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Results for “vortex shedding”

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
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2021

Flow and heat transfer in the wake of a triangular arrangement of spheres

This research work seeks to investigate the influence of spacing and heat transfer on the wake behavior of a triangular arrangement of spheres. Four experimental configurations have been investigated at three Reynolds numbers, Re 1 = 350, Re 2 = 700, and Re 3 = 1050. Two isothermal cases were investigated with spacing between the spheres of zero and one sphere diameter, and two cases were investigated with an applied heat flux at the same spacing conditions. The time resolved particle image velocimetry results revealed various flow phenomena including flow separations, von Karman vortex shedding, and Kelvin–Helmholtz instabilities. The turbulent statistics reveal the effect of proximity and heat transfer on the time averaged values of the wake size, turbulent strengths, and Reynolds shear stress in the wake of each sphere, namely, the laminarization effects from the addition of heat and the suppression of the lead sphere wake from the proximity of the trailing spheres. These results are complemented by the application of proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) to the flow fields, which extracts the coherent structures from the flow. Here the modes that describe the coherent structures are extracted and described in detail, which provide further insight into effects of the experimental conditions on the temporal behavior of the flow. Many of the low order modes are found to be associated in pairs, corresponding to asymmetric structures or advection of a given structure downstream. The capability of POD to produce reduced order models of the flow is then utilized to facilitate vortex identification analysis. A turbulent kinetic energy based mode truncation criteria, which has been found to enhance vortex identification capability, is applied to select the POD modes and temporal coefficients to be used in the reduced order modeling. The reconstructed velocity fields are then analyzed with vortex identification algorithms to extract the vortex cores and boundaries. The combination of these approaches allows the study of the effect of proximity and heat transfer on the vortex characteristics, such as size, strength, and distribution.

42 ENGINEERING↗
NASA NTRS1996

Application of Particle Image Velocimetry to a Study of Flow About a Multi-Element Airfoil

An experiment was performed on the flap tip vortex shed from a half span Fowler flap. This flap was mounted on a 5 foot span NACA 63(2)-215 Mod B airfoil in the 7 by 10 foot wind tunnel at NASA Ames Research Center. Several noise reduction studies were performed with this model, and the addition of the Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) research discussed here served as a proof case of large scale PIV. The measurement plane investigated here was a cross plane region. This is cross plane relative to the freestream flow direction. The measurement plane was located at a position 18 inches downstream of the flap trailing edge. This served to prove that measurements could also be made in the more difficult cross plane direction rather than in the downstream flow direction. Lastly the PIV data was used as a practical research tool that yielded important results that could not otherwise be obtained. The flow field area measured was 40 cm by 40 cm square, and served to characterize the downstream flow characteristics of the flap tip vortex under three configurations: the baseline configuration which was the flap and the wing only; the baseline with the addition of a 3/4 span slat; and the baseline with a Flap Edge Device which was designed to reduce the noise generated at the flap. All configurations were tested at a freestream velocity of 64.84 m/s. The test resulted in average velocity fields for the three configurations tested. The velocity fields aided in verifying other testing methods on this particular experiment, and also yielded further insight into the characteristics of the flap tip vortex under the three configurations considered. The velocity data was reduced, and we were able to calculate the vorticity of the flow field. From the position of minimum vorticity the location of the center of the vortex was determined. The circulation was also calculated and aided in comparing the effects of the three configurations on the lifting characteristics of the flap.

Walker, Stephen M.↗
DOE OSTI2022

Flow structures of the cross-flow over a five-layer helically coiled steam generator geometry

The helically-coiled heat exchanger (HCSG) offers advantages over straight tubes such as compactness in geometry, increased heat transfer coefficients, and capability to absorb thermal expansion. In this study, the time-resolved velocity field data of shell-side crossflow over a five-layer helically coiled steam generator geometry was obtained using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) between adjacent rods in four regions with up to 5000 frames per second (5 kHz) at approximately Re u = 3600. The slant rod bundle created different flow patterns in different regions. Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (POD) revealed high-energy-mode flow structures. Due to the confined flow channel geometry, the large flow structures were not advected resulting in no strong POD mode paring. Continuous Wavelet Transform (CWT) visualized the characteristics of flow fluctuation in time and frequency domain simultaneously, which ranged in Strouhal number, S u , between 0.03 and 1.17. In the wake regions of the rods, flows changed in both pattern and magnitude over time. Once a pattern formed, it continued for relatively shorter than straight tube arrays, before changing the pattern again. The histograms of the POD time coefficients presented this multimodal flow characteristics. The current study focuses more on whole flow field analyses in the selected regions rather than local point-wise analyses. Finally, this study revealed that various Strouhal numbers can exist in the helically coiled heat exchanger geometry, which was not observed in straight tube arrays. In particular, Strouhal numbers smaller than 0.1 do not seem to be caused by vortex shedding but seem to be the result of the combination of complex geometry and possible multimodal trends. Based on the current observation, further works would involve intensive instantaneous point-wise analyses on the interactions between important locations such as separation points, stagnation points, shear layers, etc.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2025

