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At least 451 records · Page 25

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NASA NTRS1998

Computational Analysis of Shock Layer Emission Measurements in an Arc-Jet Facility

This paper reports computational analysis of radiation emission experiments in a high enthalpy arc-jet wind tunnel at NASA Ames Research Center. Recently, as part of ongoing arc-jet characterization work, spectroscopic radiation emission experiments have been conducted at the 20 MW NASA Ames arc-jet facility. The emission measurements were obtained from the arc-jet freestream and from a shock layer formed in front of flatfaced models. Analysis of these data is expected to provide valuable information about the thermodynamic state of the gas in the arc-jet freestream and in the shock layer as well as thermochemical equilibration processes behind the shock in arc-jet flows. Knowledge of the thermodynamic state of the gas in arc-jet test flows and especially within the shock layer is essential to interpret the heat transfer measurements such as in surface catalysis experiments. The present work is a continuation of previous work and focuses on analysis of the emission data obtained at relatively low-pressure conditions for which the arc-jet shock layer is expected to be in thermal and chemical nonequilibrium. Building blocks of the present computational analysis are: (1) simulation of nonequilibrium expanding flow in the converging-diverging conical nozzle and supersonic jet; (2) simulation of nonequilibrium shock layer formed in front of the flat-faced cylinder model; and (3) prediction of line-of-sight radiation from the computed flowfield. For computations of the nonequilibrium flow in the conical nozzle and shock layer, multi-temperature nonequilibrium codes with the axisymmetric formulation are used. For computations of line-of-sight radiation. a nonequilibrium radiation code (NEQAIR) is used to predict emission spectra from the computed flowfield. Computed line-of-sight averaged flow properties such as vibrational and rotational temperatures, species number densities within the shock layer will be compared with those deduced from the experimental spectra. Detailed comparisons of computational and experimental spectra will also be presented.

Gokcen, Tahir↗

NASA NTRS2015

Nitric Oxide PLIF Visualization of Simulated Fuel-Air Mixing in a Dual-Mode Scramjet

Nitric oxide (NO) planar induced laser fluorescence (PLIF) measurements have been performed in a small scale scramjet combustor at the University of Virginia Aerospace Research Laboratory at nominal simulated Mach 5 flight. A mixture of NO and N2 was injected at the upstream end of the inlet isolator as a surrogate for ethylene fuel, and the mixing of this fuel simulant was studied with and without a shock train. The shock train was produced by an air throttle, which simulated the blockage effects of combustion downstream of the cavity flame holder. NO PLIF signal was imaged in a plane orthogonal to the freestream at the leading edge of the cavity. Instantaneous planar images were recorded and analyzed to identify the most uniform cases, which were achieved by varying the location of the fuel injection and shock train. This method was used to screen different possible fueling configurations to provide optimized test conditions for follow-on combustion measurements using ethylene fuel. A theoretical study of the selected NO rotational transitions was performed to obtain a LIF signal that is linear with NO mole fraction and approximately independent of pressure and temperature.

Cantu, Luca M. L.↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Pterodactyl: Aerodynamic and Aerothermal Modeling for a Symmetric Deployable Earth Entry Vehicle with Flaps

