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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 685 records · Page 38
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2015

Initial Verification and Validation of RAZORBACK – A Research Reactor Transient Analysis Code

This report describes the work and results of the initial verification and validation (V&V) of the beta release of the Razorback code. Razorback is a computer code designed to simulate the operation of a research reactor (such as the Annular Core Research Reactor (ACRR)) by a coupled numerical solution of the point reactor kinetics equations, the energy conservation equation for fuel element heat transfer, and the mass, momentum, and energy conservation equations for the water cooling of the fuel elements. This initial V&V effort was intended to confirm that the code work to-date shows good agreement between simulation and actual ACRR operations, indicating that the subsequent V&V effort for the official release of the code will be successful.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
NASA NTRS1990

Design Graphics

A mathematician, David R. Hedgley, Jr. developed a computer program that considers whether a line in a graphic model of a three-dimensional object should or should not be visible. Known as the Hidden Line Computer Code, the program automatically removes superfluous lines and displays an object from a specific viewpoint, just as the human eye would see it. An example of how one company uses the program is the experience of Birdair which specializes in production of fabric skylights and stadium covers. The fabric called SHEERFILL is a Teflon coated fiberglass material developed in cooperation with DuPont Company. SHEERFILL glazed structures are either tension structures or air-supported tension structures. Both are formed by patterned fabric sheets supported by a steel or aluminum frame or cable network. Birdair uses the Hidden Line Computer Code, to illustrate a prospective structure to an architect or owner. The program generates a three- dimensional perspective with the hidden lines removed. This program is still used by Birdair and continues to be commercially available to the public.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1984

3-D inelastic analysis methods for hot section components (base program)

A 3-D inelastic analysis methods program consists of a series of computer codes embodying a progression of mathematical models (mechanics of materials, special finite element, boundary element) for streamlined analysis of combustor liners, turbine blades, and turbine vanes. These models address the effects of high temperatures and thermal/mechanical loadings on the local (stress/strain) and global (dynamics, buckling) structural behavior of the three selected components. These models are used to solve 3-D inelastic problems using linear approximations in the sense that stresses/strains and temperatures in generic modeling regions are linear functions of the spatial coordinates, and solution increments for load, temperature and/or time are extrapolated linearly from previous information. Three linear formulation computer codes, referred to as MOMM (Mechanics of Materials Model), MHOST (MARC-Hot Section Technology), and BEST (Boundary Element Stress Technology), were developed and are described.

Wilson, R. B.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Computational simulation of intermingled-fiber hybrid composite behavior

Three-dimensional finite-element analysis and a micromechanics based computer code ICAN (Integrated Composite Analyzer) are used to predict the composite properties and microstresses of a unidirectional graphite/epoxy primary composite with varying percentages of S-glass fibers used as hydridizing fibers at a total fiber volume of 0.54. The three-dimensional finite-element model used in the analyses consists of a group of nine fibers, all unidirectional, in a three-by-three unit cell array. There is generally good agreement between the composite properties and microstresses obtained from both methods. The results indicate that the finite-element methods and the micromechanics equations embedded in the ICAN computer code can be used to obtain the properties of intermingled fiber hybrid composites needed for the analysis/design of hybrid composite structures. However, the finite-element model should be big enough to be able to simulate the conditions assumed in the micromechanics equations.

Mital, Subodh K.↗
NASA NTRS2000

Parametric Model of an Aerospike Rocket Engine

A suite of computer codes was assembled to simulate the performance of an aerospike engine and to generate the engine input for the Program to Optimize Simulated Trajectories. First an engine simulator module was developed that predicts the aerospike engine performance for a given mixture ratio, power level, thrust vectoring level, and altitude. This module was then used to rapidly generate the aerospike engine performance tables for axial thrust, normal thrust, pitching moment, and specific thrust. Parametric engine geometry was defined for use with the engine simulator module. The parametric model was also integrated into the iSIGHT multidisciplinary framework so that alternate designs could be determined. The computer codes were used to support in-house conceptual studies of reusable launch vehicle designs.

Korte, J. J.↗
NASA NTRS2000

Parametric Model of an Aerospike Rocket Engine

A suite of computer codes was assembled to simulate the performance of an aerospike engine and to generate the engine input for the Program to Optimize Simulated Trajectories. First an engine simulator module was developed that predicts the aerospike engine performance for a given mixture ratio, power level, thrust vectoring level, and altitude. This module was then used to rapidly generate the aerospike engine performance tables for axial thrust, normal thrust, pitching moment, and specific thrust. Parametric engine geometry was defined for use with the engine simulator module. The parametric model was also integrated into the iSIGHTI multidisciplinary framework so that alternate designs could be determined. The computer codes were used to support in-house conceptual studies of reusable launch vehicle designs.

