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Wilder, M. C.

Publications and source records attributed to Wilder, M. C..

At least 19 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2015

The NASA Ames Hypervelocity Free Flight Aerodynamic Facility: Experimental Simulation of the Atmospheric Break-Up of Meteors

The Hypervelocity Free Flight Aerodynamic Facility at NASA Ames Research Center provides a potential platform for the experimental simulation of meteor breakup at conditions that closely match full-scale entry condition for select parameters. The poster describes the entry environment simulation capabilities of the Hypervelocity Free Flight Aerodynamic Facility (HFFAF) at NASA Ames Research Center and provides example images of the fragmentation of a hypersonic projectile for which break-up was initiated by mechanical forces (impact with a thin polymer diaphragm).

ballistic ranges↗
NASA NTRS2015

Conformal Ablative Thermal Protection System for Small and Large Scale Missions: Approaching TRL 6 for Planetary and Human Exploration Missions and TRL 9 for Small Probe Missions

In 2011, NASAs Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate (ARMD) funded an effort to develop an ablative thermal protection system (TPS) material that would have improved properties when compared to Phenolic Impregnated Carbon Ablator (PICA) and AVCOAT. Their goal was a conformal material, processed with a flexible reinforcement that would result in similar or better thermal characteristics and higher strain-to-failure characteristics that would allow for easier integration on flight aeroshells than then-current rigid ablative TPS materials. In 2012, NASAs Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) began funding the maturation of the best formulation of the game changing conformal ablator, C-PICA. Progress has been reported at IPPW over the past three years, describing C-PICA with a density and recession rates similar to PICA, but with a higher strain-to-failure which allows for direct bonding and no gap fillers, and even more important, with thermal characteristics resulting in half the temperature rise of PICA. Overall, C-PICA should be able to replace PICA with a thinner, lighter weight, less complicated design. These characteristics should be particularly attractive for use as backshell TPS on high energy planetary entry vehicles. At the end of this year, the material should be ready for missions to consider including in their design, in fact, NASAs Science Mission Directorate (SMD) is considering incentivizing the use of C-PICA in the next Discovery Proposal call. This year both scale up of the material to large (1-m) sized pieces and the design and build of small probe heatshields for flight tests will be completed. NASA, with an industry partner, will build a 1-m long manufacturing demonstration unit (MDU) with a shape based on a mid LD lifting body. In addition, in an effort to fly as you test and test as you fly, NASA, with a second industry partner, will build a small probe to test in the Interactive Heating Facility (IHF) arc jet and, using nearly the same design, build the aeroshell and TPS, with instrumentation, for a small probe flight test article, due to fly in 2017. At the end of the year, the C-PICA will be at TRL 5+, and with the flight data in 2017, it will be at TRL 9 for missions needs with C-PICA at a small scale (12 diameter). The scale-up and small probe efforts will be de-scribed in this presentation.

Conformal Ablative↗
NASA NTRS2006

Techniques for Surface-Temperature Measurements and Transition Detection on Projectiles at Hypersonic Velocities--Status Report No. 2

The latest developments in a research effort to advance techniques for measuring surface temperatures and heat fluxes and determining transition locations on projectiles in hypersonic free flight in a ballistic range are described. Spherical and hemispherical titanium projectiles were launched at muzzle velocities of 4.6-5.8 km/sec into air and nitrogen at pressures of 95-380 Torr. Hemisphere models with diameters of 2.22 cm had maximum pitch and yaw angles of 5.5-8 degrees and 4.7-7 degrees, depending on whether they were launched using an evacuated launch tube or not. Hemisphere models with diameters of 2.86 cm had maximum pitch and yaw angles of 2.0-2.5 degrees. Three intensified-charge-coupled-device (ICCD) cameras with wavelength sensitivity ranges of 480-870 nm (as well as one infrared camera with a wavelength sensitivity range of 3 to 5 microns), were used to obtain images of the projectiles in flight. Helium plumes were used to remove the radiating gas cap around the projectiles at the locations where ICCD camera images were taken. ICCD and infrared (IR) camera images of titanium hemisphere projectiles at velocities of 4.0-4.4 km/sec are presented as well as preliminary temperature data for these projectiles. Comparisons were made of normalized temperature data for shots at approx.190 Torr in air and nitrogen and with and without the launch tube evacuated. Shots into nitrogen had temperatures ~6% lower than those into air. Evacuation of the launch tube was also found to lower the projectile temperatures by approx.6%.

