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At least 199 records · Page 11

Some numerical and physical aspects of unsteady Navier-Stokes computations over airfoils using dynamic meshes

An upwind-biased implicit approximate factorization algorithm is applied to several unsteady flows on dynamic meshes. The thin-layer form of the compressible Navier-Stokes equations is used to solve both laminar and turbulent flows over airfoils pitching about the quarter chord. Numerical aspects of the solutions are investigated, including grid and time step effects. Two methods for determining fluxes - flux-vector splitting and flux-difference splitting - are compared. Flux-difference splitting predicts results more accurately than flux-vector splitting on a coarse mesh, but both methods agree on a fine mesh. Physical aspects of the computations are also examined. An equilibrium turbulent boundary layer model computes generally better unsteady results in comparison with experiment than a nonequilibrium model for the transonic case analyzed. Also, the size and location of the primary shed vortex for an airfoil pitching up at a constant rate is calculated in good agreement with experiment for two pitch rates.

Rumsey, Christopher L.↗

Flutter of a Low-Aspect-Ratio Rectangular Wing

A flutter test of a low-aspect-ratio rectangular wing was conducted in the Langley Transonic Dynamics Tunnel (TDT). The model used in this flutter test consisted of a rigid wing mounted to the wind-tunnel wall by a flexible, rectangular beam. The flexible support shaft was connected to the wing root and was cantilever mounted to the wind-tunnel wall. The wing had an aspect ratio of 1.5 based on the wing semispan and an NACA 64A010 airfoil shape. The flutter boundary of the model was determined for a Mach number range of 0.5 to 0.97. The shape of the transonic flutter boundary was determined. Actual flutter points were obtained on both the subsonic and supersonic sides of the flutter bucket. The model exhibited a deep transonic flutter bucket over a narrow range of Mach number. At some Mach numbers, the flutter conditions were extrapolated using a subcritical response technique. In addition to the basic configuration, modifications were made to the model structure such that the first bending frequency was changed without significantly affecting the first torsion frequency. The experiment showed that increasing the bending stiffness of the model support shaft through these modifications lowered the flutter dynamic pressure. Flutter analysis was conducted for the basic model as a comparison with the experimental results. This flutter analysis was conducted with subsonic lifting-surface (kernel function) aerodynamics using the k method for the flutter solution.

Cole, Stanley R.↗

Computational design of low aspect ratio wing-winglets for transonic wind-tunnel testing

A computational design has been performed for three different low aspect ratio wing planforms fitted with nonplanar winglets; one of the three planforms has been selected to be constructed as a wind tunnel model for testing in the NASA LaRC 7 x 10 High Speed Wind Tunnel. A design point of M = 0.8, CL approx = 0.3 was selected, for wings of aspect ratio equal to 2.2, and leading edge sweep angles of 45 and 50 deg. Winglet length is 15 percent of the wing semispan, with a cant angle of 15 deg, and a leading edge sweep of 50 deg. Winglet total area equals 2.25 percent of the wing reference area. This report summarizes the design process and the predicted transonic performance for each configuration.

Kuhlman, John M.↗

Aerodynamics of high-lift, low-aspect-ratio unswept wings

It is presently demonstrated that highly cambered, low aspect ratio airfoil configurations can be neither experimentally nor numerically developed on the basis of two-dimensional methods; the strong dependency of airfoil shape on aspect ratio requires the definition of a planform to be conducted first, in order to serve as input for three-dimensional optimization methods. It is found that even the simplified three-dimensional computational method presently employed can accelerate a multielement-airfoil wing development.

Katz, Joseph↗

Design aspects of long range supersonic LFC airplanes with highly swept wings

The achievement of natural LFC in SST configurations featuring externally braced, very highly swept, high structural aspect ratio wing planforms results in outstandingly high cruise L/D ratios while maintaining low sonic-boom overpressures. A conceptual design study has been conducted with a view to range capability maximization in SSTs. A three-body configuration employing a highly swept, strut-braced planform, in which a central fuselage and two smaller outboard bodies alleviate structural wing bending and torsion, is noted to allow further increases in wingspan and aspect ratio which commensurately reduce lift-induced wave-plus-vortex drag and volume-induced wave drag.

Pfenninger, Werner↗

Computational design of low aspect ratio wing-winglet configurations for transonic wind-tunnel tests

Computational designs were performed for three different low aspect ratio wing planforms fitted with nonplanar winglets; one of the three configurations was selected to be constructed as a wind tunnel model for testing in the NASA LaRC 8-foot transonic pressure tunnel. A design point of M = 0.8, C(sub L) is approximate or = to 0.3 was selected, for wings of aspect ratio equal to 2.2, and leading edge sweep angles of 45 deg and 50 deg. Winglet length is 15 percent of the wing semispan, with a cant angle of 15 deg, and a leading edge sweep of 50 deg. Winglet total area equals 2.25 percent of the wing reference area. The design process and the predicted transonic performance are summarized for each configuration. In addition, a companion low-speed design study was conducted, using one of the transonic design wing-winglet planforms but with different camber and thickness distributions. A low-speed wind tunnel model was constructed to match this low-speed design geometry, and force coefficient data were obtained for the model at speeds of 100 to 150 ft/sec. Measured drag coefficient reductions were of the same order of magnitude as those predicted by numerical subsonic performance predictions.

