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157 records · Page 9

Advanced Response Surface Modeling of Ares I Roll Control Jet Aerodynamic Interactions

The Ares I rocket uses roll control jets. These jets have aerodynamic implications as they impinge on the surface and protuberances of the vehicle. The jet interaction on the body can cause an amplification or a reduction of the rolling moment produced by the jet itself, either increasing the jet effectiveness or creating an adverse effect. A design of experiments test was planned and carried out using computation fluid dynamics, and a subsequent response surface analysis ensued on the available data to characterize the jet interaction across the ascent portion of the Ares I flight envelope. Four response surface schemes were compared including a single response surface covering the entire design space, separate sector responses that did not overlap, continuously overlapping surfaces, and recursive weighted response surfaces. These surfaces were evaluated on traditional statistical metrics as well as visual inspection. Validation of the recursive weighted response surface was performed using additionally available data at off-design point locations.

Favaregh, Noah M.↗

Aeromechanics Analysis of a Boundary Layer Ingesting Fan

Boundary layer ingesting propulsion systems have the potential to significantly reduce fuel burn but these systems must overcome the challe nges related to aeromechanics-fan flutter stability and forced response dynamic stresses. High-fidelity computational analysis of the fan a eromechanics is integral to the ongoing effort to design a boundary layer ingesting inlet and fan for fabrication and wind-tunnel test. A t hree-dimensional, time-accurate, Reynolds-averaged Navier Stokes computational fluid dynamics code is used to study aerothermodynamic and a eromechanical behavior of the fan in response to both clean and distorted inflows. The computational aeromechanics analyses performed in th is study show an intermediate design iteration of the fan to be flutter-free at the design conditions analyzed with both clean and distorte d in-flows. Dynamic stresses from forced response have been calculated for the design rotational speed. Additional work is ongoing to expan d the analyses to off-design conditions, and for on-resonance conditions.

Bakhle, Milind A.↗

A Guide to Axial-Flow Turbine Off-Design Computer Program AXOD2

A Users Guide for the axial flow turbine off-design computer program AXOD2 is composed in this paper. This Users Guide is supplementary to the original Users Manual of AXOD. Three notable contributions of AXOD2 to its predecessor AXOD, both in the context of the Guide or in the functionality of the code, are described and discussed in length. These are: 1) a rational representation of the mathematical principles applied, with concise descriptions of the formulas implemented in the actual coding. Their physical implications are addressed; 2) the creation and documentation of an Addendum Listing of input namelist-parameters unique to AXOD2, that differ from or are in addition to the original input-namelists given in the Manual of AXOD. Their usages are discussed; and 3) the institution of proper stoppages of the code execution, encoding termination messaging and error messages of the execution to AXOD2. These measures are to safe-guard the integrity of the code execution, such that a failure mode encountered during a case-study would not plunge the code execution into indefinite loop, or cause a blow-out of the program execution. Details on these are discussed and illustrated in this paper. Moreover, this computer program has since been reconstructed substantially. Standard FORTRAN Langue was instituted, and the code was formatted in Double Precision (REAL*8). As the result, the code is now suited for use in a local Desktop Computer Environment, is perfectly portable to any Operating System, and can be executed by any FORTRAN compiler equivalent to a FORTRAN 9095 compiler. AXOD2 will be available through NASA Glenn Research Center (GRC) Software Repository.

Gas Turbine Engines↗

Forced Response Analysis of a Fan with Boundary Layer Inlet Distortion

Boundary layer ingesting propulsion systems have the potential to significantly reduce fuel burn for future generations of commercial aircraft, but these systems must be designed to overcome the challenge of high dynamic stresses in fan blades due to forced response. High dynamic stresses can lead to high cycle fatigue failures. High-fidelity computational analysis of the fan aeromechanics is integral to an ongoing effort to design a boundary layer ingesting inlet and fan for a wind-tunnel test. An unsteady flow solution from a Reynoldsaveraged Navier Stokes analysis of a coupled inlet-fan system is used to calculate blade unsteady loading and assess forced response of the fan to distorted inflow. Conducted prior to the mechanical design of a fan, the initial forced response analyses performed in this study provide an early look at the levels of dynamic stresses that are likely to be encountered. For the boundary layer ingesting inlet, the distortion contains strong engine order excitations that act simultaneously. The combined effect of these harmonics was considered in the calculation of the forced response stresses. Together, static and dynamic stresses can provide the information necessary to evaluate whether the blades are likely to fail due to high cycle fatigue. Based on the analyses done, the overspeed condition is likely to result in the smallest stress margin in terms of the mean and alternating stresses. Additional work is ongoing to expand the analyses to off-design conditions, on-resonance conditions, and to include more detailed modeling of the blade structure.

