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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 325 records · Page 18

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NASA NTRS1984

Opening of an interface flaw in a layered elastic half-plane under compressive loading

A static analysis is given of the problem of an elastic layer perfectly bonded, except for a frictionless interface crack, to a dissimilar elastic half-plane. The free surface of the layer is loaded by a finite pressure distribution directly over the crack. The problem is formulated using the two dimensional linear elasticity equations. Using Fourier transforms, the governing equations are converted to a pair of coupled singular integral equations. The integral equations are reduced to a set of simultaneous algebraic equations by expanding the unknown functions in a series of Jacobi polynomials and then evaluating the singular Cauchy-type integrals. The resulting equations are found to be ill-conditioned and, consequently, are solved in the least-squares sense. Results from the analysis show that, under a normal pressure distribution on the free surface of the layer and depending on the combination of geometric and material parameters, the ends of the crack can open. The resulting stresses at the crack-tips are singular, implying that crack growth is possible. The extent of the opening and the crack-top stress intensity factors depend on the width of the pressure distribution zone, the layer thickness, and the relative material properties of the layer and half-plane.

Kennedy, J. M.↗

NASA NTRS1983

Image plane detector for the dynamics explorer Fabry-Perot interferometer

A compact twelve-channel photon-counting device based on existing Generation II imaging technology has been developed for use as the image-plane detector of the Dynamics Explorer Fabry-Perot interferometer. The device has an S-20 photocathode, three-microchannel plate electron multiplication stages, and an equal-area concentric-ring segmented anode whose geometry mimics that of the interference ring pattern produced by a plane etalon. The twelve channels sample equal and contiguous intervals in the spectrum. The purpose of the delopment has been to utilize the signal multiplex advantage of a multichannel detector in the measurement of Doppler shifts and line-broadening effects for naturally occurring atmospheric emission features of low intensity. The design, testing, calibration, and flight performance of the novel detector system are presented. In addition, measured emission line profiles at high resolution from the satellite instrument are presented to illustrate the operation of the device.

Killeen, T. L.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Photon escape probabilities in a semi-infinite plane-parallel medium

It is shown in this work how to obtain the probabilities of photons escaping from a cold electron plasma environment after having undergone an arbitrary number of scatterings. This is done by retaining the exact differential cross section for Thomson scattering as opposed to using its polarization and angle averaged form. The results are given in the form of recursion relations. The geometry used is the semi-infinite plane-parallel geometry witlh a photon source located on a plane at an arbitrary optical depth below the surface. Analytical expressions are given for the probabilities which are accurate over a wide range of initial optical depth. These results can be used to model compact X-ray galactic sources which are surrounded by an electron-rich plasma.

Williams, A. C.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Image-plane processing of visual information

Shannon's theory of information is used to optimize the optical design of sensor-array imaging systems which use neighborhood image-plane signal processing for enhancing edges and compressing dynamic range during image formation. The resultant edge-enhancement, or band-pass-filter, response is found to be very similar to that of human vision. Comparisons of traits in human vision with results from information theory suggest that: (1) Image-plane processing, like preprocessing in human vision, can improve visual information acquisition for pattern recognition when resolving power, sensitivity, and dynamic range are constrained. Improvements include reduced sensitivity to changes in lighter levels, reduced signal dynamic range, reduced data transmission and processing, and reduced aliasing and photosensor noise degradation. (2) Information content can be an appropriate figure of merit for optimizing the optical design of imaging systems when visual information is acquired for pattern recognition. The design trade-offs involve spatial response, sensitivity, and sampling interval.

Huck, F. O.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Focal plane array optical proximity sensor

An optical proximity sensor for optically detecting an object within a predetermined detection volume is described. More specifically, an optical proximity sensor is disclosed having an illuminator assembly including lens and a plurality of light-emitting diodes located at first predetermined positions along the focal plane of the illuminator lens. A detector assembly including a detector lens and a plurality of photodiodes located at second predetermined positions along the focal plane of the detector lens is also provided. The two lenses are spaced apart a predetermined distance in order to define a predetermined detection volume. Additionally, a combination of optical proximity sensors, according to the invention, is disclosed wherein the sensors can be used in conjunction with a vehicle to provide a safety system for warning an operator when an object is within a volume defined by the proximity sensor combination.

