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Results for “DRAG REDUCTION”

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 379 records · Page 21
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2002

Spike-Nosed Bodies and Forward Injected Jets in Supersonic Flow

The paper contains new numerical simulation and experimental test results of blunt body drag reduction using thin spikes mounted in front of a body and one- or two-phase jets injected against a supersonic flow. Numerical simulations utilizing the NASA CFL3D code were conducted at the Hampton University Fluid Mechanics and Acoustics Laboratory (FM&AL) and experimental tests were conducted using the facilities of the IM/MSU Aeromechanics and Gas Dynamics Laboratory. Previous results were presented at the 37th AIAA/ASME/SAE/ASEE Joint Propulsion Conference. Those results were based on some experimental and numerical simulation tests for supersonic flow around spike-nosed or shell-nosed bodies, and numerical simulations were conducted only for a single spike-nosed or shell-nosed body at zero attack angle, alpha = 0 degrees. In this paper, experimental test results of gas, liquid and solid particle jet injection against a supersonic flow are presented. In addition, numerical simulation results for supersonic flow around a multiple spike-nosed body with non-zero attack angles and with a gas and solid particle forward jet injection are included. Aerodynamic coefficients: drag, C (sub D), lift, C(sub L), and longitudinal momentum, M(sub z), obtained by numerical simulation and experimental tests are compared and show good agreement.

Gilinsky, M.↗
NASA NTRS2015

Wing Shape Sensing from Measured Strain

A new two-step theory is investigated for predicting the deflection and slope of an entire structure using strain measurements at discrete locations. In the first step, a measured strain is fitted using a piecewise least-squares curve fitting method together with the cubic spline technique. These fitted strains are integrated twice to obtain deflection data along the fibers. In the second step, computed deflection along the fibers are combined with a finite element model of the structure in order to interpolate and extrapolate the deflection and slope of the entire structure through the use of the System Equivalent Reduction and Expansion Process. The theory is first validated on a computational model, a cantilevered rectangular plate wing. The theory is then applied to test data from a cantilevered swept-plate wing model. Computed results are compared with finite element results, results using another strain-based method, and photogrammetry data. For the computational model under an aeroelastic load, maximum deflection errors in the fore and aft, lateral, and vertical directions are -3.2 percent, 0.28 percent, and 0.09 percent, respectively; and maximum slope errors in roll and pitch directions are 0.28 percent and -3.2 percent, respectively. For the experimental model, deflection results at the tip are shown to be accurate to within 3.8 percent of the photogrammetry data and are accurate to within 2.2 percent in most cases. In general, excellent matching between target and computed values are accomplished in this study. Future refinement of this theory will allow it to monitor the deflection and health of an entire aircraft in real time, allowing for aerodynamic load computation, active flexible motion control, and active induced drag reduction..