Korte, J. J.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Computational design of an experimental laser-powered thruster

An extensive numerical experiment, using the developed computer code, was conducted to design an optimized laser-sustained hydrogen plasma thruster. The plasma was sustained using a 30 kW CO2 laser beam operated at 10.6 micrometers focused inside the thruster. The adopted physical model considers two-dimensional compressible Navier-Stokes equations coupled with the laser power absorption process, geometric ray tracing for the laser beam, and the thermodynamically equilibrium (LTE) assumption for the plasma thermophysical and optical properties. A pressure based Navier-Stokes solver using body-fitted coordinate was used to calculate the laser-supported rocket flow which consists of both recirculating and transonic flow regions. The computer code was used to study the behavior of laser-sustained plasmas within a pipe over a wide range of forced convection and optical arrangements before it was applied to the thruster design, and these theoretical calculations agree well with existing experimental results. Several different throat size thrusters operated at 150 and 300 kPa chamber pressure were evaluated in the numerical experiment. It is found that the thruster performance (vacuum specific impulse) is highly dependent on the operating conditions, and that an adequately designed laser-supported thruster can have a specific impulse around 1500 sec. The heat loading on the wall of the calculated thrusters were also estimated, and it is comparable to heat loading on the conventional chemical rocket. It was also found that the specific impulse of the calculated thrusters can be reduced by 200 secs due to the finite chemical reaction rate.

Jeng, San-Mou↗
NASA NTRS1978

Steady and unsteady transonic flow

An investigation of the transonic flow over a circular arc airfoil was conducted to obtain basic information for turbulence modeling of shock-induced separated flows and to verify numerical computer codes which are being developed to simulate such flows. The investigation included the employment of a laser velocimeter to obtain data concerning the mean velocity, the shear stress, and the turbulent kinetic energy profiles in the flowfield downstream of the airfoil midchord where the flow features are more complex. Depending on the free-stream Mach number, the flowfield developed was either steady with shock-wave-induced separation extending from the foot of the shock wave to beyond the trailing edge or unsteady with a periodic motion also undergoing shock-induced separation. The experimental data were compared with the results of numerical simulations in which a computer code was employed that solved the time-dependent Reynolds' averaged compressible Navier-Stokes equations.

Seegmiller, H. L.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Investigation of Vortex Flaps and Other Flow Control Devices on Generic High-Speed Civil Transport Planforms

A parametric cranked delta planform study has been conducted in the Langley 14- by 22-Foot Subsonic Tunnel with the following objectives: (1) to evaluate the vortex flap design methodology for cranked delta wings, (2) to determine the influence of leading-edge sweep and the outboard wing on vortex flap effectiveness, (3) to evaluate novel flow control concepts, and (4) to validate unstructured grid Euler computer code predictions with modeled vortex and trailing-edge flaps. Two families of cranked delta planforms were investigated. One family had constant aspect ratio, while the other had a constant nondimensional semispan location of the leading-edge break. The inboard leading-edge sweep of the planforms was varied between 68 deg., 71 deg., and 74 deg., while outboard leading-edge sweep was varied between 48 deg. and 61 deg. Vortex flaps for the different planforms were designed by an analytical vortex flap design method. The results indicate that the effectiveness of the vortex flaps was only slightly influenced by the variations in the parametric planforms. The unstructured grid Euler computer code was successfully used to model the configurations with vortex flaps. The vortex trap concept was successfully demonstrated.

Kjerstad, Kevin J.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Unit cell geometry of multiaxial preforms for structural composites

The objective of this study is to investigate the yarn geometry of multiaxial preforms. The importance of multiaxial preforms for structural composites is well recognized by the industry but, to exploit their full potential, engineering design rules must be established. This study is a step in that direction. In this work the preform geometry for knitted and braided preforms was studied by making a range of well designed samples and studying them by photo microscopy. The structural geometry of the preforms is related to the processing parameters. Based on solid modeling and B-spline methodology a software package is developed. This computer code enables real time structural representations of complex fiber architecture based on the rule of preform manufacturing. The code has the capability of zooming and section plotting. These capabilities provide a powerful means to study the effect of processing variables on the preform geometry. the code also can be extended to an auto mesh generator for downstream structural analysis using finite element method. This report is organized into six sections. In the first section the scope and background of this work is elaborated. In section two the unit cell geometries of braided and multi-axial warp knitted preforms is discussed. The theoretical frame work of yarn path modeling and solid modeling is presented in section three. The thin section microscopy carried out to observe the structural geometry of the preforms is the subject in section four. The structural geometry is related to the processing parameters in section five. Section six documents the implementation of the modeling techniques into the computer code MP-CAD. A user manual for the software is also presented here. The source codes and published papers are listed in the Appendices.

