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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 181 records · Page 10

Shuttle cryogenic supply system optimization study

Technical information on different cryogenic supply systems is presented for selecting representative designs. Parametric data and sensitivity studies, and an evaluation of related technology status are included. An integrated mathematical model for hardware program support was developed. The life support system, power generation, and propellant supply are considered. The major study conclusions are the following: Optimum integrated systems tend towards maximizing liquid storage. Vacuum jacketing of tanks is a major effect on integrated systems. Subcritical storage advantages over supercritical storage decrease as the quantity of propellant or reactant decreases. Shuttle duty cycles are not severe. The operational mode has a significant effect on reliability. Components are available for most subsystem applications. Subsystems and components require a minimum amount of technology development.

Source record↗

Shuttle cryogenic supply system optimization study. Volume 1: Management supply, sections 1 - 3

An analysis of the cryogenic supply system for use on space shuttle vehicles was conducted. The major outputs of the analysis are: (1) evaluations of subsystem and integrated system concepts, (2) selection of representative designs, (3) parametric data and sensitivity studies, (4) evaluation of cryogenic cooling in environmental control subsystems, and (5) development of mathematical model.

Source record↗

A highly efficient error analysis program for the evaluation of spacecraft tests of general relativity with application to solar probes

A computer program is described which can be used to study the feasibility of conducting relativity experiments on a wide range of hypothetical space missions, and a few applications are presented for solar probes which approach the Sun within 0.25 to 0.35 AU. It is assumed that radio ranging data are available from these spacecraft, and that accuracies on the order of 15 meters can be achieved. This is compatible with current accuracies of ranging to Mariner spacecraft. At this level of accuracy, the range data are sensitive to a number of effects, and for this reason it has been necessary to include a total of up to 23 parameters in the feasibility studies, even though there are only two parameters of real interest in the relativity experiments.

Anderson, J. D.↗

High-Pressure Oxygen Test Evaluations

The relevance of impact sensitivity testing to the development of the space shuttle main engine is discussed in the light of the special requirements for the engine. The background and history of the evolution of liquid and gaseous oxygen testing techniques and philosophy is discussed also. The parameters critical to reliable testing are treated in considerable detail, and test apparatus and procedures are described and discussed. Materials threshold sensitivity determination procedures are considered and a decision logic diagram for sensitivity threshold determination was plotted. Finally, high-pressure materials sensitivity test data are given for selected metallic and nonmetallic materials.

Schwinghamer, R. J.↗

Hot wire anemometry in transonic flow

The use of hot-wire anemometry for obtaining fluctuating data in transonic flows has been evaluated. From hot-wire heat loss correlations based on previous transonic data, the sensitivity coefficients for velocity, density, and total temperature fluctuations have been calculated for a wide range of test conditions and sensor parameters. For sensor Reynolds numbers greater than 20 and high sensor overheat ratios, the velocity sensitivity remains independent of Mach number and equal to the density sensitivity. These conclusions were verified by comparisons of predicted sensitivities with those from recent direct calibrations in transonic flows. Based on these results, techniques are presented to obtain meaningful measurements of fluctuating velocity, density, and Reynolds shear stress using hot-wire and hot-film anemometers. Examples of these measurements are presented for two transonic boundary layers.

Horstman, C. C.↗

Experimental determination of Mercury's mass and oblateness

The ratio of the mass of the sun to that of Mercury deduced from the first and third flybys of Mercury by Mariner 10 is 6,023,600 plus or minus 600 and 6,023,700 plus or minus 300, respectively. Additional analysis should improve these uncertainties by a factor of 2 to 5. Assuming an equatorial radius of 2439 km, the mean density of the planet is 5.44 g/cu cm. The gravitational oblateness deduced from the first encounter is discussed. Data received from the third encounter are better suited for this determination and yield J2 of 0.00008 plus or minus 0.00006. In addition, the third-encounter data are sensitive to local gravity effects or anomalies.

