Engineering topics

Lockard, David P.

Publications and source records attributed to Lockard, David P..

At least 55 records · Page 3

NASA NTRS2009

Re-evaluation of an Optimized Second Order Backward Difference (BDF2OPT) Scheme for Unsteady Flow Applications

Recent experience in the application of an optimized, second-order, backward-difference (BDF2OPT) temporal scheme is reported. The primary focus of the work is on obtaining accurate solutions of the unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations over long periods of time for aerodynamic problems of interest. The baseline flow solver under consideration uses a particular BDF2OPT temporal scheme with a dual-time-stepping algorithm for advancing the flow solutions in time. Numerical difficulties are encountered with this scheme when the flow code is run for a large number of time steps, a behavior not seen with the standard second-order, backward-difference, temporal scheme. Based on a stability analysis, slight modifications to the BDF2OPT scheme are suggested. The performance and accuracy of this modified scheme is assessed by comparing the computational results with other numerical schemes and experimental data.

Vatsa, Veer N.↗

NASA NTRS2009

Noise Radiation From a Leading-Edge Slat

This paper extends our previous computations of unsteady flow within the slat cove region of a multi-element high-lift airfoil configuration, which showed that both statistical and structural aspects of the experimentally observed unsteady flow behavior can be captured via 3D simulations over a computational domain of narrow spanwise extent. Although such narrow domain simulation can account for the spanwise decorrelation of the slat cove fluctuations, the resulting database cannot be applied towards acoustic predictions of the slat without invoking additional approximations to synthesize the fluctuation field over the rest of the span. This deficiency is partially alleviated in the present work by increasing the spanwise extent of the computational domain from 37.3% of the slat chord to nearly 226% (i.e., 15% of the model span). The simulation database is used to verify consistency with previous computational results and, then, to develop predictions of the far-field noise radiation in conjunction with a frequency-domain Ffowcs-Williams Hawkings solver.

Lockard, David P.↗

NASA NTRS2009

Effects of Geometric Details on Slat Noise Generation and Propagation

The relevance of geometric details to the generation and propagation of noise from leading-edge slats is considered. Typically, such details are omitted in computational simulations and model-scale experiments thereby creating ambiguities in comparisons with acoustic results from flight tests. The current study uses two-dimensional, computational simulations in conjunction with a Ffowcs Williams-Hawkings (FW-H) solver to investigate the effects of previously neglected slat "bulb" and "blade" seals on the local flow field and the associated acoustic radiation. The computations show that the presence of the "blade" seal at the cusp in the simulated geometry significantly changes the slat cove flow dynamics, reduces the amplitudes of the radiated sound, and to a lesser extent, alters the directivity beneath the airfoil. Furthermore, the computations suggest that a modest extension of the baseline "blade" seal further enhances the suppression of slat noise. As a side issue, the utility and equivalence of FW-H methodology for calculating far-field noise as opposed to a more direct approach is examined and demonstrated.

