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At least 379 records · Page 21

Dynamic stability testing of aircraft - Needs versus capabilities

Highlights of a recent survey of the future needs for dynamic stability information for such aerospace vehicles as the Space Shuttle and advanced high-performance military aircraft, indicating the importance of obtaining this information for high-angle-of-attack high-Reynolds-number conditions. A review of the wind-tunnel capabilities in North America for measuring dynamic stability derivatives reveals an almost total lack of such capabilities for Mach numbers above 0.1 at angles of attack higher than 25 deg. In addition, capabilities to obtain certain new cross-coupling derivatives and information on effects of the coning motion are almost completely lacking. Recommendations are made regarding equipment that should be constructed to remedy this situation.

Orlik-Rueckemann, K. J.↗

Experimental investigation of a 0.15-scale model of an underfuselage normal-shock inlet

A 0.15 scale model of an underfuselage inlet designed for a single-engine fighter airplane was tested. The inlet was a fixed-geometry, normal-shock configuration designed to operate at flight speeds up to Mach 2.0. Peformance data for the basic inlet and several configuration variations are presented as a function of angle of attack, angle of sideslip, and airflow in the 0.6 to 2.0 Mach number range. The configuration variations included boundary-layer diverter height, cowl and splitter-plate modifications, and inlet bleed system variations. Flow-field characteristics at the simulated engine face, at the inlet throat, at the splitter-plate leading edge, and forward of the inlet are presented. The pressure recovery of the inlet is approximately equal to the product of theoretical normal-shock and duct pressure recoverable at cruise angle of attack. Very good performance at high angle of attack was obtained. Pressure distortion and turbulence at the engine face were low, and the inlet remained stable at all engine airflows over the flight maneuver envelope of the aircraft for which the inlet was designed.

Leamer, P. C.↗

Geometric Perturbations and Asymmetric Vortex Shedding about Slender Pointed Bodies

The flow about slender, pointed bodies can be characterized by different states with angle of attack. At moderate-to-high angles of attack (alpha approx. = 40 deg.), a steady, asymmetric vortex pattern develops along the body, leading to a net lateral force. At higher angles of attack (alpha approx. = 60 deg.), the aft-end of the body develops an unsteady von Karman shedding. As the angle of attack approaches 90 deg., the entire body length exhibits a time-dependent vortex shedding pattern. The current work uses three-dimensional, thin-layer Navier-Stokes simulations to investigate the physical mechanisms of asymmetric vortex shedding at alpha = 40 deg. and alpha = 60 deg. The development of an asymmetric vortex pattern via a convective instability mechanism is investigated using tip bumps, surface roughness, and tip curvature. It's found that surface roughness simulations can incite an asymmetric vortex state at alpha = 60 deg. which is consistent with the application of a tip bump, and the experimentally observed flowfield. The unsteady von Karman vortex shedding on the aft. portion of the body is also well resolved. The use of surface roughness did not incite a flow asymmetry at alpha = 40 deg., and it was necessary to simulate tip curvature at this angle of attack in order to generate an asymmetric vortex state.

Murman, Scott M.↗

Geometric Perturbations and Asymmetric vortex shedding About Slender Pointed Bodies

The flow about slender, pointed bodies can be characterized by different states with angle of attack. At moderate-to-high angles of attack (alpha approximately equals 40deg), a steady, asymmetric vortex pattern develops along the body, leading to a net lateral force. At higher angles of attack (alpha approximately equals 60deg), the aft-end of the body develops an unsteady von Karman shedding. As the angle of attack approaches 90deg, the entire body length exhibits a time-dependent vortex shedding pattern. The current work uses three-dimensional, thin-layer Navier-Stokes simulations to investigate the physical mechanisms of asymmetric vortex shedding at alpha = 40deg and alpha = 60deg. The development of an asymmetric vortex pattern via a convective instability mechanism is investigated using tip bumps, surface roughness, and tip curvature. It's found that surface roughness simulations can incite an asymmetric vortex state at alpha = 60deg which is consistent with the application of a tip bumps, and the experimentally observed flowfield. The unsteady von Karman vortex shedding on the aft portion of the body is also well resolved. The use of surface roughness did not incite a flow asymmetry at alpha = 40deg, and it was necessary to simulate tip curvature at this angle of attack in order to generate an asymmetric vortex state.

