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At least 109 records · Page 6

All sources NASA NTRS DOE OSTI

NASA NTRS1979

Performance characteristics of a wedge nozzle installed on an F-18 propulsion wind tunnel model

The results of two-dimensional wedge non-axisymmetric nozzle (2D-AIN) tests to determine its performance relative to the baseline axisymmetric nozzle using an F-18 jet effects wind tunnel model are presented. Configurations and test conditions simulated forward thrust-minus drag, thrust vectoring/induced lift, and thrust reversing flight conditions from Mach .6 to 1.20 and attack angles up to 10 degrees. Results of the model test program indicate that non-axisymmetric nozzles can be installed on a twin engine fighter aircraft model with equivalent thrust minus drag performance as the baseline axisymmetric nozzles. Thrust vectoring capability of the non-axisymmetric nozzles provided significant jet-induced lift on the nozzle/aftbody and horizontal tail surfaces. Thrust reversing panels deployed from the 2D-AIN centerbody wedge were very effective for static and inflight operation

Petit, J. E.↗

NASA NTRS1981

Interlocking wedge joint is easily assembled

Wedge joint links structural members in manual, remote, or automated assemblies. Joint is simple enough to be assembled by undersea divers, workers in nuclear reactors, and other wearing gloves or bulky clothing. Combination of wedging angles on parts overcomes structural misalinements and forces assembly into true position as locking sleeve moves into place. Joint transmits tension, compression, bending moments and torsion and is inherently insensitive to thermal excursions, vibration, and machining tolerance buildup.

Long, M. J.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Wedge coupling of lasers into multimode fibers

Design and experimental data for obtuse-angled wedges used in coupled configurations of diode lasers and multimode fibers are presented. An analytic definition of the connection between the wedge angle and the fiber acceptance half-angle is developed, along with a formula for the minimum half-angle. An inequality is defined for determining the bevel angle of the output end of the fiber to eliminate end reflections. The fiber parameters are accounted for in the bevel. The formulations were tested in comparison with the performance of a coupled CDH laser system and good agreement was found in the output spectrum.

Ladany, I.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Hypersonic slender-wedge analysis with gradual change in angle of attack

The behavior of a narrow cross-section wedge wing moving at a high Mach number and subjected to an angle of attack changing exponentially with time is investigated. This type of wedge wing is commonly employed as a lifting surface in hypersonic vehicles. The time history of wall shear, heat transfer, displacement thickness, and viscous induced pressure are determined. Results show that for the same change in angle of attack, the flow attains the final steady state much faster when the change is exponential than when the change is made impulsively. In addition, the unsteady character of the flow is primarily confined to the initial stages of the change in the angle of attack.

Gupta, R. N.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Wedged Fibers Suppress Feedback of Laser Beam

When injected laser is coupled into optical fiber, emission instabilities arise because of optical feedback losses from fiber into laser. Coupling efficiencies as high as 80 percent, however, obtained by shaping end of multimode fiber into obtuse-angled wedge. Because slanted sides eliminate back reflection, such wedged fiber achieves high coupling efficiency.

Ladany, I.↗

NASA NTRS1988

Electromagnetic scattering by pyramidal and wedge absorber

Electromagnetic scattering from pyramidal and wedge absorbers used to line the walls of modern anechoic chambers is measured and compared with theoretically predicted values. The theoretical performance for various angles of incidence is studied. It is shown that a pyramidal absorber scatters electromagnetic energy more as a random rough surface does. The apparent reflection coefficient from an absorber wall illuminated by a plane wave can be much less than the normal absorber specifications quoted by the manufacturer. For angles near grazing incidence, pyramidal absorbers give a large backscattered field from the pyramid side-faces or edges. The wedge absorber was found to give small backscattered fields for near-grazing incidence. Based on this study, some new guidelines for the design of anechoic chambers are advocated because the specular scattering models used at present do not appear valid for pyramids that are large compared to the wavelength.