Khorrami, Mehdi R.↗

NASA NTRS2008

Aeroacoustic Simulations of Tandem Cylinders with Subcritical Spacing

Tandem cylinders are being studied because they model a variety of component level interactions of landing gear. The present effort is directed at the case of two identical cylinders with their centroids separated in the streamwise direction by 1.435 diameters. Experiments in the Basic Aerodynamic Research Tunnel and Quiet Flow Facility at NASA Langley Research Center have provided an extensive experimental database of the nearfield flow and radiated noise. The measurements were conducted at a Mach number of 0.1285 and Reynolds number of 1.66x10(exp 5) based on the cylinder diameter. A trip was used on the upstream cylinder to insure a fully turbulent flow separation and, hence, to simulate a major aspect of high Reynolds number flow. The parallel computational effort uses the three-dimensional Navier-Stokes solver CFL3D with a hybrid, zonal turbulence model that turns off the turbulence production term everywhere except in a narrow ring surrounding solid surfaces. The experiments exhibited an asymmetry in the surface pressure that was persistent despite attempts to eliminate it through small changes in the configuration. To model the asymmetry, the simulations were run with the cylinder configuration at a nonzero but small angle of attack. The computed results and experiments are in general agreement that vortex shedding for the spacing studied herein is weak relative to that observed at supercritical spacings. Although the shedding was subdued in the simulations, it was still more prominent than in the experiments. Overall, the simulation comparisons with measured near-field data and the radiated acoustics are reasonable, especially if one is concerned with capturing the trends relative to larger cylinder spacings. However, the flow details of the 1.435 diameter spacing have not been captured in full even though very fine grid computations have been performed. Some of the discrepancy may be associated with the simulation s inexact representation of the experimental configuration, but numerical and flow modeling errors are also likely contributors to the observed differences.

Lockard, David P.↗

NASA NTRS2007

Tandem Cylinder Noise Predictions

In an effort to better understand landing-gear noise sources, we have been examining a simplified configuration that still maintains some of the salient features of landing-gear flow fields. In particular, tandem cylinders have been studied because they model a variety of component level interactions. The present effort is directed at the case of two identical cylinders spatially separated in the streamwise direction by 3.7 diameters. Experimental measurements from the Basic Aerodynamic Research Tunnel (BART) and Quiet Flow Facility (QFF) at NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) have provided steady surface pressures, detailed off-surface measurements of the flow field using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV), hot-wire measurements in the wake of the rear cylinder, unsteady surface pressure data, and the radiated noise. The experiments were conducted at a Reynolds number of 166 105 based on the cylinder diameter. A trip was used on the upstream cylinder to insure a fully turbulent shedding process and simulate the effects of a high Reynolds number flow. The parallel computational effort uses the three-dimensional Navier-Stokes solver CFL3D with a hybrid, zonal turbulence model that turns off the turbulence production term everywhere except in a narrow ring surrounding solid surfaces. The current calculations further explore the influence of the grid resolution and spanwise extent on the flow and associated radiated noise. Extensive comparisons with the experimental data are used to assess the ability of the computations to simulate the details of the flow. The results show that the pressure fluctuations on the upstream cylinder, caused by vortex shedding, are smaller than those generated on the downstream cylinder by wake interaction. Consequently, the downstream cylinder dominates the noise radiation, producing an overall directivity pattern that is similar to that of an isolated cylinder. Only calculations based on the full length of the model span were able to capture the complete decay in the spanwise correlation, thereby producing reasonable noise radiation levels.

Lockard, David P.↗

NASA NTRS2006

Increased Fidelity in Prediction Methods For Landing Gear Noise

An aeroacoustic prediction scheme has been developed for landing gear noise. The method is designed to handle the complex landing gear geometry of current and future aircraft. The gear is represented by a collection of subassemblies and simple components that are modeled using acoustic elements. These acoustic elements are generic, but generate noise representative of the physical components on a landing gear. The method sums the noise radiation from each component of the undercarriage in isolation accounting for interference with adjacent components through an estimate of the local upstream and downstream flows and turbulence intensities. The acoustic calculations are made in the code LGMAP, which computes the sound pressure levels at various observer locations. The method can calculate the noise from the undercarriage in isolation or installed on an aircraft for both main and nose landing gear. Comparisons with wind tunnel and flight data are used to initially calibrate the method, then it may be used to predict the noise of any landing gear. In this paper, noise predictions are compared with wind tunnel data for model landing gears of various scales and levels of fidelity, as well as with flight data on fullscale undercarriages. The present agreement between the calculations and measurements suggests the method has promise for future application in the prediction of airframe noise.