Ko, Frank↗
DOE OSTI2016

Improved limits on dark matter annihilation in the Sun with the 79-string IceCube detector and implications for supersymmetry

We present an improved event-level likelihood formalism for including neutrino telescope data in global fits to new physics. We derive limits on spin-dependent dark matter-proton scattering by employing the new formalism in a re-analysis of data from the 79-string IceCube search for dark matter annihilation in the Sun, including explicit energy information for each event. The new analysis excludes a number of models in the weak-scale minimal supersymmetric standard model (MSSM) for the first time. This work is accompanied by the public release of the 79-string IceCube data, as well as an associated computer code for applying the new likelihood to arbitrary dark matter models.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
NASA NTRS1992

ICAN/DAMP-integrated composite analyzer with damping analysis capabilities: User's manual

This manual describes the use of the computer code ICAN/DAMP (Integrated Composite Analyzer with Damping Analysis Capabilities) for the prediction of damping in polymer-matrix composites. The code is written in FORTRAN 77 and is a version of the ICAN (Integrated Composite ANalyzer) computer program. The code incorporates a new module for synthesizing the material damping from micromechanics to laminate level. Explicit micromechanics equations based on hysteretic damping are programmed relating the on-axis damping capacities to the fiber and matrix properties and fiber volume ratio. The damping capacities of unidirectional composites subjected to off-axis loading are synthesized from on-axis damping values. The hygrothermal effect on the damping performance of unidirectional composites caused by temperature and moisture variation is modeled along with the damping contributions from interfacial friction between broken fibers and matrix. The temperature rise is continuously vibrating composite plies and composite laminates is also estimated. The ICAN/DAMP user's manual provides descriptions of the damping analysis module's functions, structure, input requirements, output interpretation, and execution requirements. It only addresses the changes required to conduct the damping analysis and is used in conjunction with the 'Second Generation Integrated Composite Analyzer (ICAN) Computer Code' user's manual (NASA TP-3290).

Saravanos, Dimitrious A.↗
DOE OSTI2022

Benchmark Specification for FFTF LOFWOS Test #13

The Fast Flux Test Facility (FFTF) at the Hanford site in Washington was designed by the Westinghouse Electric Corporation for the U.S. Department of Energy. FFTF was a 400 MW thermal, oxide-fueled, liquid sodium cooled test reactor, built to assist development and testing of advanced fuels and materials for fast breeder reactors. After reaching criticality in 1980, FFTF operated until 1992, providing the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) with the means to test fuels, materials, and other components in a fast neutron flux environment. In July 1986, a series of unprotected transients (with the plant protection system intentionally disabled) were performed in FFTF as part of the passive safety demonstration program. Among these were thirteen loss of flow without scram (LOFWOS) tests. The goals of this program included confirming the liquid metal reactor safety margins, providing data for computer code validation, and demonstrating the inherent and passive safety benefits of specific design features. The test defined in this benchmark is LOFWOS Test #13, which was initiated at 50% power and 100% flow with the pump pony motors turned off. This benchmark specification is intended to support collaborative efforts within international partnerships on the validation of simulation tools and models in the area of Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor (SFR) safety. Validated tools and models are needed to evaluate SFR inherent safety characteristics and assess the impact of passive design features in response to accident initiators. Comparisons with experimental data and the results of safety analyses from other groups create unique opportunities to improve predictive capabilities of computational codes and methods for SFR modeling and simulation. The conditions of the LOFWOS test along with the feedback from FFTF’s limited free bow core restraint system and the novel passive reactivity control Gas-Expansion Modules (GEMs) pose a very challenging and uniquely valuable benchmark exercise.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2016

Behavior of fuel with zirconium alloy cladding in reactivity-initiated accident and loss-of-coolant accident - 2016-0090

