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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 415 records · Page 23
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2002

Pulse Detonation Engines for High Speed Flight

Revolutionary concepts in propulsion are required in order to achieve high-speed cruise capability in the atmosphere and for low cost reliable systems for earth to orbit missions. One of the advanced concepts under study is the air-breathing pulse detonation engine. Additional work remains in order to establish the role and performance of a PDE in flight applications, either as a stand-alone device or as part of a combined cycle system. In this paper, we shall offer a few remarks on some of these remaining issues, i.e., combined cycle systems, nozzles and exhaust systems and thrust per unit frontal area limitations. Currently, an intensive experimental and numerical effort is underway in order to quantify the propulsion performance characteristics of this device. In this paper, we shall highlight our recent efforts to elucidate the propulsion potential of pulse detonation engines and their possible application to high-speed or hypersonic systems.

Povinelli, Louis A.↗
NASA NTRS2004

Exhaust Simulation Testing of a Hypersonic Airbreathing Model at Transonic Speeds

An experimental study was performed to examine jet-effects for an airframe-integrated, scramjet-rocket combined-cycle vehicle configuration at transonic test conditions. This investigation was performed by testing an existing exhaust simulation wind tunnel model, known as Model 5B, in the NASA Langley 16-Ft. Transonic Tunnel. Tests were conducted at freestream Mach numbers from 0.7 to 1.2, at angles of attack from 2 to +14 degrees, and at up to seven nozzle static pressure ratio values for a set of horizontal-tail and body-flap deflections. The model aftbody, horizontal tails, and body flaps were extensively pressure instrumented to provide an understanding of jet-effects and control-surface/plume interactions, as well as for the development of analytical methodologies and calibration of computational fluid dynamic codes to predict this type of flow phenomenon. At all transonic test conditions examined, the exhaust flow at the exit of the internal nozzle was over-expanded, generating an exhaust plume that turned toward the aftbody. Pressure contour plots for the aftbody of Model 5B are presented for freestream transonic Mach numbers of 0.70, 0.95, and 1.20. These pressure data, along with shadowgraph images, indicated the impingement of an internal plume shock and at least one reflected shock onto the aftbody for all transonic conditions tested. These results also provided evidence of the highly three-dimensional nature of the aftbody exhaust flowfield. Parametric testing showed that angle-of-attack, static nozzle pressure ratio, and freestream Mach number all affected the exhaust-plume size, exhaust-flowfield shock structure, and the aftbody-pressure distribution, with Mach number having the largest effect. Integration of the aftbody pressure data showed large variations in the pitching moment throughout the transonic regime.

Huebner, Lawrence D.↗
NASA NTRS1997

Videometric Applications in Wind Tunnels

Videometric measurements in wind tunnels can be very challenging due to the limited optical access, model dynamics, optical path variability during testing, large range of temperature and pressure, hostile environment, and the requirements for high productivity and large amounts of data on a daily basis. Other complications for wind tunnel testing include the model support mechanism and stringent surface finish requirements for the models in order to maintain aerodynamic fidelity. For these reasons nontraditional photogrammetric techniques and procedures sometimes must be employed. In this paper several such applications are discussed for wind tunnels which include test conditions with Mach number from low speed to hypersonic, pressures from less than an atmosphere to nearly seven atmospheres, and temperatures from cryogenic to above room temperature. Several of the wind tunnel facilities are continuous flow while one is a short duration blowdown facility. Videometric techniques and calibration procedures developed to measure angle of attack, the change in wing twist and bending induced by aerodynamic load, and the effects of varying model injection rates are described. Some advantages and disadvantages of these techniques are given and comparisons are made with non-optical and more traditional video photogrammetric techniques.

Burner, A. W.↗
NASA NTRS2019

Nonlinear Görtler Vortices and Their Secondary Instability in a Hypersonic Boundary Layer

