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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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Spurious frequency components in output of numerically controlled oscillator (NCO) reduced by dithering appropriate digital signals with small random noise signal prior to truncation. Enables reduction of word length without increasing spurious signal power.
Acoustic-pressure transducer (microphone) with fiber-optic output designed to withstand hot, loud, structurally vibrating environment like that of jet engine. Features flat frequency response out to frequencies well beyond several-kilohertz range needed to test for acoustic-pressure loads on engine structures.
The redistribution of intrinsic quantum noise in the quadratures of the field generated in a sub-threshold degenerate optical parametric oscillator exhibits interesting dependences on the individual output mirror transmittances, when they are included exactly. We present a physical picture of this problem, based on mirror boundary conditions, which is valid for arbitrary transmittances. Hence, our picture applies uniformly to all values of the cavity Q factor representing, in the opposite extremes, both perfect oscillator and amplifier configurations. Beginning with a classical second-harmonic pump, we shall generalize our analysis to the finite amplitude and phase fluctuations of the pump.
The Transferable Output ASCII Data (TOAD) editor is an interactive software tool for manipulating the contents of TOAD files. The TOAD editor is specifically designed to work with tabular data. Selected subsets of data may be displayed to the user's screen, sorted, exchanged, duplicated, removed, replaced, inserted, or transferred to and from external files. It also offers a number of useful features including on-line help, macros, a command history, an 'undo' option, variables, and a full compliment of mathematical functions and conversion factors. Written in ANSI FORTRAN 77 and completely self-contained, the TOAD editor is very portable and has already been installed on SUN, SGI/IRIS, and CONVEX hosts.
Post-processing algorithms are given to compute the vibratory elastic-rigid coupling matrices and the modal contributions to the rigid-body mass matrices and to the effective modal inertias and masses. Recomputation of the elastic-rigid coupling matrices for a change in origin is also described. A computational example is included. The algorithms can all be executed by using standard finite-element program eigenvalue analysis output with no changes to existing code or source programs.
The Hybrid Automated Reliability Predictor (HARP) integrated Reliability (HiRel) tool system for reliability/availability prediction offers a toolbox of integrated reliability/availability programs that can be used to customize the user's application in a workstation or nonworkstation environment. HiRel consists of interactive graphical input/output programs and four reliability/availability modeling engines that provide analytical and simulative solutions to a wide host of highly reliable fault-tolerant system architectures and is also applicable to electronic systems in general. The tool system was designed at the outset to be compatible with most computing platforms and operating systems and some programs have been beta tested within the aerospace community for over 8 years. This document is a user's guide for the HiRel graphical postprocessor program HARPO (HARP Output). HARPO reads ASCII files generated by HARP. It provides an interactive plotting capability that can be used to display alternate model data for trade-off analyses. File data can also be imported to other commercial software programs.
We examine the electrodynamic power output from a thin accretion disk surrounding a Kerr black hole. We derive an upper limit for the total power. We find that this limit is only moderately sensitive to most of the relativistic correction factors. In fact, this limit is less sensitive to the change in the black hole spin than one would expect from the change in the inner radius of the accretion disk. The disk around a rapidly rotating black hole will produce more nonthermal radiation than a similar disk around a slowly rotating black hole of identical mass, but the difference is only a factor of approximately 1.7.
Photovoltaic linear concentrator arrays can benefit from high performance solar cell technologies being developed at AstroPower. Specifically, these are the integration of thin GaAs solar cell and epitaxial lateral overgrowth technologies with the application of monolithically interconnected solar cell (MISC) techniques. This MISC array has several advantages which make it ideal for space concentrator systems. These are high system voltage, reliable low cost monolithically formed interconnections, design flexibility, costs that are independent of array voltage, and low power loss from shorts, opens, and impact damage. This concentrator solar cell will incorporate the benefits of light trapping by growing the device active layers over a low-cost, simple, PECVD deposited silicon/silicon dioxide Bragg reflector. The high voltage-low current output results in minimal 12R losses while properly designing the device allows for minimal shading and resistance losses. It is possible to obtain open circuit voltages as high as 67 volts/cm of solar cell length with existing technology. The projected power density for the high performance device is 5 kW/m for an AMO efficiency of 26% at 1 5X. Concentrator solar cell arrays are necessary to meet the power requirements of specific mission platforms and can supply high voltage power for electric propulsion systems. It is anticipated that the high efficiency, GaAs monolithically interconnected linear concentrator solar cell array will enjoy widespread application for space based solar power needs. Additional applications include remote man-portable or ultra-light unmanned air vehicle (UAV) power supplies where high power per area, high radiation hardness and a high bus voltage or low bus current are important. The monolithic approach has a number of inherent advantages, including reduced cost per interconnect and increased reliability of array connections. There is also a high potential for a large number of consumer products. Dual-use applications can include battery chargers and remote power supplies for consumer electronics products such as portable telephones/beepers, portable radios, CD players, dashboard radar detectors, remote walkway lighting, etc.
