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At least 1,117 records · Page 62

Composite Overwrap Pressure Vessels: Mechanics and Stress Rupture Lifting Philosophy

The NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) has been conducting an independent technical assessment to address safety concerns related to the known stress rupture failure mode of filament wound pressure vessels in use on Shuttle and the International Space Station. The Shuttle s Kevlar-49 (DuPont) fiber overwrapped tanks are of particular concern due to their long usage and the poorly understood stress rupture process in Kevlar-49 filaments. Existing long term data show that the rupture process is a function of stress, temperature and time. However due to the presence of load sharing liners and the complex manufacturing procedures, the state of actual fiber stress in flight hardware and test articles is not clearly known. Indeed nonconservative life predictions have been made where stress rupture data and lifing procedures have ignored the contribution of the liner in favor of applied pressure as the controlling load parameter. With the aid of analytical and finite element results, this paper examines the fundamental mechanical response of composite overwrapped pressure vessels including the influence of elastic plastic liners and degraded/creeping overwrap properties. Graphical methods are presented describing the non-linear relationship of applied pressure to Kevlar-49 fiber stress/strain during manufacturing, operations and burst loadings. These are applied to experimental measurements made on a variety of vessel systems to demonstrate the correct calibration of fiber stress as a function of pressure. Applying this analysis to the actual qualification burst data for Shuttle flight hardware revealed that the nominal fiber stress at burst was in some cases 23 percent lower than what had previously been used to predict stress rupture life. These results motivate a detailed discussion of the appropriate stress rupture lifing philosophy for COPVs including the correct transference of stress rupture life data between dissimilar vessels and test articles.

Thesken, John C.↗

Finned Carbon-Carbon Heat Pipe with Potassium Working Fluid

This elemental space radiator heat pipe is designed to operate in the 700 to 875 K temperature range. It consists of a C-C (carbon-carbon) shell made from poly-acrylonitride fibers that are woven in an angle interlock pattern and densified with pitch at high process temperature with integrally woven fins. The fins are 2.5 cm long and 1 mm thick, and provide an extended radiating surface at the colder condenser section of the heat pipe. The weave pattern features a continuous fiber bath from the inner tube surface to the outside edges of the fins to maximize the thermal conductance, and to thus minimize the temperature drop at the condenser end. The heat pipe and radiator element together are less than one-third the mass of conventional heat pipes of the same heat rejection surface area. To prevent the molten potassium working fluid from eroding the C C heat pipe wall, the shell is lined with a thin-walled, metallic tube liner (Nb-1 wt.% Zr), which is an integral part of a hermetic metal subassembly which is furnace-brazed to the inner surface of the C-C tube. The hermetic metal liner subassembly includes end caps and fill tubes fabricated from the same Nb-1Zr alloy. A combination of laser and electron beam methods is used to weld the end caps and fill tubes. A tungsten/inert gas weld seals the fill tubes after cleaning and charging the heat pipes with potassium. The external section of this liner, which was formed by a "Uniscan" rolling process, transitions to a larger wall thickness. This section, which protrudes beyond the C-C shell, constitutes the "evaporator" part of the heat pipe, while the section inside the shell constitutes the condenser of the heat pipe (see figure).

Juhasz, Albert J.↗

Validation of a New Procedure for Impedance Eduction in Flow

A new impedance eduction procedure is validated by comparing the educed impedance spectrum to that of an older but well-tested eduction procedure. The older procedure requires the installation of a microphone array in the liner test section but the new procedure removes this requirement. A 12.7-mm stainless steel plate and a conventional liner consisting of a perforated plate bonded to a honeycomb core are tested. Test data is acquired from a grazing flow, impedance tube facility for a range of source frequencies and mean flow Mach numbers for which only plane waves are cut on. For the stainless steel plate, the educed admittance spectrum using the new procedure shows an improvement over that of the old procedure. This improvement shows up primarily in the educed conductance spectrum. Both eduction procedures show discrepancies in educed admittance in the mid-frequency range. Indications are that this discrepancy is triggered by an inconsistency between the measured eduction data (that contains boundary layer effects) and the two eduction models (for which the boundary layer is neglected). For the conventional liner, both eduction procedures are in very good agreement with each other. Small discrepancies occur for one or two frequencies in the mid-frequency range and for frequencies beyond the cut on frequency of higher-order duct modes. This discrepancy in the midfrequency range occurs because an automated optimizer is used to educe the impedance and the objective function used by the optimizer is extremely flat and therefore sensitive to initial starting values. The discrepancies at frequencies beyond the cut on frequency of higher order duct modes are due to the assumption of only plane waves in the impedance eduction model, although higher order modes are propagating in the impedance tube facility.

