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NASA NTRS1985

Thermocapillary Motion Research

Fundamental microgravity research on interfacial surface tension driven motion by a linear temperature gradient was conducted. A vertical linear temperature gradient will be established within a test container filled with a host fluid. The thermal gradient will be positive in the upward vertical direction to avoid any free convective currents. With minimal disturbance, a single immisible fluid droplet will be introduced into the host fluid. As predicted by existing theory, the droplet will move in the direction of higher temperature due to tangential shear stresses created by surface tension variations along the periphery of the droplet.

Peterson, T. T.↗

NASA NTRS1985

Optical technique to study the impact of heavy rain on aircraft performance

A laser based technique was investigated and shown to have the potential to obtain measurements of the size and velocity of water droplets used in a wind tunnel to simulate rain. A theoretical model was developed which included some simple effects due to droplet nonsphericity. Parametric studies included the variation of collection distance (up to 4 m), angle of collection, effect of beam interference by the spray, and droplet shape. Accurate measurements were obtained under extremely high liquid water content and spray interference. The technique finds applications in the characterization of two phase flows where the size and velocity of particles are needed.

Hess, C. F.↗

NASA NTRS1985

Transition region ignition characteristics of n-heptane fuel sprays

Ignition studies were perferred on monodisperse n-heptane sprays at atmospheric pressure over a range of equivalence ratios and droplet diameters. A capacitive discharge spark ignition system was used as the ignition source, providing independent control of spark energy and duration. Preliminary measurements were made to optimize spark duration and spark gap, optimum conditions being those at which the maximum frequency or probability of ignition was observed. The effect of spark duration on ignition frequency for several spark energies was determined for equivalence ratios of 0.5 and 1.0 and initial droplet diameters of 28 and 68 microns. Spark duration had little effect on ignition frequency over the entire 15 to 170 mu s range examined. Spark durations of 70 to 80 mu s were used for all subsequent work. The spark gap was optimized at equivalence ratios of 0.6, 0.8 and 1.0 and initial droplet diameters of 30, 40, 50, 60 and 70 microns by varying the electrode spacing from 0.5 to 5.0 mm while maintaining a constant spark energy. The optimum gap was determined to be 3.0 mm for nearly all conditions.

Danis, A. M.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Combustion characteristics in the transition region of liquid fuel sprays

A number of important effects have been observed in the droplet size transition region in spray combustion systems. In this region, where the mechanism of flame propagation is transformed from diffusive to premixed dominated combustion, the following effects have been observed: (1) maxima in burning velocity; (2) extension of flammability limits; (3) minima in ignition energy; and (4) minima in NOx formation. A monodisperse aerosol generator has been used to form and deliver a well controlled liquid fuel spray to the combustion test section where measurements of ignition energy have been made. The ignition studies were performed on monodisperse n-heptane sprays at atmospheric pressure over a range of equivalence ratios and droplet diameters. A capacitive discharge spark ignition system was used as the ignition source, providing independent control of spark energy and duration. Preliminary measurements were made to optimize spark duration and spark gap, optimum conditions being those at which the maximum frequency or probability of ignition was observed. Using the optimum electrode spacing and spark duration, the frequency of ignition was determined as a function of spark energy for three overall equivalence ratios (0.6, 0.8, and 1.0) and for initial droplet diameters of 25, 40, 50, 60, and 70 micro m.

Cernansky, N. P.↗

NASA NTRS1985

The importance of Soret transport in the production of high purity silicon for solar cells

Temperature-gradient-driven diffusion, or Soret transport, of silicon vapor and liquid droplets is analyzed under conditions typical of current production reactors for obtaining high purity silicon for solar cells. Contrary to the common belief that Soret transport is negligible, it is concluded that some 15-20 percent of the silicon vapor mass flux to the reactor walls is caused by the high temperature gradients that prevail inside such reactors. Moreover, since collection of silicon is also achieved via deposition of silicon droplets onto the walls, the Soret transport mechanism becomes even more crucial due to size differences between diffusing species. It is shown that for droplets in the 0.01 to 1 micron diameter range, collection by Soret transport dominates both Brownian and turbulent mechanisms.

Srivastava, R.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Visibility related to backscatter at 1.54 micron

The lidar process was shown to have the necessary potential to fulfill the need for a remote measurement of visibility. Visibility can be inferred from a lidar return optical extinction. The wavelength 1.54 micron was chosen, being near the visible wavelength region and having a high eye safety threshol, 200,000 times higher than 1.06 micron; 1.54 is the erbium laser wavelength. This research utilized 105 measured height profiles of natural droplet size distributions data, taken in clouds, fog, and haze. These profiles were examined to determine the completeness of the droplet counting data. It was found that the particle spectrometer data were incomplete in the very light ford and haze so this portion of the data was eliminated. Utilizing the Mie theory, these droplet size distribution profiles were converted to backscatter at 1.54 micron and extinction in the visible region, 0.55 micron. Using Koschmeider's relationship, the extinction profiles were converted to visibility. The visibility and backscatter profiles were compared to develop a relationship between visibility and backscatter at 1.54 micron.

