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At least 181 records · Page 10

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NASA NTRS1979

Unsteady thin airfoil theory for transonic flows with embedded shocks

Classical unsteady thin airfoil theory fails for low frequencies at the subsonic freestream Mach number, because of the formation of a shock wave that shields the forward region of the airfoil from aft generated disturbances. In the present paper, the classical thin airfoil theory is modified to account for the presence and induced motion of such shocks. The modification consists of taking the steady local Mach number to be a simple step discontinuity, normal to the undisturbed flow, separating two uniform regions. Predicted regions are shown to correlate well both with the experiment and finite difference calculations.

Williams, M. H.↗

NASA NTRS1979

Refraction of sound by a shear layer - Experimental assessment

An experimental study was conducted to determine the refraction angle and amplitude changes associated with sound transmission through a circular, open jet shear layer. Both on-axis and off-axis acoustic source locations were used. Source frequency varied from 1 kHz to 10 kHz while freestream Mach number varied from 0.1 to 0.4. The experimental results were compared with an existing refraction theory which was extended to account for off-axis source positions. A simple experiment was also conducted to assess the importance of turbulence scattering between 1 kHz and 25 kHz.

Schlinker, R. H.↗

NASA NTRS1980

Experimental investigation of the asymmetric body vortex wake

An experimental investigation of the asymmetric body vortex wake of a circular cylinder in high subsonic flow is presented. Laser velocimeter, force and moment, and surface hot wire measurements were obtained for a freestream Mach number of 0.6 and Reynolds number (based on body diameter) of 0.62 x 10 to the 6th. Two component laser velocimeter measurements were made at three body cross-flow planes, x/d = 4, 8, and 12, and angles of attack of 25, 35, and 45 deg. Laser vapor screen photographs were also obtained at these body stations and angles of attack. Surface hot wire measurements were used to determine if any vortex switching occurred at various angles of attack of the body. The laser velocimeter measurements are related to the vapor screen photographs and side force measurements. These results show that more than one asymmetric body vortex wake configuration can exist for the same angle of attack and body roll angle.

Oberkampf, W. L.↗

NASA NTRS1980

A comprehensive comparison between experiment and prediction for a transonic turbulent separated flow

Attempts to predict surface pressure distributions on lifting surfaces have been relatively unsuccessful in the transonic regime when the shock wave is of sufficient strength to produce an extensive region of turbulent separated flow. For these conditions, the viscous flow behavior must be accurately described even to obtain reasonable predictions of surface pressure. The present paper addresses this problem. Detailed comparisons between prediction and experiment are made for a transonic, turbulent boundary-layer separation (freestream Mach number = 0.875) for which the turbulent flow properties (including the turbulent Reynolds stress) had been measured by the laser velocimeter technique from upstream of the separated region through reattachment. The flow was generated on an axisymmetric 'bump' model designed to simulate the flow on an airfoil at transonic conditions. The numerical methods used in the comparisons include the solution of the time-dependent, mass-averaged Navier-Stokes equations, and the solution of the compressible boundary-layer equations by the inverse method. Solutions were obtained for the well established Cebeci-Smith algebraic turbulence model and the more recently developed Wilcox-Rubesin two-equation turbulence model.

Johnson, D. A.↗

NASA NTRS1980

Design considerations of advanced supercritical low drag suction airfoils

Supercritical low drag suction laminar flow airfoils were laid out for shock-free flow at design freestream Mach = 0.76, design lift coefficient = 0.58, and t/c = 0.13. The design goals were the minimization of suction laminarization problems and the assurance of shock-free flow at freestream Mach not greater than design freestream Mach (for design lift coefficient) as well as at lift coefficient not greater than design lift coefficient (for design freestream Mach); this involved limiting the height-to-length ratio of the supersonic zone at design to 0.35. High design freestream Mach numbers result with extensive supersonic flow (over 80% of the chord) on the upper surface, with a steep Stratford-type rear pressure rise with suction, as well as by carrying lift essentially in front- and rear-loaded regions of the airfoil with high static pressures on the carved out front and rear lower surface.

Pfenninger, W.↗

NASA NTRS1981

Correlation of transonic-cone Preston-tube data and skin friction

The distribution of Preston tube pressures within turbulent boundary layers along the surface of a sharp-nosed, ten degree cone was correlated with theoretical values of turbulent skin friction for freestream Mach numbers less than one. The mini-basic computer code, the Wu and Lock computer code, and the STAN-5 computer code were used to analyze the data and to solve the boundary layer conservation equations. The skin friction which results from using Preston tube pressures in the correlation equation, has a rms error of 1.125 percent. It was found that the effective center of the probe is not a constant but increases as the surface distance increases. For a specified unit Reynolds number, the effective center of the probe decreases as the Mach number increases. The variation of the fluid (air) properties across the face of the probe may be neglected for subsonic flows. The possible transverse errors caused by the use of the concept of a virtual origin for the turbulent boundary layer were investigated and found to be negligible.