Watson, W. R.↗

Modifications of a Composite-Material Combustion Chamber

Two short reports discuss modifications of a small, lightweight combustion chamber that comprises a carbon/carbon composite outer shell and an iridium/ rhenium inner liner. The first report discusses chamber design modifications made as results of hot-fire tests and post-test characterization. The Books & Reports 32 NASA Tech Briefs, June 2005 modifications were intended to serve a variety of purposes, including improving fabrication, reducing thermal-expansion mismatch stresses, increasing strength-to-weight ratios of some components, and improving cooling of some components. The second report discusses (1) the origin of stress in the mismatch between the thermal expansions of the Ir/Re liner and a niobium sleeve and flange attached to the carbon/ carbon shell and (2) a modification intended to relieve the stress. The modification involves the redesign of an inlet connection to incorporate a compressible seal between the Ir/Re liner and the Nb flange. A nickel alloy was selected as the seal material on the basis of its thermal-expansion properties and its ability to withstand the anticipated stresses, including the greatest stresses caused by the high temperatures to be used in brazing during fabrication.

Williams, Brian E.↗

Z-Pinch Magneto-Inertial Fusion Propulsion Engine Design Concept

Fusion-based nuclear propulsion has the potential to enable fast interplanetary transportation. Due to the great distances between the planets of our solar system and the harmful radiation environment of interplanetary space, high specific impulse (Isp) propulsion in vehicles with high payload mass fractions must be developed to provide practical and safe vehicles for human spaceflight missions. Magneto-Inertial Fusion (MIF) is an approach which has been shown to potentially lead to a low cost, small fusion reactor/engine assembly (1). The Z-Pinch dense plasma focus method is an MIF concept in which a column of gas is compressed to thermonuclear conditions by an estimated axial current of approximately 100 MA. Recent advancements in experiments and the theoretical understanding of this concept suggest favorable scaling of fusion power output yield as I(sup 4) (2). The magnetic field resulting from the large current compresses the plasma to fusion conditions, and this is repeated over short timescales (10(exp -6) sec). This plasma formation is widely used in the field of Nuclear Weapons Effects (NWE) testing in the defense industry, as well as in fusion energy research. There is a wealth of literature characterizing Z-Pinch physics and existing models (3-5). In order to be useful in engineering analysis, a simplified Z-Pinch fusion thermodynamic model was developed to determine the quantity of plasma, plasma temperature, rate of expansion, energy production, etc. to calculate the parameters that characterize a propulsion system. The amount of nuclear fuel per pulse, mixture ratio of the D-T and nozzle liner propellant, and assumptions about the efficiency of the engine, enabled the sizing of the propulsion system and resulted in an estimate of the thrust and Isp of a Z-Pinch fusion propulsion system for the concept vehicle. MIF requires a magnetic nozzle to contain and direct the nuclear pulses, as well as a robust structure and radiation shielding. The structure, configuration, and materials of the nozzle must meet many severe requirements. The configuration would focus, in a conical manner, the Deuterium-Tritium (D-T) fuel and Lithium-6/7 liner fluid to meet at a specific point that acts as a cathode so the Li-6 can serve as a current return path to complete the circuit. In addition to serving as a current return path, the Li liner also serves as a radiation shield. The advantage to this configuration is the reaction between neutrons and Li-6 results in the production of additional Tritium, thus adding further fuel to the fusion reaction and boosting the energy output. To understand the applicability of Z-Pinch propulsion to interplanetary travel, it is necessary to design a concept vehicle that uses it. The propulsion system significantly impacts the design of the electrical, thermal control, avionics, radiation shielding, and structural subsystems of a vehicle. The design reference mission is the transport of crew and cargo to Mars and back, with the intention that the vehicle be reused for other missions. Several aspects of this vehicle are based on a previous crewed fusion vehicle study called Human Outer Planet Exploration (HOPE), which employed a Magnetized Target Fusion (MTF) propulsion concept. Analysis of this propulsion system concludes that a 40-fold increase of Isp over chemical propulsion is predicted. This along with a greater than 30% predicted payload mass fraction certainly warrants further development of enabling technologies. The vehicle is designed for multiple interplanetary missions and conceivably may be suited for an automated one-way interstellar voyage.