Barber, T. L.↗

NASA NTRS1987

Particle trajectory computer program for icing analysis of axisymmetric bodies - A progress report

Aircraft exposed to an atmospheric icing environment can accumulate ice, resulting in a sharp increase in drag, a reduction in lift, control surface fouling, and engine damage all of which result in a hazardous flight situation. NASA Lewis Research Center (LeRC) has conducted a program to examine, with the aid of high-speed computer codes, how the trajectories of particles contribute to the ice accumulation on airfoils and engine inlets. For this effort, a computer code was developed to calculate icing particle trajectories and impingement limits for axisymmetric inlets. The original research-oriented NASA code was upgraded and modified to meet the requirements of the design engineer. The improved code is capable of performing trajectory calculations for any atmospheric conditions and droplet sizes. It can handle single droplets or a distribution of various droplet sizes. The four programs that comprise the code are described and the results of a test case using flight conditions for a Fokker F100 icing tunnel test are presented.

Maltezos, Dimitrios G.↗

NASA NTRS1987

A combined Eulerian-Lagrangian analysis for computation of two-phase flows

A combined Eulerian-Lagrangian analysis, which combines a linearized block implicit Navier-Stokes analysis for the continuous phase with a Lagrangian analysis for the motion of the droplet phase to simulate evaporating two-phase flows, has been developed. A unique aspect of this analysis is that the Lagrangian equations for the droplet motion have been transformed into the Eulerian computational space using coordinate transformation resulting in better computational efficiency. Use of the present implicit procedure for the continuous phase makes it possible to efficiently use a locally highly refined mesh. The coupling of the continuous phase and the droplet phase analyses is such that it allows the use of convergence acceleration techniques for steady-state problems, as well as making it possible to simulate transient flows. A rapidly evaporating two-phase flow caused by spray of liquid nitrogen in gaseous nitrogen has been used as a test problem to demonstrate the computer code using this analysis.

Sabnis, J. S.↗

NASA NTRS1987

Numerical simulation of the flow field and fuel sprays in an IC engine

A two-dimensional model for axisymmetric piston-cylinder configurations is developed to study the flow field in two-stroke direct-injection Diesel engines under motored conditions. The model accounts for turbulence by a two-equation model for the turbulence kinetic energy and its rate of dissipation. A discrete droplet model is used to simulate the fuel spray, and the effects of the gas phase turbulence on the droplets is considered. It is shown that a fluctuating velocity can be added to the mean droplet velocity every time step if the step is small enough. Good agreement with experimental data is found for a range of ambient pressures in Diesel engine-type microenvironments. The effects of the intake swirl angle in the spray penetration, vaporization, and mixing in a uniflow-scavenged two-stroke Diesel engine are analyzed. It is found that the swirl increases the gas phase turbulence levels and the rates of vaporization.

Nguyen, H. L.↗

NASA NTRS1988

Liquid sprays and flow studies in the direct-injection diesel engine under motored conditions

A two dimensional, implicit finite difference method of the control volume variety, a two equation model of turbulence, and a discrete droplet model were used to study the flow field, turbulence levels, fuel penetration, vaporization, and mixing in diesel engine environments. The model was also used to study the effects of engine speed, injection angle, spray cone angle, droplet distribution, and intake swirl angle on the flow field, spray penetration and vaporization, and turbulence in motored two-stroke diesel engines. It is shown that there are optimum conditions for injection, which depend on droplet distribution, swirl, spray cone angle, and injection angle. The optimum conditions result in good spray penetration and vaporization and in good fuel mixing. The calculation presented clearly indicates that internal combustion engine models can be used to assess, at least qualitatively, the effects of injection characteristics and engine operating conditions on the flow field and on the spray penetration and vaporization in diesel engines.

Nguyen, Hung Lee↗

NASA NTRS1987

Effects of El Chichon on stratospheric aerosols late 1982 to early 1984

Stratospheric aerosols collected over the western U.S. from late 1982 to early 1984 show the strong effects of El Chichon's eruption. Although mineral particles disappeared during this period, large acid droplets were still common. Because these have never been seen in prevolcanic, background-level collections, they apparently result from increased droplet growth made possible by the unusual abundance of sulfate. Aerosol size distributions show a wide variety of multimodal curves due to mixing of air masses containing aerosols of various ages or histories. Toward the end of the study time there are fewer large aerosols because of gravitational settling and poleward transport. The result is a steady reduction in sulfate, as most aerosol mass is concentrated in a small number of large droplets. Even the later sulfate levels are, however, five times typical prevolcanic background contents. Thus the influence of El Chichon on high-altitude was still considerable 22 months after eruption.

Snetsinger, K. G.↗

NASA NTRS1987

Multimegawatt nuclear power system for lunar base applications

This report describes a conceptual design for a multimegawatt lunar-based nuclear power system developed by students in the Space Systems Design course at the University of Washington. The design requirements are to produce 3 MWe for an operational lifetime of 10 years without human intervention. The system utilizes an inert-gas-cooled fuel-pin reactor as the heat source, a regenerative Brayton cycle as the power converter and a liquid droplet radiator as the thermal management system, and has a specific power of 66 W/kg. The unique requirements of a lunar base on shielding and siting of a nuclear reactor are discussed. The structural elements, though large, have a relatively small total mass and the liquid droplet radiator is highly adaptable to the moon due to the positive effects of lunar gravity on the droplet collection process.