Nonlinear development of the Görtler instability over a concave surface gives rise to a highly distorted inflectional flow field in the boundary layer that leads to both wall-normal and spanwise gradients in the flow. Such nonlinear structures are susceptible to strong, high-frequency secondary instabilities that may lead to the onset of laminar-turbulent transition. The present numerical study uses direct numerical simulations and linear secondary instability theory to investigate finite amplitude Görtler vortices and their secondary instability characteristics, respectively, in the hypersonic flow over an axisymmetric cone with a concave aft body. To complement previous studies in the literature wherein the Görtler instability was usually studied for a flat plate and initiated at some upstream location by imposing an eigenfunction as the inflow condition or by blowing and suction at the wall, the present investigation is focused on fully realizable Görtler instability that is excited by an azimuthally periodic array of surface protuberances. Furthermore, while the previous work had mostly focused on the secondary instability of Görtler vortices with cross-plane velocity contours that resembled bell-shaped structures, the present results confirm that fully developed mushroom structures also exist in the hypersonic regime when the Görtler vortex amplitude is sufficiently large. Computations further reveal that the dominant modes of secondary instability in these mushroom-shaped structures correspond to an antisymmetic (i.e., sinuous) “stem” mode that concentrates within the strong, nearly wall-normal internal shear layers surrounding the stem regions underneath the caps of the mushroom structures. Additionally, there exist a multitude of other significantly unstable secondary instability modes of both symmetric and antisymmetric types. Analogous to the secondary instability of crossflow vortices in hypersonic flows, secondary instability modes of both symmetric and antisymmetric types. Analogous to the secondary instability of crossflow vortices in hypersonic flows, secondary instability modes originating from the Mack mode instability play an important role during the nonlinear breakdown process.

Laminar turbulent transition↗
NASA NTRS1975

Low speed aerodynamic characteristics of a lifting-body hypersonic research aircraft configuration

An experimental investigation of the low-speed longitudinal, lateral, and directional stability characteristics of a lifting-body hypersonic research airplane concept was conducted in a low-speed tunnel with a 12-foot (3.66-meter) octagonal test section at the Langley Research Center. The model was tested with two sets of horizontal and vertical tip controls having different planform areas, a center vertical tail and two sets of canard controls having trapezoidal and delta planforms, and retracted and deployed engine modules and canopy. This investigation was conducted at a dynamic pressure of 239.4 Pa (5 psf) (Mach number of 0.06) and a Reynolds number of 2 million based on the fuselage length. The tests were conducted through an angle-of-attack range of 0 deg to 30 deg and through horizontal-tail deflections of 10 deg to minus 30 deg. The complete configuration exhibited excessive positive static longitudinal stability about the design center-of-gravity location. However, the configuration was unstable laterally at low angles of attack and unstable directionally throughout the angle-of-attack range. Longitudinal control was insufficient to trim at usable angles of attack. Experiments showed that a rearward shift of the center of gravity and the use of a center-located vertical tail would result in a stable and controllable vehicle.

Penland, J. A.↗
NASA NTRS1996

Materials Research for High Speed Civil Transport and Generic Hypersonics-Metals Durability

This report covers a portion of an ongoing investigation of the durability of titanium alloys for the High Speed Civil Transport (HSCT). Candidate alloys need to possess an acceptable combination of properties including strength and toughness as well as fatigue and corrosion resistance when subjected to the HSCT operational environment. These materials must also be capable of being processed into required product forms while maintaining their properties. Processing operations being considered for this airplane include forming, welding, adhesive bonding, and superplastic forming with or without diffusion bonding. This program was designed to develop the material properties database required to lower the risk of using advanced titanium alloys on the HSCT.

Schulz, Paul↗
NASA NTRS2023

Overview of Commercial High-Speed Market Studies and NASA’s Hypersonic Technology Project

Presenting a 40-minute Throughout the history of aviation, there has been a continual desire to develop aircraft that can go higher, faster, and farther. Within each of these broad goals, significant achievements have been made in aeronautics over the decades. Specialized military aircraft can reach the edges of the atmosphere and regularly fly at supersonic speeds, with the Concorde bringing transatlantic supersonic flight to the public. In addition, commercial subsonic aircraft regularly fly nonstop flights of over 7000 nautical miles with flight times lasting over 15 hours. Each of these achievements have been enabled by research and development on the technologies required to overcome these barriers. As major technical challenges for high-speed/hypersonic flight have been overcome, the next questions that arise relate to what precisely is a viable commercial high-speed/hypersonic vehicle and what is the market for it. In 2020, NASA funded two studies to provide an independent assessment of the economic viability of high-speed/hypersonic transportation and some high level guidance on the design requirements of such a vehicle. Results from these market studies will be presented as well as insight into how these results are being used to inform ongoing strategic planning efforts in this research area within NASA’s Hypersonic Technology project.