Johnston, A. R.↗

NASA NTRS1985

The Definition and Computation of a Metric on Plane Curves. The Meaning of a Face on a Geometric Model

Two topics in topology, the comparison of plane curves and faces on geometric models, are discussed. With regard to the first problem, a curve is defined to be a locus of points without any underlying parameterization. A metric on a class of plane curves is defined, a finite computation of this metric is given for the case of piecewise linear curves, and it is shown how to approximate curves that have bounded curvature by piecewise linear curves. In this way a bound on the distance between two curves can be computed. With regard to the second problem, the questions to be discussed are under what circumstances do geometrical faces make sense; how can they be explicity defined; and when are these geometrical faces homeomorphic to the realization of the abstract (topological) face.

Emery, J. D.↗

NASA NTRS1984

A frequency domain stability analysis of a phase plane control system

A describing function is used to model a phase plane controller which is part of the Space Shuttle on-orbit Reaction Control System autopilot. A frequency domain stability analysis of the closed-loop control system is applied to a study of potential flight control system interaction with the Orbiter and a class of payloads deployed from a tilt table. Phase-gain plot techniques are used to show that expansion of phase plane angular rate limits and stiffening of the tilt table pivot do not always enhance system stability. Instability region approximations are mapped as a function of rate limit, payload geometry, jet used, and natural frequency of the pivot. Comparison of the describing function analysis with simulation results shows excellent correlation.

Hattis, P. D.↗

NASA NTRS1983

The VPI&SU multiple polarization plane ZDR radar - The OCTOPOD radar

The 'OCTOPOD' radar extends the concept of differential reflectivity (ZDR) to multiple polarization planes, so that ZDR measurements can be made in any pair of orthogonal linear polarizations. This allows the mean canting angle of oblate raindrops or ice particles to be determined. Attention is given to the radar hardware employed, the rotating feed system that generates the multiple polarization planes, and the computer controlled data acquisition system which extracts both reflectivity and ZDR data.

Andrews, J. H.↗

NASA NTRS1986

A high frequency analysis of electromagnetic plane wave scattering by perfectly-conducting semi-infinite parallel plate and rectangular waveguides with absorber coated inner walls

An approximate but sufficiently accurate high frequency solution which combines the uniform geometrical theory of diffraction (UTD) and the aperture integration (AI) method is developed for analyzing the problem of electromagnetic (EM) plane wave scattering by an open-ended, perfectly-conducting, semi-infinite hollow rectangular waveguide (or duct) with a thin, uniform layer of lossy or absorbing material on its inner wall, and with a planar termination inside. In addition, a high frequency solution for the EM scattering by a two dimensional (2-D), semi-infinite parallel plate waveguide with a absorber coating on the inner walls is also developed as a first step before analyzing the open-ended semi-infinite three dimensional (3-D) rectangular waveguide geometry. The total field scattered by the semi-infinite waveguide consists firstly of the fields scattered from the edges of the aperture at the open-end, and secondly of the fields which are coupled into the waveguide from the open-end and then reflected back from the interior termination to radiate out of the open-end. The first contribution to the scattered field can be found directly via the UTD ray method. The second contribution is found via the AI method which employs rays to describe the fields in the aperture that arrive there after reflecting from the interior termination. It is assumed that the direction of the incident plane wave and the direction of observation lie well inside the forward half space tht exists outside the half space containing the semi-infinite waveguide geometry. Also, the medium exterior to the waveguide is assumed to be free space.

