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At least 109 records · Page 6

Development of Pyrrone structural forms for honeycomb filler

The development of techniques for the preparation of Pyrrone structural foams for use as honeycomb filler is described. The feasibility of preparing foams from polymers formed by the condensation of 3,3'-diaminobenzidine (DAB), or 3,3',4,4'-tetraaminobenzophenone (TABP), with 3,3',4,4'-benzophenone tetracarboxylic dianhydride (BTDA) was investigated. Initially, most of the effort was devoted to preparing Pyrrone prepolymers with improved and more reproducible foaming properties for making chemically blown foams. When it became apparent that very high curing shrinkages would not allow the use of unfilled Pyrrone prepolymers in a foam-in-place process, emphasis was shifted from chemically blown foams to syntactic foams. Syntactic foam formulations containing hollow carbon microspheres were developed. Syntactic foams made from selected formulations were found to have very low coefficients of thermal expansion. A technique was developed for the emplacement of Pyrrone syntactic foam formulations in honeycomb core structures.

Kimmel, B. G.↗

Technique for predicting the thermal expansion coefficients of cryogenic metallic alloys

Series of measurements on the thermal expansion coefficients of several aerospace alloys and standard materials establish relationships between related alloys that would aid in predicting their thermal expansion reliability. Thermal expansion data are also necessary for the reduction of electrical resistivity measurements of those same materials.

Clark, A. F.↗

Rapid computation of the Voigt profile

Computational procedures for evaluating the Voigt profile function with maximum relative error about one part in ten thousand are discussed. The computational region is split up into four subregions, each of which is worked on with a different computational technique (Chebyshev expansion, continued fraction expansion, 2-point Gauss-Hermite quadrature, and 4-point Gauss-Hermite quadrature). The overall procedure is designed for line-by-line transmittance calculations and similar applications, and an efficient FORTRAN IV subprogram is outlined in an appendix.

Drayson, S. R.↗

Quantum mechanical theory of collisional ionization in the presence of intense laser radiation

The paper presents a quantum mechanical formalism for treating ionizing collisions occurring in the presence of an intense laser field. Both the intense laser radiation and the internal electronic continuum states associated with the emitted electrons are rigorously taken into account by combining discretization techniques with expansions in terms of electronic-field representations for the quasi-molecule-plus-photon system. The procedure leads to a coupled-channel description of the heavy-particle dynamics which involves effective electronic-field potential surfaces and continua. It is suggested that laser-influenced ionizing collisions can be studied to verify the effects of intense laser radiation on inelastic collisional processes. Calculation procedures for electronic transition dipole matrix elements between discrete and continuum electronic states are outlined.

Bellum, J. C.↗

Expansion of CMOS array design techniques

The important features of the multiport (double entry) automatic placement and routing programs for standard cells are described. Measured performance and predicted performance were compared for seven CMOS/SOS array types and hybrids designed with the high speed CMOS/SOS cell family. The CMOS/SOS standard cell data sheets are listed and described.

Feller, A.↗

Economical processing of fiber-reinforced components with thermal expansion molding

The concept of economical fabrication of fiber-reinforced structural components is illustrated with an example of a typical control surface (aileron). The concept provides for fabricating struts, ribs, and a cover plate as an integral structure in a hardening device and then joining the closure cover plate mechanically. Fabrication of the integral structure is achieved by the 'thermal expansion molding' technique. The hardening pressure is produced by silicone rubber cores which expand under the influence of temperature. Test results are presented for several rubber materials as well as for various structural pieces. The technique is demonstrated extensively for an aileron, consisting of five ribs, struts, and a cover plate. Economically, for a large scale technical production of an aileron, cost savings of twenty-five percent can be realized compared to those for a sheet metal structure.

Schneider, K.↗

Evaluation of DSS-14 pedestal-review of top surface repair procedures

Proposed repair procedures for the top surface of the pedestal supporting the hydrostatic bearing runner for the 64m Antenna are presented. These procedures included: (1) removal of existing grout and concrete to approximately 8 in. below original concrete surface using a presplitting technique with expansive cement followed by secondary breaking; (2) preparation of exposed concrete surface including an epoxy bonding agent; and (3) replacement of material removed with 8 in. of new concrete surface including an epoxy bonding agent; and (4) replacement of material removed with 8 in. of new concrete and 4 in. of new grout.

