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At least 181 records · Page 10

Panel flutter

Criteria are presented for the prediction of panel flutter, determination of its occurrence, design for its prevention, and evaluation of its severity. Theoretical analyses recommended for the prediction of flutter stability boundaries, vibration amplitudes, and frequencies for several types of panels are described. Vibration tests and wind tunnel tests are recommended for certain panels and environmental flow conditions to provide information for design of verification analysis. Appropriate design margins on flutter stability boundaries are given and general criteria are presented for evaluating the severity of possible short-duration, limited-amplitude panel flutter on nonreusable vehicles.

Dowell, E. H.↗

Helicopter rotor trailing edge noise

A two dimensional section of a helicopter main rotor blade was tested in an acoustic wind tunnel at close to full-scale Reynolds numbers to obtain boundary layer data and acoustic data for use in developing an acoustic scaling law and testing a first principles trailing edge noise theory. Results were extended to the rotating frame coordinate system to develop a helicopter rotor trailing edge noise prediction. Comparisons of the calculated noise levels with helicopter flyover spectra demonstrate that trailing edge noise contributes significantly to the total helicopter noise spectrum at high frequencies. This noise mechanism is expected to control the minimum rotor noise. In the case of noise radiation from a local blade segment, the acoustic directivity pattern is predicted by the first principles trailing edge noise theory. Acoustic spectra are predicted by a scaling law which includes Mach number, boundary layer thickness and observer position. Spectrum shape and sound pressure level are also predicted by the first principles theory but the analysis does not predict the Strouhal value identifying the spectrum peak.

Schlinker, R. H.↗

An Analytical Treatment of Aircraft Propeller Precession Instability

An analytical investigation is made of a precession-type instability which can occur in a flexibly supported aircraft-engine-propeller combination. By means of an idealized mathematical model which is comprised of a rigid power-plant system flexibly mounted in pitch and yaw to a fixed backup structure, the conditions required for neutral stability are determined. The paper also examines the sensitivity of the stability boundaries to changes in such parameters as stiffness, damping, and asymmetries in the engine mount, propeller speed, airspeed, Mach number, propeller thrust, and location of pitch and yaw axes. Stability is found to depend strongly on the damping and stiffness in the system. With the use of nondimensional charts, theoretical stability boundaries are compared with experimental results obtained in wind-tunnel tests of an aeroelastic airplane model. In general, the theoretical results, which do not account for wing response, show the same trends as observed experimentally; however, for a given set of conditions calculated airspeeds for neutral stability are consistently lower than the measured values. Evidently, this result is due to the fact that wing response tends to add damping to the system.

Reed, Wilmer H., III↗

Boundary-layer measurements on a transonic low-aspect ratio wing

Tabulations and plots are presented of boundary-layer velocity and flow-direction surveys from wind-tunnel tests of a large-scale (0.90 m semi-span) model of the NASA/Lockheed Wing C. This wing is a generic, transonic, supercritical, highly three-dimensional, low-aspect-ratio configuration designed with the use of a three-dimensional, transonic full-potential-flow wing code (FLO22). Tests were conducted at the design angle of attack of 5 deg over a Mach number range from 0.25 to 0.96 and a Reynolds number range of 3.4x10 to the 6th power. Wing pressures were measured at five span stations, and boundary-layer surveys were measured at the midspan station. The data are presented without analysis.

Keener, Earl R.↗

Flow Characterization of the NASA Langley Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel, Test Section 2: Computational Results

