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At least 199 records · Page 11

Navier-Stokes simulation of nozzle-afterbody flows with jets at off-design conditions

Three-dimensional Navier-Stokes simulations are made for the external flow, the jet-exhaust plume, and the internal nozzle flow of a nonaxisymmetric nozzle typical of those advocated for advanced fighter airplanes. Solutions are presented for free-stream Mach numbers of 0.80, 0.94, and 1.20 at an angle of attack of 0 deg and a Reynolds number of 20 x 10 to the 6th. Jet-total-pressure ratios ranging from 1.5 to 9.8, i.e., from below to above the design pressure ratio of 4.25, are investigated. The results are compared to wind-tunnel data. The calculations successfully predict many trends and features of the external and internal flow.

Compton, William B., III↗

Computational Fluid Dynamics Simulation of Dual Bell Nozzle Film Cooling

Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) and Armstrong Flight Research Center (AFRC) are working together to advance the technology readiness level (TRL) of the dual bell nozzle concept. Dual bell nozzles are a form of altitude compensating nozzle that consists of two connecting bell contours. At low altitude the nozzle flows fully in the first, relatively lower area ratio, nozzle. The nozzle flow separates from the wall at the inflection point which joins the two bell contours. This relatively low expansion results in higher nozzle efficiency during the low altitude portion of the launch. As ambient pressure decreases with increasing altitude, the nozzle flow will expand to fill the relatively large area ratio second nozzle. The larger area ratio of the second bell enables higher Isp during the high altitude and vacuum portions of the launch. Despite a long history of theoretical consideration and promise towards improving rocket performance, dual bell nozzles have yet to be developed for practical use and have seen only limited testing. One barrier to use of dual bell nozzles is the lack of control over the nozzle flow transition from the first bell to the second bell during operation. A method that this team is pursuing to enhance the controllability of the nozzle flow transition is manipulation of the film coolant that is injected near the inflection between the two bell contours. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis is being run to assess the degree of control over nozzle flow transition generated via manipulation of the film injection. A cold flow dual bell nozzle, without film coolant, was tested over a range of simulated altitudes in 2004 in MSFC's nozzle test facility. Both NASA centers have performed a series of simulations of that dual bell to validate their computational models. Those CFD results are compared to the experimental results within this paper. MSFC then proceeded to add film injection to the CFD grid of the dual bell nozzle. A series of nozzle pressure ratios and film coolant flow rates are investigated to determine the effect of the film injection on the nozzle flow transition behavior. The results of this CFD study of a dual bell with film injection are presented in this paper.

Braman, Kalen↗

Vibrational population distributions in nonequilibrium nozzle expansion flows

Experimental measurements and theoretical calculations of the vibrational population distribution in nonequilibrium nozzle expansion flows of gas mixtures are reported. These studies were directed toward determining whether vibrational energy exchange pumping could lead to laser action on the vibrational bands of a diatomic molecule. Three different types of experiments were conducted. These showed (1) that vibrational energy was preferentially transferred from N2 to CO in supersonic nozzle flows containing these gases; (2) that under some conditions this vibrational energy exchange pumping mechanism created population inversions in the vibrational levels of CO; and (3) that at large expansion ratios the magnitude of these population inversions was sufficient to sustain lasing in the nozzle. A theoretical model was developed to calculate vibrational state population distributions in gas dynamic expansions of a mixture of diatomic gases. Although only isothermal calculations have been completed, these data indicate that population inversions are predicted for conditions similar to those obtained in the nozzle expansion flows.

Watt, W. S.↗

Numerical study of transient flow phenomena in shock tunnels

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) was used to study some transient flow features that can occur during the startup process of a shoch tunnel. The investigation concentrated on two areas: (1) the flow near the endwall of the driven tube during shock reflection and (2) the transient flow in the nozzle. The driven tube calculations were inviscid and focused on the study of a vortex system that was seen to form at the driven tube's axis of symmetry. The nozzle flow calculations examined viscous and inviscid effects during nozzle startup. The CFD solutions of the nozzle flows were compared with experimental data to demonstrate the effectiveness of the numerical analysis.