Miernik, Janie H.↗

High-Pressure Lightweight Thrusters

Returning samples of Martian soil and rock to Earth is of great interest to scientists. There were numerous studies to evaluate Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission architectures, technology needs, development plans, and requirements. The largest propulsion risk element of the MSR mission is the Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV). Along with the baseline solid-propellant vehicle, liquid propellants have been considered. Similar requirements apply to other lander ascent engines and reaction control systems. The performance of current state-ofthe- art liquid propellant engines can be significantly improved by increasing both combustion temperature and pressure. Pump-fed propulsion is suggested for a single-stage bipropellant MAV. Achieving a 90-percent stage propellant fraction is thought to be possible on a 100-kg scale, including sufficient thrust for lifting off Mars. To increase the performance of storable bipropellant rocket engines, a high-pressure, lightweight combustion chamber was designed. Iridium liner electrodeposition was investigated on complex-shaped thrust chamber mandrels. Dense, uniform iridium liners were produced on chamber and cylindrical mandrels. Carbon/carbon composite (C/C) structures were braided over iridium-lined mandrels and densified by chemical vapor infiltration. Niobium deposition was evaluated for forming a metallic attachment flange on the carbon/ carbon structure. The new thrust chamber was designed to exceed state-of-the-art performance, and was manufactured with an 83-percent weight savings. High-performance C/Cs possess a unique set of properties that make them desirable materials for high-temperature structures used in rocket propulsion components, hypersonic vehicles, and aircraft brakes. In particular, more attention is focused on 3D braided C/Cs due to their mesh-work structure. Research on the properties of C/Cs has shown that the strength of composites is strongly affected by the fiber-matrix interfacial bonding, and that weakening interface realizes pseudo-plastic behavior with significant increase in the tensile strength. The investigation of high-temperature strength of C/Cs under high-rate heating (critical for thrust chambers) shows that tensile and compression strength increases from 70 MPa at room temperature to 110 MPa at 1,773 K, and up to 125 MPa at 2,473 K. Despite these unique properties, the use of C/Cs is limited by its high oxidation rate at elevated temperatures. Lining carbon/carbon chambers with a thin layer of iridium or iridium and rhenium is an innovative way to use proven refractory metals and provide the oxidation barrier necessary to enable the use of carbon/ carbon composites. Due to the lower density of C/Cs as compared to SiC/SiC composites, an iridium liner can be added to the C/C structure and still be below the overall thruster weight. Weight calculations show that C/C, C/C with 50 microns of Ir, and C/C with 100 microns of Ir are of less weight than alternative materials for the same construction.

Holmes, Richard↗

Effects of Cavity Diameter on Acoustic Impedance in a Complex Acoustic Environment

This paper investigates the effects of cavity diameter on the acoustic performance of conventional perforate-over-honeycomb liners. This investigation is a follow up to a previous study where it was demonstrated that the cavity diameter has a relatively small effect on the acoustic impedance for core cavity diameters up to 2.0 inches. In the current study, liner concepts are exposed to a complex acoustic environment, where higher-order modes are present. Four liner configurations are explored in this investigation, which include two cavity cores of different cavity diameters combined with two facesheets. These configurations are tested in the Grazing Flow Impedance Tube (GFIT) at Mach 0.0, 0.3, and 0.5 at a source sound pressure level of 150 dB. A comparison of the acoustic performance of these samples suggests that the cavity diameter has a relatively small effect on the acoustic impedance for core cavity diameters up to 2.0 inches at these conditions. These configurations are exposed to a more complex acoustic environment (e.g., higher-order modes) in the Curved Duct Test Rig (CDTR) at Mach 0.0 and 0.3.

