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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 NTRS2014

Physics Based Model for Cryogenic Chilldown and Loading. Part I: Algorithm

We report the progress in the development of the physics based model for cryogenic chilldown and loading. The chilldown and loading is model as fully separated non-equilibrium two-phase flow of cryogenic fluid thermally coupled to the pipe walls. The solution follow closely nearly-implicit and semi-implicit algorithms developed for autonomous control of thermal-hydraulic systems developed by Idaho National Laboratory. A special attention is paid to the treatment of instabilities. The model is applied to the analysis of chilldown in rapid loading system developed at NASA-Kennedy Space Center. The nontrivial characteristic feature of the analyzed chilldown regime is its active control by dump valves. The numerical predictions are in reasonable agreement with the experimental time traces. The obtained results pave the way to the development of autonomous loading operation on the ground and space.

heat transfer↗
DOE OSTI2023

Spontaneous shock waves in pulse-stimulated flocks of Quincke rollers

Active matter demonstrates complex spatiotemporal self-organization not accessible at equilibrium and the emergence of collective behavior. Fluids comprised of microscopic Quincke rollers represent a popular realization of synthetic active matter. Temporal activity modulations, realized by modulated external electric fields, represent an effective tool to expand the variety of accessible dynamic states in active ensembles. Here, we report on the emergence of shockwave patterns composed of coherently moving particles energized by a pulsed electric field. The shockwaves emerge spontaneously and move faster than the average particle speed. Combining experiments, theory, and simulations, we demonstrate that the shockwaves originate from intermittent spontaneous vortex cores due to a vortex meandering instability. They occur when the rollers’ translational and rotational decoherence times, regulated by the electric pulse durations, become comparable. The phenomenon does not rely on the presence of confinement, and multiple shock waves continuously arise and vanish in the system.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

A fluid-structure interaction solver for investigating torsional galloping in solar-tracking photovoltaic panel arrays

Solar-tracking photovoltaic arrays are susceptible to aeroelastic fluttering during high-wind events. This dynamic fluttering behavior can grow in amplitude until the panels enter an unstable mode known as torsional galloping which can lead to panel failure or total array destruction. To better understand the physics of the torsional galloping phenomenon and to inform the discussion around panel design and recommended panel stow positions during high wind events, a fluid-structure interaction solver composed of a simulated atmospheric boundary layer with simplified panel structural responses was designed. The simulation choices and features of this solver were informed by the geometry and physical properties of an experimental panel array known to exhibit torsional galloping behavior during hind-wind events. Furthermore, these simulations revealed that the torsional galloping instability is driven by a combination of cyclic vortex shedding from the sun-facing side of the panel and the elastic properties of the torque tube linking the panel assemblies. Testing different stow angles across a range of wind speeds indicates that panels are generally more stable when stowed at negative angles where the leading edge is closer to the ground, hypothesized to be due to ground-blocking effects. These results are supplemented by a discussion of stability trends noted during testing and possible implications when considering multi-row array interactions.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Vorticity screening by dense layers

We investigate variable density layers in the presence of vortices, by analogy to line charges in the presence of a dielectric slab. We adapt solutions for dielectric layers from the literature to the variable density fluid case, obtaining exact hypergeometric expressions for flow velocities induced everywhere by a vortex in the vicinity of a finite-thickness slab of different densities. The dimensionless Atwood number, which appears naturally in other variable density phenomena, such as the Rayleigh–Taylor instability, reappears here as the natural ordering parameter for the influence of the slab, which acts primarily to screen the influence of vorticity across the slab to a lower effective circulation. The solution takes the form of scaling correction factors that might be applied to computational models or evaluated directly. Extensions, where vorticity is localized within the dense layer itself and amplified outside of it, are considered, as well as some speculative applications such as inertial confinement fusion capsule designs.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2024

Generation of Large-Volume High-Pressure Plasma by Spatio-Temporal Control of Space Charge

