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At least 109 records · Page 6
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1999

Bursting Bubbles from Combustion of Thermoplastic Materials in Microgravity

Many thermoplastic materials in common use for a wide range of applications, including spacecraft, develop bubbles internally as they burn due to chemical reactions taking place within the bulk. These bubbles grow and migrate until they burst at the surface, forceably ejecting volatile gases and, occasionally, molten fuel. In experiments in normal gravity, Kashiwagi and Ohlemiller observed vapor jets extending a few centimeters from the surface of a radiatively heated polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) sample, with some molten material ejected into the gas phase. These physical phenomena complicated the combustion process considerably. In addition to the non-steady release of volatiles, the depth of the surface layer affected by oxygen was increased, attributed to the roughening of the surface by bursting events. The ejection of burning droplets in random directions presents a potential fire hazard unique to microgravity. In microgravity combustion experiments on nylon Velcro fasteners and on polyethylene wire insulation, the presence of bursting fuel vapor bubbles was associated with the ejection of small particles of molten fuel as well as pulsations of the flame. For the nylon fasteners, particle velocities were higher than 30 cm/sec. The droplets burned robustly until all fuel was consumed, demonstrating the potential for the spread of fire in random directions over an extended distance. The sequence of events for a bursting bubble has been photographed by Newitt et al.. As the bubble reaches the fluid surface, the outer surface forms a dome while the internal bubble pressure maintains a depression at the inner interface. Liquid drains from the dome until it breaks into a cloud of droplets on the order of a few microns in size. The bubble gases are released rapidly, generating vortices in the quiescent surroundings and transporting the tiny droplets. The depression left by the escaping gases collapses into a central jet, which rises with a high velocity and may break up, releasing one or more relatively large drops (on the order of a millimeter in these experiments). A better understanding of bubble development and bursting processes, the effects of bursting behavior on burning rate of the bulk material, and the circumstances under which large droplets are expelled, as well as their trajectories, sizes, and burning rates, is sought through computer modeling compared with experiment.

Butler, K. B.↗
NASA NTRS1999

A Numerical Study of Low-Reynolds-Number Separation Bubbles

The present study uses two dimensional numerical simulations to study unsteady low-Reynolds-number separation bubbles. The numerical study is in two parts: (1) a two dimensional time-accurate Navier-Stokes solver is used to simulate flows over the APEX airfoil, and (2) a numerical procedure is developed for localized simulations of transitional separation bubbles. The 2-D computations of flow over the APEX airfoil show that the flow is unsteady with periodic vortex shedding. A linear stability analysis of the separated flow shows that the vortex shedding is caused due to the instability of the separated flow. For transonic flows over the APEX airfoil the vortex shedding is additionally influenced by the presence of shocks. The flowfield has two characteristic time scales, one corresponding to the vortex shedding and another corresponding to the movement of the shocks. The two dimensional (2-D) airfoil simulations also showed the presence of nonlinear effects in the separated region. To better understand the characteristics of separation bubbles a numerical procedure has been developed for localized separation bubble calculations. This procedure is used to perform computations for a flat plate separation bubble test case. The separation bubble is induced by specifying a velocity gradient in the freestream. The growth of disturbances in the separation bubble is analyzed by introducing disturbances upstream of the separation bubble.

Tatineni, Mahidhar↗
NASA NTRS2002

Behavior of Rapidly Sheared Bubble Suspensions

An experiment to be carried out aboard the International Space Station is described. A suspension consisting of millimeter-sized bubbles in water containing some dissolved salt, which prevents bubbles from coalescing, will be sheared in a Couette cylindrical cell. Rotation of the outer cylinder will produce centrifugal force which will tend to accumulate the bubbles near the inner wall. The shearing will enhance collisions among bubbles creating thereby bubble phase pressure that will resist the tendency of the bubbles to accumulate near the inner wall. The bubble volume fraction and velocity profiles will be measured and compared with the theoretical predictions. Ground-based research on measurement of bubble phase properties and flow in vertical channel are described.