Brown, M. C.↗

Additive Manufacturing and Hot-Fire Testing of Bimetallic GRCop-84 and C-18150 Channel-Cooled Combustion Chambers Using Powder Bed Fusion and Inconel 625 Hybrid Directed Energy Deposition

Additive manufacturing (AM) is an advanced fabrication technique that is demonstrating tremendous potential to reduce fabrication lead times and costs for liquid rocket engine components. The additive manufacturing technology lends itself to fabricate components with complex features such as internal coolant channels in combustion chambers that would otherwise require complex manufacturing operations. A requirement for high performance engines is to use high conductivity, high strength materials such as copper-alloys for combustion chamber liners to provide adequate wall temperatures and meet subsequent structural margins. A further requirement of this configuration is to minimize weight by defining and fabricating material in discrete locations as required. NASA and Industry partner, Virgin Orbit, have been working to advance these technologies through development of bimetallic additive manufacturing techniques under a public-private partnership through NASA’s Announcement of Collaborative Opportunity (ACO). This partnership is advancing a bimetallic hybrid additively manufactured combustion chamber that integrates Powder Bed Fusion (PBF), specifically Selective Laser Melting (SLM), and Directed Energy Deposition (DED) blown powder techniques to optimize the chamber materials and subsequent assembly. The SLM process is being developed for the combustion chamber liner to use copper-alloys GRCop-84 (Copper-Chrome-Niobium) or C-18150 (Copper-Chrome-Zirconium). The hybrid DED blown powder technology is used to apply an integrated structural jacket and manifolds using an Inconel 625 superalloy on the outer surface of the SLM copper liner. The hybrid DED technology being used on this program is a DMG Mori Seiki AM machining center which integrates the DED blown powder with an integral subtractive (traditional) machining to minimize overall setups. A series of chambers were fabricated using these techniques with GRCop-84/Inconel 625 and C-18150/Inconel and hot-fire tested at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) in LOX/Kerosene (RP-1). This paper describes the process development to integrate these AM technologies into an integrated bimetallic assembly, the design of the chamber, results from hot-fire testing, and further development.

Gradl, Paul R.↗

Additive Manufacturing and Hot-fire Testing of Bimetallic GRCop-84 and C-18150 Channel-Cooled Combustion Chambers using Powder Bed Fusion and Inconel 625 Hybrid Directed Energy Deposition

Additive manufacturing (AM) is an advanced fabrication technique that is demonstrating tremendous potential to reduce fabrication lead times and costs for liquid rocket engine components. The additive manufacturing technology lends itself to fabricate components with complex features such as internal coolant channels in combustion chambers that would otherwise require complex manufacturing operations. A requirement for high performance engines is to use high conductivity, high strength materials such as copper-alloys for combustion chamber liners to provide adequate wall temperatures and meet subsequent structural margins. A further requirement of this configuration is to minimize weight by defining and fabricating material in discrete locations as required. NASA and Industry partner, Virgin Orbit, have been working to advance these technologies through development of bimetallic additive manufacturing techniques under a public-private partnership through NASA’s Announcement of Collaborative Opportunity (ACO). This partnership is advancing a bimetallic hybrid additively manufactured combustion chamber that integrates Powder Bed Fusion (PBF), specifically Selective Laser Melting (SLM), and Directed Energy Deposition (DED) blown powder techniques to optimize the chamber materials and subsequent assembly. The SLM process is being developed for the combustion chamber liner to use copper-alloys GRCop-84 (Copper-Chrome-Niobium) or C-18150 (Copper-Chrome-Zirconium). The hybrid DED blown powder technology is used to apply an integrated structural jacket and manifolds using an Inconel 625 superalloy on the outer surface of the SLM copper liner. The hybrid DED technology being used on this program is a DMG Mori Seiki AM machining center which integrates the DED blown powder with an integral subtractive (traditional) machining to minimize overall setups. A series of chambers were fabricated using these techniques with GRCop-84/Inconel 625 and C-18150/Inconel and hot-fire tested at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) in LOX/Kerosene (RP-1). This paper describes the process development to integrate these AM technologies into an integrated bimetallic assembly, the design of the chamber, results from hot-fire testing, and further development.

