Search NASASearch

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “Tensor”

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.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 55 records · Page 3

A finite element tensor approach to plate buckling and postbuckling.

A practical finite element method is presented for geometrically nonlinear (von Karman) plate problems. Symmetric strain energy tensors provide an efficient formulation and solution, and allow the effects of initial imperfections to be considered. An unbalanced force iteration is employed, with the advantage that the time consuming Gauss decomposition needs to be performed only once. The convergence is controlled by an automatically computed relaxation factor, and this makes the method applicable in advanced stages of non-linearity. Several different triangular elements are used in explicitly deriving the required tensors.

Vos, R. G.

Indicator tensor manipulation on MACSYMA

A new computational tool for physical calculations is described. It is the first computer system capable of performing indicial tensor calculus (as opposed to component tensor calculus). It is now operational on the symbolic manipulation system MACSYMA. The capabilities of the system are outlined.

Bogen, R. A.

Scalar-tensor theory of gravitation with negative coupling constant

The possibility of a Brans-Dicke scalar-tensor gravitation theory with a negative coupling constant is considered. The admissibility of a negative-coupling theory is investigated, and a simplified cosmological solution is obtained which allows a negative derivative of the gravitation constant. It is concluded that a Brans-Dicke theory with a negative coupling constant can be a viable alternative to general relativity and that a large negative value for the coupling constant seems to bring the original scalar-tensor theory into close agreement with perihelion-precession results in view of recent observations of small solar oblateness.

Smalley, L. L.

Superconducting tensor gravity gradiometer

The employment of superconductivity and other material properties at cryogenic temperatures to fabricate sensitive, low-drift, gravity gradiometer is described. The device yields a reduction of noise of four orders of magnitude over room temperature gradiometers, and direct summation and subtraction of signals from accelerometers in varying orientations are possible with superconducting circuitry. Additional circuits permit determination of the linear and angular acceleration vectors independent of the measurement of the gravity gradient tensor. A dewar flask capable of maintaining helium in a liquid state for a year's duration is under development by NASA, and a superconducting tensor gravity gradiometer for the NASA Geodynamics Program is intended for a LEO polar trajectory to measure the harmonic expansion coefficients of the earth's gravity field up to order 300.

Paik, H. J.

Improved perfect-fluid energy-momentum tensor with spin in Einstein-Cartan space-time

The description of the spin given here is classical in that it is intrinsic but not quantized. The approach in this matter is similar to, for example, the work of Bailey and Israel (1973, 1975, 1979), where the fluid particles, which have intrinsic spin, may be galaxies or clusters of galaxies. The elementary particles of these objects and the 'ferromagnetic alignment' of their quantum spins are not resorted to in order to describe a fluid with spin. Physically this means that the equation of motion for the spin tensor is a modified Fermi-Walker transport equation (Misner et al., 1973), arising as a direct result of the inclusion of spin as an intrinsic variable in the thermodynamic description of the internal energy. The variables in this description are classical variables throughout and are not microscopic fields. An improved perfect-fluid energy-momentum tensor that includes spin and torsion is presented. Use is made of a Lagrangian variational principle based on the tetrad formalism of Halbwach (1960) and the method od constraints of Ray (1972).

Ray, J. R.

Progress on a generalized coordinates tensor product finite element 3DPNS algorithm for subsonic

A generalized coordinates form of the penalty finite element algorithm for the 3-dimensional parabolic Navier-Stokes equations for turbulent subsonic flows was derived. This algorithm formulation requires only three distinct hypermatrices and is applicable using any boundary fitted coordinate transformation procedure. The tensor matrix product approximation to the Jacobian of the Newton linear algebra matrix statement was also derived. Tne Newton algorithm was restructured to replace large sparse matrix solution procedures with grid sweeping using alpha-block tridiagonal matrices, where alpha equals the number of dependent variables. Numerical experiments were conducted and the resultant data gives guidance on potentially preferred tensor product constructions for the penalty finite element 3DPNS algorithm.

Baker, A. J.

An application of tensor ideas to nonlinear modeling of a turbofan jet engine

An application of tensor modelling to a digital simulation of NASA's Quiet, Clean, Shorthaul Experimental (QCSE) gas turbine engine is presented. The results show that the tensor algebra offers a universal parametrization which is helpful in conceptualization and identification for plant modelling prior to feedback or for representing scheduled controllers over an operating line.

