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At least 271 records · Page 15

Comparison of vertical velocities analyzed by a numerical model and measured by a VHF wind profiler

The use of wind profilers for measuring vertical velocities in the troposphere and lower stratosphere is potentially of great interest for verification of forecasts, diagnosis of mesoscale circulations, and studies of wave motions. The studies of profiler vertical velocities to date have shown that the observed patterns of ascent and subsidence are reasonable when compared to the synoptic conditions. However, difficulties arise when a direct verification of the profiler vertical winds is sought. Since no other technique can measure the vertical velocities over the same height range and with the same claimed accuracy as the profilers, direct comparisons are impossible. The only alternative is to compare the measurements to analyzed vertical velocity fields. Here, researchers compare vertical measurements made with the SOUSY VHF radar over a period of 11 days at the beginning of November 1981 to the analyzed vertical velocities produced by the European Center for Medium-range Weather Forecasting (ECMWF) model for grid points near the radar site.

Larsen, M. F.↗

Evidence for chaotic fault interactions in the seismicity of the San Andreas fault and Nankai trough

The dynamical behavior introduced by fault interactions is examined here using a simple spring-loaded, slider-block model with velocity-weakening friction. The model consists of two slider blocks coupled to each other and to a constant-velocity driver by elastic springs. For an asymmetric system in which the frictional forces on the two blocks are not equal, the solutions exhibit chaotic behavior. The system's behavior over a range of parameter values seems to be generally analogous to that of weakly coupled segments of an active fault. Similarities between the model simulations and observed patterns of seismicity on the south central San Andreas fault in California and in the Nankai trough along the coast of southwestern Japan.

Huang, Jie↗

An empirical model for the solar wind velocity

An analytic expression for the average radial component of the Solar Wind velocity between 1 solar radius and 1 AU is developed. The model is constructed by assuming the conservation of particle flow in the Solar Wind and application of a twelve-year average measured value of the Solar Wind radial velocity at 1 AU.

Berman, A. L.↗

Damage Simulation in Non-Crimp Fabric Composite Plates Subjected to Impact Loads

Progressive failure analysis (PFA) of non-crimp fabric (NCF) composite laminates subjected to low velocity impact loads was performed using the COmplete STress Reduction (COSTR) damage model implemented through VUMAT and UMAT41 user subroutines in the frame works of the commercial finite element programs ABAQUS/Explicit and LS-DYNA, respectively. To validate the model, low velocity experiments were conducted and detailed correlations between the predictions and measurements for both intra-laminar and inter-laminar failures were made. The developed material and damage model predicts the peak impact load and duration very close with the experimental results. Also, the simulation results of delamination damage between the ply interfaces, in-plane matrix damages and fiber damages were all in good agreement with the measurements from the non-destructive evaluation data.

Satyanarayana, Arunkumar↗

Electronic energy loss and ion velocity correlation effects in track production in swift-ion-irradiated LiNbO3: A quantitative assessment between structural damage morphology and energy deposition

The primary motivation for studying how irradiation modifies the structures and properties of solid materials involves the understanding of undesirable phenomena, including irradiation-induced degradation of components in nuclear reactors and space exploration, and beneficial applications, including material performance tailoring through ion beam modification and defect engineering. In this work, the formation mechanism of latent tracks with different damage morphologies in LiNbO 3 crystals under 0.09–6.17 MeV/u ion irradiation with an electronic energy loss from 2.6–13.2 keV/nm is analyzed by experimental characterizations and numerical calculations. Irradiation-induced damage is preliminarily evaluated via the prism coupling technique to analyze the correlation between the dark-mode spectra and energy loss profiles of irradiated regions. Under the irradiation conditions of different ion velocities and electronic energy losses, different damage morphologies, from individual spherical defects to discontinuous and continuous tracks, are experimentally characterized. During ion penetration process, the ion velocity determines the spatiotemporal distribution of deposited irradiation energy induced by electronic energy loss, meaning that the two essential factors including electronic energy loss and ion velocity co-affect the track damage. The inelastic thermal spike model is used to numerically calculate the spatiotemporal evolutions of energy deposition and the corresponding atomic temperature under different irradiation conditions, and a quantitative relationship is proposed by comparison with corresponding experimentally observed track damage morphologies. Additionally, the obtained quantitative relationship between irradiation conditions and track damage provides deep insight and guidance for understanding the damage behavior of crystal materials in extreme radiation environments and selecting irradiation parameters, including ion species and energies, for ion beam technique application in atomic-level defect manipulation, material modification, and micro/nanofabrication.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Ultrasonic determination of the elastic constants of the stiffness matrix for unidirectional fiberglass epoxy composites

The elastic constants of a fiberglass epoxy unidirectional composite are determined by measuring the phase velocities of longitudinal and shear stress waves via the through transmission ultrasonic technique. The waves introduced into the composite specimens were generated by piezoceramic transducers. Geometric lengths and the times required to travel those lengths were used to calculate the phase velocities. The model of the transversely isotropic medium was adopted to relate the velocities and elastic constants.