Bogdanoff, D. W.↗
NASA NTRS2005

Techniques for Transition and Surface Temperature Measurements on Projectiles at Hypersonic Velocities- A Status Report

A research effort to advance techniques for determining transition location and measuring surface temperatures on graphite-tipped projectiles in hypersonic flight in a ballistic range is described. Projectiles were launched at muzzle velocities of approx. 4.7 km/sec into air at pressures of 190-570 Torr. Most launches had maximum pitch and yaw angles of 2.5-5 degrees at pressures of 380 Torr and above and 3-6 degrees at pressures of 190-380 Torr. Arcjet-ablated and machined, bead-blasted projectiles were launched; special cleaning techniques had to be developed for the latter class of projectiles. Improved methods of using helium to remove the radiating gas cap around the projectiles at the locations where ICCD (intensified charge coupled device) camera images were taken are described. Two ICCD cameras with a wavelength sensitivity range of 480-870 nm have been used in this program for several years to obtain images. In the last year, a third camera, with a wavelength sensitivity range of 1.5-5 microns [in the infrared (IR)], has been added. ICCD and IR camera images of hemisphere nose and 70 degree sphere-cone nose projectiles at velocities of 4.0-4.7 km/sec are presented. The ICCD images clearly show a region of steep temperature rise indicative of transition from laminar to turbulent flow. Preliminary temperature data for the graphite projectile noses are presented.

Wilder, M. C.↗
NASA NTRS1998

Development of High Speed Interferometry Imaging and Analysis Techniques for Compressible Dynamic Stall

The development of a high-speed, phase-locked, realtime, point diffraction interferometry system for quantitative imaging unsteady separated flows is described. The system enables recording of up to 224 interferograms of the dynamic stall flow over an oscillating airfoil using a drum camera at rates of up to 40 KHz controlled by custom designed electronic interlocking circuitry. Several thousand interferograms of the flow have been obtained using this system. A comprehensive image analysis package has been developed for automatic processing of this large number of images. The software has been specifically tuned to address the special characteristics of airfoil flow interferograms. Examples of images obtained using the standard and the high-speed interferometry techniques are presented along with a demonstration of the image processing routine's ability to resolve the fine details present in these images.

Chandrasekhara, M. S.↗
NASA NTRS1998

The Control of Compressible Dynamic Stall Using Adaptive Airfoils

Ongoing research has shown that compressible dynamic stall can be caused by vastly different mechanisms even for small changes in flow conditions. For example, at low Mach numbers (M less than 0.3) and Reynolds numbers (less than 1 x 10(exp 6)), the bursting of the laminar separation bubble induces dynamic stall. At a slightly higher Mach number (M = 0.45) and around the same Reynolds number, shock induced separation can cause dynamic stall. Also, the mechanism changes from that of laminar separation bubble bursting to that due to excessive adverse pressure gradient, with increase of Reynolds number. Complex interactions occurring between the local supersonic flow and the bubble lead to another possible mechanism of dynamic stall. Since all these mechanisms may be encountered by a rotor-blade during a single cycle, there is a strong need to devise a reliable flow control method for use under such dramatically varying conditions. Whereas it is a Ali 'Beneficent challenge, identification of the fact that these mechanisms are all in some way related to the airfoil leading edge adverse pressure gradient, has resulted in an effective method of flow control to be described.

Chandasekhara, M. S.↗
NASA NTRS1997

Fluid Mechanics of Wing Adaptation for Separation Control

The unsteady fluid mechanics associated with use of a dynamically deforming leading edge airfoil for achieving compressible flow separation control has been experimentally studied. Changing the leading edge curvature at rapid rates dramatically alters the flow vorticity dynamics which is responsible for the many effects observed in the flow.