Kuhlman, John M.↗

Effects of spoiler surfaces on the aeroelastic behavior of a low-aspect-ratio rectangular wing

An experimental research study to determine the effectiveness of spoiler surfaces in suppressing flutter onset for a low-aspect-ratio, rectangular wing was conducted in the Langley Transonic Dynamics Tunnel (TDT). The wing model used in this flutter test consisted of a rigid wing mounted to the wind-tunnel wall by a flexible, rectangular beam. The flexible beam was connected to the wing root and cantilever mounted to the wind-tunnel wall. The wing had a 1.5 aspect ratio based on wing semispan and a NACA 64A010 airfoil shape. The spoiler surfaces consisted of thin, rectangular aluminum plates that were vertically mounted to the wing surface. The spoiler surface geometry and location on the wing surface were varied to determine the effects of these parameters on the classical flutter of the wing model. Subsonically, the experiment showed that spoiler surfaces increased the flutter dynamic pressure with each successive increase in spoiler height or width. This subsonic increase in flutter dynamic pressure was approximately 15 percent for the maximum height spoiler configuration and for the maximum width spoiler configuration. At transonic Mach numbers, the flutter dynamic pressure conditions were increased even more substantially than at subsonic Mach numbers for some of the smaller spoiler surfaces. But greater than a certain spoiler size (in terms of either height or width) the spoilers forced a torsional instability in the transonic regime that was highly Mach number dependent. This detrimental torsional instability was found at dynamic pressures well below the expected flutter conditions. Variations in the spanwise location of the spoiler surfaces on the wing showed little effect on flutter. Flutter analysis was conducted for the basic configuration (clean wing with all spoiler surface mass properties included). The analysis correlated well with the clean wing experimental flutter results.

Cole, Stanley R.↗

Two-target game model of an air combat with fire-and-forget all-aspect missiles

An air combat duel between similar aggressive fighter aircraft, both equipped with the same type of guided missiles, is formulated as a two-target differential game using the dynamic model of the game of two identical cars. Each of the identical target sets represents the effective firing envelope of an all-aspect fire-and-forget air-to-air missile. The firing range limits depend on the target aspect angle and are approximated by analytical functions. The maximum range, computed by taking into account the optimal missile avoidance maneuver of the target, determines the no-escape firing envelope. The solution consists of the decomposition of the game space into four regions: the respective winning zones of the two opponents, the draw zone, and the region where the game terminates by a mutual kill. The solution provides a new insight for future air combat analysis.

Davidovitz, A.↗

Ground-based experiments on thermal and thermosolutal convection in inclined low-aspect-ratio enclosures

Thermal and thermosolutal convection driven by buoyancy forces are investigated experimentally in inclined low-aspect-ratio enclosures. Thermal and thermosolutal convection are important in crystal growth processes. The transport process in the fluid phase during the growth of a crystal has a profound influence on the structure and quality of the solid phase. The present work is concerned with natural convection in a shallow rectangular enclosure with imposed inclined temperature and/or concentration gradients. Various complex flow patterns are observed with different experimental conditions. A flow instability under certain conditions is reported. The flow instability is found to depend not only on the thermal and solutal Grashof numbers, the aspect ratios, but also the inclined angles.

Wang, L. W.↗

Impingement tones of large aspect ratio supersonic rectangular jets

The frequency structure of large aspect ratio jet impingement tones is analyzed. Feedback loops consisting of downstream propagating instability waves of the jet flow and upstream propagating acoustic waves from the wall to the nozzle lip produce as many as 20 or more tones when a supersonic rectangular jet of large aspect ratio is directed normal on a wall. It is seen that there are only two basic tones. The basic tone of the lower frequency is associated with a symmetric instability feedback mode of the jet, while that of the higher frequency is associated with an antisymmetric instability feedback mode. The remaining tones are combination tones of the two basic frequencies and their harmonics. It is determined that the measured basic impingement tone frequencies fall in the theoretical permissible frequency bands over a wide range of jet Mach number.

Tam, Christopher K. W.↗

Deformation mechanisms in negative Poisson's ratio materials - Structural aspects

Poisson's ratio in materials is governed by the following aspects of the microstructure: the presence of rotational degrees of freedom, non-affine deformation kinematics, or anisotropic structure. Several structural models are examined. The non-affine kinematics are seen to be essential for the production of negative Poisson's ratios for isotropic materials containing central force linkages of positive stiffness. Non-central forces combined with pre-load can also give rise to a negative Poisson's ratio in isotropic materials. A chiral microstructure with non-central force interaction or non-affine deformation can also exhibit a negative Poisson's ratio. Toughness and damage resistance in these materials may be affected by the Poisson's ratio itself, as well as by generalized continuum aspects associated with the microstructure.