Tokarcik-Polsky, Susan↗

effect of ambient pressure on the behavior of single-component fuels in a gasoline multi-hole injector

The injection characteristics of neat ethanol and pure isooctane are studied under different ambient pressure and temperature conditions. Injection underflash-boiling conditions can enhance liquid atomization and evaporation, providing the possibility of improvement in the fuel/air mixing. These superheated conditions often introduce phenomena that are not taken into account in the standard modeling of sprays for engine applications. The present work proposes a numerical investigation of the behavior of Engine Combustion Network's 8-hole spray-G injector, starting at the subcooled nominal condition and reducing the ambient pressure at constant low temperature to reach the flare flash-boiling condition. To initialize the properties of the injected fuel, the flow in the nozzle is simulated with a Eulerian approach, handling the two phases with a mixture model and the phase change, due to cavitation and flash boiling, with the Homogenous Relaxation Model. A map of the mixture's kinematic and thermal behavior is obtained at the interface between the injector and the chamber to initialize the Lagrangian simulations. A literature-based vaporization model is implemented to obtain the proper description of the characteristic features of a multi-hole spray under super-heated conditions, like plume-plume interaction. The numerical representation of the spray is validated in terms of penetration and radial spreading on DBI images, reproducing the light attenuation profiles caused by the presence of the liquid spray. Simulations show that coupled nozzle flow and spray calculations capture the spray morphology and shape better compared to calculations performed without considering the nozzle flow simulation details, especially under flare flash conditions.

Nocivelli, Lorenzo↗

Computational and Experimental Flow Field Analyses of Separate Flow Chevron Nozzles and Pylon Interaction

A computational and experimental flow field analyses of separate flow chevron nozzles is presented. The goal of this study is to identify important flow physics and modeling issues required to provide highly accurate flow field data which will later serve as input to the Jet3D acoustic prediction code. Four configurations are considered: a baseline round nozzle with and without a pylon, and a chevron core nozzle with and without a pylon. The flow is simulated by solving the asymptotically steady, compressible, Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations using an implicit, up-wind, flux-difference splitting finite volume scheme and standard two-equation kappa-epsilon turbulence model with a linear stress representation and the addition of a eddy viscosity dependence on total temperature gradient normalized by local turbulence length scale. The current CFD results are seen to be in excellent agreement with Jet Noise Lab data and show great improvement over previous computations which did not compensate for enhanced mixing due to high temperature gradients.

Massey, Steven J.↗

Critical flow and pressure ratio data for LOX flowing through nozzles

LOX and LN2 data for two-phase critical flow through nozzles were acquired with precision control. The principal measured parameters were inlet conditions, critical flow rate and critical flow pressure ratio. It is conclusively demonstrated that the principle of corresponding states can be applied to two-phase choked flow through nozzles. It is also shown that the proper normalizing parameters are developed, and that current theories can provide an adequate means for extrapolating data to other fluids.

Hendricks, R. C.↗

Critical flow and pressure ratio data for LOX flowing through nozzles

LOX and LN2 data for two-phase critical flow through nozzles have been acquired with precision control. The principal measured parameters were inlet conditions, critical flow rate and critical flow pressure ratio. The data conclusively demonstrate that the principle of corresponding states can be applied to two-phase choked flow through nozzles. These data also demonstrate that the proper normalizing parameters have been developed and current theories can provide an adequate means for extrapolating to other fluids.

Hendricks, R. C.↗

Generation of monodisperse droplets by spontaneous condensation of flow in nozzles

Submicron size monodisperse particles are of interest in many industrial and scientific applications. These include the manufacture of ceramic parts using fine ceramic particles, the production of thin films by deposition of ionized clusters, monodisperse seed particles for laser anemometry, and the study of size dependence of cluster chemical and physical properties. An inexpensive and relatively easy way to generate such particles is by utilizing the phenomenon of spontaneous condensation. The phenomenon occurs when the vapor or a mixture of a vapor and a noncondensing gas is expanded at a high expansion rate. The saturation line is crossed with the supercooled vapor behaving like a gas, until all of a sudden at the so called Wilson point, condensation occurs, resulting in a large number of relatively monodisperse droplets. The droplet size is a function of the expansion rate, inlet conditions, mass fraction of vapor, gas properties, etc. Spontaneous condensation of steam and water vapor and air mixture in a one dimensional nozzle was modeled and the resulting equations solved numerically. The droplet size distribution at the exit of various one dimensional nozzles and the flow characteristics such as pressure ratio, mean droplet radius, vapor and droplet temperatures, nucleation flux, supercooling, wetness, etc., along the axial distance were obtained. The numerical results compared very well with the available experimental data. The effect of inlet conditions, nozzle expansion rates, and vapor mass fractions on droplet mean radius, droplet size distribution, and pressure ratio were examined.