NASA’s Pterodactyl project has investigated a deployable atmospheric entry vehicle integrated with a flap control system that provides precision targeting during reentry. The control system consists of eight flaps mounted at the edge of a heatshield that can deflect in and out of the flow. An aerodynamic and aerothermodynamic analysis process was developed for preliminary vehicle design and aerodynamic database generation using engineering and CFD tools with varying levels of fidelity. The objective of this analysis was to: 1) understand the inherent aerodynamics, 2) provide an aerodynamics database for stability and control analysis, and 3) provide qualitative and quantitative aeroheating analysis for Thermal Protection System modeling of the flaps. A high fidelity Euler code, Cart3D, was used to resolve complex flow features such as secondary shocks and shock impingement. A wide range of supersonic (Mach 2) and hypersonic Mach numbers (up to Mach 40) were tested with an Earth atmosphere model. A process was developed to utilize the adaptive volume mesh generator utility of the perfect gas model of Cart3D to create meshes with high cell efficiency and numerical stability prior to running a 2nd order accurate solution with a real gas model. High-fidelity aerothermal CFD simulations were performed using US3D to further improve the aerothermal analysis on hypersonic flow around a complex entry vehicle shape including viscosity, chemical reactions of air species, vibrational energy, and catalytic surface reactions. In this process, it was found that the flap control system provided multi-axis control that can be utilized for entry precision targeting. Additionally, the Pterodactyl vehicle can achieve up to a trim L/D of 0.2. Finally, the increased fidelity of the aerothermal heating environments revealed that the shear stress contributes to increasing the heating on the flaps.

Deployable Entry Vehicle↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Pterodactyl: Aerodynamic and Aerothermal Modeling for a Symmetric Deployable Earth Entry Vehicle with Flaps

Deployable Entry Vehicle↗

NASA NTRS1972

Evaluation of oxidation resistant nonmetallic materials at 1204 C (2200 F) in a Mach 1 burner

Specimens of 23 oxidation resistant, nonmetallic, refractory materials were systematically exposed in a high gas velocity burner to simulate a turbine engine environment. Isothermal and cyclic tests were conducted at a specimen temperature of 2200F which resulted from exposure to Mach 1 or Mach 0.5 hot gas streams. Specimen behavior was judged on the basis of failure mode, appearance, and weight change. SiC and Si3N4 exhibited the most promising behavior surviving all exposures including Mach 1 for 120 cycles (10 hr). Major failure modes identified for other materials were thermal shock, thermal fatigue, and mechanical failure due to gas loading.

Sanders, W. A.↗

NASA NTRS1982

Transonic aerodynamics; Transonic Perspective Symposium, Moffett Field, CA, February 18-20, 1981, Technical Papers

After an historical account of the development of transonic aerodynamics before 1940 and in the period 1945-1975, attention is given to the design for cruise performance efficiency of commercial transport aircraft, with emphasis on transonic wing design, the practical aerodynamic problems of military aircraft, with emphasis on store carriage and separation, experimental testing in transonic wind tunnels capable of Reynolds number simulation and aerodynamic flow visualization, and such mathematical techniques as potential equation methods for flow prediction and Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes computations of transonic flows. Also considered are transonic design using computational aerodynamics, the application of computation methods to transonic wing design, computational experience with advanced tactical aircraft, the evaluation of full potential flow methods, and the application of a shock-turbulent boundary layer interaction theory to transonic flowfield analysis.

Nixon, D.↗

NASA NTRS1992

Time-dependent quasi-one-dimensional simulations of high enthalpy pulse facilities

A numerical methodology is presented for simulating the time-dependent reacting flow inside the entire length of high enthalpy pulse facilities. The methodology is based on a finite-volume TVD scheme for the quasi-1D Euler equations coupled with finite-rate chemistry. A moving mesh and tracking of gas interfaces are used to overcome certain numerical difficulties associated with these types of flows. Simulation results of a helium driven shock tube show that computations can be used to predict the off-tailored behavior of shock tubes and tunnels. Particular attention is given to computations of the flow through the NASA Ames 16-inch combustion driven shock tunnel which show the influence of nonuniformities in the driver section on the reservoir conditions; and the effect of finite secondary diaphragm opening times on the chemical composition of the test flow in the HYPULSE expansion tube.