Lopes, Leonard V.↗

NASA NTRS2006

Effects of Geometric Details on Slat Noise Generation and Propagation

The relevance of geometric details to the generation and propagation of noise from leading-edge slats is considered. Typically, such details are omitted in computational simulations and model-scale experiments thereby creating ambiguities in comparisons with acoustic results from flight tests. The current study uses two-dimensional, computational simulations in conjunction with a Ffowcs Williams-Hawkings (FW-H) solver to investigate the effects of previously neglected slat "bulb" and "blade" seals on the local flow field and the associated acoustic radiation. The computations clearly show that the presence of the "blade" seal at the cusp significantly changes the slat cove flow dynamics, reduces the amplitudes of the radiated sound, and to a lesser extent, alters the directivity beneath the airfoil. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that a modest extension of the baseline "blade" seal further enhances the suppression of slat noise. As a side issue, the utility and equivalence of FW-H methodology for calculating far-field noise as opposed to a more direct approach is examined and demonstrated.

Khorrami, Mehdi R.↗

NASA NTRS2006

A Landing Gear Noise Reduction Study Based on Computational Simulations

Landing gear is one of the more prominent airframe noise sources. Techniques that diminish gear noise and suppress its radiation to the ground are highly desirable. Using a hybrid computational approach, this paper investigates the noise reduction potential of devices added to a simplified main landing gear model without small scale geometric details. The Ffowcs Williams and Hawkings equation is used to predict the noise at far-field observer locations from surface pressure data provided by unsteady CFD calculations. Because of the simplified nature of the model, most of the flow unsteadiness is restricted to low frequencies. The wheels, gear boxes, and oleo appear to be the primary sources of unsteadiness at these frequencies. The addition of fairings around the gear boxes and wheels, and the attachment of a splitter plate on the downstream side of the oleo significantly reduces the noise over a wide range of frequencies, but a dramatic increase in noise is observed at one frequency. The increased flow velocities, a consequence of the more streamlined bodies, appear to generate extra unsteadiness around other parts giving rise to the additional noise. Nonetheless, the calculations demonstrate the capability of the devices to improve overall landing gear noise.

Khorrami, Mehdi R.↗

NASA NTRS2005

Two-Dimensional Ffowcs Williams/Hawkings Equation Solver

FWH2D is a Fortran 90 computer program that solves a two-dimensional (2D) version of the equation, derived by J. E. Ffowcs Williams and D. L. Hawkings, for sound generated by turbulent flow. FWH2D was developed especially for estimating noise generated by airflows around such approximately 2D airframe components as slats. The user provides input data on fluctuations of pressure, density, and velocity on some surface. These data are combined with information about the geometry of the surface to calculate histories of thickness and loading terms. These histories are fast-Fourier-transformed into the frequency domain. For each frequency of interest and each observer position specified by the user, kernel functions are integrated over the surface by use of the trapezoidal rule to calculate a pressure signal. The resulting frequency-domain signals are inverse-fast-Fourier-transformed back into the time domain. The output of the code consists of the time- and frequency-domain representations of the pressure signals at the observer positions. Because of its approximate nature, FWH2D overpredicts the noise from a finite-length (3D) component. The advantage of FWH2D is that it requires a fraction of the computation time of a 3D Ffowcs Williams/Hawkings solver.

Lockard, David P.↗

NASA NTRS2005

Permeable Surface Corrections for Ffowcs Williams and Hawkings Integrals

The acoustic prediction methodology discussed herein applies an acoustic analogy to calculate the sound generated by sources in an aerodynamic simulation. Sound is propagated from the computed flow field by integrating the Ffowcs Williams and Hawkings equation on a suitable control surface. Previous research suggests that, for some applications, the integration surface must be placed away from the solid surface to incorporate source contributions from within the flow volume. As such, the fluid mechanisms in the input flow field that contribute to the far-field noise are accounted for by their mathematical projection as a distribution of source terms on a permeable surface. The passage of nonacoustic disturbances through such an integration surface can result in significant error in an acoustic calculation. A correction for the error is derived in the frequency domain using a frozen gust assumption. The correction is found to work reasonably well in several test cases where the error is a small fraction of the actual radiated noise. However, satisfactory agreement has not been obtained between noise predictions using the solution from a three-dimensional, detached-eddy simulation of flow over a cylinder.