Panchyshyn, M.↗

NASA NTRS1989

Big savings from small holes

The status and results to date of the NASA-Lewis/USAF Astronautics study of technology for large spacecraft heat-dissipation by means of liquid-droplet radiation (LDR) are discussed. The LDR concept uses a droplet generator to create billions of 200-micron droplets of a heatsink fluid which will cool through radiation into deep space as they fly toward a dropet collector. This exposure to the space environment entails the maintenance of vapor pressure as low as 10 to the -7th torr; the fluid must also be very stable chemically. While certain oils are good fluids for LDR use at low temperatures, higher-temperature heatsink fluids include Li, Sn, and Ga liquid metals.

White, Alan↗

NASA NTRS1990

Direct and remote sensing observations of the effects of ships on clouds

Under certain conditions ships can affect the structure of shallow overlying layer clouds. It has been suggested that this is due to particles emitted from the ships, which increase the concentration of cloud condensation nuclei in the air, which, in turn, increases the concentrations of cloud droplets and reduces the average size of the droplets. Two ship track signatures in stratus clouds were observed simultaneously from a satellite and from an aircraft. The airborne measurements showed that in the ship tracks the droplet sizes and concentrations, as well as the total concentrations of particles, were substantially different from those in adjacent clouds. Furthermore, in-situ solar radiation measurements showed a significant enhancement in the upwelling radiance within the ship tracks at visible wavelengths and a significant reduction in radiance at 2.2 micrometers. Remote sensing measurements from the NOAA-10 satellite showed the effects of these differences in cloud structure as an enhancement in cloud reflectivity at 0.63 and 3.7 micrometers. These observations support the contention that ship track signatures in clouds are produced primarily by particles generated by ships.

Radke, Lawrence F.↗

NASA NTRS1989

Application of two-component phase Doppler interferometry to the measurement of particle size, mass flux, and velocities in two-phase flows

Two-component phase Doppler interferometry is described, along with its application for the spatially-resolved measurements of particle size, velocity, and mass flux as well as continuous phase velocity. This technique measures single particle events at a point in the flow; droplet size is deduced from the spatial phase shift of the Doppler signal. Particle size influence and discrimination of continuous and discrete phases are among issues covered. Applications are presented for four cases: an example of the discrimination of two sizes of glass beads in a jet flow; a demonstration of the discrimination of phases in a spray field; an assessment of atomizer symmetry with respect to fuel distribution; and a characterization of a droplet field in a reacting spray. It is noted that the above technique is especially powerful in delineating droplet interactions in the swirling, complex flows typical of realistic systems.

Mcdonell, V. G.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Non-grey radiation in a liquid rocket combustion chamber

The effects of radiation on droplets gasification in liquid rocket combustion chambers has been studied. The modeling includes a Legendre pseudo-spectral collocation approximation to solve the Radiative Transfer Equation (RTE). The band model has been utilized to account for non-grey emitting and absorbing gases present in the comustion chamber. The GEMCHIP II code has been utilized to study the fuel and oxidizer droplets combustion and interaction. The submodels within this code are capable of accounting for group combustion and conjugate effects between many droplets. The radiative model has been coupled with the GEMCHIP II code accounting for radial effects only, to provide the tool for studying the combustion-radiation coupling effects in a bipropellant system. The results indicate that the gasification/combustion process will be enhanced upstream of the chamber causing thicker flame sheet and associated higher combustion efficiency.

Kehtarnavaz, H.↗

NASA NTRS1990

LOX vaporization in high-pressure, hydrogen-rich gas

LOX droplet vaporization in high-pressure hydrogen-rich gas is analyzed, with special attention to thermodynamic effects which compel the surface to heat to the critical state and to supercritical vaporization processes on heating to criticality. Subcritical vaporization is modeled using a quasi-steady diffusion-controlled gas-phase transport formulation coupled to an effective-conductivity internal-energy-transport model accounting for circulation effects. It is demonstrated how the droplet surface might heat to the critical state, for ambient pressures slightly greater than the critical pressure of oxygen, such that the bulk of propellant within the droplet remains substantially below the critical mixing temperature.

Litchford, Ron J.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Turbulence modulation effect on evaporating spray characterization

The effects of turbulence modulation on the evaporating spray characteristics of a liquid fuel jet are numerically investigated. Two modulation models are implemented into the k-epsilon two-equation model. The gas phase is solved by a pressure-based method on a Eulerian frame and droplets are solved by a stochastic discrete particle technique based on Lagrangian formulation. The k-epsilon models are used to characterize the time and length scales of the gas phase turbulence for droplet dispersions and droplet/turbulence interactions. The modulation models are found to have significant effects on gas phase dynamics, and are less important for the droplet dynamics. Numerical predictions are compared with the experimental data of Drallemier and Peters (1990).

Shang, H. M.↗