Wilson, Gregory J.↗

NASA NTRS2014

Wind-US Results for the AIAA 2nd Propulsion Aerodynamics Workshop

This presentation contains Wind-US results presented at the 2nd Propulsion Aerodynamics Workshop. The workshop was organized by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Air Breathing Propulsion Systems Integration Technical Committee with the purpose of assessing the accuracy of computational fluid dynamics for air breathing propulsion applications. Attendees included representatives from government, industry, academia, and commercial software companies. Participants were encouraged to explore and discuss all aspects of the simulation process including the effects of mesh type and refinement, solver numerical schemes, and turbulence modeling. The first set of challenge cases involved computing the thrust and discharge coefficients for a 25deg conical nozzle for a range of nozzle pressure ratios between 1.4 and 7.0. Participants were also asked to simulate two cases in which the 25deg conical nozzle was bifurcated by a solid plate, resulting in vortex shedding (NPR=1.6) and shifted plume shock (NPR=4.0). A second set of nozzle cases involved computing the discharge and thrust coefficients for a convergent dual stream nozzle for a range of subsonic nozzle pressure ratios. The workshop committee also compared the plume mixing of these cases across various codes and models. The final test case was a serpentine inlet diffuser with an outlet to inlet area ratio of 1.52 and an offset of 1.34 times the inlet diameter. Boundary layer profiles, wall static pressure, and total pressure at downstream rake locations were examined.

Wind-US↗

NASA NTRS1989

An investigation of some mechanical and thermal properties of lunar simulant materials heated at 2.45 GHz

Lunar simulant material was fabricated to simulate Apollo 11, Apollo 15, and Apollo 16 soils. The approximate compositions which these soils simulate are given. Samples of each soil simulate were fabricated into right circular cylinders, placed into a microwave reaction cavity, and heated using 2.45 GHz radiation to a particular processing temperature at which it was held for a prescribed length of time. Examples are given of two microwave heating programs for these simulant samples. Upon completion of thermal processing, each sample had its top and bottom surfaces polished. A technique was employed which looks at hardness data to determine the fracture toughness of a material and then relates this to thermal shock resistance. Some advantages of this technique are its low cost for analysis and thermal shock resistance as a function of initial sample orientation in the microwave field can be determined. Samples were prepared for testing and results are expected. At the same time, other samples are currently being investigated using scanning electron microscopy to determine their microstructures.

Meek, T. T.↗

NASA NTRS1992

A test suite for magnetohydrodynamical simulations

A collection is presented of MHD problems that will provide researchers who have interests in modeling MHD phenomena with a battery of tests (a 'test suite') for calibrating their numerical algorithms. Use of these tests will provide a common reference for comparison of different numerical MHD algorithms. The test suite includes both 1D and 2D problems. Taken together, these problems test the abilities of a numerical method to propagate accurately all of the MHD wave families in moving and stationary media, to capture MHD shocks and contact discontinuities, and to model accurately Lorentz force terms in multiple dimensions. An example solution of each test problem is presented. Diagnostic convergence-testing procedures that provide a quantitative evaluation of MHD algorithms are demonstrated.

Stone, James M.↗

NASA NTRS2026

Experimental Demonstration of a Supersonic Spike Ejector

Spike diffusers are presented as a means to improve supersonic ejector efficiency via reduction in shock losses. Design, fabrication, and testing of an articulated prototype is described. Experimental results are compared to empirical performance curves representing the loci of optimal one- and two-stage conventional ejectors driven by dry air and discharging to atmosphere. Operated at a compression ratio of ~10 with all inputs equal, the spike ejector is shown to have achieved up to 2.19X and 1.83X the secondary mass throughput of the one- and two-stage references, respectively. This suggests the potential of spike diffusers to reduce ejector operating costs by ~50%.