Marques, E. R. C.↗

Quantitative interpretation of time-lapse seismic data at Farnsworth field unit: Rock physics modeling, and calibration of simulated time-lapse velocity responses

Here, this study investigates the contribution of fluid saturation variation to the time-lapse velocity response by performing fluid substitution modeling. The methodology is exemplified by the time-lapse seismic monitoring of carbon dioxide at Farnsworth field unit (FWU). In order to evaluate the fluid distribution in a matured oil reservoir, the Southwest Regional Partnership (SWP) acquired multiple vertical seismic profile (VSP) surveys at different times during the CO 2 –water alternatinggas (WAG) injection period. In this work, we present a thorough methodology for computing the elastic response of the saturated rock for different fluid saturations using a site-specific petro-elastic model (PEM). The output from the PEM was combined with results from a fluid compositional model to compute the seismic velocities at times corresponding to each VSP survey. To produce a calibrated simulated response, the measured time-lapse seismic velocities were integrated into the numerical simulation model. The mismatches between the predicted and measured time-lapse velocities were minimized through an iterative calibration process using a trained artificial neural network proxy (ANN) coupled with a particle swarm optimizer (PSO). Our study indicates that the hybrid optimization workflow can effectively perform the history matching. With an accurate prediction of the hydrodynamic properties, the migration of CO 2 within the subsurface was modeled by predicting the spatial velocity distribution for a radius of 305 m around the injection well. The technology demonstrated and the expertise gained from this study can guide similar CO 2 -WAG projects.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

Unsteady Velocity Measurements Taken Behind a Model Helicopter Rotor Hub in Forward Flight

Drag caused by separated flow behind the hub of a helicopter has an adverse effect on aerodynamic performance of the aircraft. To determine the effect of separated flow on a configuration used extensively for helicopter aerodynamic investigations, an experiment was conducted using a laser velocimeter to measure velocities in the wake of a model helicopter hub operating at Mach-scaled conditions in forward flight. Velocity measurements were taken using a laser velocimeter with components in the vertical and downstream directions. Measurements were taken at 13 stations downstream from the rotor hub. At each station, measurements were taken in both a horizontal and vertical row of locations. These measurements were analyzed for harmonic content based on the rotor period of revolution. After accounting for these periodic velocities, the remaining unsteady velocities were treated as turbulence. Turbulence intensity distributions are presented. Average turbulent intensities ranged from approximately 2 percent of free stream to over 15 percent of free stream at specific locations and azimuths. The maximum average value of turbulence was located near the rear-facing region of the fuselage.

Berry, John D.↗

A Crustal Structure Study of South America

Variations in the average crustal thickness of the South American platform were determined by measuring fundamental mode Rayleigh wave dispersion between nine pairs of South American WWSSN seismograph stations and inverting the measurements to obtain average shear wave velocity-depth models across the platform. Additional models were derived from the Rayleigh wave dispersion data previously measured over eastern South America. Both sets of models were interpreted in terms of average crustal thickness and average crustal shear wave velocity. The results obtained were depicted in a contour map of crustal thickness. Average values for seismic velocities in the crust and upper mantle were calculated and compared with maps of regional gravity models, MAGSAT magnetic anomalies, and major tectonic features. The correlations and relationships discovered are discussed.