Lockard, David P.↗

NASA NTRS2004

Frequency Domain Calculations Of Acoustic Propagation

Two complex geometry problems are solved using the linearized Euler equations. The impedance mismatch method1 is used to impose the solid surfaces without the need to use a body-fitted grid. The problem is solved in the frequency domain to avoid long run times. Although the harmonic assumption eliminates all time dependence, a pseudo-time term is added to allow conventional iterative methods to be employed. A Jameson type, Runge-Kutta scheme is used to advance the solution in pseudo time. The spatial operator is based on a seven-point, sixth-order finite difference. Constant coefficient, sixth-derivative artificial dissipation is used throughout the domain. A buffer zone technique employing a complex frequency to damp all waves near the boundaries is used to minimize reflections. The results show that the method is capable of capturing the salient features of the scattering, but an excessive number of grid points are required to resolve the phenomena in the vicinity of the solid bodies because the wavelength of the acoustics is relatively short compared with the size of the bodies. Smoothly transitioning into the immersed boundary condition alleviates the difficulties, but a fine mesh is still required.

Lockard, David P.↗

NASA NTRS2004

A Hybrid Approach To Tandem Cylinder Noise

Aeolian tone generation from tandem cylinders is predicted using a hybrid approach. A standard computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code is used to compute the unsteady flow around the cylinders, and the acoustics are calculated using the acoustic analogy. The CFD code is nominally second order in space and time and includes several turbulence models, but the SST k - omega model is used for most of the calculations. Significant variation is observed between laminar and turbulent cases, and with changes in the turbulence model. A two-dimensional implementation of the Ffowcs Williams-Hawkings (FW-H) equation is used to predict the far-field noise.

Lockard, David P.↗

NASA NTRS2004

The Airframe Noise Reduction Challenge

The NASA goal of reducing external aircraft noise by 10 dB in the near-term presents the acoustics community with an enormous challenge. This report identifies technologies with the greatest potential to reduce airframe noise. Acoustic and aerodynamic effects will be discussed, along with the likelihood of industry accepting and implementing the different technologies. We investigate the lower bound, defined as noise generated by an aircraft modified with a virtual retrofit capable of eliminating all noise associated with the high lift system and landing gear. However, the airframe noise of an aircraft in this 'clean' configuration would only be about 8 dB quieter on approach than current civil transports. To achieve the NASA goal of 10 dB noise reduction will require that additional noise sources be addressed. Research shows that energy in the turbulent boundary layer of a wing is scattered as it crosses trailing edge. Noise generated by scattering is the dominant noise mechanism on an aircraft flying in the clean configuration. Eliminating scattering would require changes to much of the aircraft, and practical reduction devices have yet to receive serious attention. Evidence suggests that to meet NASA goals in civil aviation noise reduction, we need to employ emerging technologies and improve landing procedures; modified landing patterns and zoning restrictions could help alleviate aircraft noise in communities close to airports.

Lockard, David P.↗

NASA NTRS2004

Investigation of Volumetric Sources in Airframe Noise Simulations

Hybrid methods for the prediction of airframe noise involve a simulation of the near field flow that is used as input to an acoustic propagation formula. The acoustic formulations discussed herein are those based on the Ffowcs Williams and Hawkings equation. Some questions have arisen in the published literature in regard to an apparently significant dependence of radiated noise predictions on the location of the integration surface used in the solution of the Ffowcs Williams and Hawkings equation. These differences in radiated noise levels are most pronounced between solid-body surface integrals and off-body, permeable surface integrals. Such differences suggest that either a non-negligible volumetric source is contributing to the total radiation or the input flow simulation is suspect. The focus of the current work is the issue of internal consistency of the flow calculations that are currently used as input to airframe noise predictions. The case study for this research is a computer simulation for a three-element, high-lift wing profile during landing conditions. The noise radiated from this flow is predicted by a two-dimensional, frequency-domain formulation of the Ffowcs Williams and Hawkings equation. Radiated sound from volumetric sources is assessed by comparison of a permeable surface integration with the sum of a solid-body surface integral and a volume integral. The separate noise predictions are found in good agreement.