system equivalent reduction and expansion process↗
NASA NTRS2001

Numerical Simulation of One- and Two-Phase Flows in Propulsion Systems

In this report, we present some results of problems investigated during joint research between the Hampton University Fluid Mechanics and Acoustics Laboratory (HU/FM&AL), NASA GRC, and the LaRC Hyper-X Program. This work is supported by joint research between the NASA GRC and the Institute of Mechanics at Moscow State University (IM/MSU) in Russia under a CRDF grant. The main areas of current scientific interest of the HU/FM&AL include an investigation of the proposed and patented advanced methods for aircraft engine thrust and noise benefits. These methods are based on nontraditional 3D corrugated and composite nozzle, inlet, propeller and screw designs such as a Bluebell and Telescope nozzle, Mobius-shaped screw, etc. This is the main subject of our other projects, of which one is presented at the current conference. Here we analyze additional methods for exhaust jet noise reduction without essential thrust loss and even with thrust augmentation. Such additional approaches are: (1) to add some solid, fluid, or gas mass at discrete locations to the main supersonic gas stream to minimize the negative influence of strong shock waves formed in propulsion systems. This mass addition may be accompanied by heat addition to the main stream as a result of the fuel combustion or by cooling of this stream as a result of the liquid mass evaporation and boiling; (2) Use of porous or permeable nozzles and additional shells at the nozzle exit for preliminary cooling of the hot jet exhaust and pressure compensation for off-design conditions (so-called continuous ejector with small mass flow rate); and (3) to propose and analyze new effective methods of fuel injection into the flow stream in air-breathing engines. The research is focused on a wide regime of problems in the propulsion field as well as in experimental testing and theoretical and numerical simulation analyses for advanced aircraft and rocket engines. The FM&AL Team uses analytical methods, numerical simulations, and experimental tests at the Hampton University campus, NASA, and IM/MSU. The main outcomes during this reporting period are: (1) Publications: The AIAA Paper #01-1893 has been accepted for the AIAA/NAL-NASDA-ISAS 10th International Space Planes and Hypersonic Systems and Technologies Conference, 24-27 April 2001, Kyoto, Japan. The AIAA Paper #01-3204 has been accepted for presentation at the 37th AIAA/ASME/SAE/ASEE Joint Propulsion Conference being held on 08-11 July, in Salt Lake City, UT; (2) Grants and proposals: The HU/FM&AL was awarded the NASA grant NAG3-2495 in October 2000 and the CRDF award was granted to the NASA GRC-HU FM&AL and IM/MSU (Russia) in July 2000. A solicited proposal was submitted for the NASA NRA-01GRC-02 competition and two unsolicited proposals to NASA are in preparation; (3) Theory and numerical simulations: Analytical theory, numerical simulation, comparison of theoretical with experimental results, and modification of theoretical approaches, models, grids, etc. Such investigations have been conducted for three main problems: (a) Combustion efficiency optimization in the half-duct combustor system; (b) Drag reduction effects for blunt bodies with solid needles; and (c) Solid particle injection from the butt-end against a supersonic flow. The NASA CFL3D, HU/FM&AL, and IM/MSU GODUNOV codes were used and modified for solution of these problems. The codes are based on full Euler and Navier-Stokes solvers with and without nonequilibrium oxygen-nitrogen and air-hydrogen chemical reactions in laminar and turbulent gas flow regimes; (4) Experimental tests: In the IM/MSU supersonic wind tunnel, experimental tests were conducted with different number, location, and geometric parameters of solid needles mounted at the front of the butt-end in supersonic flow. Optimal parameters were determined that provide minimal butt-end drag in the stationary flow regime. Experimental and numerical simulation results are in good agreement; (5) Student Research Activity: Involvement of one graduate and two undergraduate students as research assistants in the current project.

Gilinsky, Mikhail↗
DOE OSTI2021

Analysis of convection heat transfer on multiscale rough superhydrophobic and liquid infused surfaces

Multiscale rough superhydrophobic or slippery liquid infused porous surfaces have gained much interest in recent years for their improved transport phenomena properties. While there have been several studies on drag reduction and condensation on non-wetting surfaces, convection heat transfer that is important in many thermal and thermochemical applications has not been addressed systematically. Here, this article utilizes a fractal description of rough surface topographies to develop analytical models for the Nusselt number and the thermal hydraulic factor for fluid flow and heat transfer inside a cylinder with non-wetting surfaces. For air-infused superhydrophobic surfaces, the model considers the dynamic stability of the air/fluid interface in the asperities. Using the analytical formulations and the stability criteria, systematic studies are presented on the effects of the fractal surface parameters, cylinder radius and Reynolds number on the convective heat transfer characteristics, from which surface texture design maps are developed for maximizing the convection heat transfer. It is shown that multiscale non-wetting surfaces are most effective in the range of lower Reynolds number and small cylinder radius for achieving the best convective heat transfer and thermal hydraulic performance. Applying the models to actual non-wetting surface topographies fabricated using electrodeposition and chemical etching, it is shown that contrary to prevailing notion, superhydrophobicity, characterized by the highest contact angles, does not always lead to the maximum convective heat transfer performance, and that under certain fluid flow conditions, hydrophobic surfaces may offer a greater thermal performance.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2024

Informative and non-informative decomposition of turbulent flow fields

Not all the information in a turbulent field is relevant for understanding particular regions or variables in the flow. Here, we present a method for decomposing a source field into its informative Φ I (x, t) and residual Φ R (x, t) components relative to another target field. The method is referred to as informative and non-informative decomposition (IND). All the necessary information for physical understanding, reduced-order modelling and control of the target variable is contained in Φ I (x, t), whereas Φ R (x, t) offers no substantial utility in these contexts. The decomposition is formulated as an optimisation problem that seeks to maximise the time-lagged mutual information of the informative component with the target variable while minimising the mutual information with the residual component. The method is applied to extract the informative and residual components of the velocity field in a turbulent channel flow, using the wall shear stress as the target variable. We demonstrate the utility of IND in three scenarios: (i) physical insight into the effect of the velocity fluctuations on the wall shear stress; (ii) prediction of the wall shear stress using velocities far from the wall; and (iii) development of control strategies for drag reduction in a turbulent channel flow using opposition control. In case (i), IND reveals that the informative velocity related to wall shear stress consists of wall-attached high- and low-velocity streaks, collocated with regions of vertical motions and weak spanwise velocity. This informative structure is embedded within a larger-scale streak–roll structure of residual velocity, which bears no information about the wall shear stress. In case (ii), the best-performing model for predicting wall shear stress is a convolutional neural network that uses the informative component of the velocity as input, while the residual velocity component provides no predictive capabilities. Finally, in case (iii), we demonstrate that the informative component of the wall-normal velocity is closely linked to the observability of the target variable and holds the essential information needed to develop successful control strategies.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2021