Klingler, T. A.

Nonlinear beam kinematics by decomposition of the rotation tensor

A simple matrix expression is obtained for the strain components of a beam in which the displacements and rotations are large. The only restrictions are on the magnitudes of the strain and of the local rotation, a newly-identified kinematical quantity. The local rotation is defined as the change of orientation of material elements relative to the change of orientation of the beam reference triad. The vectors and tensors in the theory are resolved along orthogonal triads of base vectors centered along the undeformed and deformed beam reference axes, so Cartesian tensor notation is used. Although a curvilinear coordinate system is natural to the beam problem, the complications usually associated with its use are circumvented. Local rotations appear explicitly in the resulting strain expressions, facilitating the treatment of beams with both open and closed cross sections in applications of the theory. The theory is used to obtain the kinematical relations for coupled bending, torsion, extension, shear deformation, and warping of an initially curved and twisted beam.

Danielson, D. A.

Estimates of green tensors for certain boundary value problems

Consider the first boundary value problem for a stationary Navier-Stokes system in a bounded three-dimensional region Omega with the boundary S: delta v = grad p+f, div v=0, v/s=0. Odqvist (1930) developed the potential theory and formulated the Green tensor for the above problem. The basic singular solution used by Odqvist to express the Green tensor is given. A theorem generalizing his results is presented along with four associated theorems. A specific problem associated with the study of the differential properties of the solution of stationary problems of magnetohydrodynamics is examined.

Solonnikov, V.

Parallel language constructs for tensor product computations on loosely coupled architectures

Distributed memory architectures offer high levels of performance and flexibility, but have proven awkard to program. Current languages for nonshared memory architectures provide a relatively low level programming environment, and are poorly suited to modular programming, and to the construction of libraries. A set of language primitives designed to allow the specification of parallel numerical algorithms at a higher level is described. Tensor product array computations are focused on along with a simple but important class of numerical algorithms. The problem of programming 1-D kernal routines is focused on first, such as parallel tridiagonal solvers, and then how such parallel kernels can be combined to form parallel tensor product algorithms is examined.

Mehrotra, Piyush

Parallel language constructs for tensor product computations on loosely coupled architectures

A set of language primitives designed to allow the specification of parallel numerical algorithms at a higher level is described. The authors focus on tensor product array computations, a simple but important class of numerical algorithms. They consider first the problem of programming one-dimensional kernel routines, such as parallel tridiagonal solvers, and then look at how such parallel kernels can be combined to form parallel tensor product algorithms.

Mehrotra, Piyush

Method and apparatus for second-rank tensor generation

A method and apparatus are disclosed for generation of second-rank tensors using a photorefractive crystal to perform the outer-product between two vectors via four-wave mixing, thereby taking 2n input data to a control n squared output data points. Two orthogonal amplitude modulated coherent vector beams x and y are expanded and then parallel sides of the photorefractive crystal in exact opposition. A beamsplitter is used to direct a coherent pumping beam onto the crystal at an appropriate angle so as to produce a conjugate beam that is the matrix product of the vector beam that propagates in the exact opposite direction from the pumping beam. The conjugate beam thus separated is the tensor output xy (sup T).

Liu, Hua-Kuang

Nonlinear modes of the tensor Dirac equation and CPT violation

Recently, it has been shown that Dirac's bispinor equation can be expressed, in an equivalent tensor form, as a constrained Yang-Mills equation in the limit of an infinitely large coupling constant. It was also shown that the free tensor Dirac equation is a completely integrable Hamiltonian system with Lie algebra type Poisson brackets, from which Fermi quantization can be derived directly without using bispinors. The Yang-Mills equation for a finite coupling constant is investigated. It is shown that the nonlinear Yang-Mills equation has exact plane wave solutions in one-to-one correspondence with the plane wave solutions of Dirac's bispinor equation. The theory of nonlinear dispersive waves is applied to establish the existence of wave packets. The CPT violation of these nonlinear wave packets, which could lead to new observable effects consistent with current experimental bounds, is investigated.

Reifler, Frank J.

