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At least 127 records · Page 7

A Summary of Test Results from a NASA Lift + Cruise eVTOL Crash Test

On November 9, 2022, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) conducted a full-scale crash test of the NASA Lift+Cruise (LPC) reference vehicle at the NASA Langley Research Center Landing and Impact Research Facility (LandIR) under combined vertical and horizontal impact conditions to simulate a severe but survivable crash. The LPC test article is a carbon-composite skin/frame structure design, developed and fabricated for the cabin section only. The test utilized various configurations of seats and Anthropomorphic Test Devices (ATDs, a.k.a. crash test dummies) intended to encompass a variety of occupant conditions. In addition, an in-house developed energy absorbing subfloor was utilized for the evaluation of load attenuation. Overhead mass was simulated using attached lifting hardware and other systems were simulated using ballast mass. The test article impacted the ground with velocities of 38.1 ft/s horizontal and 31.4 ft/s vertical. During the first approximately 38 milliseconds (ms), the cabin section experienced a large amount of acceleration on the belly which was attenuated by the subfloor structures and seats. Over the next approximately 160 ms, the test article experienced failure in the a-, b- and c-pillars, leading to a partial collapse of the overhead structure. Test data was collected on the belly, floors, seats, overhead mass, and tail. In addition, there was high speed full-field digital image correlation analysis data collected on the port side skin surface. Collected ATD data showed that the ATDs seated in the energy absorbing seats experienced loads at limits below the those in current regulations. Even without an energy absorbing seat, the energy absorbing subfloors crushed as intended, and limited the load on the large 95 th percentile ATD to 10% over suggested limits. The collapse of the roof did affect the 95 th percentile ATD, which showed high neck loading values due to head contact, whereas survivable volume was maintained for the other ATDs. While the energy absorbing subfloor and energy absorbing seats both contributed to occupant load attenuation, further optimization is suggested to increase their robustness.

evtol↗

A Summary of Test Results from a NASA Lift + Cruise eVTOL Crash Test

On November 9, 2022, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) conducted a full-scale crash test of the NASA Lift+Cruise (LPC) reference vehicle at the NASA Langley Research Center Landing and Impact Research Facility (LandIR) under combined vertical and horizontal impact conditions to simulate a severe but survivable crash. The LPC test article is a carbon-composite skin/frame structure design, developed and fabricated for the cabin section only. The test utilized various configurations of seats and Anthropomorphic Test Devices (ATDs, a.k.a. crash test dummies) intended to encompass a variety of occupant conditions. In addition, an in-house developed energy absorbing subfloor was utilized for the evaluation of load attenuation. Overhead mass was simulated using attached lifting hardware and other systems were simulated using ballast mass. The test article impacted the ground with velocities of 38.1 ft/s horizontal and 31.4 ft/s vertical. During the first approximately 38 milliseconds (ms), the cabin section experienced a large amount of acceleration on the belly which was attenuated by the subfloor structures and seats. Over the next approximately 160 ms, the test article experienced failure in the a-, b- and c-pillars, leading to a partial collapse of the overhead structure. Test data was collected on the belly, floors, seats, overhead mass, and tail. In addition, there was high speed full-field digital image correlation analysis data collected on the port side skin surface. Collected ATD data showed that the ATDs seated in the energy absorbing seats experienced loads at limits below the those in current regulations. Even without an energy absorbing seat, the energy absorbing subfloors crushed as intended, and limited the load on the large 95 th percentile ATD to 10% over suggested limits. The collapse of the roof did affect the 95 th percentile ATD, which showed high neck loading values due to head contact, whereas survivable volume was maintained for the other ATDs. While the energy absorbing subfloor and energy absorbing seats both contributed to occupant load attenuation, further optimization is suggested to increase their robustness.

evtol↗

Development of 2 underseat energy absorbers for application to crashworthy passenger seats for general aviation aircraft