Esposito, P. B.↗

Hot-wire anemometry in transonic flow

The use of hot-wire anemometry for obtaining fluctuating data in transonic flows has been evaluated. From hot-wire heat loss correlations based on previous transonic data, the sensitivity coefficients for velocity, density, and total temperature fluctuations have been calculated for a wide range of test conditions and sensor parameters. For sensor Reynolds number greater than 20 and high sensor overheat ratios, the velocity sensitivity remains independent of Mach number and equal to the density sensitivity. These conditions were verified by comparisons of predicted sensitivities with those from recent direct calibrations in transonic flows. Based on these results, techniques are presented to obtain meaningful measurements of fluctuating velocity, density, and Reynolds shear stress using hot-wire and hot-film anemometers. Example of these measurements are presented for two transonic boundary layers.

Horstman, C. C.↗

Lunar farside gravity - An assessment of satellite to satellite tracking techniques and gravity gradiometry

The estimation of local gravity anomalies represented by point masses using gravity gradiometer and satellite to satellite tracking data is discussed. A simulation analysis has been performed to study the recovery of local gravity anomalies from both rotating single axis gravity gradiometer and satellite to satellite tracking measurements. A Lunar Polar Orbiter mission concept is adopted for the orbits and data links. The sensitivity of the gravity determination to data noise, mass point spatial distribution (model errors), unmodelled gravity (gravity anomalies outside the area of interest), and orbit errors is studied. Figure of merit for the comparison is the rms error of radial acceleration.

Ananda, M.↗

Applications of laser speckles in a holographic nondestructive test system

The grainy or speckle phenomenon of laser light is caused by two inherent characteristics of the laser - the coherence and monochromaticity of the radiation. Recent development have shown that this phenomenon can be used to measure minute surface displacements, surface strains, or vibrations of a body. The present paper deals with two techniques employing the speckle effect. One is called speckle beam holographic interferometry, and the other speckle photographic interferometry. A major advantage of the first technique is the elimination of the stringent vibration isolation requirement in existing holographic nondestructive test systems. The advantage of the second technique is that the resulting photographic data are sensitive only to the in-plane components of the surface variations. The basic principles and practical limitations of these techniques are discussed.

Liu, H.-K.↗

Spatially resolved methane band photometry of Jupiter. III - Cloud vertical structures for several axisymmetric bands and the Great Red Spot

The paper presents cloud structure models for Jupiter's Great Red Spot, Equatorial and North Tropical Zones, North and South Temperate Zones, and North and South Polar Regions. The models are based on images of Jupiter in three methane bands and nearby continuum; radiative transfer calculations include multiple scattering and absorption from three aerosol layers. The model results include the transition in the upper-cloud altitude to 3 km lower altitude from the tropical zones to temperate zones and polar regions, a N/S asymmetry in cloud thickness in the tropical and temperature zones, and the presence of aerosols up to about 0.3 bar in the Great Red Spot and Equatorial Zone. It is concluded that polarization data are sensitive to aerosols in and above the upper cloud layer but insensitive to deeper cloud structure.

West, R. A.↗

Turbulence measurements in a confined jet using a six-orientation hot-wire probe technique

The six-orientation hot-wire technique is applied to nonreacting axisymmetric flowfields, obtaining measurements of time-mean and rms voltages at six different orientations, thus providing enough information to determine the time-mean velocities, turbulence intensities, and shear stresses. At each location in the flow, there are six different values of each of the above quantities that can be obtained using six sets of measurements of three adjacent orientations. Flowfield surveys of both swirling and nonswirling confined jets are used to calculate estimates of the mean velocity components and the normal and shear turbulent stresses, and comparisons with independent data are made. A sensitivity analysis of the data reduction technique demonstrates that the largest uncertainties are to be expected in the turbulent shear force estimates.

Janjua, S. I.↗

An analysis of the AVE-SESAME I period using statistical structure and correlation functions

Structure and correlation functions are used to describe atmospheric variability during the 10-11 April day of AVE-SESAME 1979 that coincided with the Red River Valley tornado outbreak. The special mesoscale rawinsonde data are employed in calculations involving temperature, geopotential height, horizontal wind speed and mixing ratio. Functional analyses are performed in both the lower and upper troposphere for the composite 24 h experiment period and at individual 3 h observation times. Results show that mesoscale features are prominent during the composite period. Fields of mixing ratio and horizontal wind speed exhibit the greatest amounts of small-scale variance, whereas temperature and geopotential height contain the least. Results for the nine individual times show that small-scale variance is greatest during the convective outbreak. The functions also are used to estimate random errors in the rawinsonde data. Finally, sensitivity analyses are presented to quantify confidence limits of the structure functions.

