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At least 577 records · Page 32

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NASA NTRS1990

A case study of cumulus formation beneath a stratocumulus sheet: Its structure and effect on boundary layer budgets

On several occasions during the FIRE Marine Stratocumulus IFO off the California coast, small cumulus were observed to form during the morning beneath the main stratocumulus (Sc) deck. This occurs in the type of situation described by Turton and Nicholls (1987) in which there is insufficient generation of turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) from the cloudtop or the surface to sustain mixing throughout the layer, and a separation of the surface and cloud layers occurs. The build up of humidity in the surface layer allows cumuli to form, and the more energetic of these may penetrate back into the Sc deck, reconnecting the layers. The results presented were collected by the UKMO C-130 aircraft flying in a region where these small cumulus had grown to the extent that they had penetrated into the main Sc deck above. The structure of these penetrative cumulus are examined and their implications on the layer flux and radiation budget discussed.

Barlow, Roy W.↗

NASA NTRS1989

Goertler vortices in supersonic and hypersonic boundary layers

The problem of Goertler vortices in compressible boundary layers over concave walls is considered. At O(1) wavelengths, the instability is governed by parabolic partial differential equations that are solved numerically to determine the effect of various initial conditions on the development of Goertler vortex instability in compressible boundary layers. The results show that both the velocity and temperature fluctuations may lead to a Goertler vortex. The vortex growth rates determined from the present method are found to differ somewhat from those given by a normal mode solution. At both the supersonic and hypersonic Mach numbers, cooling has a small destabilizing effect. In addition, the most unstable disturbances shift toward lower wavelengths because of thinning of the boundary layer. The results also show that compressibility has a stabilizing effect on the Goertler instability, while the effect of an adverse pressure gradient is found to be destabilizing. The behavior of the Goertler vortex structure with Mach number is also examined. At hypersonic Mach numbers, vortices are located near the edge of the boundary layer for adiabatic wall conditions. However, the entire boundary layer is affected when the wall is cooled.

Spall, R. E.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Linear stability of the reacting mixing layer

This work is aimed at understanding the stability of reacting mixing layers. Linear instability is analyzed for a wide variety of mixing layers to study the effects of the heat release. Analytic functions as well as laminar solutions of thin shear layer equations are used as the base flows. Both temporal and spatial developing layers are investigated. The laminar solutions are more consistent than the analytic functions. The stability properties are sensitive to the mean profiles. Including variable transport properties changes the mean profiles considerably. Chemical reaction during the instability is not very important; its primary effect is to change the laminar profiles. New modes are found in the outer part of the layer when the heat release is significant, and become dominant for large heat release. In general, heat release stabilizes the center mode but the outer mode is less affected.

Shin, D. S.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Cold plasma heating in the plasma sheet boundary layer - Theory and simulations

Satellite observations in recent years have confirmed that the plasma sheet boundary layer is a permanent feature of the earth's magnetotail located between the lobe and central plasma sheet during both quiet and active magnetic periods. Distinct features of the boundary layer include field aligned ion beams and intense electrostatic emissions known as broadband electrostatic noise. Since the plasma sheet boundary layer is a spatial feature of the magnetotail, within it will occur thermal mixing of the resident warm boundary layer plasma with inflowing (convecting) cold ionospheric plasma. A theoretical study involving linear theory and nonlinear numerical particle simulations is presented which examines ion beam instabilities in the presence of a thermally mixed hot and cold background plasma. It is found that the free energy in the ion beams can heat the cool ionospheric plasma to ambient plasma sheet boundary layer temperatures via broadband electrostatic noise. These results, along with recent observational reports that ionospheric outflow can account for measured plasma sheet densities, suggest that the ionospheric role in plasma sheet dynamics and content may be as large as the solar wind.

Schriver, David↗

NASA NTRS1990

Parametric studies to determine the effect of compliant layers on metal matrix composite systems

Computational simulation studies are conducted to identify compliant layers to reduce matrix stresses which result from the coefficient of thermal expansion mismatch and the large temperature range over which the current metal matrix composites will be used. The present study includes variations of compliant layers and their properties to determine their influence on unidirectional composite and constituent response. Two simulation methods are used for these studies. The first approach is based on a three-dimensional linear finite element analysis of a 9 fiber unidirectional composite system. The second approach is a micromechanics based nonlinear computer code developed to determine the behavior of metal matrix composite system for thermal and mechanical loads. The results show that an effective compliant layer for the SCS 6 (SiC)/Ti-24Al-11Nb (Ti3Al + Nb) and SCS 6 (SiC)/Ti-15V-3Cr-3Sn-3Al (Ti-15-3) composite systems should have modulus 15 percent that of the matrix and a coefficient of thermal expansion of the compliant layer roughly equal to that of the composite system without the CL. The matrix stress in the longitudinal and the transverse tangent (loop) direction are tensile for the Ti3Al + Nb and Ti-15-3 composite systems upon cool down from fabrication. The fiber longitudinal stress is compressive from fabrication cool down. Addition of a recommended compliant layer will result in a reduction in the composite modulus.

