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At least 883 records · Page 49

A pressure flux-split technique for computation of inlet flow behavior

A method for calculating the flow field in aircraft engine inlets is presented. The phenomena of inlet unstart and restart are investigated. Solutions of the reduced Navier-Stokes (RNS) equations are obtained with a time consistent direct sparse matrix solver that computes the transient flow field both internal and external to the inlet. Time varying shocks and time varying recirculation regions can be efficiently analyzed. The code is quite general and is suitable for the computation of flow for a wide variety of geometries and over a wide range of Mach and Reynolds numbers.

Pordal, H. S.↗

Solution of three-dimensional afterbody flow using reduced Navier-Stokes equations

The flow over afterbody geometries was investigated using the reduced Navier-Stokes (RNS) approximation. Both pressure velocity flux-split and composites velocity primitive variable formulations were considered. Pressure or pseudopotential relaxation procedures are combined with sparse matrix or coupled strongly implicit algorithms to form a three-dimensional solver for general non-orthogonal coordinates. Three-dimensional subsonic and transonic viscous/inviscid interacting flows were evaluated. Solutions with and without regions of recirculation were obtained.

Almahroos, H. M. H.↗

Nickel-hydrogen cell low-Earth life test update

When individual pressure vessel (IPV) nickel-hydrogen (Ni/H2) cells were selected as the energy storage system for the Space Station Freedom in March of 1986, a limited database existed on life and performance characteristics of these cells in a low earth orbit (LEO) regime. Therefore, NASA LeRC initiated a Ni/H2 cell test program with the primary objectives of building a test facility, procuring cells from existing NASA contracts, and screening several cell designs by life testing in a LEO 35 percent depth of discharge (DOD) scenario. A total of 40 cells incorporating 13 designs were purchased from Yardney, Hughes, and Eagle-Picher. Thirty-two of the cells purchased were 65 A-hr nameplate capacity and eight cells were 50 A-hr. Yardney and Eagle-Picher cells were built with both the Air Force recirculating and the advanced back-to-back electrode stack configurations and incorporated 31 and 26 percent KOH. Acceptance testing of the first delivered cells began in March of 1988, with life testing following in September of that year.Performance comparisons of these cells are made here while specifically addressing life test data relative to the design differences.

Frate, David T.↗

The crop growth research chamber: A ground-based facility for CELSS research

A ground based facility for the study of plant growth and development under stringently controlled environments is being developed by the Closed Ecological Life Support System (CELSS) program at the Ames Research Center. Several Crop Growth Research Chambers (CGRC) and laboratory support equipment provide the core of this facility. The CGRC is a closed (sealed) system with a separate recirculating atmosphere and nutrient delivery systems. The atmospheric environment, hydroponic environment, systems controls, and data acquisition are discussed.

Bubenheim, David L.↗

Analysis and prediction of tilt rotor hover noise

This paper presents new and improved tilt rotor hover noise prediction methods. Calculations include both discrete frequency harmonic noise and broadband noise mechanisms due to the ground plane/fountain recirculating flow. The noise mechanisms studied are thickness, loading, and inflow turbulence noise. In each case aeroacoustic models are developed and compared to noise measurements obtained experimentally for the XV-15 experimental tilt rotor aircraft. Both the effects of the mean and the turbulent fountain flows are found to be important noise sources and have strongly directional radiation patterns toward the rear of the aircraft (the direction of the rotor motion through the fountain flow). Calculations also show that the noise generated by the inflow of ambient atmospheric turbulence can also be an important noise source in hover in some directions. Further development of the methods and models, and precise information about the fountain flow, are needed to improve the predictions and to initiate noise minimization studies.

Coffen, Charles D.↗

Computational analysis of vented supersonic exhaust nozzles using a multiblock/multizone strategy

NASA-Langley's PAB3D-v3 multiblock/multizone Navier Stokes code is presently used to study the behavior of the longitudinally-slotted nozzle configuration for fixed-geometry operation in supersonic cruise on the bases of high nozzle pressure ratios. The range of flow conditions encompassed nozzle pressure ratio values from 5 to 20, and freestream Mach numbers from 0 to 2.5. A large recirculation region was detected near the concave base of the nozzle, while smaller regions were located near and around the slots. In general, the discharge coefficient was predicted within 0.5 percent, and the thrust ratio within 1.5 percent, of measured values.