Parameterization of subgrid-scale stress by the velocity gradient tensor

The objective of this work is to construct and evaluate subgrid-scale models that depend on both the strain rate and the vorticity. This will be accomplished by first assuming that the subgrid-scale stress is a function of the strain and rotation rate tensors. Extensions of the Caley-Hamilton theorem can then be used to write the assumed functional dependence explicitly in the form of a tensor polynomial involving products of the strain and rotation rates. Finally, use of this explicit expression as a subgrid-scale model will be evaluated using direct numerical simulation data for homogeneous, isotropic turbulence.

Lund, Thomas S.

Reduced Stress Tensor and Dissipation and the Transport of Lamb Vector

We develop a methodology to ensure that the stress tensor, regardless of its number of independent components, can be reduced to an exactly equivalent one which has the same number of independent components as the surface force. It is applicable to the momentum balance if the shear viscosity is constant. A direct application of this method to the energy balance also leads to a reduction of the dissipation rate of kinetic energy. Following this procedure, significant saving in analysis and computation may be achieved. For turbulent flows, this strategy immediately implies that a given Reynolds stress model can always be replaced by a reduced one before putting it into computation. Furthermore, we show how the modeling of Reynolds stress tensor can be reduced to that of the mean turbulent Lamb vector alone, which is much simpler. As a first step of this alternative modeling development, we derive the governing equations for the Lamb vector and its square. These equations form a basis of new second-order closure schemes and, we believe, should be favorably compared to that of traditional Reynolds stress transport equation.

Wu, Jie-Zhi

A similarity hypothesis for the two-point correlation tensor in a temporally evolving plane wake

The analysis demonstrated that the governing equations for the two-point velocity correlation tensor in the temporally evolving wake admit similarity solutions, which include the similarity solutions for the single-point moment as a special case. The resulting equations for the similarity solutions include two constants, beta and Re(sub sigma), that are ratios of three characteristic time scales of processes in the flow: a viscous time scale, a time scale characteristic of the spread rate of the flow, and a characteristic time scale of the mean strain rate. The values of these ratios depend on the initial conditions of the flow and are most likely measures of the coherent structures in the initial conditions. The occurrences of these constants in the governing equations for the similarity solutions indicates that these solutions, in general, will only be the same for two flows if these two constants are equal (and hence the coherent structures in the flows are related). The comparisons between the predictions of the similarity hypothesis and the data presented here and elsewhere indicate that the similarity solutions for the two-point correlation tensors provide a good approximation of the measures of those motions that are not significantly affected by the boundary conditions caused by the finite extent of real flows. Thus, the two-point similarity hypothesis provides a useful tool for both numerical and physical experimentalist that can be used to examine how the finite extent of real flows affect the evolution of the different scales of motion in the flow.

Ewing, D. W.

Nonlinear Beam Kinematics by Decomposition of the Rotation Tensor

A simple matrix expression is obtained for the strain components of a beam in which the displacements and rotations are large. The only restrictions are on the magnitudes of the strain and of the local rotation, a newly-identified kinematical quantity. The local rotation is defined as the change of orientation of material elements relative to the change of orientation of the beam reference triad. The vectors and tensors in the theory are resolved along orthogonal triads of base vectors centered along the undeformed and deformed beam reference axes, so Cartesian tensor notation is used. Although a curvilinear coordinate system is natural to the beam problem, the complications usually associated with its use are circumvented. Local rotations appear explicitly in the resulting strain expressions, facilitating the treatment of beams with both open and closed cross sections in applications of the theory. The theory is used to obtain the kinematical relations for coupled bending, torsion extension, shear deformation, and warping of an initially curved and twisted beam.

Danielson, D. A.

Elliptic Relaxation of a Tensor Representation for the Redistribution Terms in a Reynolds Stress Turbulence Model

A formulation to include the effects of wall proximity in a second-moment closure model that utilizes a tensor representation for the redistribution terms in the Reynolds stress equations is presented. The wall-proximity effects are modeled through an elliptic relaxation process of the tensor expansion coefficients that properly accounts for both correlation length and time scales as the wall is approached. Direct numerical simulation data and Reynolds stress solutions using a full differential approach are compared for the case of fully developed channel flow.

Carlson, J. R.