Reed, T. D.↗

NASA NTRS1981

Test problems for inviscid transonic flow

The paper discusses some results obtained in the solving of test problems for inviscid transonic flow with shock waves using the TRANDES program. The method used employs the full inviscid perturbation-potential flow equation in a Cartesian grid system that is stretched to infinity. The equation is represented by a nonconservative system of finite-difference equations that includes at supersonic points a rotated difference scheme and is solved by column relaxation. Except for the NACA 0012 case with the freestream Mach number equal to 0.95, all test problems were solved straightforwardly and appeared to be converged or close to convergence. The only difficulty was some sensitivity to grid placement, which is typical of the Cartesian formulation

Carlson, L. A.↗

NASA NTRS1982

Comparisons of free-flight experimental and predicted heating rates for the Space Shuttle

Experimental windward-ray heating rates measured during entry of the first Space Shuttle Orbiter mission are compared with predicted rates based on engineering and detailed equilibrium-air analyses. The experimental heating rates were reduced from temperature-time histories which are available only for the trajectory period after blackout which corresponds to a freestream Mach number and altitude of approximately 11.0 and 53 km, respectively. The experimental heating rates are computed for two measured emissivity data sets. The differences in the experimental heating rates based on the two emissivity data sets are sufficiently large that different interpretations of the STS-1 aerothermal environment may be inferred.

Zoby, E. V.↗

NASA NTRS1982

Computation of the steady viscous flow over a tri-element 'augmentor wing' airfoil

The augmentor wing consists of a main airfoil with a slotted trailing edge for blowing, and two smaller aft airfoils which shroud the jet. This configuration has been modeled for numerical simulation by a novel discretization procedure which generates four separate grids: three surface-oriented airfoil grids and one outer free-stream grid. Grid lines and slopes are continuous across boundaries, so grid overlap at common boundaries provides boundary information without interpolation. A two-dimensional unsteady thin-layer Navier-Stokes code is used to calculate the flow for the no-blowing case at freestream Mach number = 0.7, Re = 12,600.000, and angles-of-incidence = 1.05 deg. Qualitative agreement with experimental data indicates the utility of this procedure in the analysis of multi-element configurations.

Lasinski, T. A.↗

NASA NTRS1982

Solution of the two-dimensional Euler equations with generalized coordinate transformation using flux vector splitting

An implicit finite difference code using flux vector splitting has been developed for solving the two-dimensional inviscid gas dynamics equations. The method is spatially second-order acurate, fully conservative, and uses body-conforming generalized coordinates for treating complex geometries. Numerical results have been obtained for transonic flow over a circular cylinder and airfoils. Steady results for a half cylinder (top and bottom symmetry-imposed) range from critical flow to a strong shock case with rotationally induced flow separation. Full cylinder solutions at freestream Mach number values of 0.5, however, show unsteady oscillation. A perturbation form of the method has also been developed and used to compute both fore and aft inviscid flow separation about a cylinder for a nonuniform incoming stream.

Buning, P. G.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Experiments in a three-dimensional adaptive-wall wind tunnel

Three dimensional adaptive-wall experiments were performed in the Ames Research Center (ARC) 25- by 13-cm indraft wind tunnel. A semispan wing model was mounted to one sidewall of a test section with solid sidewalls, and slotted top and bottom walls. The test section had separate top and bottom plenums which were divided into streamwise and cross-stream compartments. An iterative procedure was demonstrated for measuring wall interference and for adjusting the plenum compartment pressures to eliminate such interference. The experiments were conducted at a freestream Mach number of 0.60 and model angles of attack between 0 and 6 deg. Although in all the experiments wall interference was reduced after the plenum pressures were adjusted, interference could not be completely eliminated.

Schairer, E. T.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Inlet flow field investigation. Part 1: Transonic flow field survey

A wind tunnel investigation was conducted to determine the local inlet flow field characteristics of an advanced tactical supersonic cruise airplane. A data base for the development and validation of analytical codes directed at the analysis of inlet flow fields for advanced supersonic airplanes was established. Testing was conducted at the NASA-Langley 16-foot Transonic Tunnel at freestream Mach numbers of 0.6 to 1.20 and angles of attack from 0.0 to 10.0 degrees. Inlet flow field surveys were made at locations representative of wing (upper and lower surface) and forebody mounted inlet concepts. Results are presented in the form of local inlet flow field angle of attack, sideflow angle, and Mach number contours. Wing surface pressure distributions supplement the flow field data.

