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At least 163 records · Page 9

A General-applications Direct Global Matrix Algorithm for Rapid Seismo-acoustic Wavefield Computations

A new matrix method for rapid wave propagation modeling in generalized stratified media, which has recently been applied to numerical simulations in diverse areas of underwater acoustics, solid earth seismology, and nondestructive ultrasonic scattering is explained and illustrated. A portion of recent efforts jointly undertaken at NATOSACLANT and NORDA Numerical Modeling groups in developing, implementing, and testing a new fast general-applications wave propagation algorithm, SAFARI, formulated at SACLANT is summarized. The present general-applications SAFARI program uses a Direct Global Matrix Approach to multilayer Green's function calculation. A rapid and unconditionally stable solution is readily obtained via simple Gaussian ellimination on the resulting sparsely banded block system, precisely analogous to that arising in the Finite Element Method. The resulting gains in accuracy and computational speed allow consideration of much larger multilayered air/ocean/Earth/engineering material media models, for many more source-receiver configurations than previously possible. The validity and versatility of the SAFARI-DGM method is demonstrated by reviewing three practical examples of engineering interest, drawn from ocean acoustics, engineering seismology and ultrasonic scattering.

Schmidt, H.↗

An evaluation of the benefits of utilizing rapid solidification for development of 2XXX (Al-Cu-Mg) alloys

The advantages of rapid solidification processing over ingot metallurgy processing in the development of 2XXX aluminum alloy compositions were evaluated using a similarly processed ingot metallurgy (IM) control alloy. The powder metallurgy (PM) alloy extrusions showed a reduced age-hardening response in comparison with similar IM compositions, with higher tensile properties for naturally aged extrusions but lower properties for artificially aged ones. However, the tensile properties of naturally and artificially aged PM alloy extrusions based on a version of IM 2034 alloy, but containing 0.6 weight percent zirconium, were comparable to those of the IM control extrusions and had significantly superior combinations of strength and toughness. The tensile properties of this PM alloy showed even greater advantage in 6.4-mm (0.25-in.) and 1.8-mm (0.070-in.) plate and sheet, the yield strength being about 68 MPa (10 ksi) greater than reported values for the IM 2034 alloy sheet. An artificially aged PM alloy based on 2219 alloy also showed a strength and strength-toughness combination comparable to those of the PM Al-Cu-Mg-Zr alloy, substantially outperforming the IM 2219 alloy. These results show that rapid solidification offers the flexibility needed to modify conventional IM compositions to produce new alloy compositions with superior mechanical properties.

Paris, H. G.↗

Rapid prototyping facility for flight research in artificial-intelligence-based flight systems concepts

The Dryden Flight Research Facility of the NASA Ames Research Facility of the NASA Ames Research Center is developing a rapid prototyping facility for flight research in flight systems concepts that are based on artificial intelligence (AI). The facility will include real-time high-fidelity aircraft simulators, conventional and symbolic processors, and a high-performance research aircraft specially modified to accept commands from the ground-based AI computers. This facility is being developed as part of the NASA-DARPA automated wingman program. This document discusses the need for flight research and for a national flight research facility for the rapid prototyping of AI-based avionics systems and the NASA response to those needs.

Duke, E. L.↗

Rapidly rotating single late-type giants: New FK Comae stars?

A group of rapidly rotating single late-type giants was found from surveys of chromospherically active stars. These stars have V sin I's ranging from 6 to 46 km/sec, modest ultraviolet emission line fluxes, and strong H alpha absorption lines. Although certainly chromospherically active, their characteristics are much less extreme than those of FK Com and one or two other similar systems. One possible explanation for the newly identified systems is that they have evolved from stars similar to FK Com. The chromospheric activity and rotation of single giant stars like FK Com would be expected to decrease with time as they do in single dwarfs. Alternatively, this newly identified group may have evolved from single rapidly rotating A, or early F stars.