High-Speed Independent Market Studies↗
NASA NTRS1960

Low-Speed Aerodynamic Characteristics of a Model of a Hypersonic Research Airplane at Angles of Attack up to 90 deg for a Range of Reynolds Numbers

Static force tests have been made at low subsonic speeds for a model of a hypersonic research airplane in the Langley high-speed 7- by 10-foot tunnel to determine the aerodynamic forces and moments up to an angle of attack of 90 deg for a range of Reynolds numbers. The Reynolds numbers, based on the mean aerodynamic chord, ranged from 740,000 to 1,900,000, which correspond to dynamic pressures from 15 to 100 lb/sq ft (Mach numbers from 0.10 to 0.27). The model was tested in the clean configuration with various horizontal-tail settings, horizontal tail off, lower rudder off, fuselage alone, and with various size strakes and slats on the nose of the model. Representative results of the present investigation are presented in plotted form, and a tabulation of all the data obtained is presented in a table. Appreciable effects on side force, yawing moment, and pitching moment are indicated by changes in Reynolds number for angles of attack of 40 to 90 deg.

Bowman, James S., Jr.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Low-speed, high-lift aerodynamic characteristics of slender, hypersonic accelerator-type configurations

Two investigations were conducted in the Langley 14 by 22 Foot Subsonic Tunnel to determine the low-speed aerodynamic characteristics of a generic hypersonic accelerator-type configuration. The model was a delta wing configuration incorporating a conical forebody, a simulated wrap-around engine package, and a truncated conical aftbody. Six-component force and moment data were obtained over a range of attack from -4 to 30 degrees and for a sideslip range of + or - 20 degrees. In addition to tests of the basic configuration, component build-up tests were conducted; and the effects of power, forebody nose geometry, canard surfaces, fuselage strakes, and engines on the lower surface alone were also determined. Control power available from deflections of wing flaps and aftbody flaps was also investigated and found to be significantly increased during power-on conditions. Large yawing moments resulted from asymmetric flow fields exhibited by the forebody as revealed by both surface pressure data and flow visualization. Increasing nose bluntness reduced the yawing-moment asymmetry, and the addition of a canard eliminated the yawing-moment asymmetry.

Gatlin, Gregory M.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Hypersonic aerodynamics test facility using the external propulsion accelerator

The use of the External propulsion Accelerator (EPA) for launching models of hypersonic aerodynamic configurations into an instrumented ballistic range is discussed. The aerodynamic model is encased inside an axisymmetric projectile designed to be accelerated to high speed in the EPA. Accelerator lengths required to achieve hypersonic speeds are estimated to vary from 10 meters for Mach 7, 40 meters for Mach 10, 150 meters for Mach 15, and 700 meters for Mach 30, assuming a limit of 50,000 g's acceleration. For a model span of 10 cm to 25 cm, the launch tube diameters are 40 cm and 100 cm, respectively. Using this EPA launcher will enable exact simulation of hypersonic flight in ground facilities where both the gas composition and pressure can be controlled in the ballistic range.

Rom, J.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Aeronautical facility requirements into the 2,000's

This paper delineates and speculates upon aeronautical systems, trends, and requirements into the 2,000's and indicates ground facility capability enhancements which are needed to support these devlopments. New facility capabilities required include (1) higher Reynolds number at low speeds especially for the high-lift and vortex hazard problems, (2) low-disturbance, high-speed aerodynamic and hypersonic propulsion facilities for transition and mixing studies, (3) large-scale and relatively long test-time hypersonic propulsion tunnels to allow multidisciplinary integration, (4) a large-scale, high-speed acoustics facility for en route noise minimization, (5) a large-scale ballistic range for planetary entry studies, and (6) development of advanced (full simultaneous 3-space and time) nonintrusive instrumentation for CFD transition/turbulence modeling/code validation and interacting flow physics determination.

Beach, H. L., Jr.↗
NASA NTRS1994

Numerical Simulation of Supersonic Compression Corners and Hypersonic Inlet Flows Using the RPLUS2D Code

A two-dimensional computational code, PRLUS2D, which was developed for the reactive propulsive flows of ramjets and scramjets, was validated for two-dimensional shock-wave/turbulent-boundary-layer interactions. The problem of compression corners at supersonic speeds was solved using the RPLUS2D code. To validate the RPLUS2D code for hypersonic speeds, it was applied to a realistic hypersonic inlet geometry. Both the Baldwin-Lomax and the Chien two-equation turbulence models were used. Computational results showed that the RPLUS2D code compared very well with experimentally obtained data for supersonic compression corner flows, except in the case of large separated flows resulting from the interactions between the shock wave and turbulent boundary layer. The computational results compared well with the experiment results in a hypersonic NASA P8 inlet case, with the Chien two-equation turbulence model performing better than the Baldwin-Lomax model.

Kapoor, Kamlesh↗