Sangani, A. S.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Oscillatory Dynamics of Single Bubbles and Agglomeration in a Sound Field in Microgravity

A dual-frequency acoustic levitator containing water was developed for studying bubble and drop dynamics in low gravity. It was flown on USML-1 where it was used in the Glovebox facility. High frequency (21 or 63 kHz) ultrasonic waves were modulated by low frequencies to excite shape oscillations on bubbles and oil drops ultrasonically trapped in the water. Bubble diameters were typically close to 1 cm or larger. When such large bubbles are acoustically trapped on the Earth, the acoustic radiation pressure needed to overcome buoyancy tends to shift the natural frequency for quadrupole (n = 2) oscillations above the prediction of Lamb's equation. In low gravity, a much weaker trapping force was used and measurements of n = 2 and 3 mode frequencies were closer to the ideal case. Other video observations in low gravity include: (i) the transient reappearance of a bulge where a small bubble has coalesced with a large one, (ii) observations of the dynamics of bubbles coated by oil indicating that shape oscillations can shift a coated bubble away from the oil-water interface of the coating giving a centering of the core, and (iii) the agglomeration of bubbles induced by the sound field.

Marston, Philip L.↗
NASA NTRS2004

Effects of Gravity on Bubble Formation in an Annular Jet

The effects of gravity on the bubble formation in an annular jet were studied. The experiments were conducted in the 2.2-second drop tower at the NASA Glenn Research Center. Terrestrial gravity experiments were conducted at the Fluid Dynamics Research Laboratory at the University of Oklahoma. Stainless steel tubing with inner diameters of 1/8" (gas inner annulus) and 5/16" (liquid outer annulus) served as the injector. A rectangular test section, 6" x 6" x 14" tall, made out of half-inch thick Lexan was used. Images of the annular jet were acquired using a high-speed camera. The effects of gravity and varying liquid and gas flow rates on bubble size, wavelength, and breakup length were documented. In general, the bubble diameter was found to be larger in terrestrial gravity than in microgravity for varying Weber numbers (0.05 - 0.16 and 5 - 11) and liquid flow rates (1.5 ft/s - 3.0 ft/s). The wavelength was found to be larger in terrestrial gravity than in microgravity, but remained constant for varying Weber numbers. For low Weber numbers (0.05 - 0.16), the breakup length in microgravity was significantly higher than in terrestrial gravity. Comparison with linear stability analysis showed estimated bubble sizes within 9% of experimental bubble sizes. Bubble size compared to other terrestrial gravity experiments with same flow conditions showed distinct differences in bubble size, which displayed the importance of injector geometry on bubble formation.

Koepp, R. A.↗
NASA NTRS2007

Formation and Growth of Micro and Macro Bubbles on Copper-Graphite Composite Surfaces

Micro scale boiling behavior in the vicinity of graphite micro-fiber tips on the coppergraphite composite boiling surfaces is investigated. It is discovered that a large number of micro bubbles are formed first at the micro scratches and cavities on the copper matrix in pool boiling. In virtue of the non-wetting property of graphite, once the growing micro bubbles touch the graphite tips, the micro bubbles are sucked by the tips and merged into larger micro bubbles sitting on the tips. The micro bubbles grow rapidly and coalesce to form macro bubbles, each of which sitting on several tips. The growth processes of the micro and macro bubbles are analyzed and formulated followed by an analysis of bubble departure on the composite surfaces. Based on these analyses, the enhancement mechanism of the pool boiling heat transfer on the composite surfaces is clearly revealed. Experimental results of pool boiling heat transfer both for water and Freon-113 on the composite surfaces convincingly demonstrate the enhancement effects of the unique structure of Cu-Gr composite surfaces on boiling heat transfer.

Chao, David F.↗
NASA NTRS2008

Vapor-Gas Bubble Evolution and Growth in Extremely Viscous Fluids Under Vacuum

Formation of vapor and gas bubbles and voids is normal and expected in flow processes involving extremely viscous fluids in normal gravity. Practical examples of extremely viscous fluids are epoxy-like filler materials before the epoxy fluids cure to their permanent form to create a mechanical bond between two substrates. When these fluids flow with a free liquid interface exposed to vacuum, rapid bubble expansion process may ensue. Bubble expansion might compromise the mechanical bond strength. The potential sources for the origin of the gases might be incomplete out-gassing process prior to filler application; regasification due to seal leakage in the filler applicator; and/or volatiles evolved from cure reaction products formed in the hardening process. We embarked on a study that involved conducting laboratory experiments with imaging diagnostics in order to deduce the seriousness of bubbling caused by entrained air and volatile fluids under space vacuum and low gravity environment. We used clear fluids with the similar physical properties as the epoxy-like filler material to mimic the dynamics of bubbles. Another aspect of the present study was to determine the likelihood of bubbling resulting from dissolved gases nucleating from solution. These experimental studies of the bubble expansion are compared with predictions using a modified Rayleigh- Plesset equation, which models the bubble expansion.