Abdol-Hamid, Khaled S.↗

Combustion efficiency determined from wall pressure and temperature measurement in a Mach 2 combustor

A study of transverse hydrogen injection behind a rearward facing step in a Mach 2 airflow was conducted to determine the combustion efficiency and the combustor/inlet interactions at the low temperature lean-mixture operational end of a scramjet combustor model. The fuel was injected at sonic conditions into the electrically heated airstream, which was maintained at 850 K or below. The static pressure delivered at the entrance of the combustor ranged between 0.25 to 0.5 atm. Injector configurations included single and staged injectors placed at 3 or 3-and-7 step-heights downstream of the step, respectively, with injector diameters of 1, 1.5, and 2 mm. Ignition was achieved by initially unstarting the test section. The constant area combustor and the low initial temperatures caused thermal choking and upstream interaction to occur at very low equivalence ratios. Typically, most of the fuel was burned in the recirculation region behind the step and around the jets. The effects of initial conditions (temperature and pressure), fuel-to-air dynamic pressure ratio, and boundaries (thermal vs adiabatic) are presented.

Segal, Corin↗

Deep-focus earthquakes and recycling of water into the earth's mantle

For more than 50 years, observations of earthquakes to depths of 100 to 650 kilometers inside earth have been enigmatic: at these depths, rocks are expected to deform by ductile flow rather than brittle fracturing or frictional sliding on fault surfaces. Laboratory experiments and detailed calculations of the pressures and temperatures in seismically active subduction zones indicate that this deep-focus seismicity could originate from dehydration and high-pressure structural instabilities occurring in the hydrated part of the lithosphere that sinks into the upper mantle. Thus, seismologists may be mapping the recirculation of water from the oceans back into the deep interior of the planet.

Meade, Charles↗

Effect of KOH concentration on LEO cycle life of IPV nickel-hydrogen flight battery cells

A breakthrough in the low-earth-orbit (LEO) cycle life of individual pressure vessel (IPV) nickel hydrogen battery cells is reported. The cycle life of boiler plate cells containing 26 percent potassium hydroxide (KOH) electrolyte was about 40,000 LEO cycles compared to 3500 cycles for cells containing 31 percent KOH. The effect of KOH concentration on cycle life was studied. The cycle regime was a stressful accelerated LEO, which consisted of a 27.5 min charge followed by a 17.5 min charge (2 x normal rate). The depth of discharge (DOD) was 80 percent. The cell temperature was maintained at 23 C. The next step is to validate these results using flight hardware and real time LEO test. NASA Lewis has a contract with the Naval Weapons Support Center (NWSC), Crane, Indiana to validate the boiler plate test results. Six 48 A-hr Hughes recirculation design IPV nickel-hydrogen flight battery cells are being evaluated. Three of the cells contain 26 percent KOH (test cells) and three contain 31 percent KOH (control cells). They are undergoing real time LEO cycle life testing. The cycle regime is a 90-min LEO orbit consisting of a 54-min charge followed by a 36-min discharge. The depth-of-discharge is 80 percent. The cell temperature is maintained at 10 C. The cells were cycled for over 8000 cycles in the continuing test. There were no failures for the cells containing 26 percent KOH. There were two failures, however, for the cells containing 31 percent KOH.

Smithrick, John J.↗

A flux-split solution procedure for unsteady flow calculations

The solution of reduced Navier Stokes (RNS) equations is considered using a flux-split procedure. Unsteady flow in a two dimensional engine inlet is computed. The problems of unstart and restart are investigated. A sparse matrix direct solver combined with domain decomposition strategy is used to compute the unsteady flow field at each instant of time. Strong shock-boundary layer interaction, time varying shocks and time varying recirculation regions are efficiently captured.

Pordal, H. S.↗

Cell separation and electrofusion in space

In microgravity, free-fluid electrophoretic methods for separating living cells and proteins are improved significantly by the absence of gravity-driven phenomena. Cell fusion, culture, and other bioprocessing steps are being investigated to understand the limits of earth-based processing. A multistep space bioprocess is described that includes electrophoretic separation of human target cells, single-cell manipulations using receptor-specific antibodies, electrofusion to produce immortal hybridomas, gentle suspension culture, and monoclonal antibody recovery using continuous-flow electrophoresis or recirculating isoelectric focusing. Improvements in several key steps already have been demonstrated by space experiments, and others will be studied on Space Station Freedom.

Morrison, D. R.↗

A review of reduced Navier-Stokes computations for compressible viscous flows

A reduced form of the Navier-Stokes equations, defined by a single composite of the Euler, boundary layer, and triple deck approximations, is considered for the computation of viscous interacting flows. Global pressure or pseudopotential relaxation methods are integrated with coupled sparse matrix direct solvers or coupled strongly implicit ILU algorithms to efficiently capture sharp shocks and regions of recirculation. Solutions are obtained for a variety of 2D and 3D geometries and for Mach numbers (M) spanning the range from incompressible (M = 0) to supersonic (M = 6) flow.