A technique to achieve output tracking for nonminimum phase linear systems with non-hyperbolic and near non-hyperbolic internal dynamics is presented. This approach integrates stable inversion techniques, that achieve exact-tracking, with approximation techniques, that modify the internal dynamics to achieve desirable performance. Such modification of the internal dynamics is used (1) to remove non-hyperbolicity which an obstruction to applying stable inversion techniques and (2) to reduce large pre-actuation time needed to apply stable inversion for near non-hyperbolic cases. The method is applied to an example helicopter hover control problem with near non-hyperbolic internal dynamic for illustrating the trade-off between exact tracking and reduction of pre-actuation time.
Strain gage apparent strain (thermal output) is one of the largest sources of error associated with the measurement of strain when temperatures and mechanical loads are varied. In this paper, experimentally determined apparent strains of WK-type strain gages, installed on both metallic and composite-laminate materials of various lay-ups and resin systems for temperatures ranging from -450 F to 230 F are presented. For the composite materials apparent strain in both the 0 ply orientation angle and the 90 ply orientation angle were measured. Metal specimens tested included: aluminum-lithium alloy (Al-LI 2195-T87), aluminum alloy (Al 2219-T87), and titanium alloy. Composite materials tested include: graphite-toughened-epoxy (IM7/997- 2), graphite-bismaleimide (IM7/5260), and graphite-K3 (IM7/K3B). The experimentally determined apparent strain data are curve fit with a fourth-order polynomial for each of the materials studied. The apparent strain data and the polynomials that are fit to the data are compared with those produced by the strain gage manufacturer, and the results and comparisons are presented. Unacceptably high errors between the manufacture's data and the experimentally determined data were observed (especially at temperatures below - 270-F).
The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that a reduction in blood volume would attenuate or eliminate immersion-induced increases in cardiac output (Q (sup dot) sub co)) and urine excretion, and to investigate accompanying vasoactive and fluid-electrolyte hormonal responses.
The mission of the International Space Station is to provide a working laboratory in orbit for research in engineering, life sciences, and microgravity. Ensuring that the mechanical equipment on Space Station does not unduly disturb the microgravity environment is of paramount importance in meeting the Station's mission. The large inertia being moved by the Space Station's solar array and thermal radiator rotary joints make them one of the largest potential disturbance sources. The present paper describes the mechanical and control system design of these joints, their disturbance producing characteristics, and analytical predictions of some key performance indicators. The component and system functional tests performed to measure the actual vibration output of the joints are detailed and the test results discussed. Results of the rotary joint test program presented here show that the joints do meet the Space Station microgravity requirements, ensuring that this unique laboratory for microgravity research will be unaffected by the operation of the largest moving machinery on board.
This paper presents the thermal challenge of the Space Solar Power (SSP) design concepts with a 3.5 GW radio-frequency (RF) output. High efficiency klystrons are thermally more favored than solid state (butterstick) to convert direct current (DC) electricity to radio-frequency (RF) energy at the transmitters in these concepts. Using klystrons, the heat dissipation is 0.72 GW. Using solid state, the heat dissipation is 2.33 GW. The heat dissipation of the klystrons is 85% at 500C, 10% at 300C, and 5% at 125C. All the heat dissipation of the solid state is at 100C. Using klystrons, the radiator area is 74,500 square m Using solid state, the radiator area is 2,362,200 square m Space constructable heat pipe radiators are assumed in the thermal analysis. Also, to make the SSP concepts feasible, the mass of the heat transport system must be minimized. The heat transport distance from the transmitters to the radiators must be minimized. It can be accomplished by dividing the radiator into a cluster of small radiators, so that the heat transport distances between the klystrons and radiators can be minimized. The area of each small radiator is on the order of 1 square m. Two concepts for accommodating a cluster of small radiators are presented. If the distance between the transmitters and radiators is 1.5 m or less, constant conductance heat pipes (CCHPs) are acceptable for heat transport. If the distance exceeds 1.5 m, loop heat pipes (LHPs) are needed.
