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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 55 records · Page 3
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1937

Plastics as structural materials for aircraft

The purpose here is to consider the mechanical characteristics of reinforced phenol-formaldehyde resin as related to its use as structural material for aircraft. Data and graphs that have appeared in the literature are reproduced to illustrate the comparative behavior of plastics and materials commonly used in aircraft construction. Materials are characterized as to density, static strength, modulus of elasticity, resistance to long-time loading, strength under repeated impact, energy absorption, corrosion resistance, and ease of fabrication.

Kline, G M↗
NASA NTRS1924

Results of experiments with slotted wings

This report recounts some of the successful experiments conducted in England and Germany on slotted wings and ailerons. Wind tunnel test results are given and examples of aircraft constructed with these new wing components are described.

WINGS, SLOTTED↗
NASA NTRS1937

Torsion Tests of Tubes

This report presents the results of tests of 63 chromium-molybdenum steel tubes and 102 17st aluminum-alloy tubes of various sizes and lengths made to study the dependence of the torsional strength on both the dimensions of the tube and the physical properties of the tube material. Three types of failure are found to be important for sizes of tubes frequently used in aircraft construction: (1) failure by plastic shear, in which the tube material reached its yield strength before the critical torque was reached; (2) failure by elastic two-lobe buckling, which depended only on the elastic properties of the tube material and the dimensions of the tube; and (3) failure by a combination of (1) and (2) that is, by buckling taking place after some yielding of the tube material.

Stang, Ambrose H↗
NASA NTRS1956

High-temperature oxidation and ignition of metals

A study of the high-temperature oxidation of several aircraft construction materials was undertaken to assess the possibility of ignition under high-temperature flight conditions.Tests have been made both in open and closed jets, and, in addition, the burning of metals has been observed under static conditions in a pressurized vessel containing either air, oxygen, or nitrogen. When heated in an atmosphere of oxygen or when heated and plunged into a supersonic airstream, titanium, iron, carbon steel, and common alloys such as 4130 were found to have spontaneous-ignition temperatures in the solid phase (below melting) and they melted rapidly while burning. Inconel, copper, 18-8 stainless steel, Monel, and aluminum could not be made to ignite spontaneously at temperatures up to melting with the equipment available. Magnesium ignited spontaneously in either type of test at temperatures just above the melting temperature.A theory for the spontaneous ignition of metals, based on the first law of thermodynamics, is presented. Good correlation was obtained between calculated spontaneous-ignition temperatures and values measured in supersonic jet tests. There appears at the present time to be no need for concern regarding the spontaneous ignition of Inconel, the stainless steels, copper, aluminum, or magnesium for ordinary supersonic airplane or missile applications where the material temperature is kept within ordinary structural limits or at least below melting. For hypersonic applications where the material is to be melted away to absorb the heat of convection, the results of the present tests do not apply sufficiently to allow a conclusion.

Hill, Paul R↗
NASA NTRS1990

Optimum design of a composite structure with ply-interleaving constraints

The application of composite materials to aircraft construction has provided the designer with increased flexibility. The orientation of plies can be tailored to provide additional aeroelastic performance unobtainable with an isotropic material. A tailored laminate is made up of plies of several orientations, usually 0 deg, 45 deg, -45 deg, and 90 deg. The direction of the 0 deg plies, does not need to be oriented with the leading edge, but can be varied to obtain a wide variety of structural properties. Also, the number of plies of each orientation varies from one zone to another on the planform. Thus, a thick laminate with mainly 0 deg plies may form the root zone, and a thinner laminate with mainly +45 deg plies may form the leading edge zone. Tailored laminates were designed using complicated optimization programs. Unfortunately, many tailored designs must be modified before they are manufactured. The modification adds weight and decreases performance. One type of modification is ply interleaving, an overlap of plies between zones on the laminate. These interleaves are added to ensure that zones with varying ply percentages can be connected without loss of strength. In this paper, the constraints needed to eliminate interleaves in the laminate optimization process will be described and implemented in a structural optimization problem. The method used has the potential to prevent changes to composite laminates late in the design cycle.