This report presents the methodology and results of a program conducted to develop two underseat energy absorber (E/A) concepts for application to nonadjustable crashworthy passenger seats for general aviation aircraft. One concept utilizes an inflated air bag, and the other, a convoluted sheet metal bellows. Prototypes of both were designed, built, and tested. Both concepts demonstrated the necessary features of an energy absorber (load-limiter); however, the air bag concept is particularly encouraging because of its light weight. Several seat frame concepts also were investigated as a means of resisting longitudinal and lateral loads and of guiding the primary vertical stroke of the underseat energy absorber. Further development of a seat system design using the underseat energy absorbers is recommended because they provide greatly enhanced crash survivability as compared with existing general aviation aircraft seats.

Warrick, J. C.↗

M.E.366-J embodiment design project: Portable foot restraint

During space shuttle operations, astronauts require support to carry out tasks in the weightless environment. In the past, portable foot restraints (PFR) with orientations adjustable in pitch, roll, and yaw provided this support for payload bay operations. These foot restraints, however, were designed for specific tasks with a load limit of 111.2 Newtons. Since the original design, new applications for foot restraints have been identified. New designs for the foot restraints have been created to boost the operational work load to 444.8 Newtons and decrease setup times. What remains to be designed is an interface between the restraint system and the extravehicular mobility unit (EMU) boots. NASA provided a proposed locking device involving a spring-loaded mechanism. This locking mechanism must withstand loads of 1334.4 Newtons in any direction and weigh less than 222.4 Newtons. This paper develops an embodiment design for the interface between the PFR and the EMU boots. This involves design of the locking mechanism and a removable cleat that allows the boot to interface with this mechanism. The design team used the Paul Beitz engineering methodology to present the systematic development, structural analysis, and production considerations of the embodiment design. This methodology provides a basis for understanding the justification behind the decisions made in the design.

Heaton, Randall↗

Use of blade pitch control to provide power train damping for the Mod-2, 2.5-mW wind turbine

The Control System for the Mod-2 wind turbine system is required to provide not only for startup, RPM regulation, maximizing or regulating power, and stopping the rotor, but also for load limiting, especially in the power train. Early operations with above-rated winds revealed an instability which was caused primarily by coupling between the quill shaft and the rotor air loads. This instability caused the first of several major Mod-2 Control System changes which are reviewed in the paper.

Blissell, W. A., Jr.↗

Development of an Integrated Countermeasure Device for Long Duration Space Flight and Exploration Missions

Musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, and sensorimotor deconditioning have been observed consistently in astronauts and cosmonauts following long-duration spaceflight. Studies in bed rest, a spaceflight analog, have shown that high intensity resistive or aerobic exercise attenuates or prevents musculoskeletal and cardiovascular deconditioning, respectively, but complete protection has not been achieved during spaceflight. Exercise countermeasure hardware used during earlier International Space Station (ISS) missions included a cycle ergometer, a treadmill, and the interim resistive exercise device (iRED). Effectiveness of the countermeasures may have been diminished by limited loading characteristics of the iRED as well as speed restrictions and subject harness discomfort during treadmill exercise. The Advanced Resistive Exercise Device (ARED) and the second generation treadmill were designed to address many of the limitations of their predecessors, and anecdotal reports from ISS crews suggest that their conditioning is better preserved since the new hardware was delivered in 2009. However, several countermeasure devices to protect different physiologic systems will not be practical during exploration missions when the available volume and mass will be severely restricted. The combined countermeasure device (CCD) integrates a suite of hardware into one device intended to prevent spaceflight-induced musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, and sensorimotor deconditioning. The CCD includes pneumatic loading devices with attached cables for resistive exercise, a cycle for aerobic exercise, and a 6 degree of freedom motion platform for balance training. In a proof of concept test, ambulatory untrained subjects increased muscle strength (58%) as well as aerobic capacity (26%) after 12-weeks of exercise training with the CCD (without balance training), improvements comparable to those observed with traditional exercise training. These preliminary results suggest that this CCD can concurrently improve musculoskeletal and cardiovascular conditioning in ambulatory subjects, but further work is required to validate its use as countermeasure to spaceflight-induced deconditioning.

