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Measurements were performed to determine the pressure drops for gaseous flow through porous materials of different microstructures, porosities, and thickness under isothermal and nonisothermal conditions at various temperature levels. Results were satisfactorily correlated by a simple equation relating the friction factor to the Reynolds number and porosities.
Nine inch diameter samples of the material which will provide thermal and acoustic protection between the nozzle and outer skirt on the space shuttle solid rocket boosters were subjected to heating tests to determine the porosity of the material and the thermal response to a step change in heating. For the porosity measurements a steady state flow of air at 70 F, 500 F, and 1000 F was passed through a sample of the curtain material and measurements of the flow rates were made at different pressure drops across the sample. For the transient measurements, a sample of the curtain material was subjected to a step change in temperature as air was passed through the sample. Measurements of the heat flow through the sample were made as a function of time after the input of the heat pulse. The sample consisted of three layers of curtain panels. Each panel was made of combinations of quartz and fiberglass cloth between which a fiberfrax filler material had been stitched. The hardware design and test procedures were described. Data are provided in engineering units for the flow conditions and and temperatures at which measurements were conducted.
The porosity and platability of various materials were investigated to determine a suitable substrate for nickel-plated electrodes. Immersion, ultrasonics, and flow-through plating techniques were tried using nonproprietary formulations, and proprietary phosphide and boride baths. Modifications to the selected material include variations in formulation and treatment, carbon loading to increase conductivity, and the incorporation of a grid. Problems to be solved relate to determining conductivities and porosities as a function of amount of nickel plated on the plastics; loading; charge and discharge curves of electrodes at different current densities; cell performance; and long-term degradation of electrodes.
The effect of the microstructure of reaction bonded silicon nitride on strength is examined. The morphologies of the various microconstituents (alpha-matte, beta-spikes, residual silicon and porosity) each play a role in determining the strength of the material. While density and hence percent porosity greatly affect strength, it is shown that the pore size and pore size distribution affect strength with equal importance. By minimizing the pore size and distribution and maximizing the alpha-beta ratio, a reaction bonded material (2.4 kg/cu m) has been produced with a room temperature modulus of rupture (three-point bending) of 297 MPa from a low green density starting material (1.5 kg/cu m).
Partial melting is likely to have occurred throughout much of the moon due to heating during accretion and the volumetric heating of radioactive isotopes. Important problems that have received relatively little attention concern the migration of the resulting magmas to form surface or near surface volcanic rock. In the paper the basic mechanism for the migration of the magma through the lunar asthenosphere is considered. A porous flow model is proposed. The magma behaves like a liquid flowing through a porous matrix. The volume fraction of liquid present determines the saturated porosity. The differential buoyancy of the magma drives it upwards. It is shown that the per cent partial melt in the lunar interior will only slightly exceed that required to provide interconnecting porosity. Assuming that the radioactive isotopes are preferentially segregated into the magma, the time dependence of the partial melting of the lunar interior is found. It is shown that the total degree of partial melting of the deep lunar interior is likely to be between five and ten per cent.
High-pressure equation of state data for lunar anorthosite with an initial porosity of about 18% are compared with previous results for nonporous anorthosite and lunar samples. The porous anorthosite is characterized by a lower shock impedance than the nonporous anorthosite; nonporous gabbroic anorthosite and high-titanium mare basalt show higher shock impedances than the nonporous anorthosite. Thus the properties of target rocks may bias crater statistics and apparent cratering ages for different lunar terranes. Repeated meteoritic bombardment of the moon resulting in even mild brecciation and, hence, porosity, could lead to increases in the efficiency with which thermal energy is trapped by the surface upon impact.