Oesterle, R. G.↗

Angiogenesis and osteogenesis in an orthopedically expanded suture

The purpose of this study was to examine the angiogenic and the subsequent osteogenic responses during a 96-hour time-course after sutural expansion. Fifty rats were divided into: (1) a control group that received only angiogenic induction through injection of 5 ng/gm recombinant human endothelial cell growth factor (rhECGF); (2) an experimental group that received orthopedic expansion and rhECGF; (3) a sham group that received expansion and sodium chloride (NaCl) injection; and (4) a baseline group that received no expansion or injection. All rats were injected with 3H-thymidine (1.0 microCi/gm) 1 hour before death to label the DNA of S-phase cells. Demineralized sections (4 microm thick) were stained with hematoxylin and eosin. Angiogenesis and cell migration were analyzed with a previously established cell kinetics model. Analysis of variance was used to test the hypothesis that enhancement of angiogenesis stimulates reestablishment of osteogenic capability. Blood vessel number, area, and endothelial cell-labeled index significantly increased in experimental groups, but no difference was found between control and baseline groups. Labeled-pericyte index and activated pericyte numbers in the experimental group were also higher than in the sham groups. These results show that supplemental rhECGF enhances angiogenesis in expanded sutures but not in nonexpanded sutures. Data also suggest that pericytes are the source of osteoblasts in an orthopedically expanded suture.

NASA Discipline Musculoskeletal↗

Thermal expansion of graphite epoxy

Two optical techniques to measure the thermal expansion of fiber-reinforced composites are discussed. These techniques are moire interferometry and Fizeau interferometry. The pertinent features of each setup are presented and the preparation of the composite specimens discussed. Thermal expansion measurements in the range 116 to 422 K for 0 deg, 90 deg, and quasi-isotropic graphite-epoxy composite laminates are presented.

Hyer, M. W.↗

Reliability of hybrid microcircuit bonding

Microcircuit failure due to differential thermal expansion depends on technique used to mount components to substrate. Effects of differential thermal expansion on ceramic chip capacitors are investigated for various bonding techniques.

Caruso, S. V.↗

Measurement of Test Time in the NASA Ames EAST Expansion Cone Facility in Entry 63 and Possible Techniques for Increasing Test Time

The Ames EAST facility and its modes of operation (expansion tube, expansion cone) are described. A buffer section may or may not be used between the driver and the driven tube. Previous expansion tube (without the cone) entries are reviewed. Test times of 4 to 5 microsec were achieved at shock speeds up to 11 km/s. The test conditions and results of the present entry (entry 63) (with the cone) are given. Test times were found to correlate roughly with the density ratio across the buffer gas - driven gas or driver - driven gas interface. Tests with a 12 inch long conical driver without a buffer yielded three runs with test times of ~8 km/s and 3 runs with test times of 4 to 6 microsecs. With a buffer, test times for 4 runs of ~9 microsecs and for 2 runs of 3 to 6 microsecs were obtained. Adding argon to the buffer was found not to improve the test time. Tests with a 30 inch long driver without a buffer yielded test times of 14+, ~10, 7.5 (2 runs) and 5.5 (2 runs) microsecs. Based on one shot, data for the 30 inch driver suggests that test times up to ~14 microseconds could be obtained. The repeatability of that shot, of course, must be established. Suggestions are given to increase test times further.

Electric arc shock tube↗

Dimensional stability of fused silica, Invar, and several ultralow thermal expansion materials

A method is developed for testing the long-term dimensional stability of an iodine-stabilized He-Ne laser, using a technique whereby thermal expansion coefficients are measured by forming a Fabry-Perot etalon from the sample and monitoring the optical resonant frequencies with tunable sidebands impressed on a laser beam from a frequency-stabilized He-Ne laser. A change of 1 ppm over a 3-yr period on the part of fused silica dimensions and the differential thermal expansion of Invar LR-35 and Super Invar materials are noted. The method is of interest for the metrology of extremely stable structures such as telescopes and optical resonators.

Berthold, J. W., III↗

Obstacle detection by recognizing binary expansion patterns

This paper describes a technique for obstacle detection, based on the expansion of the image-plane projection of a textured object, as its distance from the sensor decreases. Information is conveyed by vectors whose components represent first-order temporal and spatial derivatives of the image intensity, which are related to the time to collision through the local divergence. Such vectors may be characterized as patterns corresponding to 'safe' or 'dangerous' situations. We show that essential information is conveyed by single-bit vector components, representing the signs of the relevant derivatives. We use two recently developed, high capacity classifiers, employing neural learning techniques, to recognize the imminence of collision from such patterns.

Baram, Yoram↗

Solution of the minimum time-to-climb problem by matched asymptotic expansions

Application of singular perturbation techniques to trajectory optimization problems of flight mechanics is discussed. The method of matched asymptotic expansions is used to obtain an approximate solution to the aircraft minimum time-to-climb problem. Outer, boundary-layer, and composite solutions are obtained to zeroth and first orders. A stability criterion is derived for the zeroth-order boundary-layer solutions (the theory requires a form of boundary-layer stability). A numerical example is considered for which it is shown that the stability criterion is satisfied and a useful numerical solution is obtained. The zeroth-order solution proves to be a poor approximation, but the first-order solution gives a good approximation for both the trajectory and the minimum time-to-climb. The computational cost of the singular perturbation solution is considerably less than that of a steepest descent solution. Thus singular perturbation methods appear to be promising for the solution of optimal control problems.