Due to the fundamental limitations of scaling, very little progress has been made towards achieving a large-volume dense non-equilibrium plasma near atmospheric pressures. Commercially available state-of-the art glow-like atmospheric plasma devices for industrial applications are either narrow tubes or wide slits with narrow openings. Often multiple sources are put together in various configurations to process larger surfaces. The traditional methods of exciting electrodes create spatially fixed electric fields. As a result, the space charge at atmospheric pressure tends to be spatially confined resulting in non-uniformity which eventually leads to instability as the discharge is scaled. Theoretical work done under this project showed that it is possible to generate a spatially rotating electric field by exciting a set of electrodes with phase staggered sinusoidal waveforms. The modeling and simulations were done using plasma fluid models. It was shown that such a field can produce a uniform plasma. At the conclusion of the project, experimental proof of concept with an eight-electrode system in various gases (Air, Helium and Argon) was demonstrated. Power measurements and spectral investigation show that the concept can be used to generate a uniform stable plasma. This plasma source has the potential of opening new applications of nonthermal plasma including combustion of carbon-free fuel. The current limitation of the proposed method in scaling to higher volume and pressure is the need for multiple high voltage amplifiers.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
NASA NTRS1972

On the initiation of melt fracture.

Discussion of a problem encountered in the processing of viscoelastic materials that is caused by the presence of a hydrodynamic instability in the extrusion of polymer melts. The importance of the so-called Weissenberg number in determining the onset of the melt fracture is examined using classical linearized hydrodynamic stability analysis. It is shown that the simple shearing flow of a viscoelastic fluid becomes unstable at a critical value of the Weissenberg number. Implications for the extrusion processing of polymers are reviewed.

Mcintire, L. V.↗
NASA NTRS1978

Incompressible fluid ellipsoids in halos. I - The second-harmonic oscillations of the Maclaurin spheroids

The structure and stability of Maclaurin spheroids embedded in rigid uniform-density oblate spheroidal halos are determined by the tensor virial-equation method. These spheroid-halo systems can be thought of as crude fluid analogs of disk galaxies with halos. The halos are assumed to have the same center, the same axis of symmetry, and the same equatorial radius as the Maclaurin spheroids. Only halos with lower eccentricity than the Maclaurin spheroids are considered. The dynamic instability of the toroidal (barlike) modes is suppressed when m, the ratio of the halo mass to Maclaurin spheroid mass, is greater than 3 pi/8 for spherical halos and when m is greater than 1/2 for halos congruent to the Maclaurin spheroids. Intermediate halo flattenings yield intermediate critical m-values. On the other hand, a neutral point of the toroidal modes in the rotating and inertial frames occurs for all m and for all allowed halo flattenings. Growth rates for secular instability beyond the neutral point are calculated, and the eigenfrequencies of all second-harmonic modes are given for select cases. The Ostriker-Peebles (1973) conjecture concerning the stability of disk galaxies against barlike perturbations appears to be incorrect.

Durisen, R. H.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Kinetic effects on Alfven wave nonlinearity. II - The modified nonlinear wave equation

A previously developed Vlasov theory is used here to study the role of resonant particle and other kinetic effects on Alfven wave nonlinearity. A hybrid fluid-Vlasov equation approach is used to obtain a modified version of the derivative nonlinear Schroedinger equation. The differences between a scalar model for the plasma pressure and a tensor model are discussed. The susceptibilty of the modified nonlinear wave equation to modulational instability is studied. The modulational instability normally associated with the derivative nonlinear Schroedinger equation will, under most circumstances, be restricted to left circularly polarized waves. The nonlocal term in the modified nonlinear wave equation engenders a new modulational instability that is independent of beta and the sense of circular polarization. This new instability may explain the occurrence of wave packet steepening for all values of the plasma beta in the vicinity of the earth's bow shock.

Spangler, Steven R.↗
NASA NTRS2020

Tuning Neural Network Models for Improved Prediction of Boundary Layer Transition

Boundary layer transition can strongly impact flight vehicle performance as it influences surface skin friction and aerodynamic heating, making accurate transition prediction a key to designing next generation aircraft. Artificial neural networks (ANNs) have shown promise toward predicting laminar-turbulent transition based on linear stability correlations. The computational efficiency of ANNs and the substantially reduced user involvement in relation to direct computations based on the linear stability theory (LST) makes them an attractive methodology for integrating the LST based correlations in computational fluid dynamics codes. Tollmien-Schlichting (TS) waves correspond to the dominant transition mechanism in 2D or weakly 3D subsonic boundary layers, such as those encountered in general aviation applications. Improvements to neural network model accuracy in predicting the amplification rates of TS instability waves have been investigated by leveraging recent machine learning developments in conjunction with surrogate optimization techniques and via suitable augmentation of the data used to train the networks. The optimized models trained on the modified dataset reduced the average transition location errors on different airfoils at several flow conditions by 51% of the original manually-tuned network’s errors on the same flow cases. The actual transition locations were derived from the Langley Stability and Transition Analysis Code (LASTRAC).

