Turbulence Modeling for Shallow Cumulus Convection Simulations beyond LES Resolutions

A scale-dependent dynamic Smagorinsky model is implemented in the Met Office/NERC Cloud (MONC) model using two averaging flavors, along Lagrangian pathlines and local moving averages. The dynamic approaches were compared against the conventional Smagorinsky–Lilly scheme in simulating the diurnal cycle of shallow cumulus convection. The simulations spanned from the LES to the near-gray-zone and gray-zone resolutions and revealed the adaptability of the dynamic model across the scales and different stability regimes. The dynamic model can produce a scale- and stability-dependent profile of the subfilter turbulence length scale across the chosen resolution range. At gray-zone resolutions the adaptive length scales can better represent the early precloud boundary layer leading to temperature and moisture profiles closer to the LES compared to the standard Smagorinsky. As a result, the initialization and general representation of the cloud field in the dynamic model is in good agreement with the LES. In contrast, the standard Smagorinsky produces a less well-mixed boundary layer, which fails to ventilate moisture from the boundary layer, resulting in the delayed spinup of the cloud layer. Moreover, strong downgradient diffusion controls the turbulent transport of scalars in the cloud layer. However, the dynamic approaches rely on the resolved field to account for nonlocal transports, leading to overenergetic structures when the boundary layer is fully developed and the Lagrangian model is used. Introducing the local averaging version of the model or adopting a new Lagrangian time scale provides stronger dissipation without significantly affecting model behavior.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS1972

Mathematical characterization of mechanical behavior of porous frictional granular media

A new definition of loading and unloading along the yield surface of Roscoe and Burland is introduced. This is achieved by noting that the strain-hardening parameter in the plastic potential function is deduced from the yield locus equation of Roscoe and Burland. The analytical results are compared with the experimental results for plate-bearing and cone-penetrometer problems and close agreements are demonstrated. The wheel-soil interaction is studied under dynamic loading. The rate-dependent plasticity or viscoelastoplastic behavior is considered. This is accomplished by the internal (hidden) variables associated with time-dependent viscous properties directly superimposed with inelastic behavior governed by the yield criteria of Roscoe and Burland. Effects of inertia and energy dissipation are properly accounted for. Example problems are presented.

Chung, T. J.↗
NASA NTRS1974

Development of procedures for calculating stiffness and damping properties of elastomers in engineering applications. Part 2: Elastomer characteristics at constant temperature

Dynamic properties of a commerical polybutadiene compound were determined at a constant temperature of 32 C by a forced-vibration resonant mass type of apparatus. The constant thermal state of the elastomer was ensured by keeping the ambient temperature constant and by limiting the power dissipation in the specimen. Experiments were performed with both compression and shear specimens at several preloads (nominal strain varying from 0 to 5 percent), and the results are reported in terms of a complex stiffness as a function of frequency. Very weak frequency dependence is observed and a simple power law type of correlation is shown to represent the data well. Variations in the complex stiffness as a function of preload are also found to be small for both compression and shear specimens.

Gupta, P. K.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Power flows and Mechanical Intensities in structural finite element analysis

The identification of power flow paths in dynamically loaded structures is an important, but currently unavailable, capability for the finite element analyst. For this reason, methods for calculating power flows and mechanical intensities in finite element models are developed here. Formulations for calculating input and output powers, power flows, mechanical intensities, and power dissipations for beam, plate, and solid element types are derived. NASTRAN is used to calculate the required velocity, force, and stress results of an analysis, which a post-processor then uses to calculate power flow quantities. The SDRC I-deas Supertab module is used to view the final results. Test models include a simple truss and a beam-stiffened cantilever plate. Both test cases showed reasonable power flow fields over low to medium frequencies, with accurate power balances. Future work will include testing with more complex models, developing an interactive graphics program to view easily and efficiently the analysis results, applying shape optimization methods to the problem with power flow variables as design constraints, and adding the power flow capability to NASTRAN.

Hambric, Stephen A.↗
NASA NTRS2002

Ideal Integrating Bolometer

We describe a new 'ideal integrator' bolometer as a prototype for a new generation of sensitive, flexible far-IR detectors suitable for use in large arrays. The combination of a non-dissipative sensor coupled with a fast heat switch provides breakthrough capabilities in both sensitivity and operation. The bolometer temperature varies linearly with the integrated infrared power incident on the detector, and may be sampled intermittently without loss of information between samples. The sample speed and consequent dynamic range depend only on the heat switch reset cycle and can be selected in software. Between samples, the device acts as an ideal integrator with noise significantly lower than resistive bolometers. Since there is no loss of information between samples, the device is well-suited for large arrays. A single SQUID readout could process an entire column of detectors, greatly reducing the complexity, power requirements, and cost of readout electronics for large pixel arrays.

Kogut, Alan↗