Vibrational stress↗

Design of an Object-Oriented Turbomachinery Analysis Code: Initial Results

Performance prediction of turbomachines is a significant part of aircraft propulsion design. In the conceptual design stage, there is an important need to quantify compressor and turbine aerodynamic performance and develop initial geometry parameters at the 2-D level prior to more extensive Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analyses. The Object-oriented Turbomachinery Analysis Code (OTAC) is being developed to perform 2-D meridional flowthrough analysis of turbomachines using an implicit formulation of the governing equations to solve for the conditions at the exit of each blade row. OTAC is designed to perform meanline or streamline calculations; for streamline analyses simple radial equilibrium is used as a governing equation to solve for spanwise property variations. While the goal for OTAC is to allow simulation of physical effects and architectural features unavailable in other existing codes, it must first prove capable of performing calculations for conventional turbomachines.OTAC is being developed using the interpreted language features available in the Numerical Propulsion System Simulation (NPSS) code described by Claus et al (1991). Using the NPSS framework came with several distinct advantages, including access to the pre-existing NPSS thermodynamic property packages and the NPSS Newton-Raphson solver. The remaining objects necessary for OTAC were written in the NPSS framework interpreted language. These new objects form the core of OTAC and are the BladeRow, BladeSegment, TransitionSection, Expander, Reducer, and OTACstart Elements. The BladeRow and BladeSegment consumed the initial bulk of the development effort and required determining the equations applicable to flow through turbomachinery blade rows given specific assumptions about the nature of that flow. Once these objects were completed, OTAC was tested and found to agree with existing solutions from other codes; these tests included various meanline and streamline comparisons of axial compressors and turbines at design and off-design conditions.

compressors↗

A 3-D Computational Study of a Variable Camber Continuous Trailing Edge Flap (VCCTEF) Spanwise Segment

Results of a computational study carried out to explore the effects of various elastomer configurations joining spanwise contiguous Variable Camber Continuous Trailing Edge Flap (VCCTEF) segments are reported here. This research is carried out as a proof-of-concept study that will seek to push the flight envelope in cruise with drag optimization as the objective. The cruise conditions can be well off design such as caused by environmental conditions, maneuvering, etc. To handle these off-design conditions, flap deflection is used so when the flap is deflected in a given direction, the aircraft angle of attack changes accordingly to maintain a given lift. The angle of attack is also a design parameter along with the flap deflection. In a previous 2D study,1 the effect of camber was investigated and the results revealed some insight into the relative merit of various camber settings of the VCCTEF. The present state of the art has not advanced sufficiently to do a full 3-D viscous analysis of the whole NASA Generic Transport Model (GTM) wing with VCCTEF deployed with elastomers. Therefore, this study seeks to explore the local effects of three contiguous flap segments on lift and drag of a model devised here to determine possible trades among various flap deflections to achieve desired lift and drag results. Although this approach is an approximation, it provides new insights into the "local" effects of the relative deflections of the contiguous spanwise flap systems and various elastomer segment configurations. The present study is a natural extension of the 2-D study to assess these local 3-D effects. Design cruise condition at 36,000 feet at free stream Mach number of 0.797 and a mean aerodynamic chord (MAC) based Reynolds number of 30.734x10(exp 6) is simulated for an angle of attack (AoA) range of 0 to 6 deg. In the previous 2-D study, the calculations revealed that the parabolic arc camber (1x2x3) and circular arc camber (VCCTEF222) offered the best L/D characteristics and minimum drag in cruise. In the present 3-D study, calculations show that for the same C(sub t), the 3-D circular arc camber wing segment produces the largest drag for a given lift, larger than either of the two 2-D configurations, as was also conjectured in the previous study. This study indicates a wing stall around 4.5 deg angle of attack.