Lakes, R.↗

A critical evaluation of a three-dimensional Navier-Stokes method as a tool to calculate transonic flows inside a low-aspect-ratio compressor

A numerical study to evaluate a three-dimensional Navier-Stokes method as a tool to predict the detailed flow field inside a low-aspect-ratio compressor at various operating conditions was conducted. The details of the flow structure inside a low aspect ratio compressor (three-dimensional shock structure, shock-boundary layer interaction, and tip leakage vortex) and the overall aerodynamic performance at design and off-design conditions are numerically analyzed and the results are compared with the available experimental data. The flow field inside a state-of-the-art transonic compressor is used for the purpose of the evaluation.

Hah, Chunill↗

Chapman Conference on the Hydrologic Aspects of Global Climate Change, Lake Chelan, WA, June 12-14, 1990, Selected Papers

The present conference on the hydrological aspects of global climate change discusses land-surface schemes for future climate models, modeling of the land-surface boundary in climate models as a composite of independent vegetation, a land-surface hydrology parameterizaton with subgrid variability for general circulation models, and conceptual aspects of a statistical-dynamical approach to represent landscape subgrid-scale heterogeneities in atmospheric models. Attention is given to the impact of global warming on river runoff, the influence of atmospheric moisture transport on the fresh water balance of the Atlantic drainage basin, a comparison of observations and model simulations of tropospheric water vapor, and the use of weather types to disaggregate the prediction of general circulation models. Topics addressed include the potential response of an Arctic watershed during a period of global warming and the sensitivity of groundwater recharge estimates to climate variability and change.

Lettenmaier, Dennis P.↗

Low aspect ratio wings at high angles of attack

A survey is conducted of the results of investigations into the flowfields and aerodynamic forces associated with low aspect ratio wings at high angles of attack. Attention is given to criteria for the cataloging of these flowfields, the phenomenon of vortex breakdown, with varying wing incidence and Mach number, and the effects of aspect ratio and compressibility. The planforms treated are of rectangular, clipped-delta, and strake-wing combination geometries. Extensive graphic representations of performance trends with varying parameters are furnished.

Stallings, Robert L., Jr.↗

Effect of aerofoil aspect ratio on the slope of the lift curve

On of the most important characteristics of an airfoil is the rate of change of lift with angle of attack, (sup dC)L/d alpha. This factor determines the effectiveness of a tail plane in securing static longitudinal stability. The application of the Gottingen formulas given here for calculating the variation of (sup Dc)L/d alpha with aspect ratio should be of interest to many aeronautical engineers. For the convenience of the engineer, a set of curves calculated by the method set forth here are given in graphical form. Also, the observed values of (sup dC)L/d alpha for the same airfoil at various aspect ratios follow the calculated curves closely.

Diehl, Walter S↗

Aerodynamic characteristics of several airfoils of low aspect ratio

This paper presents the results of wind-tunnel tests of several airfoils of low aspect ratio. The airfoils included three circular Clark Y airfoils with different amounts of dihedral, two Clark Y airfoils with slots in their portions, and three flat-plate airfoils. Lift, drag, and pitching-moment characteristics of the slotted airfoils with slots open and closed; pitching moment characteristics of one of the slotted airfoils with slots open and closed; and lift characteristics of the flat-plate airfoils are included. The results reveal a definite improvement of lift, drag, and pitching-moment characteristics with increase in dihedral of the circular Clark Y wing. Lift characteristics near the stall were found to depend markedly on the shape of the extreme tip but were not greatly affected by slots through the after portion of the airfoils. Changes in plan form of the flat-plate airfoils gave erroneous indications of the effect to be expected from changes in plan form of an airfoil of Clark Y section. The minimum drag characteristics of the circular Clark Y airfoils were found to be substantially the same as for a Clark Y airfoil of conventional aspect ratio.

Zimmerman, C H↗

Ground Effects on the Longitudinal Characteristics of Two Models with Wings Having Low Aspect Ratio and Pointed Tips

Wind-tunnel tests were conducted to determine the ground effects on a tailless model with a wing of aspect ratio 2 and infinite taper, and on a tailed model with a triangular wing of aspect ratio 3, with flaps. Control-surface hinge moments were measured on the tailless model. The results are compared with the predictions of the theory of Tani, et al.

CONTROLS, FLAP-TYPE - COMPLETE WINGS↗

Hydrodynamic characteristics over a range of speeds up to 80 feet per second of a rectangular modified flat plate having an aspect ratio of 0.25 and operating at several depths of submersion

Results of an investigation of the hydrodynamic characteristics over an extended speed range of a rectangular modified flat plate having an aspect ratio of 0.25 and operating at several depths of submersion are presented. Comparisons between these data and data over a lower speed range on a similar aspect-ratio-0.25 flat plate but having one-half the thickness are presented. These comparisons show no significant differences at the low speeds. At high speeds and high angles of attack, where extensive cavitation was present, the lift coefficients were lower than would have been indicated by the results of the previous investigations and the present investigation at the lower angles of attack. A brief discussion and comparison of ventilation are presented which shows two types of planing bubble formation and the effect of increasing the thickness of the model on the ventilation boundary.

REYNOLDS NUMBER EFFECTS - COMPLETE WINGS↗