wind tunnel↗

DOE OSTI2025

AUTOIGNITION DELAY TIMES FOR REFORMATE GAS MIXTURES FROM METHANE GAS ENGINES

Methane slip is a prominent issue in natural gas reciprocating engines that are used in transportation and marine applications. The incomplete combustion that results in methane slip can be resolved with the introduction of hydrogen within the combustion mixture to improve methane oxidation and further enable combustion within the engine crevices where methane has previously remained unreacted. Steam methane reforming (SMR) is a common method used to produce hydrogen and can be used to design an onboard device to reduce methane slip from reciprocating engines. The development of this reformer device requires the validation of high-fidelity chemical kinetic models at the low temperatures of the crevice volumes of these engines. In this work, auto-ignition data is obtained using a shock tube at lean (φ—0.714 or λ—1.4) and stoichiometric (φ, λ = 1) equivalence ratios spanning a temperature range of 1042–1234 K at the 80-bar operating pressure of the test engine. Blends of methane, hydrogen, and reformate products from the SMR reaction are shock-heated in synthetic air, with the ignition delay time measured using an OH* chemiluminescence detector at 310 nm and a CH* detector at 430 nm. The experimental results are compared to several state-of-the-art chemical kinetic mechanisms from the literature. In general, most of the mechanisms show very good agreement with experiments at higher temperatures, with simulation results showing little deviation from experiments at lower temperatures. A sensitivity analysis was conducted, and the results reveal that the reaction H2 + CH3O2 = H + CH3O2H has a very significant role in determining low-temperature ignition delay times (IDTs) of SMR mixtures. These findings provide valuable insights into the chemical kinetics governing methane reformate combustion and contribute to the optimization of onboard reformer designs aimed at mitigating methane slip in natural gas-fueled engines.

Fraze, Matthew↗

NASA NTRS2011

Underexpanded Supersonic Plume Surface Interactions: Applications for Spacecraft Landings on Planetary Bodies

Numerical and experimental investigations of both far-field and near-field supersonic steady jet interactions with a flat surface at various atmospheric pressures are presented in this paper. These studies were done in assessing the landing hazards of both the NASA Mars Science Laboratory and Phoenix Mars spacecrafts. Temporal and spatial ground pressure measurements in conjunction with numerical solutions at altitudes of approx.35 nozzle exit diameters and jet expansion ratios (e) between 0.02 and 100 are used. Data from steady nitrogen jets are compared to both pulsed jets and rocket exhaust plumes at Mach approx.5. Due to engine cycling, overpressures and the plate shock dynamics are different between pulsed and steady supersonic impinging jets. In contrast to highly over-expanded (e <1) and underexpanded exhaust plumes, results show that there is a relative ground pressure load maximum for moderately underexpanded (e approx.2-5) jets which demonstrate a long collimated plume shock structure. For plumes with e much >5 (lunar atmospheric regime), the ground pressure is minimal due to the development of a highly expansive shock structure. We show this is dependent on the stability of the plate shock, the length of the supersonic core and plume decay due to shear layer instability which are all a function of the jet expansion ratio. Asymmetry and large gradients in the spatial ground pressure profile and large transient overpressures are predominantly linked to the dynamics of the plate shock. More importantly, this study shows that thruster plumes exhausting into martian environments possess the largest surface pressure loads and can occur at high spacecraft altitudes in contrast to the jet interactions at terrestrial and lunar atmospheres. Theoretical and analytical results also show that subscale supersonic cold gas jets adequately simulate the flow field and loads due to rocket plume impingement provided important scaling parameters are in agreement. These studies indicate the critical importance of testing and modeling plume-surface interactions for descent and ascent of spacecraft and launch vehicles.

Mehta, M.↗

NASA NTRS2011

Validation and Simulation of ARES I Scale Model Acoustic Test -1- Pathfinder Development