Fekel, Francis C.↗

Rapid thermal annealing of Amorphous Hydrogenated Carbon (a-C:H) films

Amorphous hydrogenated carbon (a-C:H) films were deposited on silicon and quartz substrates by a 30 kHz plasma discharge technique using methane. Rapid thermal processing of the films was accomplished in nitrogen gas using tungsten halogen light. The rapid thermal processing was done at several fixed temperatures (up to 600 C), as a function of time (up to 1800 sec). The films were characterized by optical absorption and by ellipsometry in the near UV and the visible. The bandgap, estimated from extrapolation of the linear part of a Tauc plot, decreases both with the annealing temperature and the annealing time, with the temperature dependence being the dominating factor. The density of states parameter increases up to 25 percent and the refractive index changes up to 20 percent with temperature increase. Possible explanations of the mechanisms involved in these processes are discussed.

Alterovitz, Samuel A.↗

Theoretical studies on rapid fluctuations in solar flares

Rapid fluctuations in the emission of solar bursts may have many different origins e.g., the acceleration process can have a pulsating structure, the propagation of energetic electrons and ions can be interrupted from plasma instabilities and finally the electromagnetic radiation produced by the interaction of electrostatic and electromagnetic waves may have a pulsating behavior in time. In two separate studies the conditions for rapid fluctuations in solar flare driven emission were analyzed.

Vlahos, Loukas↗

Equipment and techniques for rapid bonding of composites

Rapid adhesive bonding concepts have been developed at NASA Langley which employ induction heating of thermoplastic composite matrices directly along the bond line and/or adherends without heating the entire structure, the supports, and the fixtures of the bonding assembly. Short term thermal cycling and water boil exposures have shown encouraging environmental stability for these rapid bonds. These bonding techniques have been extended to continuous seam bonding of metallic and composite panels with promising results for the bonding of both like and unlike adherends; the portability of the apparatus suggests that field repairs of damaged structures are possible.

Buckley, John D.↗

Microstructures in rapidly solidified Ni-Mo alloys

Ni-Mo alloys of compositions ranging from pure Ni to Ni-40 at. percent Mo were rapidly solidified by Chill Block Melt Spinning in vacuum and were examined by optical metallography, X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy. Rapid solidification resulted in an extension of molybdenum solubility in nickel from 28 to 37.5 at. percent. A number of different phases and microstructures were seen at different depths (solidification conditions) from the quenched surface of the melt spun ribbons.

Jayaraman, N.↗

A simplified CARS measurement system for rapid determination of temperature and oxygen concentration

A new spectroscopic concept for the rapid determination of temperature and oxygen concentration by CARS (Coherent Anti-Stokes Raman Spectroscopy) was described. The ratio of two spectral regions in the broadband Q-branch spectrum was detected by photomultipliers in a monochromator, which ratio depends on temperature and species concentration. The comparison of the measured data with theory was made using a flat flame burner and an electric furnace, with reasonable results. Various optical techniques for alignment were introduced including a highly efficient, stable dye oscillator. The combination of the spectroscopic concept and the optical techniques will make the CARS measurement system rapid in data processing and simple in optical parts.

Fujii, Shoichi↗

Rapid prototyping and AI programming environments applied to payload modeling

This effort focused on using artificial intelligence (AI) programming environments and rapid prototyping to aid in both space flight manned and unmanned payload simulation and training. Significant problems addressed are the large amount of development time required to design and implement just one of these payload simulations and the relative inflexibility of the resulting model to accepting future modification. Results of this effort have suggested that both rapid prototyping and AI programming environments can significantly reduce development time and cost when applied to the domain of payload modeling for crew training. The techniques employed are applicable to a variety of domains where models or simulations are required.

Carnahan, Richard S., Jr.↗

The use of an automated flight test management system in the development of a rapid-prototyping flight research facility

An automated flight test management system (ATMS) and its use to develop a rapid-prototyping flight research facility for artificial intelligence (AI) based flight systems concepts are described. The ATMS provides a flight test engineer with a set of tools that assist in flight planning and simulation. This system will be capable of controlling an aircraft during the flight test by performing closed-loop guidance functions, range management, and maneuver-quality monitoring. The rapid-prototyping flight research facility is being developed at the Dryden Flight Research Facility of the NASA Ames Research Center (Ames-Dryden) to provide early flight assessment of emerging AI technology. The facility is being developed as one element of the aircraft automation program which focuses on the qualification and validation of embedded real-time AI-based systems.