This is an abstract for an invited paper at the AIAA Aviation Conference, June 2021. The work described here is part of an effort of coordinated experiments in the Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel (UPWT) facility at the NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) and matching CFD simulations. The primary goal of the work is to assess the productivity and true predictive accuracy of CFD, absent any guidance from experiment, in the high supersonic speed range as compared to experiments performed at the NASA LaRC’s UPWT facility. This report concerns CFD simulation of the primary flow-path in the empty wind tunnel, including the settling chamber, nozzle, test section, and some of the tunnel downstream of the test section. The Mach number in the test section ranges from M~2.4 to M~4.6, and the required area ratio variation is achieved by translation of a nozzle block which constricts the area of a loosely S-shaped throat. Flow past protuberances in the settling chamber and into this S-bend throat are predicted by CFD to generate streamwise vorticity that may, or may not, persist through the throat and into the test section as coherent vortices. Some flow conditions are notably unsteady at frequencies well below those of turbulence, due to unsteady separated flow ahead of the nozzle block. The bulk flow moves at velocities ranging from 'walking speed' in the settling chamber to M~4.6 in the test section. Heat transfer to the settling chamber walls and buoyancy are significant at high Mach number. Subtle variations in surface curvature in the nozzle generate Mach waves that propagate into the test section. CFD of the empty tunnel serves two purposes. Firstly, the full-tunnel simulations are used to provide upstream boundary conditions for CFD of vehicle aerodynamics which are generally performed in a domain confined to the wind tunnel test section; these companion studies are addressed in other papers. Secondly, it is a challenging test for CFD to resolve all of the empty tunnel flow phenomena relevant to flow in the test section. It requires a more complete definition of geometry than was originally anticipated. In addition, it requires good spatial and temporal accuracy, and turbulence modeling that performs well on specific phenomena such as corner flows. The boundary conditions and solution algorithms must perform well from incompressible to almost hypersonic speeds. The final state of the pre-test CFD was a product of an iterative self-improvement process. The initial simulations of the empty tunnel were deficient in many respects, but hints to those deficiencies were recognized in the solutions, and remedies were implemented. Possible further improvements will be studied in the post-test phase when comparisons with experimental data are possible. The CFD was performed by five separate collaborative teams using four different flow solvers: FUN3D, Overflow, Star-CCM+ and USM3D. The level of effort of these teams varied significantly, but each made important contributions to the goals of the work. A concerted effort to use uncertainty quantification methods (UQ) in CFD is also a goal of this work. To this end, variations in CFD results due to grid refinement, turbulence modeling, and boundary conditions have been characterized. Code-to-code variation is another means of assessing CFD uncertainty. All CFD solvers predict similarity among the primary flow features; these include the variation of Mach number due to changes in Reynolds number, and the bulk flow angularity due to tunnel-wall curvature. All CFD solvers also predict similar trends in secondary flows, such as the downwash in the side-wall boundary layers. Three of the high-spatial resolution simulations give similar predictions of a complex secondary flow phenomena, streamwise vortices generated in the S-bend throat that persist into the side-wall boundary layers of the test section. Two of the highest-resolution simulations, run with the same turbulence model in different CFD solvers, gave encouragingly similar predictions of a complex tertiary flow phenomenon, small transient "sprites" of upwash flows, resulting from vortices that presumably originate in the separated flow near the leading edge of the nozzle block. While the CFD was done in a "blind pre-test" mode, requests from the experimental team for CFD results pertaining to unsteadiness and total temperature variations in the test section resulted in CFD runs that included a cooled wall in settling chamber. This then led to a change in the standard practice for running the Overflow results, which would not have occurred without this "release" of this experimental information. CFD was also used to guide some measurements. The paper will focus on establishing the consensus among CFD results and understanding differences among those results. Initial findings from the efforts to characterize CFD uncertainty have been done and will be included in the paper.