Camber↗

Design of an Object-Oriented Turbomachinery Analysis Code: Initial Results

Performance prediction of turbomachines is a significant part of aircraft propulsion design. In the conceptual design stage, there is an important need to quantify compressor and turbine aerodynamic performance and develop initial geometry parameters at the 2-D level prior to more extensive Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analyses. The Object-oriented Turbomachinery Analysis Code (OTAC) is being developed to perform 2-D meridional flowthrough analysis of turbomachines using an implicit formulation of the governing equations to solve for the conditions at the exit of each blade row. OTAC is designed to perform meanline or streamline calculations; for streamline analyses simple radial equilibrium is used as a governing equation to solve for spanwise property variations. While the goal for OTAC is to allow simulation of physical effects and architectural features unavailable in other existing codes, it must first prove capable of performing calculations for conventional turbomachines. OTAC is being developed using the interpreted language features available in the Numerical Propulsion System Simulation (NPSS) code described by Claus et al (1991). Using the NPSS framework came with several distinct advantages, including access to the pre-existing NPSS thermodynamic property packages and the NPSS Newton-Raphson solver. The remaining objects necessary for OTAC were written in the NPSS framework interpreted language. These new objects form the core of OTAC and are the BladeRow, BladeSegment, TransitionSection, Expander, Reducer, and OTACstart Elements. The BladeRow and BladeSegment consumed the initial bulk of the development effort and required determining the equations applicable to flow through turbomachinery blade rows given specific assumptions about the nature of that flow. Once these objects were completed, OTAC was tested and found to agree with existing solutions from other codes; these tests included various meanline and streamline comparisons of axial compressors and turbines at design and off-design conditions.

object-oriented programming↗

Performance Analysis of Optimized STARC-ABL Designs Across the Entire Mission Profile

Boundary layer ingestion (BLI) offers the potential for significant fuel burn reduction by exploiting strong aeropropulsive interactions. NASA’s STARC–ABL concept uses an electri- cally powered BLI tail cone thruster on what is otherwise a traditional airframe. Despite the traditional airframe of this configuration, aeropropulsive integration is critical to the perfor- mance of the BLI propulsor. Furthermore, due to being electrically powered, the fan pressure ratio and efficiency of the BLI tail cone thruster vary widely across the flight envelope, and this variation in fan performance must be accounted for with the aeropropulsive integration of the BLI system. Thus, accurate performance prediction for this novel propulsion configu- ration requires the use of a coupled aeropropulsive model across the flight envelope. In this work, we analyze the off-design performance of 18 optimized designs using an aeropropulsive model that is built with the OpenMDAO framework to couple 3-D RANS CFD simulations to 1-D thermodynamic cycle analyses. The designs are created via high-fidelity aeropropulsive design optimizations that span a range of fan pressure ratio and thrust values at the cruise conditions for the STARC-ABL concept, which was chosen as the aerodynamic design point for the propulsor. Performance analyses we present herein are then performed at a range of off-design flight conditions that span the flight envelope, including low-speed and low-altitude flight conditions. This study provides the first set of high-fidelity data for the STARC–ABL configuration at off-design conditions, and the results quantify the power savings through BLI compared to a traditional propulsion system across the entire mission profile.

optimization↗

Multi-point Jig Twist Optimization of Mach 0.745 Transonic Truss-Braced Wing Aircraft and High-Fidelity CFD Validation

This paper presents a multi-point jig twist optimization study of the Mach 0.745 Transonic Truss-Braced Wing (TTBW) aircraft using an in-house developed aero-structural analysis solver VSPAERO coupled to BEAM3D. A vortex-lattice model of the TTBW model is developed, and a transonic small disturbance /integral boundary layer correction method is implemented in the VSPAERO model to account for transonic and viscous flow effects. A correction method for the wing-strut interference aerodynamics is developed and applied to the VSPAERO solver. Also, a structural dynamic finite-element model of the TTBW aircraft is developed. This finite-element model includes the geometric nonlinear effect due to the tension in the struts which causes a deflection-dependent nonlinear stiffness. The VSPAERO model is coupled to the corresponding finite-element model to provide a rapid aero-structural analysis. The VSPAERO model has been validated against wind tunnel test data and FUN3D CFD simulation data. Three different flight conditions corresponding to Mach 0.745 at 40,000 ft are selected for the TTBW aircraft jig twist optimization to reduce the drag coefficients at the design and off-design cruise lift coefficients. The preliminary optimization results show that the TTBW aircraft with the optimized jig twist achieves a drag reduction of about 9 counts, 7 counts, and8 counts corresponding to the lift coefficients 0.68, 0.73, and 0.78, respectively. A high-fidelity CFD solver FUN3D is used to validate the jig twist optimization.

Multi-point↗

Aeroelastic Trim Drag Optimization of Mach 0.745 Transonic Truss-Braced Wing Aircraft with Variable-Camber Continuous Trailing-Edge Flap

This paper presents an aeroelastic trim drag optimization study of the Mach 0.745 Transonic Truss-Braced Wing (TTBW) aircraft with the Variable-Camber Continuous Trailing-Edge Flap (VCCTEF). An aero-structural analysis solver VSPAERO with transonic small disturbance, integral boundary-layer, and wing-strut interference corrections coupled to finite-element code BEAM3D is developed to provide a rapid aircraft aeroelastic performance evaluation. The VSPAERO model has been validated against wind tunnel test data. Aeroelastic trim drag optimization studies are conducted for a VCCTEF configuration with 6-spanwise sections. Three different flight conditions corresponding to Mach 0.745 are selected for the TTBW aircraft aeroelastic trim drag optimization at the design and off-design cruise lift coefficients. The preliminary optimization results show that the TTBW aircraft with the optimized VCCTEF deflection achieves a drag reduction of about 9.1 counts, 5.9 counts, and 11.8 counts corresponding to the lift coefficients 0.68, 0.73, and 0.78, respectively. A high-fidelity CFD solver FUN3D is used to validate the aeroelastic trim drag optimization.