Lee, S. M. C.↗

A Framework for Optimal Control Allocation with Structural Load Constraints

Conventional aircraft generally employ mixing algorithms or lookup tables to determine control surface deflections needed to achieve moments commanded by the flight control system. Control allocation is the problem of converting desired moments into control effector commands. Next generation aircraft may have many multipurpose, redundant control surfaces, adding considerable complexity to the control allocation problem. These issues can be addressed with optimal control allocation. Most optimal control allocation algorithms have control surface position and rate constraints. However, these constraints are insufficient to ensure that the aircraft's structural load limits will not be exceeded by commanded surface deflections. In this paper, a framework is proposed to enable a flight control system with optimal control allocation to incorporate real-time structural load feedback and structural load constraints. A proof of concept simulation that demonstrates the framework in a simulation of a generic transport aircraft is presented.

Frost, Susan A.↗

An Investigation of the Characteristics of Steel Diaphragms for Automatic Fuel-Injection Valves

This research on steel diaphragms was undertaken at the Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory, as a part of a general investigation on fuel injection engines for aircraft. The work determined the load-deflection, load- deformation and hysteresis characteristics for single diaphragms having thicknesses from 0.00s inch to 0.012 inch, and for similar diaphragms tested in multiple having total thicknesses from 0.012 inch to 0.180 inch. The elastic limit loads and deflections, and rupture points of single diaphragms were also determined. Some work was done on diaphragms having central orifices in order to determine the effect of orifice diameter upon the load deflection characteristics.

Joachim, W F↗

Structural qualification testing and operational loading on a fiberglass rotor blade for the Mod-OA wind turbine

Fatigue tests were performed on full- and half-scale root end sections, first to qualify the root retention design, and second to induce failure. Test methodology and results are presented. Two operational blades were proof tested to design limit load to ascertain buckling resistance. Measurements of natural frequency, damping ratio, and deflection under load made on the operational blades are documented. The tests showed that all structural design requirements were met or exceeded. Blade loads measured during 3000 hr of field operation were close to those expected. The measured loads validated the loads used in the fatigue tests and gave high confidence in the ability of the blades to achieve design life.

Sullivan, T. L.↗

Structural Efficiency of Stitched Rod-Stiffened Composite Panels with Stiffener Crippling

The structural efficiency of rod-stiffened stitched specimens is evaluated to determine their weight saving potential if the stiffeners were allowed to buckle at less than or equal to design ultimate load. Analytical and experimental results from rod-stiffened and blade-stiffened single-stiffener specimens are presented. In both cases, skin and flanges were stitched together through-the-thickness prior to curing. No mechanical fasteners were used for the assembly. Specimens were loaded to failure in axial compression. Failure modes are discussed. Finite element and experimental results agree for the response of the structures. For some specimen configurations, improved structural efficiency can be obtained by allowing stiffeners to buckle at design limit load rather than requiring that buckling not occur prior to design ultimate load. In addition, through-the-thickness stitching can change the failure mechanism by suppressing delamination between skin and flange. A parametric study is presented herein which describes the possible weight savings with this approach.

