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NASA NTRS1991

Multi-Dimensional ENO Schemes for General Geometries

A class of ENO schemes is presented for the numerical solution of multidimensional hyperbolic systems of conservation laws in structured and unstructured grids. This is a class of shock-capturing schemes which are designed to compute cell-averages to high order accuracy. The ENO scheme is composed of a piecewise-polynomial reconstruction of the solution form its given cell-averages, approximate evolution of the resulting initial value problem, and averaging of this approximate solution over each cell. The reconstruction algorithm is based on an adaptive selection of stencil for each cell so as to avoid spurious oscillations near discontinuities while achieving high order of accuracy away from them.

Harten, Ami↗

NASA NTRS1991

Multi-resolution analysis for ENO schemes

Given an function, u(x), which is represented by its cell-averages in cells which are formed by some unstructured grid, we show how to decompose the function into various scales of variation. This is done by considering a set of nested grids in which the given grid is the finest, and identifying in each locality the coarsest grid in the set from which u(x) can be recovered to a prescribed accuracy. This multi-resolution analysis was applied to essentially non-oscillatory (ENO) schemes in order to advance the solution by one time-step. This is accomplished by decomposing the numerical solution at the beginning of each time-step into levels of resolution, and performing the computation in each locality at the appropriate coarser grid. An efficient algorithm for implementing this program in the 1-D case is presented; this algorithm can be extended to the multi-dimensional case with Cartesian grids.

Harten, Ami↗

NASA NTRS1991

Multidisciplinary modeling and simulation of a generic hypersonic vehicle

The modeling and simulation of hypersonic vehicles which involve the interaction of a number of major technical disciplines including aerodynamics, structures, heat transfer, propulsion, and control engineering are described. Finite element numerical formulations of individual disciplines including their appropriate integration for multidisciplinary simulation are presented. An efficient unstructured grid generation strategy, evolved by modifying an existing code, is developed.

Gupta, K. K.↗

NASA NTRS1992

A nearly-monotone genuinely multidimensional scheme for the Euler equations

Recent progress made in the development of a genuinely multidimensional finite-volume method for the Euler equations is reported. In this method, wave information is derived from a reconstruction procedure applied to the data on a triangle. The algorithm is therefore best suited to application on an unstructured grid. A flux formula which provides nearly-monotone solutions is also presented. The new method is tested on three simple 2D flows, and the results show that dominant-wave resolution is high, and that strong-wave transitions are nearly monotone.

Parpia, Ijaz H.↗

NASA NTRS1993

Advancing-Front Algorithm For Delaunay Triangulation

Efficient algorithm performs Delaunay triangulation to generate unstructured grids for use in computing two-dimensional flows. Once grid generated, one can optionally call upon additional subalgorithm that removes diagonal lines from quadrilateral cells nearly rectangular. Resulting approximately rectangular grid reduces cost per iteration of flow-computing algorithm.

Merriam, Marshal L.↗

NASA NTRS1993

Spatial adaptation procedures on tetrahedral meshes for unsteady aerodynamic flow calculations

Spatial adaptation procedures for the accurate and efficient solution of steady and unsteady inviscid flow problems are described. The adaptation procedures were developed and implemented within a three-dimensional, unstructured-grid, upwind-type Euler code. These procedures involve mesh enrichment and mesh coarsening to either add points in high gradient regions of the flow or remove points where they are not needed, respectively, to produce solutions of high spatial accuracy at minimal computational cost. A detailed description of the enrichment and coarsening procedures are presented and comparisons with experimental data for an ONERA M6 wing and an exact solution for a shock-tube problem are presented to provide an assessment of the accuracy and efficiency of the capability. Steady and unsteady results, obtained using spatial adaptation procedures, are shown to be of high spatial accuracy, primarily in that discontinuities such as shock waves are captured very sharply.

Rausch, Russ D.↗

NASA NTRS1993

Conical Euler analysis and active roll suppression for unsteady vortical flows about rolling delta wings

A conical Euler code was developed to study unsteady vortex-dominated flows about rolling, highly swept delta wings undergoing either forced motions or free-to-roll motions that include active roll suppression. The flow solver of the code involves a multistage, Runge-Kutta time-stepping scheme that uses a cell-centered, finite-volume, spatial discretization of the Euler equations on an unstructured grid of triangles. The code allows for the additional analysis of the free to-roll case by simultaneously integrating in time the rigid-body equation of motion with the governing flow equations. Results are presented for a delta wing with a 75 deg swept, sharp leading edge at a free-stream Mach number of 1.2 and at 10 deg, 20 deg, and 30 deg angle of attack alpha. At the lower angles of attack (10 and 20 deg), forced-harmonic analyses indicate that the rolling-moment coefficients provide a positive damping, which is verified by free-to-roll calculations. In contrast, at the higher angle of attack (30 deg), a forced-harmonic analysis indicates that the rolling-moment coefficient provides negative damping at the small roll amplitudes. A free-to-roll calculation for this case produces an initially divergent response, but as the amplitude of motion grows with time, the response transitions to a wing-rock type of limit cycle oscillation, which is characteristic of highly swept delta wings. This limit cycle oscillation may be actively suppressed through the use of a rate-feedback control law and antisymmetrically deflected leading-edge flaps. Descriptions of the conical Euler flow solver and the free-to roll analysis are included in this report. Results are presented that demonstrate how the systematic analysis of the forced response of the delta wing can be used to predict the stable, neutrally stable, and unstable free response of the delta wing. These results also give insight into the flow physics associated with unsteady vortical flows about delta wings undergoing forced motions and free-to-roll motions, including the active suppression of the wing-rock type phenomenon. The conical Euler methodology developed is directly extend able to three-dimensional calculations.