Aeroelastic trim drag↗

Aeroelastic Trim Drag Optimization of Mach 0.8 Transonic Truss-Braced Wing Aircraft using High-Lift Devices and Control Surfaces

This paper presents an aeroelastic trim drag optimization study of the Mach 0.8 Transonic Truss-Braced Wing (TTBW) aircraft using the High-lift devices and control surfaces. An aero-structural analysis solver VSPAERO with transonic small disturbance, integral boundary-layer, and wing-strut interference corrections coupled to mode shapes computed by NASTRAN using the Galerkin method is developed to provide a rapid aircraft aeroelastic performance evaluation. Three different flight conditions corresponding to Mach 0.8 are selected for the aeroelastic trim drag optimization at the design and off-design cruise lift coefficients. The preliminary optimization results show that the TTBW aircraft with the optimized deflection of the high-lift devices and control surfaces achieves a drag reduction of about 8.2 counts, 6.5 counts, and 9.7 counts corresponding to the lift coefficients 0.661, 0.695, and 0.729, respectively. A high-fidelity CFD solver FUN3D is used to verify the aeroelastic trim drag optimization.

TTBW↗

Progress Towards the Design of a Natural Laminar Flow Wing for a Low-Boom Concept using CDISC

The X-59 is being developed to evaluate the ability to reduce sonic boom loudness to acceptable levels, with the ultimate goal of enabling supersonic flight overland. If successful, one of the future research challenges will be focused on reducing fuel burn. In this paper, Natural Laminar Flow (NLF) is proposed as a technology to decrease fuel burn for a low-boom configuration. This will require an evaluation of the compatibility of NLF wings for a low-boom configuration. As a first step towards this goal, the CATNLF method was employed using the CDISC design module to perform NLF design on an isolated wing from a low-boom configuration. The results show that the NLF wing features laminar flow over 46% of the wing upper surface, providing a potential 8.3 drag count reduction relative to the design with no laminar flow. Off-design analyses were additionally performed to evaluate the performance of the NLF wing for changes in angle of attack and Mach number. The results showed that the NLF wing offers a performance benefit over the entire range of off-design conditions considered, with most of the laminar flow maintained for near cruise conditions. Future work will consider the full configuration, which will enable an assessment of the impact of the NLF wing design on sonic boom loudness. Additionally, attachment line transition will be addressed, which was predicted to result in a loss of laminar flow on the inboard 50% span for this work. Finally, future research will focus on developing a method for effectively choosing the frequency-beta pairs used for the stability analysis to improve transition prediction and provide a more accurate estimate of the performance benefit.

Supersonic↗

Progress Towards the Design of a Natural Laminar Flow Wing for a Low-Boom Concept Using CDISC

The X-59 is being developed to evaluate the ability to reduce boom loudness to acceptable levels, with the ultimate goal of enabling supersonic flight overland. If successful, one of the future research challenges will be focused on reducing fuel burn. In this paper, Natural Laminar Flow (NLF) is proposed as a technology to decrease fuel burn for a low-boom configuration. This will require an evaluation of the compatibility of NLF wings for a low-boom configuration. As a first step towards this goal, the CATNLF method was employed using the CDISC design module to perform NLF design on an isolated wing from a low-boom configuration. The results show that the NLF wing features laminar flow over 46\% of the wing upper surface, providing a potential 8.3 drag count reduction relative to the design with no laminar flow. Off-design analyses were additionally performed to evaluate the performance of the NLF wing for changes in angle of attack and Mach number. The results showed that the NLF wing offers a performance benefit over the entire range of off-design conditions considered, with the majority of the laminar flow maintained for near cruise conditions. Future work will consider the full configuration, which will enable an assessment of the impact of the NLF wing design on sonic boom loudness. Additionally, attachment line transition will be addressed, which was predicted to result in a loss of laminar flow on the inboard 50\% span for this work. Finally, future research will focus on developing a method for effectively choosing the frequency-beta pairs used for the stability analysis to improve transition prediction and provide a more accurate estimate of the performance benefit.

Supersonic↗