Freestream turbulence effects on unsteady wind turbine loads and wakes: An IDDES study

We investigate numerically the effects of freestream turbulence on the unsteady aerodynamics and wakes of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory Phase VI wind turbine rotor for increasing wind speed. Turbulence is modeled using the Improved Delayed Detached-Eddy Simulation (IDDES) method. As a first step, a detailed mesh resolution study is conducted with the decaying freestream turbulence model at turbulence intensity of 0.5%. Our blade-resolved IDDES simulations show that grid-independent average torque and thrust results can be achieved with relatively coarse meshes, whereas dramatically higher mesh resolution is required for grid-independent results for power spectral densities of thrust force, especially in the deep-stall regime. Comparing the loads with the Shear-Stress Transport model demonstrates the superiority of IDDES in predicting massively separated flows. The aerodynamic performance and wake predictions with the decaying freestream turbulence model are compared with the synthetic freestream turbulence model. Both models predict nearly the same loads, spectral energy content, and wake characteristics. The properties of both the near- and far-wake regions are then examined. Furthermore, we show that separated boundary layers accelerate turbulent mixing and entrainment of the external flow, which results in faster wake recovery. The effect of increasing turbulence intensity to 6% is investigated using the synthetic freestream turbulence model. In contrast with the fully attached boundary layer, higher freestream turbulence in deep stall does not significantly affect the loads and vortex-shedding characteristics. However, the turbulent mixing in the wake is enhanced, which further hastens the recovery of the self-similar velocity profile. In general, increasing the wind speed at high turbulence intensity shifts the recovery farther upstream and increases the wake width.

17 WIND ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2023

A reduced-order model of concentration polarization in reverse osmosis systems with feed spacers

Feed spacers in reverse osmosis systems generate complex fluid flows that limit computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations to small length and time scales. That limits our ability to simulate mineral scaling and other membrane fouling phenomena, which occur over longer length and time scales. Thus motivated, we develop a reduced model that replaces the CFD simulation of the velocity field with an analytical model that mimics spacers. This focuses the remaining numerical effort on simulating the advection–diffusion equation governing solute transport. We motivate and validate the model with CFD simulations and bench-scale experiments of spacer filaments in three different arrangements, including cases of unsteady vortex shedding. We show that the model produces a roughly 10,000-fold speedup compared to CFD, and accurately reproduces CFD predictions of not only the average and maximum concentrations, but also the local concentration distribution along the membrane. Here, we also demonstrate the model for simulating a feed channel with a length-to-height ratio of 200. The model provides a simple testbed for exploratory studies of multispecies transport, precipitation, and membrane fouling phenomena for which simulating spacers is often prohibitive.

Computational fluid dynamics↗
DOE OSTI2025

Vortical interactions in turbulent thermoacoustic systems

This study examines the dynamics of vortical interactions and their implications for mitigating thermoacoustic instability in a turbulent combustor. The regions of intense vortical interactions are identified as vortical communities in the network space of weighted directed vortical networks constructed from two-dimensional experimental velocity data. One can expect vortical interactions in the combustor to be strongest near the moment of vortex shedding, as the shed vortices gradually weaken due to dissipation while convecting downstream. However, we show that, during the state of thermoacoustic instability, there is a non-trivial consistent phase lag of approximately 52° between the shedding of the coherent structures from the backward-facing step and the time instant when the vortical interactions attain their local maximum value. We explain this phase lag by investigating the correlation between acoustic pressure fluctuations, spatio-temporal dynamics of coherent structures and vortical interactions in the reaction field of the combustor. We also show the aperiodic variation of vortical interactions during the states of combustion noise and aperiodic epochs of intermittency. Furthermore, the spatio-temporal evolution of pairs of vortical communities with the maximum inter-community interactions provides insight into explaining the critical regions detected in the reaction field during the states of intermittency and thermoacoustic instability, also identified in previous studies. As a result, we further show that the most efficient suppression of thermoacoustic instability via air microjet injection is achieved when steady air jets are introduced to disrupt the maximum inter-community interactions present during the state of thermoacoustic instability.