Ardema, M. D.↗

Developing Procedures to Implement Geometric Imperfections Beyond Right Circular Cylindrical Shells in Finite Element Method Models

Analysis of aerospace structures is frequently conducted using nominal dimensions and frequently assumes ideal conditions in loading, contact, constraints, et cetera. Off-nominal dimensions and nonideal conditions, however, are present in all structures. These are the result of widely ranging causes from coefficient of thermal expansion mismatches, manufacturing tooling anomalies, to assembly procedures that inadvertently alter the structure. Specifically, geometric imperfections can have potentially significant influence on the response of a structural test article observed in an experiment versus the response given by a numerical simulation. The Python Tool for Implementing Geometric Imperfections in Reduced Structures (Py_TIGIRS) was previously presented as a set of Python scripts to calculate and implement as-manufactured geometric midsurface and thickness imperfections into finite element method (FEM) shell models of nominally right circular cylinders. By taking advantage of the simple shape of a right circular cylinder, interpolations of the measured data points were able to be performed along directions that aligned to the cylindrical coordinate system axes of the entire structure. By taking advantage of the shell representation of the real structure as opposed to modeling using a continuum representation, the thickness variation was able to be implemented by shell section definitions instead of having to modify the position of multiple nodes in the thickness direction. Py_TIGIRS is a useful tool that established a procedural example on how to implement geometric imperfections in right circular cylindrical shell structures. Three new procedures, each expanded from concepts established in Py_TIGIRS, are proposed for various test-article designs and are intended to broaden the range of structures that can be modeled with measured geometric imperfections in the structural analysis community. Each test-article design introduces new challenges to successfully implement geometric imperfections into a FEM model. The first test-article design consists of a carbon fiber reinforced polymer square plate with a hat-shaped stiffener co-cured on one side. This test-article design was for a novel seven-point bend test that was also previously presented. Manufacturing and cure-cycle imperfections are observed using digital image correlation (DIC) techniques. As thermal expansion coefficient mismatches between the plate and stiffener materials were anticipated, a thermal analysis study with continuum shell and solid elements was conducted to capture the global shape observed prior to testing. The second test-article design is of a similar hat-stiffened plate configuration, but with a side length ratio near 3:1 with elongation in the stiffener direction. The test article was used to characterize the response to uniaxial compressive loading in the direction of the stiffener. Due to differing manufacturing steps, a thermal analysis like the one developed for the seven-point bend configuration was unable to mimic the observed geometric imperfections. Instead, a strategy based on applying deformations directly to the structure during analysis was developed for continuum shell and solid element representation of a stiffened panel.

Geometric imperfections↗

Expansion-based passive ranging

A new technique of passive ranging which is based on utilizing the image-plane expansion experienced by every object as its distance from the sensor decreases is described. This technique belongs in the feature/object-based family. The motion and shape of a small window, assumed to be fully contained inside the boundaries of some object, is approximated by an affine transformation. The parameters of the transformation matrix are derived by initially comparing successive images, and progressively increasing the image time separation so as to achieve much larger triangulation baseline than currently possible. Depth is directly derived from the expansion part of the transformation. To a first approximation, image-plane expansion is independent of image-plane location with respect to the focus of expansion (FOE) and of platform maneuvers. Thus, an expansion-based method has the potential of providing a reliable range in the difficult image area around the FOE. In areas far from the FOE the shift parameters of the affine transformation can provide more accurate depth information than the expansion alone, and can thus be used similarly to the way they were used in conjunction with the Inertial Navigation Unit (INU) and Kalman filtering. However, the performance of a shift-based algorithm, when the shifts are derived from the affine transformation, would be much improved compared to current algorithms because the shifts - as well as the other parameters - can be obtained between widely separated images. Thus, the main advantage of this new approach is that, allowing the tracked window to expand and rotate, in addition to moving laterally, enables one to correlate images over a very long time span which, in turn, translates into a large spatial baseline - resulting in a proportionately higher depth accuracy.

Barniv, Yair↗

A statistical mechanical calculation of the thermodynamic properties of interstitial solid solutions involving second nearest neighbor interactions.

A previous calculation of the thermodynamic properties of interstitial solid solutions based on the technique of Kirkwood expansions has been extended to include the effects of second nearest neighbor solute atom mutual interactions. The error inherent in the first order (or quasi-chemical) counting of the degeneracy of the solution crystal is avoided. It is shown that, at high temperatures, even strong second nearest neighbor solute mutual interactions have a negligible effect on the entropy of the solution and a small, temperature-dependent effect on the solute partial enthalpy.

Alex, K.↗

Decoupling a Reflecting Layer From Its Support Structure

Mounting decouples thermal distortions of reflective surface so not transmitted to support structure. Reflecting layer consists of aluminum reflecting tiles attached to support structure by flexural mounting bend and twist to accommodate thermal expansion of tiles. Technique useful in microwave-antenna reflectors.

Bamford, R. M.↗