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At least 1,783 records · Page 99
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NASA NTRS1992

Supercomputers Of The Future

Report evaluates supercomputer needs of five key disciplines: turbulence physics, aerodynamics, aerothermodynamics, chemistry, and mathematical modeling of human vision. Predicts these fields will require computer speed greater than 10(Sup 18) floating-point operations per second (FLOP's) and memory capacity greater than 10(Sup 15) words. Also, new parallel computer architectures and new structured numerical methods will make necessary speed and capacity available.

Peterson, Victor L.↗
NASA NTRS1991

A Navier-Stokes Solution of Hull-Ring Wing-Thruster Interaction

Navier-Stokes simulations of high Reynolds number flow around an axisymmetric body supported in a water tunnel were made. The numerical method is based on a finite-differencing high resolution second-order accurate implicit upwind scheme. Four different configurations were investigated, these are: (1) barebody; (2) body with an operating propeller; (3) body with a ring wing; and (4) body with a ring wing and an operating propeller. Pressure and velocity components near the stern region were obtained computationally and are shown to compare favorably with the experimental data. The method correctly predicts the existence and extent of stern flow separation for the barebody and the absence of flow separation for the three other configurations with ring wing and/or propeller.

Yang, C.-I.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Development of BEM for ceramic composites

It is evident that for proper micromechanical analysis of ceramic composites, one needs to use a numerical method that is capable of idealizing the individual fibers or individual bundles of fibers embedded within a three-dimensional ceramic matrix. The analysis must be able to account for high stress or temperature gradients from diffusion of stress or temperature from the fiber to the ceramic matrix and allow for interaction between the fibers through the ceramic matrix. The analysis must be sophisticated enough to deal with the failure of fibers described by a series of increasingly sophisticated constitutive models. Finally, the analysis must deal with micromechanical modeling of the composite under nonlinear thermal and dynamic loading. This report details progress made towards the development of a boundary element code designed for the micromechanical studies of an advanced ceramic composite. Additional effort has been made in generalizing the implementation to allow the program to be applicable to real problems in the aerospace industry.

Henry, D. P.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Development of Test-Analysis Models (TAM) for correlation of dynamic test and analysis results

The primary objective of structural analysis of aerospace applications is to obtain a verified finite element model (FEM). The verified FEM can be used for loads analysis, evaluate structural modifications, or design control systems. Verification of the FEM is generally obtained as the result of correlating test and FEM models. A test analysis model (TAM) is very useful in the correlation process. A TAM is essentially a FEM reduced to the size of the test model, which attempts to preserve the dynamic characteristics of the original FEM in the analysis range of interest. Numerous methods for generating TAMs have been developed in the literature. The major emphasis of this paper is a description of the procedures necessary for creation of the TAM and the correlation of the reduced models with the FEM or the test results. Herein, three methods are discussed, namely Guyan, Improved Reduced System (IRS), and Hybrid. Also included are the procedures for performing these analyses using MSC/NASTRAN. Finally, application of the TAM process is demonstrated with an experimental test configuration of a ten bay cantilevered truss structure.

Angelucci, Filippo↗
NASA NTRS1992

Turbulence modeling for hypersonic flight

The objective of the present work is to develop, verify, and incorporate two equation turbulence models which account for the effect of compressibility at high speeds into a three dimensional Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes code and to provide documented model descriptions and numerical procedures so that they can be implemented into the National Aerospace Plane (NASP) codes. A summary of accomplishments is listed: (1) Four codes have been tested and evaluated against a flat plate boundary layer flow and an external supersonic flow; (2) a code named RANS was chosen because of its speed, accuracy, and versatility; (3) the code was extended from thin boundary layer to full Navier-Stokes; (4) the K-omega two equation turbulence model has been implemented into the base code; (5) a 24 degree laminar compression corner flow has been simulated and compared to other numerical simulations; and (6) work is in progress in writing the numerical method of the base code including the turbulence model.

Bardina, Jorge E.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Annual Research Briefs, 1989

This report contains the 1989 annual progress reports of the Research Fellows of the Center for Turbulence Research. It is intended as a year end report to NASA, Ames Research Center which supports this group through core funding and by making available physical and intellectual resources. The Center for Turbulence Research is devoted to the fundamental study of turbulent flows; its objectives are to simulate advances in the physical understanding of turbulence, in turbulence modeling and simulation, and in turbulence control. The reports appearing in the following pages are grouped in the general areas of modeling, experimental research, theory, simulation and numerical methods, and compressible and reacting flows.