Sahay, Ankit [Indian Institute of Technology Madra↗
DOE OSTI2020

A fluid-structure interaction solver for investigating torsional galloping in solar-tracking photovoltaic panel arrays

Solar-tracking photovoltaic arrays are susceptible to aeroelastic fluttering during high-wind events. This dynamic fluttering behavior can grow in amplitude until the panels enter an unstable mode known as torsional galloping which can lead to panel failure or total array destruction. To better understand the physics of the torsional galloping phenomenon and to inform the discussion around panel design and recommended panel stow positions during high wind events, a fluid-structure interaction solver composed of a simulated atmospheric boundary layer with simplified panel structural responses was designed. The simulation choices and features of this solver were informed by the geometry and physical properties of an experimental panel array known to exhibit torsional galloping behavior during hind-wind events. Furthermore, these simulations revealed that the torsional galloping instability is driven by a combination of cyclic vortex shedding from the sun-facing side of the panel and the elastic properties of the torque tube linking the panel assemblies. Testing different stow angles across a range of wind speeds indicates that panels are generally more stable when stowed at negative angles where the leading edge is closer to the ground, hypothesized to be due to ground-blocking effects. These results are supplemented by a discussion of stability trends noted during testing and possible implications when considering multi-row array interactions.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2024

Comparison of Sub-Ppm Instrument Response Suggests Higher Detection Limits Could Be Used to Quantify Methane Emissions from Oil and Gas Infrastructure

Quantifying and controlling fugitive methane emissions from oil and gas facilities remains essential for addressing climate goals, but the costs associated with monitoring millions of production sites remain prohibitively expensive. Current thinking, supported by measurement and simple dispersion modelling, assumes single-digit parts-per-million instrumentation is required. To investigate instrument response, the inlets of three trace-methane (sub-ppm) analyzers were collocated on a facility designed to release gas of known composition at known flow rates between 0.4 and 5.2 kg CH 4 h –1 from simulated oil and gas infrastructure. Methane mixing ratios were measured by each instrument at 1 Hertz resolution over nine hours. While mixing ratios reported by a cavity ring-down spectrometer (CRDS)-based instrument were on average 10.0 ppm (range 1.8 to 83 ppm), a mid-infrared laser absorption spectroscopy (MIRA)-based instrument reported short-lived mixing ratios far larger than expected (range 1.8 to 779 ppm) with a similar nine-hour average to the CRDS (10.1 ppm). We suggest the peaks detected by the MIRA are likely caused by a micrometeorological phenomenon, where vortex shedding has resulted in heterogeneous methane plumes which only the MIRA can observe. Further analysis suggests an instrument like the MIRA (an optical-cavity-based instrument with cavity size ≤10 cm3 measuring at ≥2 Hz with air flow rates in the order of ≤0.3 slpm at distances of ≤20 m from the source) but with a higher detection limit (25 ppm) could detect enough of the high-concentration events to generate representative 20 min-average methane mixing ratios. Even though development of a lower-cost, high-precision, high-accuracy instrument with a 25 ppm detection threshold remains a significant problem, this has implications for the use of instrumentation with higher detection thresholds, resulting in the reduction in cost to measure methane emissions and providing a mechanism for the widespread deployment of effective leak detection and repair programs for all oil and gas infrastructure.

03 NATURAL GAS↗
NASA NTRS1969

Flow-induced vibrations of metal bellows.

Longitudinal vibrations induced by internal flow in metal bellows resembling vortex shedding excitations of elastically restrained cylinders, discussing spring mass mechanical model

Gerlach, C. R.↗
NASA NTRS1973

Fundamental Consideration of Noise radiation by rotary wings

An historical review of progress in understanding of rotor noise is presented. Initial work was principally on propellers, but has many obvious applications to noise from rotary wings. Current understanding of rotor noise radiation is then reviewed in some detail. The principal noise sources appear to be: (1) discrete frequency due to distorted inflow; (2) low frequency broadband due to turbulent inflow, and (3) high frequency broadband due to tip effects. On a helicopter rotor each of these sources seems to be intimately connected with the shed vortex wakes. Tip modifications offer one method for controlling the effects. The implications for the designer are discussed. Rotor subjective noise levels appear to obey a velocity to the eighth power law, independent of thrust. Experiments to rectify some of the present deficiencies in knowledge are suggested.

Lowson, M. V.↗
NASA NTRS1974

Theory of discrete vortex noise

A solution is obtained for the noise induced by vortex shedding from the trailing edge of a semiinfinite flat plate. The method of solution for the potential flow is based on a procedure whereby an inner incompressible flow is matched to an outer acoustic field. Acoustic wave fronts are calculated and compared qualitatively with schlieren photographs of similar flows. The acoustic directivity pattern is obtained, and the extreme sensitivity of this parameter to the incompressible flow near the trailing edge of the plate is investigated.