Kizito, John↗
DOE OSTI2024

Effect of a collapsing gas bubble on the shock-to-detonation transition in liquid nitromethane

We studied the shock-induced collapse of butane gas bubbles in the homogeneous explosive nitromethane (NM) to investigate the effects of hot spot formation on the detonation process. A butane bubble was injected into a sample of NM, and a shock wave from a flat plate impactor compressed the bubble, creating a localized hot spot. We measured shock and detonation wave speeds with optical velocimetry, and we used a high-speed camera to image the shock propagation and bubble collapse processes. A multiband optical fiber pyrometer measured the time-resolved thermal radiance, and we used the results and emissivity values extracted from spectral fits to estimate temperatures. We measured the characteristics of the shock-to-detonation transition in NM with and without a bubble. All experiments were performed at shock pressures near 8 GPa, where neat NM can detonate. A single bubble in this system was shown to sensitize NM, leading to a reduced run-to-detonation time. We used hydrodynamic modeling to predict shock wave propagation, the extent of chemical reaction, and subsequent temperature rise from the collapsing bubble. We used a temperature-dependent Arrhenius burn model for simulations, and it yielded much better results than reactive burn models that depend only on pressure and density.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
NASA NTRS1979

Marangoni bubble motion in zero gravity

It was shown experimentally that the Marangoni phenomenon is a primary mechanism for the movement of a gas bubble in a nonisothermal liquid in a low gravity environment. A mathematical model consisting of the Navier-Stokes and thermal energy equations, together with the appropriate boundary conditions for both media, is presented. Parameter perturbation theory is used to solve this boundary value problem; the expansion parameter is the Marangoni number. The zeroth, first, and second order approximations for the velocity, temperature and pressure distributions in the liquid and in the bubble, and the deformation and terminal velocity of the bubble are determined. Experimental zero gravity data for a nitrogen bubble in ethylene glycol, ethanol, and silicone oil subjected to a linear temperature gradient were obtained using the NASA Lewis zero gravity drop tower. Comparison of the zeroth order analytical results for the bubble terminal velocity showed good agreement with the experimental measurements. The first and second order solutions for the bubble deformation and bubble terminal velocity are valid for liquids having Prandtl numbers on the order of one, but there is a lack of appropriate data to test the theory fully.

Thompson, R. L.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Acoustic bubble removal method

A method is described for removing bubbles from a liquid bath such as a bath of molten glass to be used for optical elements. Larger bubbles are first removed by applying acoustic energy resonant to a bath dimension to drive the larger bubbles toward a pressure well where the bubbles can coalesce and then be more easily removed. Thereafter, submillimeter bubbles are removed by applying acoustic energy of frequencies resonant to the small bubbles to oscillate them and thereby stir liquid immediately about the bubbles to facilitate their breakup and absorption into the liquid.

Trinh, E. H.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Mass Transport Phenomena Between Bubbles and Dissolved Gases in Liquids Under Reduced Gravity Conditions

The long term objective of the experiment is to observe the dissolution of isolated, immobile gas bubbles of specified size and composition in a solvent liquid of known concentration in the reduced gravity environment of earth orbit. Preliminary bubble dissolution experiment conducted both in the NASA Lewis 2.2 sec drop tower and in normal gravity using SO2 - Toluene system were not completely successful in their objective. The method of gas injection and lack of bubble interface stabiliy experienced due to the extreme solubility of SO in Toluene has the effects of changing the problem from that of bubble dissolution to one of bubble formation stability and subsequent dissolution in a liquid of unknown initial solute concentration. Current work involves further experimentation in order to refine the bubble injection system and to investigate the concept of having a bubble with a critical radius in a state of unstable equilibrium.