Investigation of UV filaments and their applications

UV laser pulses at 266 nm with 170 ps duration and up to 300 mJ energy create UV filaments. The effects of different beam preparation scenarios on UV filamentation are discussed. Beam preparation by focusing in vacuum and launching into the atmosphere through an aerodynamic window establishes the existence of filaments as self-guided non-diffracting entities. In addition, focusing through the aerodynamic window converts the initial super-Gaussian into a parabolic beam profile at the edge of the nonlinear medium (air). The shock-wave generated by the UV filament is investigated via shadowgraphy techniques. The shock-wave is cylindrically symmetric, leaving a low density channel behind, which is well-sustained for 1 ms, as it propagates outward. This low density channel is a waveguide that can be used for guiding purposes. Applications of UV filaments including guiding, remote sensing, and drag reduction for supersonic aircrafts are discussed.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2024

The advancing wave front on a sloping channel covered by a rod canopy following an instantaneous dam break

The drag coefficient Cd for a rigid and uniformly distributed rod canopy covering a sloping channel following the instantaneous collapse of a dam was examined using flume experiments. The measurements included space x and time t high resolution images of the water surface h(x, t) for multiple channel bed slopes So and water depths behind the dam Ho along with drag estimates provided by sequential load cells. Using these data, an analysis of the Saint-Venant equation (SVE) for the front speed was conducted using the diffusive wave approximation. An inferred Cd=0.4 from the h(x, t) data near the advancing front region, also confirmed by load cell measurements, is much reduced relative to its independently measured steady-uniform flow case. This finding suggests that drag reduction mechanisms associated with transients and flow disturbances are more likely to play a dominant role when compared to conventional sheltering or blocking effects on Cd examined in uniform flow. The increased air volume entrained into the advancing wave front region as determined from an inflow–outflow volume balance partly explains the Cd reduction from unity.

Mechanics↗
DOE OSTI2022

Toward controlling wetting hysteresis with nanostructured surfaces derived from block copolymer self-assembly

The synthesis of nanostructured surfaces via block copolymer (BCP) self-assembly enables a precise control of the surface feature shape within a range of dimensions of the order of tens of nanometers. Herein, this work studies how to exploit this ability to control the wetting hysteresis and liquid adhesion forces as the substrate undergoes chemical aging and changes in its intrinsic wettability. Via BCP self-assembly we fabricate nanostructured surfaces on silicon substrates with a hexagonal array of regular conical pillars having a fixed period (52 nm) and two different heights (60 and 200 nm), which results in substantially different lateral and top surface areas of the nanostructure. The wetting hysteresis of the fabricated surfaces is characterized using force–displacement measurements under quasistaic conditions and over sufficiently long periods of time for which the substrate chemistry and surface energy, characterized by the Young contact angle, varies significantly. The experimental results and theoretical analysis indicate that controlling the lateral and top area of the nanostructure not only controls the degree of wetting hysteresis but can also make the advancing and receding contact angles less susceptible to chemical aging. These results can help rationalize the design of nanostructured surfaces for different applications such as self-cleaning, enhanced heat transfer, and drag reduction in micro/nanofluidic devices.

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Current state and future trends in boundary layer control on lifting surfaces

Successful flow control may bring numerous benefits, such as flow stabilization, flow reattachment, separation delay, drag reduction, lift increase, aerodynamic performance improvement, energy efficiency increase, shock delay or weakening, noise reduction, etc. For these purposes, many different flow control devices, which can be classified as passive, semi-active and active, have been designed and tested. This review paper aims to highlight the most promising and commonly employed boundary layer control methods as well as outline their potential in specific applications in aerospace and energy engineering. Referenced studies, performed on various geometries (flat plates, channels, airfoils, wings, blades, cylinders), are primarily numerical or experimental. Although enhanced aerodynamic performance is achieved in many cases, further research is required to draw general conclusions. This paper aims to demonstrate that, in the future, we may expect further developments of flow control actuators, as well as their increased application.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2020