Caruso, J. J.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Oceanic upper mixed layer depth determination by the use of satellite data

A method has been developed to determine the oceanic daily mean mixed layer depth from satellite observations and a mixed layer thermal inertia (MLTI) model. The algorithms were developed to use remotely-sensed values of sea surface temperature, albedo, and surface wind speeds to calculate the thermal inertia and to predict changes in subsurface diurnal mixed layer depth. The MLTI model, based on a mixed layer model of the upper ocean, has been used to simulate the diurnal mixing process and thermal inertia distribution in the Sargasso Sea around 34 deg N, 70 deg W. Sea surface temperature and albedo have been obtained from the NOAA7-AVHRR images. Surface wind speeds have been derived from the Scanning Multichannel Microwave Radiometer (SMMR) aboard Nimbus 7. Image processing was performed for images gathered between June and July 1982. The daily mean mixed layer depths predicted by the MLTI model agree well with data gathered at the LOTUS mooring located in the Sargasso Sea. This suggests that vertical mixing is the dominant physical process that controls the thermal inertia distribution in the midocean, far from major current systems, and that remote sensing is a promising tool to study such upper ocean processes.

Yan, Xiao-Hai↗

NASA NTRS1990

Elastic/plastic analyses of advanced composites investigating the use of the compliant layer concept in reducing residual stresses resulting from processing

High residual stresses within intermetallic and metal matrix composite systems can develop upon cooling from the processing temperature to room temperature due to the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) mismatch between the fiber and matrix. As a result, within certain composite systems, radial, circumferential, and/or longitudinal cracks have been observed to form at the fiber-matrix interface. The compliant layer concept (insertion of a compensating interface material between the fiber and matrix) was proposed to reduce or eliminate the residual stress buildup during cooling and thus minimize cracking. The viability of the proposed compliant layer concept is investigated both elastically and elastoplastically. A detailed parametric study was conducted using a unit cell model consisting of three concentric cylinders to determine the required character (i.e., thickness and material properties) of the compliant layer as well as its applicability. The unknown compliant layer mechanical properties were expressed as ratios of the corresponding temperature dependent Ti-24Al-11Nb (a/o) matrix properties. The fiber properties taken were those corresponding to SCS-6 (SiC). Results indicate that the compliant layer can be used to reduce, if not eliminate, radial and circumferential residual stresses within the fiber and matrix and therefore also reduce or eliminate the radial cracking. However, with this decrease in in-plane stresses, one obtains an increase in longitudinal stress, thus potentially initiating longitudinal cracking. Guidelines are given for the selection of a specific compliant material, given a perfectly bonded system.

Arnold, Steven M.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Numerical study of shock-wave/boundary layer interactions in premixed hydrogen-air hypersonic flows

A computational study of shock wave/boundary layer interactions involving premixed combustible gases, and the resulting combustion processes is presented. The analysis is carried out using a new fully implicit, total variation diminishing (TVD) code developed for solving the fully coupled Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations and species continuity equations in an efficient manner. To accelerate the convergence of the basic iterative procedure, this code is combined with vector extrapolation methods. The chemical nonequilibrium processes are simulated by means of a finite-rate chemistry model for hydrogen-air combustion. Several validation test cases are presented and the results compared with experimental data or with other computational results. The code is then applied to study shock wave/boundary layer interactions in a ram accelerator configuration. Results indicate a new combustion mechanism in which a shock wave induces combustion in the boundary layer, which then propagates outwards and downstream. At higher Mach numbers, spontaneous ignition in part of the boundary layer is observed, which eventually extends along the entire boundary layer at still higher values of the Mach number.