Chandrasekhara, M. S.↗
NASA NTRS1996

Control of Flow Separation Using Adaptive Airfoils

A novel way of controlling flow separation is reported. The approach involves using an adaptive airfoil geometry that changes its leading edge shape to adjust to the instantaneous flow at high angles of attack such that the flow over it remains attached. In particular, a baseline NACA 0012 airfoil, whose leading edge curvature could be changed dynamically by 400% was tested under quasi-steady compressible flow conditions. A mechanical drive system was used to produce a rounded leading edge to reduce the strong local flow acceleration around its nose and thus reduce the strong adverse pressure gradient that follows such a rapid acceleration. Tests in steady flow showed that at M = 0.3, the flow separated at about 14 deg. angle of attack for the NACA 0012 profile but could be kept attached up to an angle of about 18 deg by changing the nose curvature. No significant hysteresis effects were observed; the flow could be made to reattach from its separated state at high angles by changing the leading edge curvature. Interestingly, the flow over a nearly semicircular nosed airfoil was separated even at low angles.

Chandrasekhara, M. S.↗
NASA NTRS1996

Control of Flow Separation Using Adaptive Airfoils

A novel way of controlling flow separation is reported. The approach involves using an adaptive airfoil geometry that changes its leading edge shape to adjust to the instantaneous flow at high angles of attack such that the flow over it remains attached. In particular, a baseline NACA 0012 airfoil, whose leading edge curvature could be changed dynamically by 400% was tested under quasi-steady compressible flow conditions. A mechanical drive system was used to produce a rounded leading edge to reduce the strong local flow acceleration around its nose and thus reduce the strong adverse pressure gradient that follows such a rapid acceleration. Tests in steady flow showed that at M = 0.3, the flow separated at about 14 deg. angle of attack for the NACA 0012 profile but could be kept attached up to an angle of about 18 deg by changing the nose curvature. No significant hysteresis effects were observed; the flow could be made to reattach from its separated state at high angles by changing the leading edge curvature.

Chandrasekhara, M. S.↗
NASA NTRS1996

Development of High Speed Imaging and Analysis Techniques Compressible Dynamics Stall

Dynamic stall has limited the flight envelope of helicopters for many years. The problem has been studied in the laboratory as well as in flight, but most research, even in the laboratory, has been restricted to surface measurement techniques such as pressure transducers or skin friction gauges, except at low speed. From this research, it became apparent that flow visualization tests performed at Mach numbers representing actual flight conditions were needed if the complex physics associated with dynamic stall was to be properly understood. However, visualization of the flow field during compressible conditions required carefully aligned and meticulously reconstructed holographic interferometry. As part of a long-range effort focused on exposing of the physics of compressible dynamic stall, a research wind tunnel was developed at NASA Ames Research Center which permits visual access to the full flow field surrounding an oscillating airfoil during compressible dynamic stall. Initially, a stroboscopic schlieren technique was used for visualization of the stall process, but the primary research tool has been point diffraction interferometry(PDI), a technique carefully optimized for use in th is project. A review of the process of development of PDI will be presented in the full paper. One of the most valuable aspects of PDI is the fact that interferograms are produced in real time on a continuous basis. The use of a rapidly-pulsed laser makes this practical; a discussion of this approach will be presented in the full paper. This rapid pulsing(up to 40,000 pulses/sec) produces interferograms of the rapidly developing dynamic stall field in sufficient resolution(both in space and time) that the fluid physics of the compressible dynamic stall flowfield can be quantitatively determined, including the gradients of pressure in space and time. This permits analysis of the influence of the effect of pitch rate, Mach number, Reynolds number, amplitude of oscillation, and other parameters on the dynamic stall process. When interferograms can be captured in real time, the potential for real-time mapping of a developing unsteady flow such as dynamic stall becomes a possibility. This has been achieved in the present case through the use of a high-speed drum camera combined with electronic circuitry which has resulted in a series of interferograms obtained during a single cycle of dynamic stall; images obtained at the rate of 20 KHz will be presented as a part of the formal presentation. Interferometry has been available for a long time; however, most of its use has been limited to visualization. The present research has focused on use of interferograms for quantitative mapping of the flow over oscillating airfoils. Instantaneous pressure distributions can now be obtained semi-automatically, making practical the analysis of the thousands of interferograms that are produced in this research. A review of the techniques that have been developed as part of this research effort will be presented in the final paper.