Machine Learning↗
DOE OSTI2024

Final Report for Center for Tokamak Transient Simulations at USU

Providing plasma fluid codes like NIMROD with continuum drift kinetic (CDK) physics that is quantitatively valid and computationally feasible throughout the spatial domain is difficult. Work at Utah State University (USU), in collaboration with the Center for Tokamak Transient Simulations (CTTS), focused on applying CDK closures in disruption-related calculations. Three examples where kinetic physics is paramount are (1) the electron stress tensor closure in Ohms law for accurately describing neoclassical tearing mode (NTM) evolution, (2) runaway electron (RE) density (nRE) and current (jRE) moments in NIMROD’s extended MHD model for self-consistent evolution of RE populations during disruptions and, (3) energetic ion effects on a myriad of MHD instabilities. While NTM simulations and continuum and PIC approaches to energetic ions in NIMROD have been a major goals of USU’s closure work for several years, the development of self-consistent CDK RE capability in NIMROD was started and extended considerably during the CTTS effort. Some goals of CDK RE in NIMROD are to explore the effects of the 2D relativistic phase space in 4D simulations and compare with NIMROD’s fluid RE model. Four publications and two PhD theses came out of the USU CTTS effort.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2026

From Weibel seeds to dynamo beyond pair-plasmas

Bridging the spatiotemporal scales of magnetic seed field generation and subsequent dynamo amplification in the weakly collisional intracluster medium presents an extreme numerical challenge. We perform collisionless turbulence simulations with initially unmagnetised electrons that capture both magnetic seed generation via the electron Weibel instability and the ensuing dynamo amplification. Going beyond existing pair-plasma studies, we use an ion-to-electron mass ratio of 100 for which we find electron and ion dynamics are sufficiently decoupled. These simulations are enabled by the 10-moment collisionless fluid solver of Gkeyll, which evolves the full pressure tensor for all species. The electron heat-flux closure regulates pressure isotropisation and effectively sets the magnetic Reynolds number. We investigate how the strength of the closure influences the transition between a regime reminiscent of previous kinetic pair-plasma simulations and a regime exhibiting dynamo behaviour qualitatively similar to magnetohydrodynamics.

astrophysical plasmas↗
DOE OSTI2022

Simulating a pulsed-power-driven plasma with ideal MHD

We describe a simple practical numerical method for simulating plasma driven within a vacuum chamber by a pulsed power generator. Typically, in this type of simulation, the vacuum region adjacent to the plasma is approximated as a highly resistive, light fluid; this involves computationally expensive solvers describing the diffusion of the magnetic field through this fluid. Instead, we provide a recipe for coupling pulsed power generators to the magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) domain by approximating the perfectly insulating vacuum as a light, perfectly conducting, inviscid MHD fluid and discuss the applicability of this counter-intuitive technique. This much more affordable ideal MHD representation is particularly useful in situations where a plasma exhibits interesting three-dimensional phenomena, either due to the design of the experiment or due to developing instabilities. We verified that this coupling recipe works by modeling an exactly solvable flux compression generator as well as a self-similar Noh-like solution and demonstrated convergence to the theoretical solution. We also showed examples of simulating complex three-dimensional pulsed power devices with this technique. We release our code implementation to the public.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2024

Dynamical defects in a two-dimensional Wigner crystal: Self-doping and kinetic magnetism

We study the quantum dynamics of interstitials and vacancies in a two-dimensional Wigner crystal (WC) using a semi-classical instanton method that is asymptotically exact at low density, i.e., in the r s → ∞ limit. Here, the dynamics of these point defects mediates magnetism with much higher energy scales than the exchange energies of the pure WC. Via exact diagonalization of the derived effective Hamiltonians in the single-defect sectors, we find the dynamical corrections to the defect energies. The resulting expression for the interstitial (vacancy) energy extrapolates to 0 at r s = r mit ≈ 70 (r s ≈ 30), suggestive of a self-doping instability to a partially melted WC for some range of r s below r mit . We thus propose a “metallic electron crystal” phase of the two-dimensional electron gas at intermediate densities between a low density insulating WC and a high density Fermi fluid.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
NASA NTRS1993

Ellipsoidal figures of equilibrium - Compressible models

The results of Chandrasekhar (1969) are generalized to polytropes, using a formalism based on ellipsoidal energy variational principle to construct approximate stellar equilibrium solutions and study their stability. After reviewing the energy variational method and describing the approach, several equivalent stability conditions are established and secular vs. dynamical instabilities are discussed. Then, the equilibrium structure equations are derived for isolated, rotating polytropes, and axisymmetric configurations (compressible Maclaurin spheroids) are considered. Particular attention is given to triaxial configurations, either in a state of uniform rotation (generalizing the classical Jacobi ellipsoids) or with internal fluid motions of uniform vorticity (the compressible analogues of Riemann-S ellipsoids) and to the stability of these single star configurations. The compressible generalizations of the Roche and Roche-Riemann problems for a polytrope in orbit about a point-mass companion are solved, and the generalized Darwin problem for two identical polytropes in a binary is considered.