Yungster, Shaye↗

NASA NTRS1991

Experimental study of boundary layer transition with elevated freestream turbulence on a heated flat plate

A detailed investigation to document momentum and thermal development of boundary layers undergoing natural transition on a heated flat plate was performed. Experimental results of both overall and conditionally sampled characteristics of laminar, transitional, and low Reynolds number turbulent boundary layers are presented. Measurements were acquired in a low-speed, closed-loop wind tunnel with a freestream velocity of 100 ft/s and zero pressure gradient over a range of freestream turbulence intensities (TI) from 0.4 to 6 percent. The distributions of skin friction, heat transfer rate and Reynolds shear stress were all consistent with previously published data. Reynolds analogy factors for R(sub theta) is less than 2300 were found to be well predicted by laminar and turbulent correlations which accounted for an unheated starting length. The measured laminar value of Reynolds analogy factor was as much as 53 percent higher than the Pr(sup -2/3). A small dependence of turbulent results on TI was observed. Conditional sampling performed in the transitional boundary layer indicated the existence of a near-wall drop in intermittency, pronounced at certain low intermittencies, which is consistent with the cross-sectional shape of turbulent spots observed by others. Non-turbulent intervals were observed to possess large magnitudes of near-wall unsteadiness and turbulent intervals had peak values as much as 50 percent higher than were measured at fully turbulent stations. Non-turbulent and turbulent profiles in transitional boundary layers cannot be simply treated as Blasius and fully turbulent profiles, respectively. The boundary layer spectra indicate predicted selective amplification of T-S waves for TI is approximately 0.4 percent. However, for TI is approximately 0.8 and 1.1 percent, T-S waves are localized very near the wall and do not play a dominant role in transition process.

Sohn, Ki-Hyeon↗

NASA NTRS1991

Turbulent boundary layer separation over a rearward facing ramp and its control through mechanical excitation

A vane oscillating about a fixed point at the inlet to a two-dimensional 20 degree rearward facing ramp has proven effective in delaying the separation of a turbulent boundary layer. Measurements of the ramp surface static pressure coefficient obtained under the condition of vane oscillation and constant inlet velocity revealed that two different effects occurred with surface distance along the ramp. In the vicinity of the oscillating vane, the pressure coefficients varied as a negative function of the vane's trailing edge rms velocity; the independent variable on which the rms velocity depends are the vane's oscillation frequency and its displacement amplitude. From a point downstream of the vane to the exit of the ramp; however, the pressure coefficient varied as a more complex function of the two independent variables. That is, it was found to vary as a function of the vane's oscillation frequency throughout the entire range of frequencies covered during the test, but over only a limited range of the trailing edge displacement amplitudes covered. More specifically, the value of the pressure coefficient was independent of increases in the vane's displacement amplitude above approximately 35 inner wall units of the boundary layer. Below this specific amplitude it varied as a function of the vane's trailing edge rms velocity. This height is close to the upper limit of the buffer layer. A parametric study was made to determine the variation of the maximum static pressure recovery as a function of the vane's oscillation frequency, for several ramp inlet velocities and a constant displacement amplitude of the vane's trailing edge. The results indicate that the phenomenon producing the optimum delay of separation may be Strouhal number dependent. Corona anemometer measurements obtained in the inner wall regions of the boundary layer for the excited case reveal a large range of unsteadiness in the local velocities. These measurements imply the existence of inflections in the profiles, which provide a mechanism for resulting inviscid flow instabilities to produce turbulence in the near wall region, thereby delaying separation of the boundary layer.

Mckinzie, Daniel J., Jr.↗

NASA NTRS1991

The Kinematics of Turbulent Boundary Layer Structure

The long history of research into the internal structure of turbulent boundary layers has not provided a unified picture of the physics responsible for turbulence production and dissipation. The goals of the present research are to: (1) define the current state of boundary layer structure knowledge; and (2) utilize direct numerical simulation results to help close the unresolved issues identified in part A and to unify the fragmented knowledge of various coherent motions into a consistent kinematic model of boundary layer structure. The results of the current study show that all classes of coherent motion in the low Reynolds number turbulent boundary layer may be related to vortical structures, but that no single form of vortex is representative of the wide variety of vortical structures observed. In particular, ejection and sweep motions, as well as entrainment from the free-streem are shown to have strong spatial and temporal relationships with vortical structures. Disturbances of vortex size, location, and intensity show that quasi-streamwise vortices dominate the buffer region, while transverse vortices and vortical arches dominate the wake region. Both types of vortical structure are common in the log region. The interrelationships between the various structures and the population distributions of vortices are combined into a conceptual kinematic model for the boundary layer. Aspects of vortical structure dynamics are also postulated, based on time-sequence animations of the numerically simulated flow.

Robinson, Stephen Kern↗

NASA NTRS1991

Laser transit anemometer and Pitot probe comparative measurements in a sharp cone boundary layer at Mach 4

Laser transit anemometer (LTA) measurements of a 7 degree sharp cone boundary layer were conducted in the Air Force/AEDC Supersonic Tunnel A Mach 4 flow field. These measurements are compared with Pitot probe measurements and tricone theory provided by AEDC staff. Measurements were made both in laminar and turbulent boundary layers of the model. Comparison of LTA measurements with theory showed agreement to better than 1 percent for the laminar boundary layer cases. This level of agreement was obtained after small position corrections, 0.01 to 0.6 mm, were applied to the experimental data sets. Pitot probe data when compared with theory also showed small positioning errors. The Pitot data value was also limited due to probe interference with the flow near the model. The LTA turbulent boundary layer data indicated a power law dependence of 6.3 to 6.9. The LTA data was analyzed in the time (Tau) domain in which it was obtained and in the velocity domain. No significant differences were noted between Tau and velocity domain results except in one turbulent boundary layer case.