Chandrasekhara, M. S.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Control of unsteady separated flow associated with the dynamic stall of airfoils

An effort to understand and control the unsteady separated flow associated with the dynamic stall of airfoils was funded for three years through the NASA cooperative agreement program. As part of this effort a substantial data base was compiled detailing the effects various parameters have on the development of the dynamic stall flow field. Parameters studied include Mach number, pitch rate, and pitch history, as well as Reynolds number (through two different model chord lengths) and the condition of the boundary layer at the leading edge of the airfoil (through application of surface roughness). It was found for free stream Mach numbers as low as 0.4 that a region of supersonic flow forms on the leading edge of the suction surface of the airfoil at moderate angles of attack. The shocks which form in this supersonic region induce boundary-layer separation and advance the dynamic stall process. Under such conditions a supercritical airfoil profile is called for to produce a flow field having a weaker leading-edge pressure gradient and no leading-edge shocks. An airfoil having an adaptive-geometry, or dynamically deformable leading edge (DDLE), is under development as a unique active flow-control device. The DDLE, formed of carbon-fiber composite and fiberglass, can be flexed between a NACA 0012 profile and a supercritical profile in a controllable fashion while the airfoil is executing an angle-of-attack pitch-up maneuver. The dynamic stall data were recorded using point diffraction interferometry (PDI), a noninvasive measurement technique. A new high-speed cinematography system was developed for recording interferometric images. The system is capable of phase-locking with the pitching airfoil motion for real-time documentation of the development of the dynamic stall flow field. Computer-aided image analysis algorithms were developed for fast and accurate reduction of the images, improving interpretation of the results.

Wilder, M. C.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Recent Developments in the Use of Liquid Crystal Coatings for Full-Surface Shear Stress Vector Measurements

Under normal white-light illumination and oblique observation, liquid crystal coating (LCC) color-change response to shear depends on both shear stress magnitude as well as the direction of the applied shear relative to the observer's line of sight. These color-change responses were quantified by subjecting a LCC to a wall-jet shear flow and measuring scattered-light spectra using a fiber optic probe and spectrophotometer. At any fixed shear stress magnitude, the maximum color change was measured when the shear vector was aligned with and directed away from the observer; changes in the relative in-plane view angle to either side of this vector/observer aligned position resulted in symmetric Gaussian reductions in measured color change. For this vector/observer aligned orientation, color change was found to scale linearly with increasing shear stress magnitude over an eight-fold range. Based on these results, a surface shear stress vector measurement methodology, involving multiple oblique-view observations of the test surface, was formulated. In the present paper, the experimental approach and data analysis procedure required to extend this vector measurement methodology to full-surface applications will be outlined and progress towards demonstrating this areal capability will be reviewed.

Reda, D. C.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Control of unsteady separated flow associated with the dynamic stall of airfoils

A unique active flow-control device is proposed for the control of unsteady separated flow associated with the dynamic stall of airfoils. The device is an adaptive-geometry leading-edge which will allow controlled, dynamic modification of the leading-edge profile of an airfoil while the airfoil is executing an angle-of-attack pitch-up maneuver. A carbon-fiber composite skin has been bench tested, and a wind tunnel model is under construction. A baseline parameter study of compressible dynamic stall was performed for flow over an NACA 0012 airfoil. Parameters included Mach number, pitch rate, pitch history, and boundary layer tripping. Dynamic stall data were recorded via point-diffraction interferometry and the interferograms were analyzed with in-house developed image processing software. A new high-speed phase-locked photographic image recording system was developed for real-time documentation of dynamic stall.