Noh, H. M.↗

NASA NTRS1984

Results of testing short wavelength HgCdTe hybrid focal plane arrays for earth remote sensing applications

The NASA Imaging Spectrometer program has the objective to develop the next generation of earth remote sensing systems. One part of the program is concerned with the production of advanced short-wavelength mercury cadmium telluride (HgCdTe) hybrid focal plane arrays (FPAs). These arrays are needed for several instruments, including the Shuttle Imaging Spectrometer (SIS), which requires a mosaic of six 64 x 64-element arrays with a cutoff wavelength of 2.5 microns. A device description is provided and the test results are considered. The Airborne Imaging Spectrometer (AIS) is discussed, taking into account an instrument description, focal plane requirements, and AIS results.

Blessinger, M. A.↗

NASA NTRS1986

The acoustic field of a point source in a uniform boundary layer over an impedance plane

The acoustic field of a point source in a boundary layer above an impedance plane is investigated anatytically using Obukhov quasi-potential functions, extending the normal-mode theory of Chunchuzov (1984) to account for the effects of finite ground-plane impedance and source height. The solution is found to be asymptotic to the surface-wave term studies by Wenzel (1974) in the limit of vanishing wind speed, suggesting that normal-mode theory can be used to model the effects of an atmospheric boundary layer on infrasonic sound radiation. Model predictions are derived for noise-generation data obtained by Willshire (1985) at the Medicine Bow wind-turbine facility. Long-range downwind propagation is found to behave as a cylindrical wave, with attention proportional to the wind speed, the boundary-layer displacement thickness, the real part of the ground admittance, and the square of the frequency.

Zorumski, W. E.↗

NASA NTRS1987

Three-dimensional vortical structures of transition in plane channel flow

Three-dimensional visualization of flwo field structures in transitional plane channel flow obtained from a numerical simulation are presented at two Reynolds numbers. It is revealed that at the one-spike stage, independent of Reynolds number, the flow is characterized by a multi-layer vortex system. In the upper layer, total vorticity vector plots indicate a high-shear layer dominated by spanwise vorticity, whereas the middle layer (corresponding approximately to the critical layer) forms a vortex loop (alpha-vortex) consisting of strong streamwise and spanwise vorticity components. At the three-spike stage, the breakdown of the vortical structure proceeds in a manner similar to frontal relaminarization of turbulent spots. This process is accompanied by intense vortex lift-up activity near the wall which seems to originate at the legs of the vortex loop trailing the high-shear layer. Finally, at the five-spike stage, it is shown that high-vorticity regions (vortical structures) develop into horseshow eddies in planes inclined to the main flow direction.

Biringen, S.↗

NASA NTRS1987

Thermocapillary migration of a gas bubble in an arbitrary direction with respect to a plane surface

The thermocapillary migration of a gas bubble in an unbounded fluid in the presence of a neighboring rigid plane surface is considered in the limit of negligible Reynolds and Marangoni numbers. Results are given for a scalar interaction parameter defined as the ratio of the speed of the bubble in the presence of the plane surface to the speed in its absence. It is suggested that the weaker interaction effects noted for the case of thermocapillary migration relative to the case of motion due to a body force such as that caused by a gravitational field is attributable to the more rapid decay, away from the bubble, of the disturbance velocity and temperature gradient fields. The surface is found to exert the greatest influence in the case of motion normal to it, and the weakest influence in the case of parallel motion.

Meyyappan, M.↗

NASA NTRS1987

In-plane and interlaminar Iosipescu shear properties of various graphite fabric/epoxy laminates

The Iosipescu shear test method was used to measure the in-plane and interlaminar shear properties of four T300 graphite fabric/Fiberite 934 epoxy composite materials. Weave geometries tested included an Oxford weave, a 5-harness satin weave, an 8-harness satin weave, and a plain weave with auxiliary warp yarns. Both orthogonal and quasi-isotropic layup laminates were tested. In-plane and interlaminar shear properties were obtained for laminates of all four fabric types. Overall, few differences in shear properties attributable to the fabric weave pattern were observed. However, the auxiliary warp material was significantly weaker and less stiff in interlaminar shear parallel to its fill direction.