Lunar crater volumes can be divided by size into two general classes with distinctly different functional dependence on diameter. Craters smaller than approximately 12 km in diameter are morphologically simple and increase in volume as the cube of the diameter, while craters larger than about 20 km are complex and increase in volume at a significantly lower rate implying shallowing. Ejecta and interior volumes are not identical and their ratio, Schroeters Ratio (SR), increases from about 0.5 for simple craters to about 1.5 for complex craters. The excess of ejecta volume causing the increase, can be accounted for by a discontinuity in lunar crust porosity at 1.5-2 km depth. The diameter range of significant increase in SR corresponds with the diameter range of transition from simple to complex crater morphology. This observation, combined with theoretical rebound calculation, indicates control of the transition diameter by the porosity structure of the upper crust.
Sound data which were obtained during tests of a 50.8 cm diameter, subsonic tip speed, low pressure ratio fan were analyzed. The test matrix was divided into two major investigations: (1) source noise reduction techniques; and (2) aft duct noise reduction with acoustic treatment. Source noise reduction techniques were investigated which include minimizing second harmonic noise by varying vane/blade ratio, variation in spacing, and lowering the Mach number through the vane row to lower fan broadband noise. Treatment in the aft duct which includes flow noise effects, faceplate porosity, rotor OGV treatment, slant cell treatment, and splitter simulation with variable depth on the outer wall and constant thickness treatment on the inner wall was investigated. Variable boundary conditions such as variation in treatment panel thickness and orientation, and mixed porosity combined with variable thickness were examined. Significant results are reported.
A line spread device capable of yielding direct measure of a laser beam's line spread function (LSF) was developed and employed in propagation tests conducted in a wind tunnel to examine optimal acoustical suppression techniques for laser cavities exposed to simulated aircraft aerodynamic environments. Measurements were made on various aerodynamic fences and cavity air injection techniques that effect the LSF of a propagating laser. Using the quiescent tunnel as a control, the relative effect of each technique on laser beam quality was determined. The optical instrument employed enabled the comparison of relative beam intensity for each fence or mass injection. It was found that fence height had little effect on beam quality but fence porosity had a marked effect, i.e., 58% porosity alleviated cavity resonance and degraded the beam the least. Mass injection had little effect on the beam LSF. The use of a direct LSF measuring device proved to be a viable means of determining aerodynamic seeing qualities of flow fields.
It is noted that currently available reaction bonded silicon nitride (RBSN) materials are limited by relatively low strength (up to 300 MPa) and oxidation resistance, primarily due to open porosity. Attention is given to technology that was developed and used to produce an improved grade of injection molded RBSN having a density of 2.8 g/cc, with significantly decreased open porosity and a strength exceeding 350 MPa. It is shown that these results are primarily due to advances in two areas: silicon powder processing, and nitriding technique. A comparison of room temperature strength and oxidation resistance of the new material with that of state-of-the-art RBSN, showed significant improvements. It is concluded that turbine stator vanes were produced to show that this improved RBSN technology has been reduced to engineering practice.
A study of fundamental rub behavior for 10 dense, sprayed materials and eight current compressor clearance materials was conducted. A literature survey of a wide variety of metallurgical and thermophysical properties was conducted and correlated to rub behavior. Based on the results, the most promising dense rub material was Cu-9A1. Additional studies on the effects of porosity, incursion rate, blade solidity, and ambient temperature were carried out on aluminum bronze (Cu-9Al-1Fe) with and without a 515B Feltmetal underlayer. A further development effort was conducted to assess the property requirements of a porous, aluminum bronze, seal material. Strength, thermal cycle capabilities, erosion and oxidation resistance, machinability, and abradability at several porosity levels were examined.
The results of an analysis into the cause of the non-solderability of multiple defective part lots from two capacitor manufacturers are described. This analysis consisted of visual, scanning electron microscopic, surface, and metalographic examinations and analyses. The results indicated that non-solderability results from areas of excess porosity in the termination which are caused by segregation of ink constituents during manufacturing. This segregation can be minimized by proper monitoring and control of process variables; where excess porosity does occur, solderability can be improved by proper precleaning of parts.