Renbarger, K. S.↗

Numerical modeling and experimental validation of low velocity impact of woven GFRP/CFRP composites

Low-velocity impact of 2D woven glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) and carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) composite laminates was studied experimentally and numerically. Hybrid laminates containing blocked layers of GFRP/CFRP/GFRP with all plies oriented at 0° were investigated. Relatively high impact energies were used to obtain full perforation of the laminate in a low-velocity impact setup. Numerical simulations were carried out using the in-house transient dynamics finite element code, Sierra/SM, developed at Sandia National Laboratories. A three-dimensional continuum damage model was used to describe the response of a woven composite ply. Two methods for handling delamination were considered and compared: (1) cohesive zone modeling and (2) continuum damage mechanics. The reduced model size achieved by omission of the cohesive zone elements produced acceptable results at reduced computational cost. Further, the comparison between different modeling techniques can be used to inform modeling decisions relevant to low velocity impact scenarios. The modeling was validated by comparing with the experimental results and showed good agreement in terms of predicted damage mechanisms and impactor velocity and force histories.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Direct Measurement of Internal Flow Velocities in a Star-Slot Model

This paper presents the results of a cold flow experiment to make direct measurements of the velocity distribution in a model of a solid rocket motor star grain propellant slot. The experimental procedure utilizes a multi-component laser Doppler velocimeter (LDV) and an apparatus for seeding the flow with aluminum particles to determine the velocity components at various discrete locations within the star slot. The test article used in this investigation was a one-tenth scale, cold flow model based on the geometry of the Space Shuttle solid rocket motor head-end section. The results obtained for the direct measurements of velocity are compared to velocities calculated from measured pressure distributions to data obtained from oil smear experiments and flow visualization videos, and to heat transfer calorimeter data.

Foster, Winfred A., Jr.↗

Acoustic measurements of the X-wing rotor

Noise measurements of a stoppable X-wing rotor system model, tested in the Ames 40- by 80-foot wind tunnel, are summarized. Performance, control system stability, and noise of the model were investigated at various forward speeds, tip speeds, collective blade angles, jet blowing velocities, and model attack angles. The model was tested in the rotating wing helicopter configuration, in the fixed wing configuration, and in wing configurations between the two. Noise data obtained in the helicopter configuration at the two highest tip speeds (Mach 0.44 and 0.47) and at wind tunnel speeds below 140 knots are reported. Test configuration and performance information are included. General acoustic measurements (dB, dBA, and PNdB) at six microphone locations are presented for all conditions under which the background noise was below the model noise. More specific measurements (1/3-octave and blade passage frequency harmonic levels) are presented for selected conditions. Graphs of dBA and 1/3-octave spectra, which show the noise trends as functions of operating condition, are included. The noise depends mainly on the jet blowing velocity. The noise levels were highest at moderate jet blowing velocities, less at the highest velocity, and lowest with no blowing at all.

Mosher, M.↗

Two-way coupled particle-turbulence interaction: Effect of numerics and resolution on fluid and particle statistics

Euler-Lagrange point-particle simulation has emerged as a premier methodology for studying dispersed particle-laden flows. This method's popularity stems from its ability to resolve fine-scale fluid structures while also tracking individual particles at reduced cost using an appropriate particle acceleration model. However, the point-particle model has known convergence issues in that refinement of the fluid grid can lead to changes in the predicted statistics. The reasons for non-convergence are twofold: the point-particle two-way coupling force in the Navier-Stokes equations requires a numerical regularization and, without careful implementation, yields a singular force on the fluid with grid refinement. The second factor that yields grid-dependent statistics is that the point-particle force model in general depends on the undisturbed fluid velocity. When the undisturbed fluid velocity is not robustly modeled in a grid-insensitive way, the calculated force for both particles and fluid will be grid-dependent, contaminating their respective statistics. While the first issue regarding regularizing the point-particle source term has received attention in the literature, the consequences of robustly modeling the undisturbed velocity in the context of grid refinement of turbulence has received little attention. Here, we consider decaying homogeneous isotropic turbulence laden with particles at different Stokes numbers. For a given Stokes number, we systematically refine the grid and demonstrate that explicitly modeling the undisturbed fluid velocity yields relative grid insensitivity for the energy of the particle and fluid phases, as well as acceleration of the particles. We also demonstrate that an appropriately defined dissipation rate is also grid-insensitive when an undisturbed fluid velocity correction is used. In contrast, when the undisturbed fluid velocity is modeled using the conventional approach of interpolating the local fluid velocity to the particle location, we show this procedure yields divergent statistics with grid refinement. In particular, we show that higher-order interpolation of the fluid velocity in two-way coupled problems is worse than lower-order interpolation, in the absence of a correction procedure to estimate the undisturbed fluid velocity. We also examine velocity derivative statistics of the fluid phase and demonstrate that these statistics are not in general convergent even when the undisturbed fluid velocity is explicitly modeled. Collectively, the observations in this paper are used to present a philosophy on the types of questions which are answerable with point-particle methods.