Jegley, Dawn C.↗

Optical Fiber Distributed Sensing Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) Strain Measurements Taken During Cryotank Y-Joint Test Article Load Cycling at Liquid Helium Temperatures

This paper outlines cryogenic Y-joint testing at Langley Research Center (LaRC) to validate the performance of optical fiber Bragg grating strain sensors for measuring strain at liquid helium temperature (-240 C). This testing also verified survivability of fiber sensors after experiencing 10 thermal cool-down, warm-up cycles and 400 limit load cycles. Graphite composite skins bonded to a honeycomb substrate in a sandwich configuration comprised the Y-joint specimens. To enable SHM of composite cryotanks for consideration to future spacecraft, a light-weight, durable monitoring technology is needed. The fiber optic distributed Bragg grating strain sensing system developed at LaRC is a viable substitute for conventional strain gauges which are not practical for SHM. This distributed sensing technology uses an Optical Frequency Domain Reflectometer (OFDR). This measurement approach has the advantage that it can measure hundreds of Bragg grating sensors per fiber and the sensors are all written at one frequency, greatly simplifying fiber manufacturing. Fiber optic strain measurements compared well to conventional strain gauge measurements obtained during these tests. These results demonstrated a high potential for a successful implementation of a SHM system incorporating LaRC's fiber optic sensing system on the composite cryotank and other future cryogenic applications.

Allison, Sidney G.↗

Methodology and Development of SLS Liftoff Loads

The methodologies and development of the loads experienced during liftoff of the NASA SLS Block I vehicle will be presented in this paper. The liftoff loads analysis traditionally captures the dynamics of vehicle/pad separation after engine/booster ignition coupled with other launch day environments like wind, overpressure, and engine side loads. Additionally, the liftoff analysis includes an on-pad engine shutdown prior to booster ignition. The SLS liftoff analysis is performed using a Monte Carlo analysis and this paper will explore the Monte Carlo process and the statistical approach to calculating the limit loads.

SLS↗

Methodology and Development of SLS Liftoff Loads

The methodologies and development of the loads experienced during liftoff of the NASA SLS Block I vehicle will be presented in this paper. The liftoff loads analysis traditionally captures the dynamics of vehicle/pad separation after engine/booster ignition coupled with other launch day environments like wind, overpressure, and engine side loads. Additionally, the liftoff analysis includes an on-pad engine shutdown prior to booster ignition. The SLS liftoff analysis is performed using a Monte Carlo analysis and this paper will explore the Monte Carlo process and the statistical approach to calculating the limit loads.

SLS↗

Materials with periodic internal structure: Computation based on homogenization and comparison with experiment

The combination of thermal and mechanical loading expected in practice means that constitutive equations of metal matrix composites must be developed which deal with time-independent and time-dependent irreversible deformation. Also, the internal state of composites is extremely complicated which underlines the need to formulate macroscopic constitutive equations with a limited number of state variables which represent the internal state at the micro level. One available method for calculating the macro properties of composites in terms of the distribution and properties of the constituent materials is the method of homogenization whose formulation is based on the periodicity of the substructure of the composite. A homogenization procedure was developed which lends itself to the use of the finite element procedure. The efficiency of these procedures, to determine the macroscopic properties of a composite system from its constituent properties, was demonstrated utilizing an aluminum plate perforated by directionally oriented slits. The selection of this problem is based on the fact that, extensive experimental results exist, the macroscopic response is highly anisotropic, and that the slits provide very high stress gradients which severely test the effectiveness of the computational procedures. Furthermore, both elastic and plastic properties were investigated so that the application to practical systems with inelastic deformation should be able to proceed without difficulty. The effectiveness of the procedures was rigorously checked against experimental results and with the predictions of approximate calculations. Using the computational results it is illustrated how macroscopic constitutive equations can be expressed in forms of the elastic and limit load behavior.

Jansson, S.↗

Controlled impact demonstration airframe bending bridges

The calibration of the KRASH and DYCAST models for transport aircraft is discussed. The FAA uses computer analysis techniques to predict the response of controlled impact demonstration (CID) during impact. The moment bridges can provide a direct correlation between the predictive loads or moments that the models will predict and what was experienced during the actual impact. Another goal is to examine structural failure mechanisms and correlate with analytical predictions. The bending bridges did achieve their goals and objectives. The data traces do provide some insight with respect to airframe loads and structural response. They demonstrate quite clearly what's happening to the airframe. A direct quantification of metal airframe loads was measured by the moment bridges. The measured moments can be correlated with the KRASH and DYCAST computer models. The bending bridge data support airframe failure mechanisms analysis and provide residual airframe strength estimation. It did not appear as if any of the bending bridges on the airframe exceeded limit loads. (The observed airframe fracture was due to the fuselage encounter with the tomahawk which tore out the keel beam.) The airframe bridges can be used to estimate the impact conditions and those estimates are correlating with some of the other data measurements. Structural response, frequency and structural damping are readily measured by the moment bridges.