Wang, Bo Ping↗
NASA NTRS2001

Comparison of Modal Analysis Methods Applied to a Vibro-Acoustic Test Article

Modal testing of a vibro-acoustic test article referred to as the Aluminum Testbed Cylinder (ATC) has provided frequency response data for the development of validated numerical models of complex structures for interior noise prediction and control. The ATC is an all aluminum, ring and stringer stiffened cylinder, 12 feet in length and 4 feet in diameter. The cylinder was designed to represent typical aircraft construction. Modal tests were conducted for several different configurations of the cylinder assembly under ambient and pressurized conditions. The purpose of this paper is to present results from dynamic testing of different ATC configurations using two modal analysis software methods: Eigensystem Realization Algorithm (ERA) and MTS IDEAS Polyreference method. The paper compares results from the two analysis methods as well as the results from various test configurations. The effects of pressurization on the modal characteristics are discussed.

Pritchard, Jocelyn↗
NASA NTRS2004

Metal Foam Analysis: Improving Sandwich Structure Technology for Engine Fan and Propeller Blades

The Life Prediction Branch of the NASA Glenn Research Center is searching for ways to construct aircraft and rotorcraft engine fan and propeller blades that are lighter and less costly. One possible design is to create a sandwich structure composed of two metal faces sheets and a metal foam core. The face sheets would carry the bending loads and the foam core would have to resist the transverse shear loads. Metal foam is ideal because of its low density and energy absorption capabilities, making the structure lighter, yet still stiff. The material chosen for the face sheets and core was 17-4PH stainless steel, which is easy to make and has appealing mechanical properties. This material can be made inexpensively compared to titanium and polymer matrix composites, the two current fan blade alternatives. Initial tests were performed on design models, including vibration and stress analysis. These tests revealed that the design is competitive with existing designs; however, some problems were apparent that must be addressed before it can be implemented in new technology. The foam did not hold up as well as expected under stress. This could be due to a number of issues, but was most likely a result of a large number of pores within the steel that weakened the structure. The brazing between the face sheets and the foam was also identified as a concern. The braze did not hold up well under shear stress causing the foam to break away from the face sheets. My role in this project was to analyze different options for improving the design. I primarily spent my time examining various foam samples, created with different sintering conditions, to see which exhibited the most favorable characteristics for our purpose. Methods of analysis that I employed included examining strut integrity under a microscope, counting the number of cells per inch, measuring the density, testing the microhardness, and testing the strength under compression. Shear testing will also be done to examine the strengths of different types of brazes.

Fedor, Jessica L.↗
NASA NTRS2009

The Role of Guidance, Navigation, and Control in Hypersonic Vehicle Multidisciplinary Design and Optimization

Airbreathing hypersonic systems offer distinct performance advantages over rocket-based systems for space access vehicles. However, these performance advantages are dependent upon advances in current state-of-the-art technologies in many areas such as ram/scramjet propulsion integration, high temperature materials, aero-elastic structures, thermal protection systems, transition to hypersonics and hypersonic control elements within the framework of complex physics and new design methods. The complex interactions between elements of an airbreathing hypersonic vehicle represent a new paradigm in vehicle design to achieve the optimal performance necessary to meet space access mission objectives. In the past, guidance, navigation, and control (GNC) analysis often follows completion of the vehicle conceptual design process. Individual component groups design subsystems which are then integrated into a vehicle configuration. GNC is presented the task of developing control approaches to meet vehicle performance objectives given that configuration. This approach may be sufficient for vehicles where significant performance margins exist. However, for higher performance vehicles engaging the GNC discipline too late in the design cycle has been costly. For example, the X-29 experimental flight vehicle was built as a technology demonstrator. One of the many technologies to be demonstrated was the use of light-weight material composites for structural components. The use of light-weight materials increased the flexibility of the X- 29 beyond that of conventional metal alloy constructed aircraft. This effect was not considered when the vehicle control system was designed and built. The impact of this is that the control system did not have enough control authority to compensate for the effects of the first fundamental structural mode of the vehicle. As a result, the resulting pitch rate response of the vehicle was below specification and no post-design changes could recover the desired capability.