Fuelberg, H. E.↗

Evaluation of Stirling engine appendix gap losses

The efficiency of a Stirling engine can be strongly influenced by the heat transfer losses associated with its appendix gap region. The cyclic energy flows in this region are related to the temperature gradient along the piston and cylinder partition walls, the reciprocating motion of the piston, the pressure variation in the Stirling cycle and the leakage flow across the cold-end seal. This paper outlines a numerical model to simulate these cyclic energy flows and the subsequent effort to correlate it with engine test data. The sensitivity of the appendix gap loss to selected parameters and comparisons with test results are presented.

Huang, S. C.↗

Verification of a SEU model for advanced 1-micron CMOS structures using heavy ions

Modeling and test results are reported for 1 micron CMOS circuits. Analytical predictions are correlated with experimental data, and sensitivities to process and design variations are discussed. Unique features involved in predicting the SEU performance of these devices are described. The results show that the critical charge for upset exhibits a strong dependence on pulse width for very fast devices, and upset predictions must factor in the pulse shape. Acceptable SEU error rates can be achieved for a 1 micron bulk CMOS process. A thin retrograde well provides complete SEU immunity for N channel hits at normal incidence angle. Source interconnect resistance can be important parameter in determining upset rates, and Cf-252 testing can be a valuable tool for cost-effective SEU testing.

Cable, J. S.↗

Space station integrated wall design and penetration damage control

The analysis code BUMPER executes a numerical solution to the problem of calculating the probability of no penetration (PNP) of a spacecraft subject to man-made orbital debris or meteoroid impact. The codes were developed on a DEC VAX 11/780 computer that uses the Virtual Memory System (VMS) operating system, which is written in FORTRAN 77 with no VAX extensions. To help illustrate the steps involved, a single sample analysis is performed. The example used is the space station reference configuration. The finite element model (FEM) of this configuration is relatively complex but demonstrates many BUMPER features. The computer tools and guidelines are described for constructing a FEM for the space station under consideration. The methods used to analyze the sensitivity of PNP to variations in design, are described. Ways are suggested for developing contour plots of the sensitivity study data. Additional BUMPER analysis examples are provided, including FEMs, command inputs, and data outputs. The mathematical theory used as the basis for the code is described, and illustrates the data flow within the analysis.

Coronado, A. R.↗

Active control of helicopter air resonance in hover and forward flight

A coupled rotor/fuselage helicopter analysis is presented. The accuracy of the model is illustrated by comparing it with experimental data. The sensitivity of the open loop damping of the unstable resonance mode to such modeling effects as blade torsional flexibility, unsteady aerodynamics, forward flight, periodic terms, and trim solution is illustrated by numerous examples. Subsequently, the model is used in conjunction with linear optimal control theory to stabilize the air resonance mode. The influence of the modeling effects mentioned before on active resonance control is then investigated.

Takahashi, M. D.↗

Prediction of coefficients of thermal expansion for unidirectional composites

Several analyses for predicting the longitudinal, alpha(1), and transverse, alpha(2), coefficients of thermal expansion of unidirectional composites were compared with each other, and with experimental data on different graphite fiber reinforced resin, metal, and ceramic matrix composites. Analytical and numerical analyses that accurately accounted for Poisson restraining effects in the transverse direction were in consistently better agreement with experimental data for alpha(2), than the less rigorous analyses. All of the analyses predicted similar values of alpha(1), and were in good agreement with the experimental data. A sensitivity analysis was conducted to determine the relative influence of constituent properties on the predicted values of alpha(1), and alpha(2). As would be expected, the prediction of alpha(1) was most sensitive to longitudinal fiber properties and the prediction of alpha(2) was most sensitive to matrix properties.

Bowles, David E.↗

Satellite measurements of the earth's crustal magnetic field

The literature associated with the Magsat mission has evaluated the capabilities and limitations of satellite measurements of the earth's crustal magnetic field, and demonstrated that there exists a 300-3000 km magnetic field, related to major features in the earth's crust, which is primarily caused by induction. Due to its scale and sensitivity, satellite data have been useful in the development of models for such large crustal features as subduction zones, submarine platforms, continental accretion boundaries, and rifts. Attention is presently given to the lack of agreement between laboratory and satellite estimates of lower crustal magnetization.

Schnetzler, C. C.↗