Lai, Der-Shaiun↗

Advanced Gas Turbine (AGT): Power-train system development

Technical work on the design and effort leading to the testing of a 74.5 kW (100 hp) automotive gas turbine is described. The general effort was concentrated on building an engine for test starting in July. The buildup progressed with only routine problems and the engine was delivered to the test stand 9 July. In addition to the engine build effort, work continued in selected component areas. Ceramic turbine parts were built and tested. Burst tests of ceramic rotors show strengths are approaching that achieved in test bars; proof testing is required for acceptable strength ceramic vanes. Over 25 hours was accumulated on the combustor rig in three test modes: pilot nozzle only, start nozzle, and main nozzle operation. Satisfactory ignition was achieved for a wide range of starting speeds and the lean blowout limit was as low as 0.06 kg/b (0.14 lb/hr). Lean blowout was more a function of nozzle atomization than fuel/air ratio. A variety of cycle points were tested. Transition from start nozzle flow to main nozzle flow was done manually without difficulty. Regenerator parts were qualification tested without incident and the parts were assembled on schedule. Rig based performance matched first build requirements. Repeated failures in the harmonic drive gearbox during rig testing resulted in that concept being abandoned for an alternate scheme.

Helms, H. E.↗

Estimated Performance of Radial-Flow Exit Nozzles for Air in Chemical Equilibrium

The thrust, boundary-layer, and heat-transfer characteristics were computed for nozzles having radial flow in the divergent part. The working medium was air in chemical equilibrium, and the boundary layer was assumed to be all turbulent. Stagnation pressure was varied from 1 to 32 atmospheres, stagnation temperature from 1000 to 6000 R, and wall temperature from 1000 to 3000 R. Design pressure ratio was varied from 5 to 320, and operating pressure ratio was varied from 0.25 to 8 times the design pressure ratio. Results were generalized independent of divergence angle and were also generalized independent of stagnation pressure in the temperature range of 1000 to 3000 R. A means of determining the aerodynamically optimum wall angle is provided.

Englert, Gerald W.↗

Acoustic tests of a 15.2 centimeter-diameter potential flow convergent nozzle

An experimental investigation of the jet noise radiated to the far field from a 15.2-cm-diam potential flow convergent nozzle has been conducted. Tests were made with unheated airflow over a range of subsonic nozzle exhaust velocities from 62 to 310m/sec. Mean and turbulent velocity measurements in the flow field of the nozzle exhaust indicated no apparent flow anomalies. Acoustic measurements yielded data uncontaminated by internal and/or background noise to velocities as low as 152m/sec. Finally, no significantly different acoustic characteristics between the potential flow nozzle and simple convergent nozzles were found.

Karchmer, A. M.↗

Validation of the NPARC code for nozzle afterbody flows at transonic speeds

The NPARC code, a Reynolds-averaged full Navier-Stokes code, was validated for nozzle afterbody (boatail) flow fields at transonic speeds. The flow fields about three geometries were studied: an axisymmetric nozzle with attached flow; an axisymmetric nozzle with separated flow: and a two-dimensional (rectangular) nozzle with separated flow. Three turbulence models, Baldwin-Lomax, Baldwin-Barth, and Chien k-epsilon, were used to determine the effect of turbulence model selection on the flow field solution. Static pressure distributions on the nozzle surfaces and pitot pressure measurements in the exhaust plume were examined. Results from the NPARC code compared very well with experimental data for all cases. For attached flow fields, the effect of the turbulence models showed no discernable differences. The Baldwin-Barth model yielded better results than either the Chien k-epsilon or the Baldwin-Lomax model for separated flow fields.

Debonis, James R.↗