Robert Edward Childs↗

Automatic control of cryogenic wind tunnels

Inadequate Reynolds number similarity in testing of scaled models affects the quality of aerodynamic data from wind tunnels. This is due to scale effects of boundary-layer shock wave interaction which is likely to be severe at transonic speeds. The idea of operation of wind tunnels using test gas cooled to cryogenic temperatures has yielded a quantrum jump in the ability to realize full scale Reynolds number flow similarity in small transonic tunnels. In such tunnels, the basic flow control problem consists of obtaining and maintaining the desired test section flow parameters. Mach number, Reynolds number, and dynamic pressure are the three flow parameters that are usually required to be kept constant during the period of model aerodynamic data acquisition. The series of activity involved in modeling, control law development, mechanization of the control laws on a microcomputer, and the performance of a globally stable automatic control system for the 0.3-m Transonic Cryogenic Tunnel (TCT) are discussed. A lumped multi-variable nonlinear dynamic model of the cryogenic tunnel, generation of a set of linear control laws for small perturbation, and nonlinear control strategy for large set point changes including tunnel trajectory control are described. The details of mechanization of the control laws on a 16 bit microcomputer system, the software features, operator interface, the display and safety are discussed. The controller is shown to provide globally stable and reliable temperature control to + or - 0.2 K, pressure to + or - 0.07 psi and Mach number to + or - 0.002 of the set point value. This performance is obtained both during large set point commands as for a tunnel cooldown, and during aerodynamic data acquisition with intrusive activity like geometrical changes in the test section such as angle of attack changes, drag rake movements, wall adaptation and sidewall boundary-layer removal. Feasibility of the use of an automatic Reynolds number control mode with fixed Mach number control is demonstrated.

Balakrishna, S.↗

An investigation of turbulence structure in a low-Reynolds-number incompressible turbulent boundary

An existing high turbulence intensity level (5%) atmospheric boundary-layer wind tunnel has been successfully converted to a relatively low level turbulence (0.3%) wind tunnel through extensive modification, testing, and calibration. A splitter plate was designed, built, and installed into the wind-tunnel facility to create thick, mature, two-dimensional turbulent boundary layer flow at zero pressure gradient. Single and cross hot-wire measurements show turbulent boundary layer characteristics of good quality with unusually large physical size, i.e., viscous sublayer of the order of 1 mm high. These confirm the potential ability of the tunnel to be utilized for future high-quality near-wall turbulent boundary layer measurements. It compares very favorably with many low turbulence research tunnels.

White, B. R.↗

Results of flutter test OS7 obtained using the 0.14-scale space shuttle orbiter fin/rudder model number 55-0 in the NASA LaRC 16-foot transonic dynamics wind tunnel

A 0.14-scale dynamically scaled model of the space shuttle orbiter vertical tail was tested in a 16-foot transonic dynamic wind tunnel to determine flutter, buffet, and rudder buzz boundaries. Mach numbers between .5 and 1.11 were investigated. Rockwell shuttle model 55-0 was used for this investigation. A description of the test procedure, hardware, and results of this test is presented.

Berthold, C. L.↗

Development of a Flow Field for Testing a Boundary-Layer-Ingesting Propulsor

In order to test embedded-propulsor technology, modifications were required of the 8x6 Supersonic Wind tunnel at NASA Glenn Research Center. The extent of the modifications required that a new tunnel calibration be completed to generate a new calibration dataset and operational procedures for the tunnel, as well as to map the boundary layer on the raised floor. This report describes the propulsor inflow that was to be simulated, documents the tunnel modifications that were required, and conveys the results of the calibration test that was completed to measure the resulting flow properties.

boundary layer↗

Use of coherence and phase data between two receivers in evaluation of noise environments

For certain types of noise control problems, where transducers cannot be mounted on suspected sources, valuable information can often be obtained by comparing the coherence and phase data measured between two closely spaced microphones with analytical models deduced from the physics of the problem. However, the application of such analysis techniques must be pursued with care, particularly when the measurements are made in a reverberant area. A simple illustration is presented where the acoustic field in the test section of a wind tunnel is evaluated by modelling the field as a combination of diffuse noise due to the boundary layer turbulence in the test section and propagating noise generated by the tunnel fan and possible flow disturbances outside the test section. The coherence and phase between two closely spaced microphones in the tunnel test section are predicted for various ratios of diffuse to propagating noise contributions and compared to actual measurements under several different tunnel operating conditions.