Adams, Donald F.↗

NASA NTRS1987

Edge detection - Image-plane versus digital processing

To optimize edge detection with the familiar Laplacian-of-Gaussian operator, it has become common to implement this operator with a large digital convolution mask followed by some interpolation of the processed data to determine the zero crossings that locate edges. It is generally recognized that this large mask causes substantial blurring of fine detail. It is shown that the spatial detail can be improved by a factor of about four with either the Wiener-Laplacian-of-Gaussian filter or an image-plane processor. The Wiener-Laplacian-of-Gaussian filter minimizes the image-gathering degradations if the scene statistics are at least approximately known and also serves as an interpolator to determine the desired zero crossings directly. The image-plane processor forms the Laplacian-of-Gaussian response by properly combining the optical design of the image-gathering system with a minimal three-by-three lateral-inhibitory processing mask. This approach, which is suggested by Marr's model of early processing in human vision, also reduces data processing by about two orders of magnitude and data transmission by up to an order of magnitude.

Huck, Friedrich O.↗

NASA NTRS1987

Flow in out-of-plane double S-bends

An experimental investigation of developing flows through a combination of out-of-plane S-bend ducts was conducted to gain insight into the redirection of flow in geometries similar to those encountered in practical aircraft wing-root intake ducts. The present double S-bend was fabricated by placing previously investigated S-ducts and S-diffusers in series and with perpendicular planes of symmetry. Laser-Doppler anemometry was employed to measure the three components of mean velocity, the corresponding rms quantities, and Reynolds stresses in the rectangular cross-section ducts. Due to limited optical access, only two mean and rms velocity components were resolved in the circular cross-section ducts. The velocity measurements were complemented by wall static pressure measurements. The data indicates that the flows at the exit are complex and asymmetric. Secondary flows generated by the pressure field in the first S-duct are complemented or counteracted by the secondary flows produced by the area expansion and the curvature of the S-diffuser. The results indicate the dominance of the inlet conditions and geometry upon the development of secondary flows and demonstrate that the flows are predominantly pressure-controlled. The pressure distribution caused by the duct geometry determines the direction and magnitude of the bulk flow while the turbulence dictates the mixing characteristics and profiles in the near wall region.

Schmidt, M. C.↗

NASA NTRS1988

Image plane detector spectrophotometer - Application to O2 atmospheric band nightglow

A new variety of low resolution spectrometer is described. This device, an image plane detector spectrophotometer, has high sensitivity and modest resolution sufficient to determine the rotational temperature and brightness of molecular band emissions. It uses an interference filter as a dispersive element and a multichannel image plane detector as the photon collecting device. The data analysis technqiue used to recover the temperature of the emitter and the emission brightness is presented. The atmospheric band of molecular oxygen is used to illustrate the use of the device.

Luo, Mingzhao↗

NASA NTRS1988

Trajectory optimization and guidance law development for national aerospace plane applications

The problem of onboard trajectory optimization for an airbreathing, single-stage-to-orbit vehicle is examined. A simple model representative of the aerospace plane concept, including a dual-mode propulsion system composed of scramjet and rocket engines, is presented. Consideration is restricted to hypersonic flight within the atmosphere. An energy state approximation is used in a four-state model for flight of a point mass in a vertical plane. Trajectory constraints, including those of dynamic pressure and aerodynamic heating, are initially ignored. Singular perturbation methods are applied in solving the optimal control problem of minimum fuel climb. The resulting reduced solution for the energy state dynamics provides an optimal altitude profile dependent on energy level and control for rocket thrust. A boundary-layer analysis produces an approximate lift control solution in feedback form and accounts for altitude and flight path angle dynamics. The reduced solution optimal climb path is presented for the unconstrained case and the case for which a maximum dynamic pressure constraint is enforced.

Calise, A. J.↗