Lee-Rausch, Elizabeth M.↗

NASA NTRS1992

Research and applications in structural dynamics and aeroelasticity

Results of some recently completed research programs in aeroelasticity and structural dynamics at the NASA Langley Research Center are presented. It is shown that multifunctional active controls can be used to control flutter and loads on future advanced fighter configurations. A description and early results of an experimental program are presented in order to provide a well documented data base for validating unsteady aerodynamic codes. It is shown that the degradation in aeroelastic behavior due to thermal effects on a hypersonic vehicle can be offset by the use of active controls. The feasibility of using adaptive materials to control flutter is demonstrated experimentally. A description of the latest unstructured grid methods for use in advanced computational unsteady aerodynamic codes is presented. A program to improve the ability of FEMs to predict rotorcraft vibrational characteristics is described. The use of aeroelastic tailoring to improve the performance of tilt rotor vehicles is examined.

Abel, Irving↗

NASA NTRS1992

Adaptive remeshing for three-dimensional compressible flow computations

A practical solution algorithm for steady 3D Euler flows is presented. This algorithm employs coupling of a surface triangulator, an automatic tetrahedral mesh generator, an unstructured grid flow solver, and an error estimation procedure. The performance of the method is illustrated using a shock interaction problem in high Mach number flow over a swept circular cylinder.

Peraire, J.↗

NASA NTRS1993

Spatial adaptation procedures on tetrahedral meshes for unsteady aerodynamic flow calculations

Spatial adaptation procedures for the accurate and efficient solution of steady and unsteady inviscid flow problems are described. The adaptation procedures were developed and implemented within a three-dimensional, unstructured-grid, upwind-type Euler code. These procedures involve mesh enrichment and mesh coarsening to either add points in high gradient regions of the flow or remove points where they are not needed, respectively, to produce solutions of high spatial accuracy at minimal computational cost. The paper gives a detailed description of the enrichment and coarsening procedures and presents comparisons with experimental data for an ONERA M6 wing and an exact solution for a shock-tube problem to provide an assessment of the accuracy and efficiency of the capability. Steady and unsteady results, obtained using spatial adaptation procedures, are shown to be of high spatial accuracy, primarily in that discontinuities such as shock waves are captured very sharply.

Rausch, Russ D.↗

NASA NTRS1993

Unstructured 3D Delaunay mesh generation applied to planes, trains and automobiles

Technical issues associated with domain-tessellation production, including initial boundary node triangulation and volume mesh refinement, are presented for the 'TGrid' 3D Delaunay unstructured grid generation program. The approach employed is noted to be capable of preserving predefined triangular surface facets in the final tessellation. The capabilities of the approach are demonstrated by generating grids about an entire fighter aircraft configuration, a train, and a wind tunnel model of an automobile.

Blake, Kenneth R.↗

NASA NTRS1993

On the accuracy of limiters and convergence to steady state solutions

This paper addresses the practical problem of obtaining convergence to steady state solutions when limiters are used in conjunction with upwind schemes on unstructured grids. The base scheme forms a gradient and limits it by imposing monotonicity conditions in the reconstruction stage. It is shown by analysis in one dimension that such an approach leads to various schemes meeting TVD requirements in one dimension. It is further shown that these formally second order accurate schemes are less than second order accurate in practice because of the action of the limiter function in smooth regions of the solution. Modifications are proposed to the limiter that restore the second order accuracy. In multiple dimensions these schemes produce steady state solutions that are monotone and devoid of oscillations. However, convergence stalls after a few orders of reduction in the residual. With the modified limiter, on the other hand, it is shown that converged steady state solutions can be obtained.

Venkatakrishnan, V.↗

NASA NTRS1993

Euler solutions for blunt bodies using triangular meshes - Artificial viscosity forms and numerical boundary conditions

A finite volume method is used to calculate compressible inviscid flows over blunt bodies using, in general, unstructured grids. Artificial viscosity forms are derived based on a simplified least squares procedure. The extra second order terms are consistent with the governing equations, hence a systematic treatment of the numerical boundary conditions can be easily implemented. A special treatment of blunt bodies may be required. The discrete equations are linearized and the resulting system is solved by a relaxation method. Preliminary results indicate that the effect of the numerical dissipation is minimal. For subsonic flows over smooth bodies, the solution is practically vorticity-free and the total pressure loss is of the same order as the truncation error. Finally, some extensions of the present method are briefly discussed.