42 ENGINEERING↗

Analysis of NASA JP-4 fire tests data and development of a simple fire model

The temperature, velocity and species concentration data obtained during the NASA fire tests (3m, 7.5m and 15m diameter JP-4 fires) were analyzed. Utilizing the data analysis, a sample theoretical model was formulated to predict the temperature and velocity profiles in JP-4 fires. The theoretical model, which does not take into account the detailed chemistry of combustion, is capable of predicting the extent of necking of the fire near its base.

Raj, P.↗

Evaluation of the Water Film Weber Number in Glaze Icing Scaling

Icing scaling tests were performed in the NASA Glenn Icing Research Tunnel to evaluate a new scaling method, developed and proposed by Feo for glaze icing, in which the scale liquid water content and velocity were found by matching reference and scale values of the nondimensional water-film thickness expression and the film Weber number. For comparison purpose, tests were also conducted using the constant We(sub L) method for velocity scaling. The reference tests used a full-span, fiberglass, 91.4-cm-chord NACA 0012 model with velocities of 76 and 100 knot and MVD sizes of 150 and 195 microns. Scale-to-reference model size ratio was 1:2.6. All tests were made at 0deg AOA. Results will be presented for stagnation point freezing fractions of 0.3 and 0.5.

Tsao, Jen-Ching↗

Using a coupled dispersion model to estimate depletion of a tritium oxide plume by a forest

Tritium processing facilities may release tritium oxide (HTO) to the atmosphere which poses potential health risks to exposed co-located workers and to offsite individuals. Most radiological consequence analyses determine HTO dose by applying Gaussian plume models to simulate the transport of HTO. Within these models, deposition velocity is used to assess the sum of all deposition processes acting on the plume. While this may account for vegetative and soil uptake or respiration processes, it may currently lack inclusion of the complex interactions within heterogeneous forested environments. In this complex morphology, dispersion patterns are significantly altered by changing flow regimes above and below the forest canopy and by the transfer of plume material across the canopy boundary. To determine the effects of a heterogeneous forest canopy on an airborne HTO plume, a Gaussian plume model coupled with an advection-diffusion plume model was applied to estimate transport in the free atmosphere above the forest and within the forest canopy and understory. During 2012, wind speed and wind direction measurements taken at 5 heights, ranging from 2-m to 28-m, on an instrumented meteorological tower located in a loblolly pine forest at the Department of Energy (DOE) Savannah River Site (SRS), near Aiken, SC. From these measurements, model predictions were made over a full spectrum of meteorological conditions. Deposition and resuspension velocities were calculated based on the model-predicted flux of plume material across the top of the forest canopy. Additionally, net deposition velocity of the plume material was calculated as the difference between the deposition and resuspension velocities. The 1st and 5th percentile net deposition velocities were estimated to be 0.7 cm s-1 and 1.2 cm s-1, respectively.

63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTAN↗

Antarctic Ice Shelf Thickness Change from Multimission Lidar Mapping

We calculate rates of ice thickness change and bottom melt for ice shelves in West Antarctica and the Antarctic Peninsula from a combination of elevation measurements from NASA–CECS Antarctic ice mapping campaigns and NASA Operation IceBridge corrected for oceanic processes from measurements and models, surface velocity measurements from synthetic aperture radar, and high-resolution outputs from regional climate models. The ice thickness change rates are calculated in a Lagrangian reference frame to reduce the effects from advection of sharp vertical features, such as cracks and crevasses, that can saturate Eulerian-derived estimates. We use our method over different ice shelves in Antarctica, which vary in terms of size, repeat coverage from airborne altimetry, and dominant processes governing their recent changes. We find that the Larsen-C Ice Shelf is close to steady state over our observation period with spatial variations in ice thickness largely due to the flux divergence of the shelf. Firn and surface processes are responsible for some short-term variability in ice thickness of the Larsen-C Ice Shelf over the time period. The Wilkins Ice Shelf is sensitive to short-timescale coastal and upper-ocean processes, and basal melt is the dominant contributor to the ice thickness change over the period. At the Pine Island Ice Shelf in the critical region near the grounding zone, we find that ice shelf thickness change rates exceed 40m/yr, with the change dominated by strong submarine melting. Regions near the grounding zones of the Dotson and Crosson ice shelves are decreasing in thickness at rates greater than 40m/yr, also due to intense basal melt. NASA–CECS Antarctic ice mapping and NASA Operation IceBridge campaigns provide validation datasets for floating ice shelves at moderately high resolution when coregistered using Lagrangian methods.

Sutterley, Tyler C.↗