Hunter, W. W., Jr.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Spatial evolution of nonlinear acoustic mode instabilities on hypersonic boundary layers

The effects are considered of strong critical layer nonlinearity on the spatial evolution of an initially linear acoustic mode instability wave on a hypersonic flat plate boundary layer. The analysis shows that nonlinearity, which is initially confined to a thin critical layer, first becomes important when the amplitude of the pressure fluctuations become O(1/M exp 4 in M exp 2), where M is the free stream Mach number. The flow outside the critical layer is still determined by linear dynamics and therefore takes the form of a linear instability wave, but with its amplitude completely determined by the flow within the critical layer. The latter flow is determined by a coupled set of nonlinear equations, which were solved numerically.

Goldstein, M. E.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Numerical study of shock-wave/boundary layer interactions in premixed hydrogen-air hypersonic flows

Yungster, Shaye↗

NASA NTRS1991

Effect of velocity ratio on plane mixing layer development - Influence of the splitter plate wake

The effect of the velocity ratio on the approach of a plane mixing layer to self-similarity was investigated experimentally. In the experiment, plane mixing layers with velocity ratios 0.5, 0.6, 0.7, 0.8, and 0.9 were generated in a mixing-layer wind tunnel consisting of two individually driven legs, in which the two streams were allowed to merge at the sharp edge of a tappered splitter plate. The leg driven by the bigger blower was operated at a free-stream velocity in the test section of 21 m/s, while the flow speed in the other leg was varied to change the velocity ratio. For each velocity ratio, the mean flow- and turbulence measurements were carried out at eight streamwise locations. Results showed that, for velocity ratios between 0.5 and 0.7, self-similarity of the mixing layer was achieved, with the asymptotic states comparable; mixing layers with higher velocity ratios failed to achieve a self-similar state within the measurement domain.

Mehta, R. D.↗

NASA NTRS1989

Direct injection of ionospheric O(+) into the dayside low latitude boundary layer

Observations from the AMPTE/Charge Composition Explorer (AMPTE/CCE) indicate the presence of two distinct O(+) populations in the dayside subsolar low latitude boundary layer during some periods of northward Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF). The first population is O(+) convected into the boundary layer from the outer magnetosphere and has been reported previously. It is suggested here that the new, second, O(+) population is injected into the dayside boundary layer directly from the high latitude ionosphere. This second population can have a significant density and distinct characteristics such as field-aligned flow relative to boundary layer H(+) that modify both the plasma composition and dynamics in the low latitude boundary layer.

Fuselier, S. A.↗

NASA NTRS1991

Boundary-layer moisture regimes

Boundary-layer moisture fluctuations are estimated by analyzing HAPEX and FIFE data collected on 52 aircraft flight legs. Moisture fluctuations were given considerable attention in the HAPEX flights, which were 120 km long, and flew 150 m over one area of homogeneous terrain. The repetitions permit statistical consideration of motion characteristics on horizontal scales. Two prototypical boundary layer regimes are discovered: the entrainment-drying boundary layer, and the moistening boundary layer. The latter demonstrates positive moisture skewness close to the surface related to high surface evaporation. The former is characterized by boundary-layer instability, weak surface evaporation, and drier air aloft, leading to unexpected negative moisture skewness. It is noted that 10 km moisture variations with horizontal gradients are often found in narrow zones of horizontal convergence, called mesoscale moisture fronts. A negative moisture to temperature correlation, due to surface energy budget inhomogeneity, is shown to incur large mesoscale variations of relative humidity.

Mahrt, L.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Novel approaches for fabrication of thin film layers for solid oxide electrolyte fuel cells

The main objectives of the SOFC (solid oxide fuel cell) project are to (1) identify viable and cost-effective techniques to prepare cell components for stable MSOFCs (monolithic SOFCs); (2) fabricate half and single cells; and (3) evaluate their performances. The approach used to fabricate stable MSOFCs is as follows: (1) the electrolyte layer is prepared in the form of a honeycomb structure by alloy oxidation and other cell components are deposited on it; (2) the electrolyte and anode layers are deposited on the cathode layer, which has a porous, honeycomb structure; and (3) the electrolyte and cathode layers are deposited on the anode layer. The current status of the project is reported.

Murugesamoorthi, K. A.↗