A generalized theory of radiative transfer is presented which includes single and multiple scattering of light in particulate surfaces, and is applicable to both the surfaces of atmosphereless bodies and to laboratory samples. Single scattering is described in terms of the effects of porosity and roughness, and is formulated by means of a probabilistic method. It is shown that, for low-albedo surfaces, the effects of porosity and roughness are separable, the opposition effect is caused by the former, and the slope of the linear part of the phase curve is mainly controlled by the latter. The theory, which is applicable to all albedos and phase angles, may be used in both surface brightness and integrated brightness studies. The limiting case of roughness and volume density tending to zero yields the results of classical radiative transfer theory.
Radiative transfer expressions are used to derive average surface particle single-scattering albedos, phase functions and porosities from a photometric comparison of Viking Orbiter opposition measurements of the Martian Arabia, Syrtis Major and Elysium Planitia regions with several generic features. The best functional fit to the data includes consideration of atmospheric scattering, two-particle populations and surface roughness. It is found that (1) the presence of high albedo, high porosity surface particles is ubiquitous, (2) opposition surge is absent in the Syrtis Major region, and (3) the Chryse areas possess the largest surface roughness.
This paper describes improved methods of calculating wall interference corrections for the ONERA large windtunnels. The mathematical description of the model and its sting support have become more sophisticated. An increasing number of singularities is used until an agreement between theoretical and experimental signatures of the model and sting on the walls of the closed test section is obtained. The singularity decentering effects are calculated when the model reaches large angles of attack. The porosity factor cartography on the perforated walls deduced from the measured signatures now replaces the reference tests previously carried out in larger tunnels. The porosity factors obtained from the blockage terms (signatures at zero lift) and from the lift terms are in good agreement. In each case (model + sting + test section), wall corrections are now determined, before the tests, as a function of the fundamental parameters M, CS, CZ. During the windtunnel tests, the corrections are quickly computed from these functions.
Specimens of plasma-sprayed-zirconia thermal-barrier coatings with three different porosities and different initial particle sizes were deformed in compression at initial loads of 6900, 13,800, and 24,100 kPa (1000, 2000, and 3500 psi) and temperatures of 1100, 1250, and 1400 C. The coatings were stabilized with lime, MgO, and two different concentrations of Y2O3. Creep began as soon as the load was applied and continued at a constantly decreasing rate until the load was removed. Temperature and stabilization had a pronounced effect on creep rate while the stress, particle size, and porosity had a lesser effect. Creep deformation was due to cracking and particle sliding.
A new model for the basal pressure of Io's atmosphere is developed. This model takes into account the previously ignored fact that much of Io's surface has very high porosity, typically about 90 pct. Such porosity allows efficient subsurface cold trapping of atmospheric gases which tends to keep ambient surface pressures very low. SO2 is the only gas identified on Io, and the basal pressures for atmospheric models are usually pegged to local surface temperature via the SO2 vapor pressure equilibrium curve. Near Io's subsolar point the pressure in equilibrium with a surface SO2 frost deposit is about 1/10,000,000th bar. Porous surface models of the type developed invoke equilibrium with the colder, subsurface permafrost (at about 3-cm depth) and yield pressures of about 1/10 to the 12th bar. The subsurface cold trapping model explains many but not all observations relevant to Io's atmosphere. The new subsurface cold trapping model and the earlier surface frost equilibrium model, when taken together, provide lower and upper limits, respectively, on the basal SO2 pressure of Io's atmosphere.
The acoustic structure and propagation of sound in highly porous, layered, fine fiber materials is examined. Of particular interest is the utilization of the Kozeny number for determining the static flow resistance and the static structure factor based on flow permeability measurements. In this formulation the Kozeny number is a numerical constant independent of volume porosity at high porosities. The other essential parameters are then evaluated employing techniques developed earlier for open cell foams. The attenuation and progressive phase characteristics in bulk samples are measured and compared with predicted values. The agreements on the whole are very satisfactory.