Davis, S. S.↗
NASA NTRS1974

Investigation of rotor blade element airloads for a teetering rotor in the blade stall regime

A model of a teetering rotor was tested in a low speed wind tunnel. Blade element airloads measured on an articulated model rotor were compared with the teetering rotor and showed that the teetering rotor is subjected to less extensive flow separation. Retreating blade stall was studied. Results show that stall, under the influence of unsteady aerodynamic effects, consists of four separate stall events, each associated with a vortex shed from the leading edge and sweeping over the upper surface of the rotor blade. Current rotor performance prediction methodology was evaluated through computer simulation.

Dadone, L. U.↗
NASA NTRS1975

Dynamic stall experiments on oscillating airfoils

Dynamic stall and unsteady boundary layer separation have been studied in incompressible flow at moderately large Reynolds numbers. By varying the leading-edge geometry of an NACA 0012 airfoil, three different types of stall were produced. For most of the configurations studied, including the basic NACA 0012 profile, dynamic stall was found not to originate with the bursting of a leading-edge laminar separation bubble, as is commonly believed. Instead, the vortex shedding phenomenon, which is the predominant feature of dynamic stall, appears to be fed its vorticity by the breakdown of the turbulent boundary layer.

Mccroskey, W. J.↗
NASA NTRS1975

Evaluation of several navigation algorithms for application to general aviation

Using data obtained in flight, three position determining algorithms for use by general aviation aircraft were evaluated representing increasing software requirements. These were a DME only, DME/air data and blended DME/air data. Although each step represented additional software with resultant increase in position accuracy, all could be performed on a programmable electronic desk calculator. Results from the computation of aircraft position using the three algorithms are presented. The algorithms employed can be extended to accept VOR, TACAN bearing, ADF, or other NAVAID Data. To obtain the flight data an experimental system was configured and flown on a general aviation aircraft. Principal hardware elements (all with low-cost potential) were a programmable calculator, a single DME receiver (multiplexed for multiple DME use) and a low-cost air speed sensor (shed-vortex principle). The flight test demonstrated satisfactory performance of these principal elements.

Conrad, B.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Flight evaluation of advanced navigation techniques for general aviation using frequency scanning

Experiments on an automatic multisensor navigation concept are being conducted in a Cessna 402B. The test system consists of VOR, DME, and air data sensors controlled by a Hewlett Packard 9820A electronic calculator which processes the data and, by means of a four-state Kalman filter, outputs position and ground and wind velocities to a map display. Novel features which make such a system potentially low-cost include frequency-scanning operation of a single VOR receiver and a single DME transceiver and use of a shed-vortex true airspeed sensor. Results obtained during flight in a local area where six to eight DME NAVAIDS were receivable yielded better than 1/4-mile accuracy.

Jackson, C. T., Jr.↗
NASA NTRS1978

Experimental investigation of wing fin configurations for alleviation of vortex wakes of aircraft

A variety of fin configurations were tested on a model of the Boeing B747 in 40 by 80 foot wind tunnels. The test results confirmed that a reduction in wake rolling moment was brought about by the vortex shed by the fins so that a wide range of designs can be used to achieve wake alleviation. It was also found that the reduction in wake-induced rolling moments was especially sensitive to the location of the smaller fins on the wing and that the penalties in lift and drag can probably be made negligible by proper fin design.

Rossow, V. J.↗
NASA NTRS1979

Numerical optimization techniques for bound circulation distribution for minimum induced drag of nonplanar wings: Basic formulations

A theoretical method was developed for determining the optimum span load distribution for minimum induced drag for subsonic nonplanar configurations. The undistorted wing wake is assumed to have piecewise linear variation of shed vortex sheet strength, resulting in a quadratic variation of bound circulation and span load. The optimum loading is obtained either through a direct technique, whereby derivatives of the drag expression are calculated analytically in terms of the unknown wake vortex sheet strengths. Both techniques agree well with each other and with available exact solutions for minimum induced drag.

Kuhlman, J.↗
NASA NTRS1979

Measurement of vortex frequencies in a lean, premixed prevaporized combustor

A modified laser schlieren and fast Fourier transform analysis system has been developed and applied to the study of vortex frequencies in a lean, premixed prevaporized combustor. The system is sensitive to the passage of vortex structures which dominate the flow in the combustor studied. The frequency spectra of the passage of vortices show distinct frequency peaks which are postulated to be characteristic of the processes triggering the vortex shedding. The method provides additional information which should aid in the characterization and understanding of shear flows.

Parker, L. J.↗