Gradl, Paul↗

Application of Swept-Sine Excitation for Acoustic Impedance Education

The NASA Langley Normal Incidence Tube (NIT) and Grazing Flow Impedance Tube (GFIT) are regularly employed to characterize the frequency response of acoustic liners through the eduction of their specific acoustic impedance. Both test rigs typically use an acoustic source that produces sine wave signals at discrete frequencies (Stepped-Sine) to educe the impedance. The current work details a novel approach using frequency-swept sine waveforms normalized to a constant sound pressure level for excitation. Determination of the sound pressure level and phase from microphone measurements acquired using swept-sine excitation is performed using a modified Vold-Kalman order tracking filter. Four acoustic liners are evaluated in the NIT and GFIT with both stepped-sine and swept-sine sources. Using these two methods, the educed impedance spectra are shown to compare favorably. However, the new (Swept-Sine) approach provides much greater frequency resolution in less time, allowing the acoustic liner properties to be studied in much greater detail.

Howerton, Brian M.↗

Large-scale Additive Manufacturing for Exploration

Additive Manufacturing (AM) is emerging as a mainstream manufacturing technology, and demand for large part manufacturing is getting stronger. Direct Metal Deposition (DMD) is a DED technology based on laser and powder metal application using a closed-loop-feedback control system. This webinar focuses on additive manufacturing of NASA’s RS-25 engine nozzle liner using DMD technology. This liner (10ft in height and 8ft in diameter) is beyond the print capability of existing 3D printing processes. To print this part, significant advancements were made to the DMD technology by deploying two process heads in the machine and expanding the machine work envelop to allow manufacturing of such large parts in a safe and efficient environment. A successful demonstration of the AM of the RS25 engine nozzle liner marks a new era in 3D printing and elevates the current 3D printing technology to a new level for affordable manufacturing of large metal parts.

Additive Manufacturing↗

On the Implementation and Further Validation of a Time Domain Boundary Element Method Broadband Impedance Boundary Condition

A time domain boundary integral equation with Burton-Miller reformulation is presented for acoustic scattering by surfaces with liners in a uniform mean flow. The Ingard-Myers impedance boundary condition is implemented using a broadband multipole impedance model and converted into time domain differential equations to augment the boundary integral equation. The coupled integral-differential equations are solved numerically by a March-On-in-Time (MOT) scheme. While the Ingard-Myers condition is known to support Kelvin-Helmholtz instability due to its use of a vortex sheet interface between the flow and the liner surface, it is found that by neglecting a second derivative term in the current time domain impedance boundary condition formulation, the instability an be effectively suppressed in computation. The proposed formulation and implementation are validated using a NASA Langley Research Center Grazing Flow Impedance Tube (GFIT) experimental dataset with satisfactory results. Moreover, a minimization procedure for finding the poles and coefficients of the broadband multiple impedance model is formulated in this paper by which, unlike the commonly used vector-fitting method, passivity of the model is ensured. Numerical tests show the proposed minimization approach is effective for modeling liners that are commonly used in aeroacoustic applications.

Time Domain Impedance Boundary Condition↗

Implementation of the NASA High Intensity Modal Impedance Tube

This paper provides a description of the High Intensity Modal Impedance Tube (HIMIT) and its use for the evaluation of acoustic liners. Tests conducted with two liners, one linear and one nonlinear, are used to evaluate the suitability of the HIMIT for evaluation at frequencies up to 6 kHz and sound pressure levels up to 155 dB. Two impedance eduction methods are used, one suitable for plane wave frequencies and the other applicable over the full frequency range. These educed impedances are compared against those computed with an impedance prediction method and against those educed with another zero-flow test rig. These results confirm that the HIMIT can be used with confidence for the evaluation of acoustic liners over these frequency and sound pressure level ranges.