Yetter, J. A.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Shapes for rotating airfoils

An airfoil which has particular application to the blade or blades of rotor aircraft and aircraft propellers is presented. The airfoil thickness distribution, camber and leading edge radius are shaped to locate the airfoil crest at a more aft position along the chord, and to increase the freestream Mach number at which sonic flow is attained at the airfoil crest. The reduced slope of the airfoil causes a reduction in velocity at the airfoil crest at lift coefficients from zero to the maximum lift coefficient. The leading edge radius is adjusted so that the maximum local Mach number at 1.25 percent chord and at the designed maximum lift coefficient is limited to about 0.48 when the Mach number normal to the leading edge is approximately 0.20. The lower surface leading edge radius is shaped so that the maximum local Mach number at the leading edge is limited to about 0.29 when the Mach number normal to the leading edge is approximately 0.20. The drag divergence Mach number associated with the airfoil is moved to a higher Mach number over a range of lift coefficients resulting in superior aircraft performance.

Bingham, G. J.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Nonunique solutions to the transonic potential flow equation

Steinhoff and Jameson (1981) have shown that within a certain range of angle of attack and freestream Mach number, numerical solutions of the full-potential equation for flow past an airfoil are not unique. This study was mainly concerned with showing that the anomaly is inherent to the partial-differential equation governing the flow and not a result of its discrete representation. Steinhoff and Jameson conjectured that the anomaly may have a physical basis. The present investigation has two objectives. Results are to be presented which indicate that the anomaly is due to a breakdown in the potential approximation, rather than a phenomenon associated with the inviscid flowfield. The second objective is to show that the lift coefficient, predicted by the potential equation, is a smooth but multivalued function of the angle of attack.

Salas, M. D.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Stability of a laminar premixed supersonic free shear layer with chemical reactions

The stability of a two-dimensional compressible supersonic flow in the wake of a flat plate is discussed. The fluid is a multi-species mixture which is undergoing finite rate chemical reactions. The spatial stability of an infinitesimal disturbance in the fluid is considered. Numerical solutions of the eigenvalue stability equations for both reactive and nonreactive supersonic flows are presented and discussed. The chemical reactions have significant influence on the stability behavior. For instance, a neutral eigenvalue is observed near the freestream Mach number of 2.375 for the nonreactive case, but disappears when the reaction is turned on. For reactive flows, the eigenvalues are not very dependent on the free stream Mach number.

Menon, S.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Prediction of transonic separated flows

Johnson et al. (1982) have provided a detailed comparison between a thoroughly documented transonic flow with shock-induced separations and solutions of the flow using the Navier-Stokes equations. According to this comparison, there were several deficiencies in the computations. The present investigation takes into account new experimental data which have been obtained in a larger wind tunnel with the same test model for a wider range of freestream Mach numbers. The results of new Navier-Stokes computations using more compatible boundary conditions are shown, and the effects of the turbulence model choice on predicting Mach number trends are assessed.

Horstman, C. C.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Characteristic boundary conditions for three-dimensional transonic unsteady aerodynamics

Characteristic far-field boundary conditions for the three-dimensional unsteady transonic small disturbance potential equation have been developed. The boundary conditions were implemented in the XTRAN3S finite difference code and tested for a flat plate rectangular wing with a pulse in angle of attack; the freestream Mach number was 0.85. The calculated force response shows that the characteristic boundary conditions reduce disturbances that are reflected from the computational boundaries.

Whitlow, W., Jr.↗

NASA NTRS1985

Structure of the wall pressure fluctuations in a shock-induced separated turbulent flow

This paper presents the results of an experimental study of the unsteady nature of a shock wave/turbulent boundary layer interaction. The interaction was generated using an unswept compression ramp. The incoming freestream Mach number was 2.9 and the flow was separated at the corner. An array of flush mounted miniature high frequency pressure transducers was used to make multi-channel measurements of the fluctuating wall pressure within the interaction. From the present results, an overall picture of the instantaneous structure of the unsteady shock system (as inferred from the wall pressure signals) can be constructed. The flow ahead of the corner can be considered as composed of two regions, namely the 'intermittent' region where there is essentially a single leading shock which exhibits significant streamwise 'flapping' and spanwise 'rippling', and the separated region where the flow experiences continuous compression.

Muck, K. C.↗