Ouzts, Peter J.↗
NASA NTRS2012

Design, Analysis and Fabrication of Secondary Structural Components for the Habitat Demonstration Unit-Deep Space Habitat

In support of NASA s Habitat Demonstration Unit - Deep Space Habitat Prototype, a number of evolved structural sections were designed, fabricated, analyzed and installed in the 5 meter diameter prototype. The hardware consisted of three principal structural sections, and included the development of novel fastener insert concepts. The articles developed consisted of: 1) 1/8th of the primary flooring section, 2) an inner radius floor beam support which interfaced with, and supported (1), 3) two upper hatch section prototypes, and 4) novel insert designs for mechanical fastener attachments. Advanced manufacturing approaches were utilized in the fabrication of the components. The structural components were developed using current commercial aircraft constructions as a baseline (for both the flooring components and their associated mechanical fastener inserts). The structural sections utilized honeycomb sandwich panels. The core section consisted of 1/8th inch cell size Nomex, at 9 lbs/cu ft, and which was 0.66 inches thick. The facesheets had 3 plys each, with a thickness of 0.010 inches per ply, made from woven E-glass with epoxy reinforcement. Analysis activities consisted of both analytical models, as well as initial closed form calculations. Testing was conducted to help verify analysis model inputs, as well as to facilitate correlation between testing and analysis. Test activities consisted of both 4 point bending tests as well as compressive core crush sequences. This paper presents an overview of this activity, and discusses issues encountered during the various phases of the applied research effort, and its relevance to future space based habitats.

Smith, Russell W.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Use of active control technology to improve ride qualities of large transport aircraft

Analyses, construction and flight testing of two systems: Beta-vane and Modal Suppression Augmentation System (MSAS), which were developed to suppress gust induced lateral accelerations of large aircraft, are described. The 747 transport was used as the test vehicle. The purpose of the Beta-vane system is to reduce acceleration levels at the dutch roll frequency whereas the function of the MSAS system is to reduce accelerations due to flexible body motions caused by turbulence. Data from flight test, with both systems engaged shows a 50 to 70 percent reduction in lateral aft body acceleration levels. Furthermore, it is suggested that present day techniques used for developing dynamic equations of motion in the flexible mode region are limited.

Cohen, G. C.↗
NASA NTRS1980

Aircraft wing weight build-up methodology with modification for materials and construction techniques

An aircraft wing weight estimating method based on a component buildup technique is described. A simplified analytically derived beam model, modified by a regression analysis, is used to estimate the wing box weight, utilizing a data base of 50 actual airplane wing weights. Factors representing materials and methods of construction were derived and incorporated into the basic wing box equations. Weight penalties to the wing box for fuel, engines, landing gear, stores and fold or pivot are also included. Methods for estimating the weight of additional items (secondary structure, control surfaces) have the option of using details available at the design stage (i.e., wing box area, flap area) or default values based on actual aircraft from the data base.

York, P.↗
NASA NTRS1960

V. The X-15 flight research program in relation to the development of advanced military aircraft

The design, construction, and development of advanced military aircraft undoubtedly will involve the utilization of many relatively new concepts in several deafferent, but related, areas. In many cases, these new concepts will require new flight techniques or involve development problems inherent in the use of relatively unproven methods, materials, structures, systems, and configurations. Moreover, flight verification will be required of aircraft aerodynamics and flight behavior because of the usual uncertainties associated with predicted data. Solutions to these problems obviously would require flight testing involving extensive time and effort before the aircraft could become operationally acceptable. Upon the inception of the X-15 research airplane project, many new and far-reaching techniques and principles were studied and applied in the aircraft design and are currently being demonstrated and investigated. Because similar concepts are likely to be used in advanced military aircraft, the X-15 flight program will provide significant information, over a broad flight environment, pertinent to the development of these vehicles. This paper discusses the research objectives of the X-15 flight program, some of the flight aerodynamic characteristics currently being obtained, some development problems encountered, and the experience obtained with the advanced systems investigated.