Wilder, M. C.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Interferometric investigations of compressible dynamic stall over a transiently pitching airfoil

The compressible dynamic stall flowfield over a NACA 0012 airfoil transiently pitching from 0 to 60 deg at a constant rate under compressible flow conditions has been studied using real-time interferometry. A quantitative description of the overall flowfield, including the finer details of dynamic stall vortex formation, growth, and the concomitant changes in the airfoil pressure distribution, has been provided by analyzing the interferograms. For Mach numbers above 0.4, small multiple shocks appear near the leading edge and are present through the initial stages of dynamic stall. Dynamic stall was found to occur coincidentally with the bursting of the separation bubble over the airfoil. Compressibility was found to confine the dynamic stall vortical structure closer to the airfoil surface. The measurements show that the peak suction pressure coefficient drops with increasing freestream Mach number, and also it lags the steady flow values at any given angle of attack. As the dynamic stall vortex is shed, an anti-clockwise vortex is induced near the trailing edge, which actively interacts with the post-stall flow.

Chandrasekhara, M. S.↗
NASA NTRS1994

A Phase Locked High Speed Real-Time Interferometry System for Large Amplitude Unsteady Flows

A high speed phase locked interferometry system has been designed and developed for real-time measurements of the dynamic stall flow over a pitching airfoil. Point diffraction interferograms of incipient flow separation over a sinusoidally oscillating airfoil have been obtained at rates of up to 20 KHz and for free stream Mach numbers of 0.3 and 0.45. The images were recorded on ASA 125 and ASA 400 film using a drum camera. Special electronic timing and synchronizing circuits were developed to trigger the laser light source from the camera, and to initiate acquisition of the interferogram sequence from any desired phase angle of oscillation. The airfoil instantaneous angle of attack data provided by an optical encoder was recorded via a FIFO and in EPROM into a microcomputer. The interferograms have been analyzed using software developed in-house to get quantitative flow density and pressure distributions.

Chandrasekhara, M. S.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Transition effects on compressible dynamic stall of transiently pitching airfoils

Experimental results and analysis of the effects of boundary layer tripping on dynamic stall of a transiently pitching airfoil are presented. At low Mach numbers, the tripped airfoil exhibits qualitative similarity with the behavior of the untripped airfoil. However, the local supersonic flow at Mach numbers greater than 0.3 is significantly modified by the trip leading to vastly different shock/boundary layer interactions, dynamic stall onset and vortex formation angles. The formation of the laminar separation bubble is found to have a favorable influence in delaying dynamic stall on the untripped airfoil flow. In both Mach number regimes, the tripped flow actually stalls at slightly lower angles of attack. Further experimentation with three trips on an oscillating airfoil showed that the dynamic stall process is very sensitive to the state of the turbulence in the boundary layer. This sensitivity points to a need for finer turbulence modeling techniques for use in dynamic stall computations.

Wilder, M. C.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Interferometric investigations of compressible dynamic stall over a transiently pitching airfoil

The dynamic stall flow field over NACA 0012 airfoil pitching transiently from 0 - 60 at a constant rate under compressible flow conditions has been studied using the real-time technique of point diffraction interferometry. This investigation using nonintrusive diagnostics provides a quantitative description of the overall flow field, including the finer details of dynamic stall vortex formation, growth and the concomitant changes in the pressure distribution. Analysis of several hundred interferograms obtained for a range of flow conditions shows that the peak leading edge suction pressure coefficient that stall is nearly constant for a given free stream Mach number at all nondimensional pitch rates. Also, this value is below that seen in steady flow at static stall for the same Mach number, indicating that dynamic effects significantly effect the separation behavior. Further, for a given Mach number, the dynamic stall vortex seems to form rapidly at nearly the same angle of attack for all pitch rates studied. As the vortex is shed, it induces an anti-clockwise trailing edge vortex, which grows in a manner similar to that of a starting vortex. The measured peak suction pressure coefficient drops as the free stream Mach number increases. For free stream Mach numbers above 0.4, small multiple shocks appear near the leading edge.

Chandrasekhara, M. S.↗