Debra Spinks↗
NASA NTRS1990

Transition to turbulence in hypersonic flow

An outline of the project and recent progress toward the study of transition in hypersonic boundary layers is given. Aspects of the numerical method and the results of test computations are presented. At present the laminar flows over a flat plate have been computed for M less than or equal to 5.

Vandervegt, J. J. W.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Incompressible spatially-developing free-shear flows

The first goal of this research is to understand the dynamics of three dimensional vortical structures, especially the interaction of the ribs and two dimensional rollers. Because of vortex stretching effects, this requires accurate and well resolved simulations. Another goal is to distinguish temporally- and spatially-growing shear layers in terms of the dynamics and observed vortical structures. This is important since the former is much easier to compute, but the error incurred in using temporal results for certain applications is unknown. The third goal is to investigate the effects of asymmetry on passive scalar mixing and fast-chemistry product formation. In this report a brief summary of a new numerical method is presented, followed by results for mixing layers and wake flows.

Buell, J. C.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Numerical simulation of geometric scale effects in cylindrical self-field MPD thrusters

A 2-D, two-temperature, single fluid magnetohydrodynamic code which incorporates classical plasma transport coefficients and Hall effects was developed to predict steady-state, self-field magnetoplasmadynamic (MPD) thruster performance. The governing equations and numerical methods of solution are outlined and discussed. Experimental comparisons are used to validate model predictions. The model accurately predicts thrust and reproduces trends in the discharge voltage for discharge currents below experimentally measured onset values. However, because the model does not include electrode effects, the calculated voltage drops are significantly lower than experimentally measured values. Predictions of thrust and flow efficiency are made for a matrix of fifteen cylindrical thruster geometries, assuming a fully ionized argon propellant. A maximum predicted specific impulse of 1680 s is obtained for a thruster with an anode radius of 2.5 cm, a cathode radius of 0.5 cm, and equal electrode lengths of 2.5 cm. A scaling relation is developed to predict, within limits, the onset of cylindrical, self-field thruster instability as a function of geometry and operating condition.

Lapointe, M.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Singularities in water waves and Rayleigh-Taylor instability

Singularities in inviscid two-dimensional finite-amplitude water waves and inviscid Rayleigh-Taylor instability are discussed. For the deep water gravity waves of permanent form, through a combination of analytical and numerical methods, results describing the precise form, number, and location of singularities in the unphysical domain as the wave height is increased are presented. It is shown how the information on the singularity in the unphysical region has the same form as for deep water waves. However, associated with such a singularity is a series of image singularities at increasing distances from the physical plane with possibly different behavior. Furthermore, for the Rayleigh-Taylor problem of motion of fluid over a vacuum and for the unsteady water wave problem, integro-differential equations valid in the unphysical region are derived, and how these equations can give information on the nature of singularities for arbitrary initial conditions is shown.

Tanveer, S.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Lattice Boltzmann model for simulation of magnetohydrodynamics

A numerical method, based on a discrete Boltzmann equation, is presented for solving the equations of magnetohydrodynamics (MHD). The algorithm provides advantages similar to the cellular automaton method in that it is local and easily adapted to parallel computing environments. Because of much lower noise levels and less stringent requirements on lattice size, the method appears to be more competitive with traditional solution methods. Examples show that the model accurately reproduces both linear and nonlinear MHD phenomena.

Chen, Shiyi↗
NASA NTRS1992

Implementation of Vigneron's streamwise pressure gradient approximation in the PNS equations

For single sweep parabolized Navier-Stokes solvers, the streamwise pressure gradient must be modified in the subsonic region to eliminate numerical instabilities. The accuracy of this modification on the solution of the parabolized Navier-Stokes equations with Vigneron's technique is shown to depend on how the numerical approximation of the pressure gradient is formed. A simple test case of supersonic laminar flow over a flat plate is computed with two different numerical methods for solving the PNS equations. Significant errors in the temperature profile and skin friction coefficient are demonstrated using a fully conservative differencing treatment of Vigneron's splitting for the pressure gradient typically used in parabolized Navier-Stokes solvers. The physical reason for this error is discussed. An alternate formulation is demonstrated which minimizes these errors.