Military aircraft↗
NASA NTRS1986

Rotor blade construction for circulation control aircraft

A circulation control aircraft rotor blade having a spanwise Coanda surface 16 and a plurality of spanwise extending flexible composite material panels 18 cooperating with the surface to define slots for the discharge of compressed air from within the blade with each panel having first flexure means 60 associated with screw adjustments 36 for establishing a slot opening preload and second flexure means 62 associated with screw adjustments 38 for establishing a slot maximum opening.

Carter, Sr., Donald R.↗
NASA NTRS1930

Identification of Aircraft Tubing by Rockwell Test

Seamless steel tubing is today the principal material of construction for aircraft. The commercial grade of tubing containing about 0.10 to 0.20% carbon at first used is being superseded by two grades which are approved by the army and navy, and which are also becoming standard for commercial airplanes.

Knerr, Horace C.↗
NASA NTRS1979

Total aircraft flight-control system - Balanced open- and closed-loop control with dynamic trim maps

The availability of the airborne digital computer has made possible a Total Aircraft Flight Control System (TAFCOS) that uses virtually the complete nonlinear propulsive and aerodynamic data for the aircraft to construct dynamic trim maps that represent an inversion of the aircraft model. The trim maps, in series with the aircraft, provide essentially a linear feed-forward path. Basically, open-loop trajectory control is employed with only a small perturbation feedback signal required to compensate for inaccuracy in the aircraft model and for external disturbances. Simulation results for application to an automatic carrier-landing system are presented. Flight-test results for a STOL aircraft operating automatically over a major portion of its flight regime are presented. The concept promises a more rapid and straightforward design from aerodynamic principles, particularly for highly nonlinear configurations, and requires substantially less digital computer capacity than conventional automatic flight-control system designs.

Smith, G. A.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Lightweight sidewalls for aircraft interior noise control

A theoretical and experimental study was performed to devise lightweight sidewalls for turboprop aircraft. Seven concepts for new sidewalls were analyzed and tested for noise reduction using flat panels of 1.2 m x 1.8 m (4 ft x 6 ft), some of which were aircraft-type constructions and some of which were simpler, easier-to-construct panels to test the functioning of an acoustic principle. Aircraft-application sidewalls were then conceived for each of the seven concepts, and were subjectively evaluated for their ability to meet aircraft nonacoustic design requirements. As a result of the above, the following sidewall concepts were recommended for further investigation: a sidewall in which the interior cavity is vented to ceiling and underfloor areas; sidewalls with wall-mounted resonators, one having a conventional trim panel and one a limp one; and a sidewall with a stiff outer wall and a limp trim panel. These sidewalls appear to promise lower weights than conventional sidewalls adjusted to meet similar acoustic requirements, and further development may prove them to be practical.

May, D. N.↗
NASA NTRS1982

Development of an advanced composite aileron for the L-1011 transport aircraft

Significant improvements in structural efficiency can be achieved by the utilization of advanced composites for construction of aircraft secondary structures. Careful evaluation of alternate designs and materials for the L-1011 advanced composite inboard aileron has led to the selection of several unique material combinations and easily manufactured structural configurations. The advanced composite aileron is a direct replacement for the metal aileron with a weight savings of 23 percent. Due to the configurational simplicity of the components within the composite aileron, and because it contains 50 percent fewer parts and fasteners than the metal aileron, it is predicted that the composite aileron will be cost competitive with the metal aileron in a production environment. Structural analysis of the composite aileron, in conjunction with the design data, concept verification, and ground tests, indicates that the composite aileron design meets or exceeds structural requirements.

Griffin, C. F.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Cooling system for high speed aircraft

The system eliminates the necessity of shielding an aircraft airframe constructed of material such as aluminum. Cooling is accomplished by passing a coolant through the aircraft airframe, the coolant acting as a carrier to remove heat from the airframe. The coolant is circulated through a heat pump and a heat exchanger which together extract essentially all of the added heat from the coolant. The heat is transferred to the aircraft fuel system via the heat exchanger and the heat pump. The heat extracted from the coolant is utilized to power the heat pump. The heat pump has associated therewith power turbine mechanism which is also driven by the extracted heat. The power turbines are utilized to drive various aircraft subsystems, the compressor of the heat pump, and provide engine cooling.

Lawing, P. L.↗