A multi-input, multi-output reconfigurable flight control system design utilizing a robust controller and an adaptive filter is presented. The robust control design consists of a reduced-order, linear dynamic inversion controller with an outer-loop compensation matrix derived from Quantitative Feedback Theory (QFT). A principle feature of the scheme is placement of the adaptive filter in series with the QFT compensator thus exploiting the inherent robustness of the nominal flight control system in the presence of plant uncertainties. An example of the scheme is presented in a pilot-in-the-loop computer simulation using a simplified model of the lateral-directional dynamics of the NASA F18 High Angle of Attack Research Vehicle (HARV) that included nonlinear anti-wind up logic and actuator limitations. Prediction of handling qualities and pilot-induced oscillation tendencies in the presence of these nonlinearities is included in the example.
The thermal output of Io is mapped using all nighttime observations obtained by Galileo NIMS. Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.
The use of a directional (or phased) array of microphones for the measurement of trailing edge (TE) noise is described and tested. The capabilities of this method arc evaluated via measurements of TE noise from a NACA 63-215 airfoil model and from a cylindrical rod. This TE noise measurement approach is compared to one that is based on thc cross spectral analysis of output signals from a pair of microphones placed on opposite sides of an airframe model (COP method). Advantages and limitations of both methods arc examined. It is shown that the microphone array can accurately measures TE noise and captures its two-dimensional characteristic over a large frequency range for any TE configuration as long as noise contamination from extraneous sources is within bounds. The COP method is shown to also accurately measure TE noise but over a more limited frequency range that narrows for increased TE thickness. Finally, the applicability and generality of an airfoil self-noise prediction method was evaluated via comparison to the experimental data obtained using the COP and array measurement methods. The predicted and experimental results are shown to agree over large frequency ranges.
The use of computational simulations in the prediction of complex aerodynamic flows is becoming increasingly prevalent in the design process within the aerospace industry. Continuing advancements in both computing technology and algorithmic development are ultimately leading to attempts at simulating ever-larger, more complex problems. However, by increasing the reliance on computational simulations in the design cycle, we must also increase the accuracy of these simulations in order to maintain or improve the reliability arid safety of the resulting aircraft. At the same time, large-scale computational simulations must be made more affordable so that their potential benefits can be fully realized within the design cycle. Thus, a continuing need exists for increasing the accuracy and efficiency of computational algorithms such that computational fluid dynamics can become a viable tool in the design of more reliable, safer aircraft. The objective of this research was the development of an error estimation and grid adaptive strategy for reducing simulation errors in integral outputs (functionals) such as lift or drag from from multi-dimensional Euler and Navier-Stokes simulations. In this final report, we summarize our work during this grant.
A multivariate statistical clustering technique--based on the k-means algorithm of Hartigan has been used to extract patterns of climatological significance from 200 years of general circulation model (GCM) output. Originally developed and implemented on a Beowulf-style parallel computer constructed by Hoffman and Hargrove from surplus commodity desktop PCs, the high performance parallel clustering algorithm was previously applied to the derivation of ecoregions from map stacks of 9 and 25 geophysical conditions or variables for the conterminous U.S. at a resolution of 1 sq km. Now applied both across space and through time, the clustering technique yields temporally-varying climate regimes predicted by transient runs of the Parallel Climate Model (PCM). Using a business-as-usual (BAU) scenario and clustering four fields of significance to the global water cycle (surface temperature, precipitation, soil moisture, and snow depth) from 1871 through 2098, the authors' analysis shows an increase in spatial area occupied by the cluster or climate regime which typifies desert regions (i.e., an increase in desertification) and a decrease in the spatial area occupied by the climate regime typifying winter-time high latitude perma-frost regions. The patterns of cluster changes have been analyzed to understand the predicted variability in the water cycle on global and continental scales. In addition, representative climate regimes were determined by taking three 10-year averages of the fields 100 years apart for northern hemisphere winter (December, January, and February) and summer (June, July, and August). The result is global maps of typical seasonal climate regimes for 100 years in the past, for the present, and for 100 years into the future. Using three-dimensional data or phase space representations of these climate regimes (i.e., the cluster centroids), the authors demonstrate the portion of this phase space occupied by the land surface at all points in space and time. Any single spot on the globe will exist in one of these climate regimes at any single point in time. By incrementing time, that same spot will trace out a trajectory or orbit between and among these climate regimes (or atmospheric states) in phase (or state) space. When a geographic region enters a state it never previously visited, a climatic change is said to have occurred. Tracing out the entire trajectory of a single spot on the globe yields a 'manifold' in state space representing the shape of its predicted climate occupancy. This sort of analysis enables a researcher to more easily grasp the multivariate behavior of the climate system.