Rubin, S. G.↗

Three-Dimensional Navier-Stokes Simulation of Space Shuttle Main Propulsion 17-inch Disconnect Valves

A steady incompressible three-dimensional viscous flow analysis has been conducted for the Space Shuttle external tank/orbiter propellant feed line disconnect flapper valves with upstream elbows. The Navier-Stokes code, INS3D, is modified to handle interior obstacles and a simple turbulence model. The flow solver is tested for stability and convergence in the presence of interior flappers. An under-relaxation scheme has been incorporated to improve the solution stability. Important flow characteristics such as secondary flows, recirculation, vortex and wake regions, and separated flows are observed. Computed values for forces, moments, and pressure drop are in satisfactory agreement with water flow test data covering a maximum tube Reynolds number of 3.5 million. The predicted hydrodynamical stability of the flappers correlates well with the measurements.

Kandula, M.↗

Pressure flux-split viscous solutions for subsonic diffusers

A method for predicting flow in diffusers with inlet swirl has been developed. Solutions of the pressure flux-split Reduced Navier Stokes (RNS) equations are obtained for flows in axisymmetric diffusers. Viscous-Inviscid interactions and flow fields with toroidal recirculation regions are efficiently captured. The computational model is verified by comparision with experimental data and other computations. The extreme sensitivity to grid, turbulent closure model and inlet profiles is discussed.

Pordal, H. S.↗

Computation of turbulent flow in a thin liquid layer of fluid involving a hydraulic jump

Numerically computed flow fields and free surface height distributions are presented for the flow of a thin layer of liquid adjacent to a solid horizontal surface that encounters a hydraulic jump. Two kinds of flow configurations are considered: two-dimensional plane flow and axisymmetric radial flow. The computations used a boundary-fitted moving grid method with a k-epsilon model for the closure of turbulence. The free surface height was determined by an optimization procedure which minimized the error in the pressure distribution on the free surface. It was also checked against an approximate procedure involving integration of the governing equations and use of the MacCormack predictor-corrector method. The computed film height also compared reasonably well with previous experiments. A region of recirculating flow was found to be present adjacent to the solid boundary near the location of the jump, which was caused by a rapid deceleration of the flow.

Rahman, M. M.↗

A non-isotropic multiple-scale turbulence model

A newly developed non-isotropic multiple scale turbulence model (MS/ASM) is described for complex flow calculations. This model focuses on the direct modeling of Reynolds stresses and utilizes split-spectrum concepts for modeling multiple scale effects in turbulence. Validation studies on free shear flows, rotating flows and recirculating flows show that the current model perform significantly better than the single scale k-epsilon model. The present model is relatively inexpensive in terms of CPU time which makes it suitable for broad engineering flow applications.

Chen, C. P.↗

A comparative analysis of XV-15 tiltrotor hover test data and WOPWOP predictions incorporating the fountain effect

Acoustic measurements from a hovering full scale XV-15 tilt rotor with the advanced technology blades are presented which show the directionality of fountain effect noise. Predicted acoustic directivity results are also presented which show agreement with the measured data. The aeroacoustic code, WOPWOP, was used in conjunction with a mathematical model which simulated the fountain recirculation aerodynamic effect on the rotor blade surface pressures. The predictions were used to identify the spike character in the measured data as fountain effect associated noise. The directivity of the fountain effect noise was observed to be dominant at the rear of the aircraft with increased intensities 45 degrees below the rotor disk planes.

Rutledge, Charles K.↗

Effect of KOH concentration on LEO cycle life of IPV nickel-hydrogen flight cells-update 2

An update of validation test results confirming the breakthrough in low earth orbit (LEO) cycle life of nickel-hydrogen cells containing 26 percent KOH electrolyte is presented. A breakthrough in the LEO cycle life of individual pressure vessel (IPV nickel-hydrogen cells has been previously reported. The cycle life of boiler plate cells containing 26 percent potassium hydroxide (KOH) electrolyte was about 40 000 LEO cycles compared to 3500 cycles for cells containing 31 percent KOH. This test was conducted at Hughes Aircraft Company under a NASA Lewis contract. The purpose was to investigate the effect of KOH concentration on cycle life. The cycle regime was a stressful accelerated LEO, which consisted of a 27.5 min charge followed by a 17.5 min discharge (2x normal rate). The depth of discharge (DOD) was 80 percent. The cell temperature was maintained at 23 C. The boiler plate test results are in the process of being validated using flight hardware and real time LEO test at the Naval Weapons Support Center (NWSC), Crane, Indiana under a NASA Lewis Contract. Six 48 Ah Hughes recirculation design IPV nickel-hydrogen flight battery cells are being evaluated. Three of the cells contain 26 percent KOH (test cells), and three contain 31 percent KOH (control cells). They are undergoing real time LEO cycle life testing. The cycle regime is a 90-min LEO orbit consisting of a 54-min charge followed by a 36-min discharge. The depth-of-discharge is 80 percent. The cell temperature is maintained at 10 C. The three 31 percent KOH cells failed (cycles 3729, 4165, and 11355). One of the 26 percent KOH cells failed at cycle 15314. The other two 26 percent KOH cells were cycled for over 16600 cycles during the continuing test.

Smithrick, John J.↗