Dewitt, Brian T.↗

NASA NTRS1990

A multisatellite case study of the expansion of a substorm current wedge in the near-earth magnetotail

Results are presented on observations from four satellites (GOES 5, GOES 6, AMPTE CCE, and AMPTE IRM) and two ground stations (San Juan and Tucson) on a substorm that occurred on April 19, 1985 at about 0830 UT. The four spacecraft were arrayed in a configuration that made it possible to separate the effects arising from the longitudinal versus the radial expansion of the substorm current wedge and thus to examine its spatial evolution. The sequence of events that was observed suggests that, during this substorm, the disruption of the cross-tail current sheet, the formation of the substorm current wedge, and the expansion of the plasma sheet began in the near-earth region, and subsequently spread tailward as well as longitudinally.

Lopez, R. E.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Determination of refractive index of a simple negative, positive, or zero power lens using wedged plated interferometer

A nondestructive technique for measuring the refractive index of a negative lens using a wedged plate interferometer is described. The method can be also used for measuring the refractive index of convex or zero power lenses. Schematic diagrams are presented for the use of a wedged plate interferometer for measuring the refractive index of a concave lens and of a convex lens.

Shukla, R. P.↗

NASA NTRS1994

Flexible Wedge Seal For Ball Valve

Ball valve contains flexible sealing wedge. Wedge flexes around ball at locus of contact, creating effective seal with less force on ball than if hard valve seat were used. Less torque needed to close valve, and smaller actuator used.

Levert, Joseph A.↗

NASA NTRS1994

An automated optical wedge calibrator for Dobson ozone spectrophotometers

The Dobson ozone spectrophotometer measures the difference of intensity between selected wavelengths in the ultraviolet. The method uses an optical attenuator (the 'Wedge') in this measurement. The knowledge of the relationship of the wedge position to the attenuation is critical to the correct calculation of ozone from the measurement. The procedure to determine this relationship is time-consuming, and requires a highly skilled person to perform it correctly. The relationship has been found to change with time. For reliable ozone values, the procedure should be done on a Dobson instrument at regular intervals. Due to the skill and time necessary to perform this procedure, many instruments have gone as long as 15 years between procedures. This article describes an apparatus that performs the procedure under computer control, and is adaptable to the majority of existing Dobson instruments. Part of the apparatus is usable for normal operation of the Dobson instrument, and would allow computer collection of the data and real-time ozone measurements.

Evans, R. D.↗

NASA NTRS1994

Capillary surfaces in a wedge: Differing contact angles

The possible zero-gravity equilibrium configurations of capillary surfaces u(x, y) in cylindrical containers whose sections are (wedge) domains with corners are investigated mathematically, for the case in which the contact angles on the two sides of the wedge may differ. In such a situation the behavior can depart in significant qualitative ways from that for which the contact angles on the two sides are the same. Conditions are described under which such qualitative changes must occur. Numerically computed surfaces are depicted to indicate the behavior.

Concus, Paul↗

NASA NTRS1961

Exploratory Investigation of Transpiration Cooling of a 40 Degree Double Wedge Using Nitrogen and Helium as Coolants at Stagnation Temperatures from 1,295 Degrees Fahrenheit to 2,910 Degrees Fahrenheit

An investigation of transpiration cooling has been conducted in the preflight jet of the Langley Pilotless Aircraft Research Station at Wallops Island, Va. The model consisted of a double wedge of 40 deg included angle having a porous stainless-steel specimen inserted flush with the top surface of the wedge. The tests were conducted at a free-stream Mach number of 2.0 for stagnation temperatures ranging from 1,295 F to 2,910 F. Nitrogen and helium were used as coolants and tests were conducted for values ranging from approximately 0.03 to 0.30 percent of the local weight flow rate. The data for both the nitrogen and helium coolants indicated greater cooling effectiveness than that predicted by theory and were in good agreement with the results for an 8 deg cone tested at a stagnation temperature of 600 F. The results indicate that the helium coolant, for the same amount of heat-transfer reduction, requires only about one-fourth to one-fifth the coolant flow weight as the nitrogen coolant.