impedance↗

A Comparison of Impedance Eduction Test Rigs with Different Flow Profiles

The experimental characterization of acoustic liners applied for turbofan engines has been in the spotlight of the community for the last few decades. In general, such characterization is done by measurements of the liner acoustic impedance using different techniques in conditions as close as possible to those encountered in turbofan engines. Although a great amount of work has been published related to these techniques, few comparisons between different experimental setups using identical samples are available. The goal of the present study is to provide a comparison between educed acoustic impedances for two nominally identical liner samples in theUFSC Impedance Test Rig and the NASA Langley Research Center Grazing Flow ImpedanceTube (GFIT). Due to the geometrical differences between the test rigs, it is possible to consider the effect of different grazing flow profiles on the educed impedance. Impedance measurements between the two facilities show similar results in absence of grazing flow, while different ones when the grazing flow is present. Results are presented with both test rigs targeted to two different conditions: (i) same centerline Mach number and; (ii) same average Mach number.Both comparisons suggest a higher acoustic resistance obtained with the UFSC Impedance TestRig. A comparison using semi-empirical predictive models was also conducted. The results suggest that the main source for the observed difference is the grazing flow profile, represented by its boundary layer displacement thickness.

impedance↗

A Comparison of Impedance Eduction Test Rigs with Different Flow Profiles

The experimental characterization of acoustic liners applied for turbofan engines has been in the spotlight of the community for the last few decades. In general, such characterization is done by measurements of the liner acoustic impedance using different techniques in conditions as close as possible to those encountered in turbofan engines. Although a great amount of work has been published related to these techniques, few comparisons between different experimental setups using identical samples are available. The goal of the present study is to provide a comparison between educed acoustic impedances for two nominally identical liner samples in theUFSC Impedance Test Rig and the NASA Langley Research Center Grazing Flow ImpedanceTube (GFIT). Due to the geometrical differences between the test rigs, it is possible to consider the effect of different grazing flow profiles on the educed impedance. Impedance measurements between the two facilities show similar results in absence of grazing flow, while different ones when the grazing flow is present. Results are presented with both test rigs targeted to two different conditions: (i) same centerline Mach number and; (ii) same average Mach number.Both comparisons suggest a higher acoustic resistance obtained with the UFSC Impedance TestRig. A comparison using semi-empirical predictive models was also conducted. The results suggest that the main source for the observed difference is the grazing flow profile, represented by its boundary layer displacement thickness.

impedance↗

Methods of use of calcium hexa aluminate refractory linings and/or chemical barriers in high alkali or alkaline environments

A method for improving the insulating character/and or penetration resistance of a liner in contact with at least one of an alkali and/or alkaline environments is provided. The method comprises lining a surface that is subject to wear by an alkali environment and/or an alkaline environment with a refractory composition comprising a refractory aggregate consisting essentially of a calcium hexa aluminate clinker having the formula CA.sub.6, wherein C is equal to calcium oxide, wherein A is equal to aluminum oxide, and wherein the hexa aluminate clinker has from zero to less than about fifty weight percent C.sub.12A.sub.7, and wherein greater than 98 weight percent of the calcium hexa aluminate clinker having a particle size ranging from -20 microns to +3 millimeters, for forming a liner of the surface. This method improves the insulating character/and or penetration resistance of the liner.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Variable volume combustor

The present application provides a variable volume combustor for use with a gas turbine engine. The variable volume combustor may include a liner, a number of micro-mixer fuel nozzles positioned within the liner, and a linear actuator so as to maneuver the micro-mixer fuel nozzles axially along the liner.

33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS↗

Hopper apparatuses for processing a bulk solid, and related systems and methods

A hopper apparatus comprises a movable wall comprising opposing walls movably connected to a support assembly and oriented at acute angles relative to a central vertical axis of the support assembly, and movement control devices configured and positioned to move the opposing walls along the support assembly to control dimensions of a discharge outlet at least partially defined by converging ends of the opposing walls; a liner assembly comprising liner structures at least partially overlying inner surfaces of the opposing walls and configured to remain at least partially stationary relative to the opposing walls during movement of the opposing walls; and pressure sensors between the inner surfaces of opposing walls and portions of the liner structures thereover. A bulk solids processing system and a method of processing a bulk solid are also described.

42 ENGINEERING↗