Lai, Dong↗
NASA NTRS1978

Coefficient matrices for implicit finite difference solution of the inviscid fluid conservation law equations

Although the Navier-Stokes equations describe most flows of interest in aerodynamics, the inviscid conservation law equations may be used for small regions with viscous forces. Thus, Euler equations and several time-accurate finite difference procedures, explicit and implicit, are discussed. Although implicit techniques require more computational work, they permit larger time steps to be taken without instability. It is noted that the Jacobian matrices for Euler equations in conservation-law form have certain eigenvalue-eigenvector properties which may be used to construct conservative-form coefficient matrices. This reduces the computation time of several implicit and semiimplicit schemes. Extensions of the basic approach to other areas are suggested.

Steger, J. L.↗
NASA NTRS1975

Microstructure of the solar wind

In this review microstructure is understood to summarize the dynamical properties of the solar wind that enter the fluid equations, usually employed to describe the overall flow, only in one or the other averaged form. Thus, first a description of the kinetic picture of the solar wind is given; it mainly involves the structure of the particle distributions in velocity space and associated instabilities. Waves and discontinuities are discussed next. Two selected examples are mentioned where the effects of waves and discontinuities play a role. Specific physical properties of the interplanetary magnetic irregularity spectrum and its relevance for cosmic ray propagation are discussed at the end.

Voelk, H. J.↗
NASA NTRS1979

Attenuation of sound in a low Mach number nozzle flow

The energy conversion mechanisms which govern the emission of low frequency sound from an axisymmetric jet pipe of arbitrary nozzle contraction ratio in the case of low Mach number nozzle flow are discussed. The energy of the incident sound which flows through the nozzle is used to maintain two distinct characteristic disturbances in the exterior fluid. First, there is the emitted radiation which has the directivity equivalent to that of a monopole-dipole combination. Second, essentially incompressible vortex waves are induced on the jet by vortex shedding from the lip of the nozzle and may involve the excitation of instability modes. Two linearized analytical models are examined to determine the partition of the emitted energy between the radiation field and the vortex waves. One of these is an exact linear theory in which the jet boundary is treated as a vortex sheet. The second model assumes that the width of the mean shear layer of the jet cannot be neglected. The results are discussed with reference to recent nozzle attenuation measurements.

Howe, M. S.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Experimental Investigation of the Behavior of Sub-Grid Scale Motions in Turbulent Shear Flow

Experiments have been carried out on a vertical jet of helium issuing into a co-flow of air at a fixed exit velocity ratio of 2.0. At all the experimental conditions studied, the flow exhibits a strong self excited periodicity. The natural frequency behavior of the jet, the underlying fine-scale flow structure, and the transition to turbulence have been studied over a wide range of flow conditions. The experiments were conducted in a variable pressure facility which made it possible to vary the Reynolds number and Richardson number independently. A stroboscopic schlieren system was used for flow visualization and single-component Laser Doppler Anemometry was used to measure the axial component of velocity. The flow exhibits several interesting features. The presence of co-flow eliminates the random meandering typical of buoyant plumes in a quiescent environment and the periodicity of the helium jet under high Richardson number conditions is striking. Under these conditions transition to turbulence consists of a rapid but highly structured and repeatable breakdown and intermingling of jet and freestream fluid. At Ri = 1.6 the three-dimensional structure of the flow is seen to repeat from cycle to cycle. The point of transition moves closer to the jet exit as either the Reynolds number or the Richardson number increases. The wavelength of the longitudinal instability increases with Richardson number. At low Richardson numbers, the natural frequency scales on an inertial time scale. At high Richardson number the natural frequency scales on a buoyancy time scale. The transition from one flow regime to another occurs over a narrow range of Richardson numbers from 0.7 to 1. A buoyancy Strouhal number is used to correlate the high Richardson number frequency behavior.

Cantwell, Brian↗