Rashis, Bernard↗

NASA NTRS2010

Computational Analysis of Arc-Jet Wedge Tests Including Ablation and Shape Change

Coupled fluid-material response analyses of arc-jet wedge ablation tests conducted in a NASA Ames arc-jet facility are considered. These tests were conducted using blunt wedge models placed in a free jet downstream of the 6-inch diameter conical nozzle in the Ames 60-MW Interaction Heating Facility. The fluid analysis includes computational Navier-Stokes simulations of the nonequilibrium flowfield in the facility nozzle and test box as well as the flowfield over the models. The material response analysis includes simulation of two-dimensional surface ablation and internal heat conduction, thermal decomposition, and pyrolysis gas flow. For ablating test articles undergoing shape change, the material response and fluid analyses are coupled in order to calculate the time dependent surface heating and pressure distributions that result from shape change. The ablating material used in these arc-jet tests was Phenolic Impregnated Carbon Ablator. Effects of the test article shape change on fluid and material response simulations are demonstrated, and computational predictions of surface recession, shape change, and in-depth temperatures are compared with the experimental measurements.

Goekcen, Tahir↗

NASA NTRS2011

Laser Oscillator Incorporating a Wedged Polarization Rotator and a Porro Prism as Cavity Mirror

A laser cavity was designed and implemented by using a wedged polarization rotator and a Porro prism in order to reduce the parts count, and to improve the laser reliability. In this invention, a z-cut quartz polarization rotator is used to compensate the wavelength retardance introduced by the Porro prism. The polarization rotator rotates the polarization of the linear polarized beam with a designed angle that is independent of the orientation of the rotator. This unique property was used to combine the retardance compensation and a Risley prism to a single optical component: a wedged polarization rotator. This greatly simplifies the laser alignment procedure and reduces the number of the laser optical components.

Li, Steven↗

NASA NTRS2012

Crossflow Instability on a Wedge-Cone at Mach 3.5

As a follow-on activity to the HyBoLT flight experiment, a six degree half angle wedge-cone model at zero angle of attack has been employed to experimentally and computationally study the boundary layer crossflow instability at Mach 3.5 under low disturbance freestream conditions. Computed meanflow and linear stability analysis results are presented along with corresponding experimental Pitot probe data. Using a model-mounted probe survey apparatus, data acquired to date show a well defined stationary crossflow vortex pattern on the flat wedge surface. This effort paves the way for additional detailed, calibrated flow field measurements of the crossflow instability, both stationary and traveling modes, and transition-to-turbulence under quiet flow conditions as a means of validating existing stability theory and providing a foundation for dynamic flight instrumentation development.

Beeler, George B.↗

NASA NTRS2012

Wind-Tunnel and Flight Test Results for the Measurements of Flow Variables at Supersonic Speeds Using Improved Wedge and Conical Probes

The results of supersonic wind-tunnel tests on three probes at nominal Mach numbers of 1.6, 1.8 and 2.0 and flight tests on two of these probes up to a Mach number of 1.9 are described. One probe is an 8 deg. half-angle wedge with two total-pressure measurements and one static. The second, a conical probe, is a cylinder that has a 15 deg., semi-angle cone tip with one total-pressure orifice at the apex and four static-pressure orifices on the surface of the cone, 90 deg. apart, and about two-thirds of the distance from the cone apex to the base of the cone. The third is a 2 deg. semi-angle cone that has two static ports located 180 deg. apart about 1.5 inches behind the apex of the cone. The latter probe was included since it has been the "probe of choice" for wind-tunnel flow-field pressure measurements (or one similar to it) for the past half-century. The wedge and 15 deg. conical probes used in these tests were designed for flight diagnostic measurements for flight Mach numbers down to 1.35 and 1.15 respectively, and have improved capabilities over earlier probes of similar shape. The 15. conical probe also has a temperature sensor that is located inside the cylindrical part of the probe that is exposed to free-stream flow through an annulus at the apex of the cone. It enables the determination of free-stream temperature, density, speed of sound, and velocity, in addition to free-stream pressure, Mach number, angle of attack and angle of sideslip. With the time-varying velocity, acceleration can be calculated. Wind-tunnel tests of the two probes were made in NASA Langley Research Center fs Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel (UPWT) at Mach numbers of 1.6, 1.8, and 2.0. Flight tests were carried out at the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center (DFRC) on its F-15B aircraft up to Mach numbers of 1.9. The probes were attached to a fixture, referred to as the Centerline Instrumented Pylon (CLIP), under the fuselage of the aircraft. Problems controlling the velocity of the flow through the conical probe required for accurate temperature measurements are noted, as well as some calibration problems of the miniature pressure sensors that required a re-calculation of the flow variables. Data are presented for angle of attack, pressure and Mach number obtained in the wind tunnel and in flight. In the wind tunnel some transient data were obtained by translating the probes through the shock flow field created by a bump on the wind-tunnel wall.