Duke, Eugene L.↗

Knowledge acquisition and rapid protyping of an expert system: Dealing with real world problems

The knowledge engineering and rapid prototyping phases of an expert system that does fault handling for a Solid Amine, Water Desorbed CO2 removal assembly for the Environmental Control and Life Support System for space based platforms are addressed. The knowledge acquisition phase for this project was interesting because it could not follow the textbook examples. As a result of this, a variety of methods were used during the knowledge acquisition task. The use of rapid prototyping and the need for a flexible prototype suggested certain types of knowledge representation. By combining various techniques, a representative subset of faults and a method for handling those faults was achieved. The experiences should prove useful for developing future fault handling expert systems under similar constraints.

Bailey, Patrick A.↗

Quasi-periodic oscillations in the X-ray flux of the rapid burster (MXB 1730-335)

The results of an Exosat observation of the 'Rapid Burster' in August 1985 during an active state are presented. Forty 1-10 minute long type 2 bursts were detected together with constant emission. Quasi-periodic oscillations (QPOs) were observed in 23 bursts with frequencies in the range of 2-5 Hz. Obscuration of the central X-ray source by an oscillating accretion disk rim is suggested as a possible scenario for the generation of the QPO from the Rapid Burster.

Stella, L.↗

Apparatus for rapid thermal analysis studies of reluctant glass formers

An apparatus is described for performing rapid thermal analysis of milligram quantities of reluctant glass formers. Nucleation and crystallization kinetic analysis on samples cooled at very rapid cooling rates of 10 to 2500 C/s is described. The apparatus utilizes focused heating of a sample contained on a fine thermocouple. The measured times and temperatures for nucleation of crystallization at various cooling rates and experimental conditions permit the construction of continuous cooling crystallization boundaries and the determination of critical cooling rates for glass formation.

Ethridge, Edwin C.↗

On producing an alloy of uniform composition during rapid solidification processing

The fundamental mechanisms responsible for both micro scale and macro scale compositional variations during cellular and dendritic solidification are discussed. It is shown that presently available models for cellular and dendritic growth in alloys predict only the elimination of macrosegregation during rapid solidification but that microsegregation still persists even in this regime. A simple model is proposed here to describe the complete elimination of microsegregation in the rapid solidification regime. A solid of ideally uniform composition can be produced with no micro or macro segregation at both very low large solidifation rates.

Laxmanan, V.↗

Rapid Annealing Of Amorphous Hydrogenated Carbon

Report describes experiments to determine effects of rapid annealing on films of amorphous hydrogenated carbon. Study represents first efforts to provide information for applications of a-C:H films where rapid thermal processing required. Major finding, annealing causes abrupt increase in absorption and concomitant decrease in optical band gap. Most of change occurs during first 20 s, continues during longer annealing times. Extend of change increases with annealing temperature. Researchers hypothesize abrupt initial change caused by loss of hydrogen, while gradual subsequent change due to polymerization of remaining carbon into crystallites or sheets of graphite. Optical band gaps of unannealed specimens on silicon substrates lower than those of specimens on quartz substrates.

Alterovitz, Samuel A.↗

Microstructures in rapidly solidified niobium aluminides

The microstructures of niobium aluminides produced by chill block melt spinning were compared to those of niobium aluminides produced by conventional casting. The rapidly solidified alloys were rapidly solidified by melt spinning in an argon atmosphere, and the melt-spun ribbons were examined by optical, X-ray, and TEM techniques. Microstructures were found to range from single-phase for Nb-75 at. pct Al (NbAl3) to two phase for Nb-46 at. pct Al (NbAl3 + Nb2Al). It was found that the melt spinning of Nb-aluminides produced finer grained microstructures than those produced in induction-melted ingots or in powders produced by the rotating electrode process. Ternary additions such as Cr, Ti, and Si tended to form intermetallic phases along the grain boundaries.

Hebsur, Mohan G.↗

Rapid solidification research at the NASA Lewis Research Center

This paper describes the research program initiated at the NASA Lewis Research Center for the study of rapid solidification of high temperature materials, with the major purpose for the development of advanced high-temperature and heat-flux materials for aircraft and aerosphace applications. Particular attention is given to the development of three alloys: Ni-aluminides, Nb-alloys, and Cu-alloys. Rapid solidification processing yielded alloys with novel microstructures, very fine grain sizes, reduced chemical segregation, and metastable extended solid solutions.

Locci, Ivan E.↗