Dewitt, K. J.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Low Reynolds number separation bubble research at UTRC

The facilities and techniques being applied in investigations of laminar separation bubbles on low Re airfoils at the United Technologies Research Center are described. The research is focused on developing a database and predictive models for use in designing compressor, fan and turbine blades. Flow data are gathered primarily by laser Doppler velocimetry. Experimental procedures are being devised which will permit formation of a short bubble for characterizations of the velocity profiles in and around the bubble and boundary layer. Further tests are directed at defining the size and location of the bubble and the transition in the separated shear layer. The sensitivity of the bubble to alterations in the Re, pressure gradient, turbulence intensity and the turbulence scales will be examined. The effects of surface curvature and roughness on the bubble will also be studied. Details of the wind tunnel facility and the steps being taken to define conditions for reliably producing the short bubble are outlined.

Patrick, W. P.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Time-evolving bubbles in two-dimensional stokes flow

A general class of exact solutions is presented for a time evolving bubble in a two-dimensional slow viscous flow in the presence of surface tension. These solutions can describe a bubble in a linear shear flow as well as an expanding or contracting bubble in an otherwise quiescent flow. In the case of expanding bubbles, the solutions have a simple behavior in the sense that for essentially arbitrary initial shapes the bubble will asymptote an expanding circle. Contracting bubbles, on the other hand, can develop narrow structures ('near-cusps') on the interface and may undergo 'break up' before all the bubble-fluid is completely removed. The mathematical structure underlying the existence of these exact solutions is also investigated.

Tanveer, Saleh↗
NASA NTRS1994

Methane emission by bubbling from Gatun Lake, Panama

We studied methane emission by bubbling from Gatun Lake, Panama, at water depths of less than 1 m to about 10 m. Gas bubbles were collected in floating traps deployed during 12- to 60-hour observation periods. Comparison of floating traps and floating chambers showed that about 98% of methane emission occurred by bubbling and only 2% occurred by diffusion. Average methane concentration of bubbles at our sites varied from 67% to 77%. Methane emission by bubbling occurred episodically, with greatest rates primarily between the hours of 0800 and 1400 LT. Events appear to be triggered by wind. The flux of methane associated with bubbling was strongly anticorrelated with water depth. Seasonal changes in water depth caused seasonal variation of methane emission. Bubble methane fluxes through the lake surface into the atmosphere measured during 24-hour intervals were least (10-200 mg/m2/d) at deeper sites (greater than 7 m) and greatest (300-2000 mg/m2/d) at shallow sites (less than 2 m).

Keller, Michael↗
NASA NTRS1996

Nonlinear Bubble Interactions in Acoustic Pressure Fields

The systems consisting of a two-phase mixture, as clouds of bubbles or drops, have shown many common features in their responses to different external force fields. One of particular interest is the effect of an unsteady pressure field applied to these systems, case in which the coupling of the vibrations induced in two neighboring components (two drops or two bubbles) may result in an interaction force between them. This behavior was explained by Bjerknes by postulating that every body that is moving in an accelerating fluid is subjected to a 'kinetic buoyancy' equal with the product of the acceleration of the fluid multiplied by the mass of the fluid displaced by the body. The external sound wave applied to a system of drops/bubbles triggers secondary sound waves from each component of the system. These secondary pressure fields integrated over the surface of the neighboring drop/bubble may result in a force additional to the effect of the primary sound wave on each component of the system. In certain conditions, the magnitude of these secondary forces may result in significant changes in the dynamics of each component, thus in the behavior of the entire system. In a system containing bubbles, the sound wave radiated by one bubble at the location of a neighboring one is dominated by the volume oscillation mode and its effects can be important for a large range of frequencies. The interaction forces in a system consisting of drops are much smaller than those consisting of bubbles. Therefore, as a first step towards the understanding of the drop-drop interaction subject to external pressure fluctuations, it is more convenient to study the bubble interactions. This paper presents experimental results and theoretical predictions concerning the interaction and the motion of two levitated air bubbles in water in the presence of an acoustic field at high frequencies (22-23 KHz).