Impact of Mixed Traffic on the Energy Savings of a Truck Platoon

A two-truck platoon based on a prototype cooperative adaptive cruise control (CACC) system was tested on a closed test track in a variety of realistic traffic and transient operating scenarios - conditions that truck platoons are likely to face on real highways. The fuel consumption for both trucks in the platoon was measured using the SAE J1321 gravimetric procedure as well as calibrated J1939 instantaneous fuel rate, serving as proxies to evaluate the impact of aerodynamic drag reduction under constant-speed conditions. These measurements demonstrate the effects of: the presence of a multiple-passenger-vehicle pattern ahead of and adjacent to the platoon, cut-in and cut-out manoeuvres by other vehicles, transient traffic, the use of mismatched platooned vehicles (van trailer mixed with flatbed trailer), and the platoon following another truck with adaptive cruise control (ACC). These scenarios are intended to address the possibility of “background aerodynamic platooning” impacting realized savings on public roads. Using calibrated J1939 fuel rate analysis, fuel savings for curved track sections versus straight track sections were also evaluated for these scenarios, highlighting differences in the implementation of the CACC control strategies compared to a stock ACC implementation. The use of different trailer types and the presence of passenger-vehicle traffic patterns showed a measurable impact on platoon performance in some conditions, but the basic fuel savings trends were retained.

adaptive cruise control↗
NASA NTRS1972

Transonic wind tunnel tests of a .015 scale space shuttle booster model

Details of the test program, an outline of the test procedure, and results of the investigation in tabular form are presented. The base drag reduction potential was determined at cruise conditions (M = .40) of a modified base region, with and without base bleed flow. Transonic effects and cruise control effectiveness of the new base region were also obtained. The tests were performed at Mach numbers from 0.40 to 1.10, at angles of attack from -4 to +20 degrees and at angles of sideslip from -6 to +6 degrees, all at a Reynolds number of 6.56 million per meter (2.0 million per foot).

Dennis, R. J.↗
NASA NTRS1971

Frequency response studies for a wedge probe in viscoelastic fluids.

Investigation of a hot-film wedge probe in viscoelastic fluids by imposing on the probe a sinusoidal vibration of known amplitude and frequency. Root-mean-square (rms) velocities calculated from the displacement of the probe are compared to rms velocities obtained with a constant temperature anemometer. The tests were performed under turbulent flow conditions and also at flow rates where viscoelastic effects, i.e., decrease of heat transfer rates from the probe to the fluid and drag reduction, were observed. The experimental technique was established by measuring the response of the probe in mineral oil.

Rodriguez, J. M.↗
NASA NTRS1973

Characteristics of dilute gas-solids suspensions in drag reducing flow

Measurements were performed on dilute flowing gas-solids suspensions and included data, with particles present, on gas friction factors, velocity profiles, turbulence intensity profiles, turbulent spectra, and particle velocity profiles. Glass beads of 10 to 60 micron diameter were suspended in air at Reynolds numbers of 10,000 to 25,000 and solids loading ratios from 0 to 4. Drag reduction was achieved for all particle sizes in vertical flow and for the smaller particle sizes in horizontal flow. The profile measurements in the vertical tube indicated that the presence of particles thickened the viscous sublayer. A quantitative theory based on particle-eddy interaction and viscous sublayer thickening has been proposed.

Kane, R. S.↗
NASA NTRS1973

The effects on cruise drag of installing refan-engine nacelles on the McDonnell-Douglas DC-9

A high speed wind tunnel test has been conducted to determine the effect on cruise drag for installing larger JT8D Refan engine nacelles on the Douglas DC-9. Drag data and wing- and nacelle/pylon/fuselage-channel pressure data are presented. Reduced pylon spares, required to minimize effects of the nacelle installation on low-speed deep stall, were investigated. The reduce span pylons resulted in no adverse interference effects. At typical cruise Mach numbers the measured penalty for the Refan installation was less than estimated due to a favorable effect of the larger entering engine stream tube suppressing the wing upper-surface velocities with subsequent wing compressibility drag reduction. Channel pressures show no shock waves or boundary layer separations.

Callaghan, J. T.↗
NASA NTRS1973

Aeronautical fuel conservation possibilities for advanced subsonic transports

The anticipated growth of air transportation is in danger of being constrained by increased prices and insecure sources of petroleum-based fuel. Fuel-conservation possibilities attainable through the application of advances in aeronautical technology to aircraft design are identified with the intent of stimulating NASA R and T and systems-study activities in the various disciplinary areas. The material includes drag reduction; weight reduction; increased efficiency of main and auxiliary power systems; unconventional air transport of cargo; and operational changes.

Braslow, A. L.↗
NASA NTRS1975

NASA general aviation technology programs

This paper describes the status of the current NASA programs that are aimed at providing new technology for aircraft designs that will improve both safety and utility while reducing the environmental impact of general aviation to acceptable levels. Safety related areas that are discussed include the full scale crash test program and the stall/spin research effort. Among the programs addressing increased utility and performance, advanced airfoil developments and engine cooling drag reduction are discussed. Noise and emission reduction is a subject that is receiving significant emphasis within the NASA programs. Also included is a description of the current status of the hydrogen injection concept as a means of both lowering emissions and increasing fuel economy.

Winblade, R. L.↗