Soltis, S. J.↗

SPE-CZE-MS Quantifies Zeptomole Amounts of Phosphorylated Peptides

Capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) is gaining attention in the field of single-cell proteomics for its ultralow-flow and high-resolution separation abilities. Even more sample-limited yet rich in biological information are phosphoproteomics experiments, as the phosphoproteome composes only a fraction of the whole cellular proteome. Rapid analysis, high sensitivity, and maximization of sample utilization are paramount for single-cell analysis. Some challenges of coupling CZE analysis with mass spectrometry analysis (MS) of complex mixtures include 1. sensitivity due to volume loading limitations of CZE and 2. incompatibility of MS duty cycles with electropherographic time scales. Here, we address these two challenges as applied to singlecell- equivalent phosphoproteomics experiments by interfacing a microchip-based CZE device integrated with a solid-phaseextraction (SPE) bed with the Orbitrap Astral mass spectrometer. Using 225 phosphorylated peptide standards and phosphorylated peptide-enriched mouse brain tissue, we investigate microchip-based SPE-CZE functionality, quantitative performance, and complementarity to nano-LC-MS (nLC-MS) analysis. We highlight unique SPE-CZE separation mechanisms that can empower fitfor- purpose applications in single-cell-equivalent phosphoproteomics.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

All Shuttle Centaur engine and nozzle support plug vibration testing

Loads applied to the RL10 engines while in flight in the orbiter payload bay are significantly different from the load environment experienced in Atlas and Titan/Centaur applications. To predict the engine loads, a NASTRAN analysis was conducted. As part of this effort a vibration test program was accomplished to provide input to the analysis, and to verify engine durability. This program was completed in two phases. The first phase provided data and characteristics which were used as input to the analysis. The second phase subjected the engine to limit loads, and included hot firings before and after the vibration test. The test hardware, performance, and results are described.

Source record↗

Deformation and Life Analysis of Composite Flywheel Disk and Multi-disk Systems

In this study an attempt is made to put into perspective the problem of a rotating disk, be it a single disk or a number of concentric disks forming a unit. An analytical model capable of performing an elastic stress analysis for single/multiple, annular/solid, anisotropic/isotropic disk systems, subjected to both pressure surface tractions, body forces (in the form of temperature-changes and rotation fields) and interfacial misfits is derived and discussed. Results of an extensive parametric study are presented to clearly define the key design variables and their associated influence. In general the important parameters were identified as misfit, mean radius, thickness, material property and/or load gradation, and speed; all of which must be simultaneously optimized to achieve the "best" and most reliable design. Also, the important issue of defining proper performance/merit indices (based on the specific stored energy), in the presence of multiaxiality and material anisotropy is addressed. These merit indices are then utilized to discuss the difference between flywheels made from PMC and TMC materials with either an annular or solid geometry. Finally two major aspects of failure analysis, that is the static and cyclic limit (burst) speeds are addressed. In the case of static limit loads, upper, lower, and out-of-plane bounds for disks with constant thickness are presented for both the case of internal pressure loading (as one would see in a hydroburst test) and pure rotation (as in the case of a free spinning disk). The results (interaction diagrams) are displayed graphically in designer friendly format. For the case of fatigue, a representative fatigue/life master curve is illustrated in which the normalized limit speed versus number of applied cycles is given for a cladded TMC disk application.

Arnold, S. M.↗