Morrison, Joseph H.↗
NASA NTRS1992

The derivation of parent electron spectra from bremsstrahlung hard X-ray spectra

A numerical method is formulated to derive the spectrum of the parent electrons from the hard X-ray spectrum produced in optically thin bremsstrahlung. The method can utilize any form for the bremsstrahlung cross sections, and it provides accurate estimates of uncertainties in the derived electron spectrum based on uncertainties in the photon measurements. This method is applied to test photon spectra, as well as to hard X-ray spectra of the June 27, 1980 solar flare which was observed by high spectral resolution detectors. Future measurements with much more sensitive detectors will enable this method to be used to derive detailed, accurate flare electron spectra.

Johns, Christopher M.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Helical flux ropes in solar prominences

The present numerical method for the computation of force-free, cancelling magnetic structures shows that flux cancellation at the neutral line in a sheared magnetic arcade generates helical field lines that can support a prominence's plasma. With increasing flux cancellation, the axis of the helical fields moves to greater heights; this is suggestive of a prominence eruption. Two alternative scenarios are proposed for the formation of polar crown prominences which yield the correct axial magnetic field sign. Both models are noted to retain the formation of helical flux tubes through flux cancellation as their key feature.

Martens, P. C. H.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Equilibrium stellar systems with spindle singularities

Equilibrium sequences of axisymmetric Newtonian clusters that tend toward singular states are constructed. The distribution functions are chosen to be of the form f = f(E, Jz). The numerical method then determines the density and gravitational potential self-consistently to satisfy Poisson's equation. For the prolate models, spindle singularities arise from the depletion of angular momentum near the symmetry axis. While the resulting density enhancement is confined to the region near the axis, the influence of the spindle extends much further out through its tidal gravitational field. Centrally condensed prolate clusters may contain strong-field regions even though the spindle mass is small and the mean cluster eccentricity is not extreme. While the calculations performed here are entirely Newtonian, the issue of singularities is an important topic in general relativity. Equilibrium solutions for relativistic star clusters can provide a testing ground for exploring this issue. The methods used in this paper for building nonspherical clusters can be extended to relativistic systems.

Shapiro, Stuart L.↗
NASA NTRS1992

A test suite for magnetohydrodynamical simulations

A collection is presented of MHD problems that will provide researchers who have interests in modeling MHD phenomena with a battery of tests (a 'test suite') for calibrating their numerical algorithms. Use of these tests will provide a common reference for comparison of different numerical MHD algorithms. The test suite includes both 1D and 2D problems. Taken together, these problems test the abilities of a numerical method to propagate accurately all of the MHD wave families in moving and stationary media, to capture MHD shocks and contact discontinuities, and to model accurately Lorentz force terms in multiple dimensions. An example solution of each test problem is presented. Diagnostic convergence-testing procedures that provide a quantitative evaluation of MHD algorithms are demonstrated.

Stone, James M.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Large-scale sparse singular value computations

Four numerical methods for computing the singular value decomposition (SVD) of large sparse matrices on a multiprocessor architecture are presented. Lanczos and subspace iteration-based methods for determining several of the largest singular triplets (singular values and corresponding left and right-singular vectors) for sparse matrices arising from two practical applications: information retrieval and seismic reflection tomography are emphasized. The target architectures for implementations are the CRAY-2S/4-128 and Alliant FX/80. The sparse SVD problem is well motivated by recent information-retrieval techniques in which dominant singular values and their corresponding singular vectors of large sparse term-document matrices are desired, and by nonlinear inverse problems from seismic tomography applications which require approximate pseudo-inverses of large sparse Jacobian matrices.

Berry, Michael W.↗
NASA NTRS1992

A variational approach to three-dimensional elasticity solutions of laminated composite plates

The displacements in a laminated composite are represented as products of two sets of unknown functions, one of which is only a function of the thickness coordinate and the other is a function of the in-plane coordinates (i.e., separation of variables approach), and the minimization of the total potential energy is reduced to a sequence of iterative linear problems. Analytical solutions are developed for cross-ply and angle-ply laminated composite rectangular plates. The solution for simply-supported cross-ply plates under sinusoidal transverse load reduces to that of Pagano. Numerical results for stresses and is placements for antisymmetric angle-ply laminates are presented. The three-dimensional elasticity solutions developed are important because they can be used to study the behavior of composite laminates, in addition to serving as reference for approximate solutions by numerical methods and two-dimensional theories.

Savoia, M.↗