Casper, Jay H.↗

NASA NTRS2004

Aeroacoustic Analysis of a Simplified Landing Gear

A hybrid approach is used to investigate the noise generated by a simplified landing gear without small scale parts such as hydraulic lines and fasteners. The Ffowcs Williams and Hawkings equation is used to predict the noise at far-field observer locations from flow data provided by an unsteady computational fluid dynamics calculation. A simulation with 13 million grid points has been completed, and comparisons are made between calculations with different turbulence models. Results indicate that the turbulence model has a profound effect on the levels and character of the unsteadiness. Flow data on solid surfaces and a set of permeable surfaces surrounding the gear have been collected. Noise predictions using the porous surfaces appear to be contaminated by errors caused by large wake fluctuations passing through the surfaces. However, comparisons between predictions using the solid surfaces with the near-field CFD solution are in good agreement giving confidence in the far-field results.

Lockard, David P.↗

NASA NTRS2003

In Search of the Physics: The Interplay of Experiment and Computation in Slat Aeroacoustics

The synergistic use of experiments and numerical simulations can uncover the underlying physics of airframe noise sources. We focus on the high-lift noise component associated with a leading-edge slat; flap side-edge noise is discussed in a companion paper by Streett et al. (2003). The present paper provides an overview of how slat noise was split into subcomponents and analyzed with carefully planned complementary experimental and numerical tests. We consider both tonal and broadband aspects of slat noise. The predicted far-field noise spectra are shown to be in good qualitative (and, to lesser extent, good quantitative agreement) with acoustic array measurements. Although some questions remain unanswered, the success of current airframe noise studies provides ample promise that remaining technical issues can be successfully addressed in the near future.

Khorrami, Mehdi R.↗

NASA NTRS2002

Aeroacoustic Experiments in the NASA Langley Low-Turbulence Pressure Tunnel

A phased microphone array was used in the NASA Langley Low-Turbulence Pressure Tunnel to obtain acoustic data radiating from high-lift wing configurations. The data included noise localization plots and acoustic spectra. The tests were performed at Reynolds numbers based on the cruise-wing chord, ranging from 3.6 x 10(exp 6) to 19.2 x 10(exp 6). The effects of Reynolds number were small and monotonic for Reynolds numbers above 7.2 x 10(exp 6).

Choudhari, Meelan M.↗

NASA NTRS2002

Time-Accurate Simulations and Acoustic Analysis of Slat Free-Shear-Layer

Unsteady computational simulations of a multi-element, high-lift configuration are performed. Emphasis is placed on accurate spatiotemporal resolution of the free shear layer in the slat-cove region. The excessive dissipative effects of the turbulence model, so prevalent in previous simulations, are circumvented by switching off the turbulence-production term in the slat cove region. The justifications and physical arguments for taking such a step are explained in detail. The removal of this excess damping allows the shear layer to amplify large-scale structures, to achieve a proper non-linear saturation state, and to permit vortex merging. The large-scale disturbances are self-excited, and unlike our prior fully turbulent simulations, no external forcing of the shear layer is required. To obtain the farfield acoustics, the Ffowcs Williams and Hawkings equation is evaluated numerically using the simulated time-accurate flow data. The present comparison between the computed and measured farfield acoustic spectra shows much better agreement for the amplitude and frequency content than past calculations. The effect of the angle-of-attack on the slat's flow features radiated acoustic field are also simulated presented.

Khorrami, Mehdi R.↗