Winterstein, R.↗

NASA NTRS1989

Upwind-biased, point-implicit relaxation strategies for hypersonic flowfield simulations on supercomputers

An upwind-biased, point-implicit relaxation algorithm for obtaining the numerical solution to the governing equations for three-dimensional, viscous, hypersonic flows in chemical and thermal nonequilibrium is described. The algorithm is derived using a finite-volume formulation in which the inviscid components of flux across cell walls are described with Roe's averaging and Harten's entropy fix with second-order corrections based on Yee's Symmetric Total Variation Diminishing scheme. The relaxation strategy is well suited for computers employing either vector or parallel architectures, and the relation between computer architecture and algorithm is emphasized. It is also well suited to the numerical solution of the governing equations on unstructured grids. Because of the point-implicit relaxation strategy, the algorithm remains stable at large Courant numbers without the necessity of solving large. block tri-diagonal systems. A single relaxation step depends only on information from nearest neighbors. Predictions for pressure distributions, surface heating, and aerodynamic coefficients compare well with experimental data for Mach 10 flow over a blunt body. Predictions for the hypersonic flow of air in chemical and thermal nonequilibrium (velocity = 8917 m/s, altitude = 78 km.) over the Aeroassist Flight Experiment (AFE) configuration obtained on a multi-domain grid are discussed.

Gnoffo, Peter A.↗

NASA NTRS1993

Unstructured adaptive mesh computations of rotorcraft high-speed impulsive noise

A new method is developed for modeling helicopter high-speed impulsive (HSI) noise. The aerodynamics and acoustics near the rotor blade tip are computed by solving the Euler equations on an unstructured grid. A stationary Kirchhoff surface integral is then used to propagate these acoustic signals to the far field. The near-field Euler solver uses a solution-adaptive grid scheme to improve the resolution of the acoustic signal. Grid points are locally added and/or deleted from the mesh at each adaptive step. An important part of this procedure is the choice of an appropriate error indicator. The error indicator is computed from the flow field solution and determines the regions for mesh coarsening and refinement. Computed results for HSI noise compare favorably with experimental data for three different hovering rotor cases.

Strawn, Roger↗

NASA NTRS1992

Parallel computational fluid dynamics - Implementations and results

The present volume on parallel CFD discusses implementations on parallel machines, numerical algorithms for parallel CFD, and performance evaluation and computer science issues. Attention is given to a parallel algorithm for compressible flows through rotor-stator combinations, a massively parallel Euler solver for unstructured grids, a fast scheme to analyze 3D disk airflow on a parallel computer, and a block implicit multigrid solution of the Euler equations. Topics addressed include a 3D ADI algorithm on distributed memory multiprocessors, clustered element-by-element computations for fluid flow, hypercube FFT and the Fourier pseudospectral method, and an investigation of parallel iterative algorithms for CFD. Also discussed are fluid dynamics using interface methods on parallel processors, sorting for particle flow simulation on the connection machine, a large grain mapping method, and efforts toward a Teraflops capability for CFD.

Simon, Horst D.↗

NASA NTRS1993

Experience in using SIMD and MIMD parallelism for computational fluid dynamics

One of the key objectives of the Applied Research Branch in the Numerical Aerodynamic Simulation (NAS) Systems Division at NASA Ames Research Center is the accelerated introduction of highly parallel machines into a fully operational environment. In this report we summarize some of the experiences with the parallel testbed machines at the NAS Applied Research Branch. We discuss the performance results obtained from the implementation of two computational fluid dynamics (CFD) applications, an unstructured grid solver and a particle simulation, on the Connection Machine CM-2 and the Intel iPSC/860.

Simon, Horst D.↗

NASA NTRS1994

Time integration algorithms for the two-dimensional Euler equations on unstructured meshes

Explicit and implicit time integration algorithms for the two-dimensional Euler equations on unstructured grids are presented. Both cell-centered and cell-vertex finite volume upwind schemes utilizing Roe's approximate Riemann solver are developed. For the cell-vertex scheme, a four-stage Runge-Kutta time integration, a fourstage Runge-Kutta time integration with implicit residual averaging, a point Jacobi method, a symmetric point Gauss-Seidel method and two methods utilizing preconditioned sparse matrix solvers are presented. For the cell-centered scheme, a Runge-Kutta scheme, an implicit tridiagonal relaxation scheme modeled after line Gauss-Seidel, a fully implicit lower-upper (LU) decomposition, and a hybrid scheme utilizing both Runge-Kutta and LU methods are presented. A reverse Cuthill-McKee renumbering scheme is employed for the direct solver to decrease CPU time by reducing the fill of the Jacobian matrix. A comparison of the various time integration schemes is made for both first-order and higher order accurate solutions using several mesh sizes, higher order accuracy is achieved by using multidimensional monotone linear reconstruction procedures. The results obtained for a transonic flow over a circular arc suggest that the preconditioned sparse matrix solvers perform better than the other methods as the number of elements in the mesh increases.

Slack, David C.↗