Murman, Scott M.↗

Effect of variable inlet guide vanes on the operating characteristics of a tilt nacelle inlet/powered fan model

The effects of a variable inlet guide vane (VIGV) assembly on the operating characteristics of a V/STOL inlet and on the performance of a 20-in. (0.508-m) diameter fan engine were investigated. The data indicate that the VIGVs are effective thrust modulators over a wide range of free-stream velocities, nacelle angles of attack, and fan speeds. The thrust modulation ranges, including choking limits, fan stall limits, and inlet separation boundaries are presented. The presence of the VIGV assembly causes significant losses in inlet angle-of-attack capability and generally increases the blade stress levels at all limit conditions except at high angle of attack and high free-stream velocity. Reducing the fan nozzle exit area limited the positive VIGV actuation range and consequently decreased the range of thrust modulation at all limit conditions except at both high free-stream velocity and high angle of attack conditions.

Woollett, R. R.↗

Two leading-edge droop modifications for tailoring stall characteristics of a general aviation trainer configuration

The high-angle-of-attack testing intended to develop leading-edge modifications for tailoring the stall characteristics of model is described. Two different leading-edge modifications are considered: a small profile leading-edge droop on the outboard 24 percent of the wing and a large profile leading-edge droop on the outboard 50 percent of the wing. Results indicate that the longitudinal stability for the unmodified and both modified configurations was good for low angle of attack, but the modified configurations exhibited neutral longitudinal stability just prior to stall. The unmodified and both modified configurations demonstrated good lateral stability characteristics for low angles of attack, but all configurations were directionally unstable for high angles of attack.

Ross, Holly M.↗

Navier-Stokes computations of lee-side flows over delta wings

Solutions to the Navier-Stokes equations for the flow over delta wings are computed with emphasis on the separated vortical flows developing on the lee side at high angles of attack. A recently developed implicit algorithm is used which employs upwind differencing for the pressure and convection terms and central differencing for the shear stress and heat transfer terms. Solutions to both the three-dimensional equations and the approximate conical flow equations are compared parametrically with an extensive experimental data base at supersonic speeds. The computations indicate that the conical flow approximation provides results in close agreement with the three-dimensional equations, even to angles of attack as high as 20 degrees. Good agreement with experimentally measured pressures and vapor screen photographs is obtained for the conditions investigated. The method predicts the classical pattern of vortical flow over a delta wing and transition to other flow patterns as the leading edge sweep angle and leading edge normal Mach number are varied.

Thomas, J. L.↗

A theory for the core flow of leading-edge vortices

Separation-induced leading-edge vortices can dominate the flow about slender wings at moderate to high angles of attack, often with favorable aerodynamic effects. However, at the high angles of attack which are desirable for takeoff and landing as well as subsonic-transonic maneuver the vortices can breakdown or burst in the vicinity of the aircraft causing many adverse effects; these include lift loss, pitchup, and buffet. The flow in the core of leading-edge vortices is generally affiliated with the vortex breakdown phenomenon. A theory is presented for the flow in the core of separation-induced, leading-edge vortices at practical Reynolds numbers. The theory is based on matching inner and outer representations of the vortex. The inner representation models continuously distributed vorticity and includes an asymptotic viscous subcore. The outer representation models concentrated spiral sheets of vorticity and is fully three dimensional. A parameter is identified which closely tracks the vortex breakdown stability boundary for delta, arrow, and diamond wings.

Luckring, James M.↗

Vortex Lift Augmentation by Suction

Lift performance is improved on a 60 degrees swept Gothic wing. Vortex lift at moderate to high angles of attack on highly swept wings used to improve takeoff performance and maneuverability. New design proposed in which suction of propulsion system augments vortex. Turbofan placed at down stream end of leading-edge vortex system induces vortex to flow into inlet which delays onset of vortex breakdown.

Taylor, A. H.↗

Wind-tunnel investigation of effects of wing-leading-edge modifications on the high angle-of-attack characteristics of a T-tail low-wing general-aviation aircraft

Exploratory tests have been conducted in the NASA-Langley Research Center's 12-Foot Low-Speed wind Tunnel to evaluate the application of wing-leading-edge devices on the stall-departure and spin resistance characteristics of a 1/6-scale model of a T-tail general-aviation aircraft. The model was force tested with an internal strain-gauge balance to obtain aerodynamic data on the complete configuration and with a separate wing balance to obtain aerodynamic data on the outer portion of the wing. The addition of the outboard leading-edge droop eliminated the abrupt stall of the windtip and maintained or increased the resultant-force coefficient up to about alpha = 32 degrees. This change in slope of the resultant-force coefficient curve with angle of attack has been shown to be important for eliminating autorotation and for providing spin resistance.