Barbat, Tiberiu↗
NASA NTRS1998

Controlling the Mobility of the Fluid Interface of Moving Gas Bubbles or Liquid Drops by Using Micellar Solutions of Surfactants

Microgravity processes must rely on mechanisms other than buoyancy to move bubbles or droplets from one region to another in a continuous liquid phase. One suggested method is thermocapillary migration in which a temperature gradient is applied to the continuous phase. A significant and as yet unresolved impediment to the use of thermocapillary migration to direct bubble or drop motion is that these migrations can be significantly retarded by the adsorption onto the fluid particle surface of surface active impurities unavoidably present in the continuous or (if the particle is a liquid) droplet phases. The focus of our research was to develop a theory for remobilizing fluid particle interfaces retarded by a surfactant impurity in an effort to make more viable the use of thermocapillary migrations for the management of bubbles and drops in microgravity. We postulated that a surfactant at high bulk concentration which kinetically exchanges rapidly with the surface can restore interface mobility. The scaling arguments along with a discussion of the previous literature is reviewed in the context of the scaling framework. The specific objectives of the research were twofold. The first was to prove the remobilization theory by studying a model problem. As the mechanism for remobilization is independent of the force which drives the particle, the fluid particle shape and the presence of fluid inertia, we chose the simplest model consisting of a spherical bubble rising steadily by buoyancy in creeping flow. We solved the hydrodynamic and surfactant transport equations for rapid kinetic exchange to demonstrate that as the concentration increases, the Marangoni retardation at first increases (the low k behavior) and then decreases (the high k behavior). The second objective was to develop a method to determine the kinetic rate constants of a surfactant molecule, since this information is necessary to select surfactants which will exchange rapidly enough relative to the convective rate in the thermocapillary process of interest. To measure the kinetic rate, we measure the dynamic tension change accompanying adsorption onto an initially clean interface, or the re-equilibration in tension when an equilibrium interface is compressed. The dynamic tension measurements are made by a pendant bubble method, in which surfactant adsorbs onto a pendant bubble, and the tension is measured by analyzing the shape change in the bubble. We conclude this report by detailing the publications, presentations and doctoral thesis completed under the auspices of this grant.

Maldarelli, Charles↗
NASA NTRS2000

Two-Phase Flow in Packed Columns and Generation of Bubbly Suspensions for Chemical Processing in Space

For long-duration space missions, the life support and In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) systems necessary to lower the mass and volume of consumables carried from Earth will require more sophisticated chemical processing technologies involving gas-liquid two-phase flows. This paper discusses some preliminary two-phase flow work in packed columns and generation of bubbly suspensions, two types of flow systems that can exist in a number of chemical processing devices. The experimental hardware for a co-current flow, packed column operated in two ground-based low gravity facilities (two-second drop tower and KC- 135 low-gravity aircraft) is described. The preliminary results of this experimental work are discussed. The flow regimes observed and the conditions under which these flow regimes occur are compared with the available co-current packed column experimental work performed in normal gravity. For bubbly suspensions, the experimental hardware for generation of uniformly sized bubbles in Couette flow in microgravity conditions is described. Experimental work was performed on a number of bubbler designs, and the capillary bubble tube was found to produce the most consistent size bubbles. Low air flow rates and low Couette flow produce consistent 2-3 mm bubbles, the size of interest for the "Behavior of Rapidly Sheared Bubbly Suspension" flight experiment. Finally the mass transfer implications of these two-phase flows is qualitatively discussed.

Motil, Brian J.↗
NASA NTRS1999

The Effect of Surface Induced Flows on Bubble and Particle Aggregation

Almost 20 years have elapsed since a phenomenon called "radial specific coalescence" was identified. During studies of electrolytic oxygen evolution from the back side of a vertically oriented, transparent tin oxide electrode in alkaline electrolyte, one of the authors (Sides) observed that large "collector" bubbles appeared to attract smaller bubbles. The bubbles moved parallel to the surface of the electrode, while the electric field was normal to the electrode surface. The phenomenon was reported but not explained. More recently self ordering of latex particles was observed during electrophoretic deposition at low DC voltages likewise on a transparent tin oxide electrode. As in the bubble work, the field was normal to the electrode while the particles moved parallel to it. Fluid convection caused by surface induced flows (SIF) can explain these two apparently different experimental observations: the aggregation of particles on an electrode during electrophoretic deposition, and a radial bubble coalescence pattern on an electrode during electrolytic gas evolution. An externally imposed driving force (the gradient of electrical potential or temperature), interacting with the surface of particles or bubbles very near a planar conducting surface, drives the convection of fluid that causes particles and bubbles to approach each other on the electrode.

Guelcher, Scott A.↗