Piersol, A. G.↗

Initial Characterization of the TiltRotor Aeroelastic Stability Testbed

This paper discusses the initial wind tunnel test of the TiltRotor Aeroelastic Stability Testbed (TRAST). TRAST is a generic tiltrotor testbed developed in collaboration between NASA and the Army. Ultimately, this test was a checkout of the model systems, functionality and familiarization, but also obtained subcritical whirl-flutter data in the terms of frequency and damping. Flutter data include two main configurations with different pitch spring stiffness, referred to as 4k and 8k, that were tested at various rotor speeds and airspeeds at the NASA Langley Transonic Dynamics Tunnel. The test included two modes of drivetrain operation: powered and windmilling. However, powered mode of operation was only conducted with the 8k pitch spring. This test reinforced the traditional knowledge of whirl-flutter trends such as flutter speed would decrease with an increase in rotor speed. The critical mode consistently being the wing vertical bending mode. The chord mode as expected was not affected by the pitch spring and was likely to go unstable at a tunnel airspeed slightly beyond the wing vertical bending mode. There were also test specific challenges such as the TRAST modal damping was more sensitive to temperature and amplitude motor than was expected. This test gathered valuable data on the baseline characterization of TRAST, how to improve the model and test practices for future wind tunnel testing. Additionally, a new more automated method for experimental subcritical damping determination based on the Stockwell transform has been demonstrated that may lead to more consistent whirl-flutter stability boundaries.

whirl flutter↗

Two-dimensional wind-tunnel tests of a NASA supercritical airfoil with various high-lift systems. Volume 2: Test data

Three high lift systems for a 9.3 percent blunt based, supercritical airfoil were designed, fabricated, and wind tunnel tested. A method for calculating the viscous flow about two dimensional multicomponent airfoils was evaluated by comparing its predictions with test data. A comparison of high lift systems derived from supercritical airfoils with high lift systems derived from conventional airfoils is presented. The high lift systems for the supercritical airfoil were designed to achieve maximum lift and consisted of: (1) a single slotted flap, (2) a double slotted flap and a leading edge slat, and (3) a triple slotted flap and a leading edge slat. Aerodynamic force and moment data and surface pressure data are presented for all configurations and boundary layer and wake profiles for the single slotted flap configuration. The wind-tunnel models, test facilities and instrumentation, and data reduction are described.

Omar, E.↗

Experimental Investigation of Mars Science Laboratory Entry Vehicle Aeroheating in AEDC Hypervelocity Tunnel 9

An experimental investigation of the aeroheating environment of the Mars Science Laboratory entry vehicle was conducted in the Arnold Engineering Development Complex Hypervelocity Wind Tunnel 9. Testing was performed on a 6-in. (0.1524 m) diameter model in the tunnel's Mach 8 and Mach 10 nozzles at free stream Reynolds numbers from 4.1×10*exp 6)/ft to 49×10(exp 6)/ft and from 1.2×10(exp 6)/ft to 19×10(exp 6)/ft, respectively, using pure nitrogen test gas. These conditions spanned the boundary layer flow regimes from completely laminar to fully turbulent flow over the entire forebody. A computational fluid dynamics study was conducted in support of the wind tunnel testing. Laminar and turbulent solutions were generated for all wind tunnel test conditions and comparisons of predicted heating distributions were performed with the data. These comparisons showed agreement for most cases to within the estimated +/-12% experimental uncertainty margin for fully-laminar or fully-turbulent conditions, while transitional heating data were bounded by laminar and turbulent predictions. These results helped to define uncertainty margins on the use of computational tools for vehicle design.

Hollis, Brian R.↗

Experimental validation study of an analytical model of discrete frequency sound propagation in closed-test-section wind tunnels

The principal objective is to assess the adequacy of linear acoustic theory with an impedence wall boundary condition to model the detailed sound field of an acoustic source in a duct. Measurements and calculations are compared of a simple acoustic source in a rectangular concrete duct lined with foam on the walls and anechoic end terminations. Measurement of acoustic pressure for twelve wave numbers provides variation in frequency and absorption characteristics of the duct walls. Close to the source, where the interference of wall reflections is minimal, correlation is very good. Away from the source, correlation degrades, especially for the lower frequencies. Sensitivity studies show little effect on the predicted results for changes in impedance boundary condition values, source location, measurement location, temperature, and source model for variations spanning the expected measurement error.

Mosher, Marianne↗