The Ares I Scale Model Acoustics Test (ASMAT) is a series of live-fire tests of scaled rocket motors meant to simulate the conditions of the Ares I launch configuration. These tests have provided a well documented set of high fidelity measurements useful for validation including data taken over a range of test conditions and containing phenomena like Ignition Over-Pressure and water suppression of acoustics. To take advantage of this data, a digital representation of the ASMAT test setup has been constructed and test firings of the motor have been simulated using the Loci/CHEM computational fluid dynamics software. Within this first of a series of papers, results from ASMAT simulations with the rocket in a held down configuration and without water suppression have then been compared to acoustic data collected from similar live-fire tests to assess the accuracy of the simulations. Detailed evaluations of the mesh features, mesh length scales relative to acoustic signals, Courant-Friedrichs-Lewy numbers, and spatial residual sources have been performed to support this assessment. Results of acoustic comparisons have shown good correlation with the amplitude and temporal shape of pressure features and reasonable spectral accuracy up to approximately 1000 Hz. Major plume and acoustic features have been well captured including the plume shock structure, the igniter pulse transient, and the ignition overpressure. Finally, acoustic propagation patterns illustrated a previously unconsidered issue of tower placement inline with the high intensity overpressure propagation path.

Putnam, G. C.↗

NASA NTRS2014

High Order Numerical Methods for LES of Turbulent Flows with Shocks

Simulation of turbulent flows with shocks employing explicit subgrid-scale (SGS) filtering may encounter a loss of accuracy in the vicinity of a shock. In this work we perform a comparative study of different approaches to reduce this loss of accuracy within the framework of the dynamic Germano SGS model. One of the possible approaches is to apply Harten's subcell resolution procedure to locate and sharpen the shock, and to use a one-sided test filter at the grid points adjacent to the exact shock location. The other considered approach is local disabling of the SGS terms in the vicinity of the shock location. In this study we use a canonical shock-turbulence interaction problem for comparison of the considered modifications of the SGS filtering procedure. For the considered test case both approaches show a similar improvement in the accuracy near the shock.

High Order↗

NASA NTRS2015

High Order Numerical Methods for LES of Turbulent Flows with Shocks

Simulation of turbulent flows with shocks employing explicit subgrid-scale (SGS) filtering may encounter a loss of accuracy in the vicinity of a shock. In this work we perform a comparative study of different approaches to reduce this loss of accuracy within the framework of the dynamic Germano SGS model. One of the possible approaches is to apply Harten’s subcell resolution procedure to locate and sharpen the shock, and to use a one-sided test filter at the grid points adjacent to the exact shock location. The other considered approach is local disabling of the SGS terms in the vicinity of the shock location. In this study we use a canonical shock-turbulence interaction problem for comparison of the considered modifications of the SGS filtering procedure. For the considered test case both approaches show a similar improvement in the accuracy near the shock.

LES↗

NASA NTRS2015

Booster Interface Loads

The interaction between shock waves and the wake shed from the forward booster/core attach hardware results in unsteady pressure fluctuations, which can lead to large buffeting loads on the vehicle. This task investigates whether computational tools can adequately predict these flows, and whether alternative booster nose shapes can reduce these loads. Results from wind tunnel tests will be used to validate the computations and provide design information for future Space Launch System (SLS) configurations. The current work combines numerical simulations with wind tunnel testing to predict buffeting loads caused by the boosters. Variations in nosecone shape, similar to the Ariane 5 design (fig. 1), are being evaluated with regard to lowering the buffet loads. The task will provide design information for the mitigation of buffet loads for SLS, along with validated simulation tools to be used to assess future SLS designs.

Gentz, Steve↗

NASA NTRS1991

Aerothermodynamic environment predictions in support of the Aeroassist Flight Experiment

A computational fluid dynamic (CFD) simulation has been made of the flow past an Aeroassist Flight Experiment (AFE) aerobrake model with a payload and sting. The simulation involves solving the complete Navier-Stokes equations in three dimensions. Comparisons with data taken in a Mach 10 wind tunnel test are made and agreement is shown to be very good. Points of comparison include the aerobrake surface pressure and heat transfer rate, the sting surface streamlines, and the sting heat transfer rate. The dependence of the solution on the grid is also explored. Finally, predictions are made for conditions which correspond to a hypersonic shock tunnel force and moment test to be carried out later this year.

Fay, John F.↗