White, E. R.↗

Similarity for high angle-of-attack subsonic/transonic slender-body aerodynamics

The work of Sychev (1960) is extended to sharp-edged wings and smooth bodies. A simple fit to the correlations based on the Polhamus (1966) suction analogy is shown for several affine families of bodies with elliptical cross sections. The results suggest that simple models for nonlinear subsonic/transonic flows over not-so-slender wings and bodies can be obtained from a combination of well-known linear-theory models for the attached flow and slender-body concepts for the vortical flow.

Hemsch, M. J.↗

Eigenstructure assignment for a thrust-vectored high angle-of-attack aircraft

Eigenstructure assignment is utilized to design flight control laws for a thrust-vectored aircraft at several different angles of attack. An interesting characteristic of the aircraft model is that the control distribution matrix is rank-deficient. Also, the effectiveness of the control inputs varies with the angle of attack. A pseudocontrol strategy is used to reduce the control space to two dimensions. After the eigenstructure assignment design is complete, the controller is mapped back to the original five-dimensional control space. The designs are shown to exhibit acceptable multivariable stability margins at the aircraft inputs.

Sobel, Kenneth M.↗

Control of flow separation and mixing by aerodynamic excitation

The recent research in the control of shear flows using unsteady aerodynamic excitation conducted at the NASA Lewis Research Center is reviewed. The program is of a fundamental nature, concentrating on the physics of the unsteady aerodynamic processes. This field of research is a fairly new development with great promise in the areas of enhanced mixing and flow separation control. Enhanced mixing research includes influence of core turbulence, forced pairing of coherent structures, and saturation of mixing enhancement. Separation flow control studies included are for a two-dimensional diffuser, conical diffusers, and single airfoils. Ultimate applications include aircraft engine inlet flow control at high angle of attack, wide angle diffusers, highly loaded airfoils as in turbomachinery, and ejector/suppressor nozzles for the supersonic transport. An argument involving the Coanda Effect is made that all of the above mentioned application areas really only involve forms of shear layer mixing enhancement. The program also includes the development of practical excitation devices which might be used in aircraft applications.

Rice, Edward J.↗

Qualitative evaluation of a conformal velocity vector display for use at high angles-of-attack in fighter aircraft

A piloted simulation study was conducted to evaluate the utility of a display device designed to illustrate graphically and conformally the approximate location of a fighter aircraft's velocity vector. The display device consisted of two vertical rows of light emitting diodes (LED's) located toward the center of the cockpit instrument panel to each side of the control stick. The light strings provided a logical extension of the head up display (HUD) velocity vector symbol at flight path angles which exceeded the HUD field-of-view. Four test subjects flew a modified F/A-18 model with this display in an air-to-air engagement task against an equally capable opponent. Their responses to a questionnaire indicated that the conformal velocity vector information could not be used during the scenarios investigated due to the inability to visually track a target and view the lights simultaneously.

Jones, Denise R.↗

Control of flow separation and mixing by aerodynamic excitation

The recent research progress in the control of shear flows using unsteady aerodynamic excitation conducted at the NASA Lewis Research Center is reviewed. The program is of fundamental nature concentrating on the physics of the unsteady aerodynamic processes. This field of research is a fairly new development with great promise in the areas of enhanced mixing and flow separation control. Enhanced mixing research reported in this paper include influence of core turbulence, forced pairing of coherent structures, and saturation of mixing enhancement. Separation flow control studies included are for a two-dimensional diffuser, conical diffusers, and single airfoils. Ultimate applications of this research include aircraft engine inlet flow control at high angle of attack, wide angle diffusers, highly loaded airfoils as in turbomachinery, and ejector/suppressor nozzles for the supersonic transport. An argument involving the Coanda Effect is made here that all of the above mentioned application areas really only involve forms of shear layer mixing enhancement. The program also includes the development of practical excitation devices which might be used in aircraft applications.

Rice, Edward J.↗