Bobbitt, Percy J.↗

NASA NTRS2019

Oxidation of the Mantle Wedge by H+ in Aqueous Fluids: A New Interdisciplinary Approach

The observation that arc magmas are the most oxidized on Earth have led petrologists to question whether the subduction process might cause oxidation of the sub-arc mantle source. A strong correlation between the input of slab-derived aqueous fluid and Fe3(+)/ΣFe in arc magmas has led to the hypothesis that slab fluids may facilitiate the transfer of redox potential from oxidized slab material to mantle wedge and subsequently to primary arc melts. Despite this intuitive link, identifying an efficient and ubiquitous chemical process to transfer oxidation state in slab fluids has been challenging. Pure H2O alone is an inefficient oxidizer in the mantle, necessitating another oxidant within the fluid. Commonly invoked components include S or C, which are likely heterogeneously distributed within subducting slabs, and direct transfer of Fe3(+), which is only possible in very solute-rich fluids. Here we present a new mechanism to explain the oxidation of the sub-arc mantle by slab-derived aqueous fluid, wherein dissolved H(+)(aq) is reduced to H2(aq). Redox equilibrium is satisfied by electron transfer from Fe2(+)(s), which is oxidized in the rock to Fe3(+)(s) in the reaction: 2Fe2(+)(s) + 2H(+)(aq) = 2Fe3(+)(s) + H2(aq). This simple reaction was previously overlooked due to the assumption that all H must be bound by H2O molecules (i.e., no dissolved H), applicable to a pure H2O fluid, but not one with a solute load as addressed here. The application of thermodynamic modeling tools from aqueous geochemistry (DEW, EQ3/6) to mantle petrology predicts this reaction between mantle rock and slab fluid with our own experimentally constrained chemistry and fO2 (QFM+2). Mass transfer model results show an increase in Fe3(+)/ΣFe in mantle rock from MORB- like (0.15) to arc-like (0.2–0.3) values at reasonable fluid fluxes, co-incident with increasing H2 activity in the fluid. This can explain the stark correlation between slab fluid input into the mantle wedge and the observed fO2 of arc magmas. Moreover, it does not require diffusion of hydrogen out of the system. Instead, H2 remains dissolved in fluid in equilibrium with oxidized mantle rock.

Iacovino, Kayla↗

DOE OSTI2021

A continuum meshfree method for sandbox-style numerical modeling of accretionary and doubly vergent wedges

Here, in this study, we introduce and utilize GEOSPH, a Lagrangian particle-based continuum Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) code to simulate the deformation of geologic materials in sandbox-style experiments using an elastoplastic constitutive model. Due to the meshfree nature of SPH, our proposed framework is capable of handling the large deformations characteristic of sandbox-style experiments. SPH is also able to capture strain localization and discontinuities, allowing us to resolve faulting patterns emerging in the sandbox experiments. We successfully validate our SPH implementation against the benchmark experiments of Buiter and co-workers, and then apply SPH to understand the deformational processes occurring in doubly vergent orogens resultant from the S-point experimental setup and from finitely high wedge-like indenter backstops of different inclinations. We find that the topographic slope of the prowedge results from the competing processes of vertical uplift due to the indenter and forward thrusting, while the topographic slope of the retrowedge is a product of repeated shallow slope failure. Our findings show that SPH is a promising numerical method which should be added to the current palette of computational tools used by structural geologists for solving problems relating to tectonics and crustal deformation.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