Along with our colleagues at the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI) and Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA), we have performed extensive research programs for more than 2 decades and have developed a better understanding of fuel behavior under accident conditions. Data and findings from these research programs have provided the technical basis directly and indirectly for regulatory criteria in Japan and other countries. This paper reviews and summarizes the major outcomes from the research programs performed at JAERI and JAEA facilities and identifies further research needs. The programs aim to generate data and models to (1) evaluate the adequacy of present safety criteria and safety margins; (2) create a database for the future regulation of higher-burnup UO{sub 2} and mixed-oxide (MOX) fuels, new cladding, and pellets; (3) provide adequately mechanistic computer codes for regulatory application; (4) promote a better understanding of phenomena that appear in high-burnup regions and MOX fuels, such as rim effect and an effect of plutonium agglomerates in MOX fuels, and to evaluate those effects on fuel behavior in accident conditions; and (5) to assess fuel behaviors with higher fuel duty, such as plant power uprates, longer operating cycles, and water chemistry changes. The programs comprise reactivity-initiated accident studies, including pulse-irradiation experiments in the Nuclear Safety Research Reactor, cladding mechanical tests, and the development and verification of RANNS; loss-of-coolant accident tests, including integral thermal shock tests, oxidation rate measurements, and cladding mechanical tests; development and verification of a computer code FEMAXI-6 that simulates high-burnup fuel behavior under normal operating and abnormal transient conditions; and studies on phenomena specific to high-burnup regions, including thermal property measurements, experimental and analytical simulation of rim structure formation, cladding mechanical tests on effects of hydrides, etc. (authors)

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗
NASA NTRS1985

A Numerical Method of Calculating Propeller Noise Including Acoustic Nonlinear Effects

Using the transonic flow fields(s) generated by the NASPROP-E computer code for an eight blade SR3-series propeller, a theoretical method is investigated to calculate the total noise values and frequency content in the acoustic near and far field without using the Ffowcs Williams - Hawkings equation. The flow field is numerically generated using an implicit three dimensional Euler equation solver in weak conservation law form. Numerical damping is required by the differencing method for stability in three dimensions, and the influence of the damping on the calculated acoustic values is investigated. The acoustic near field is solved by integrating with respect to time the pressure oscillations induced at a stationary observer location. The acoustic far field is calculated from the near field primitive variables as generated by NASPROP-E computer code using a method involving a perturbation velocity potential as suggested by Hawkings in the calculation of the acoustic pressure time-history at a specified far field observed location. the methodologies described are valid for calculating total noise levels and are applicable to any propeller geometry for which a flow field solution is available.

Korkan, K. D.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Investigations of radiation-induced and carrier-enhanced conductivity

A steady-state carrier computer code, PECK (Parker Enhanced Carrier Kinetics), that predicts the radiation-induced conductivity (RIC) produced in a dielectric by an electron beam was developed. The model, which assumes instantly-trapped holes, was then applied to experimental measurements on thin Kapton samples penetrated by an electron beam. Measurements at high bias were matched in the model by an appropriate choice for the trap-modulated electron mobility. A fractional split between front and rear currents measured at zone bias is explained on the basis of beam-scattering. The effects of carrier-enhanced conductivity (CEC) on data obtained for thick, free-surface Kapton samples is described by using an analytical model that incorporates field injection of carriers from the RIC region. The computer code, LWPCHARGE, modified for carrier transport, is also used to predict partial penetration effects associated with CEC in the unirradiated region. Experimental currents and surface voltages, when incorporated in the appropriate models, provide a value for the trap modulated mobility that is in essential agreement with the RIC results.

Meulenberg, A., Jr.↗
DOE OSTI2017

RAZORBACK - A Research Reactor Transient Analysis Code Version 1.0 - Volume 3: Verification and Validation Report.

This report describes the work and results of the verification and validation (V&V) of the version 1.0 release of the Razorback code. Razorback is a computer code designed to simulate the operation of a research reactor (such as the Annular Core Research Reactor (ACRR)) by a coupled numerical solution of the point reactor kinetics equations, the energy conservation equation for fuel element heat transfer, the equation of motion for fuel element thermal expansion, and the mass, momentum, and energy conservation equations for the water cooling of the fuel elements. This V&V effort was intended to confirm that the code shows good agreement between simulation and actual ACRR operations.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2013

Method development for determining the hydraulic conductivity of fractured porous media

Plausible, but unvalidated, theoretical model constructs for unsaturated hydraulic conductivity of fractured porous media are currently used in Performance Assessment (PA) modeling for cracked saltstone and concrete (Flach 2011). The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has expressed concern about the lack of model support for these assumed Moisture Characteristic Curves (MCC) data, as noted in Requests for Additional Information (RAIs) PA-8 and SP-4 (Savannah River Remediation, LLC, 2011). The objective of this task was to advance PA model support by developing an experimental method for determining the hydraulic conductivity of fractured cementitious materials under unsaturated conditions, and to demonstrate the technique on fractured saltstone samples. The task was requested through Task Technical Request (TTR) HLW-SSF-TTR-2012-0016 and conducted in accordance with Task Technical & Quality Assurance Plan (TTQAP) SRNL-TR-2012-00090. Preliminary method development previously conducted by Kohn et al. (2012) identified transient outflow extraction as the most promising method for characterizing the unsaturated properties of fractured porous media. While the research conducted by Kohn et al. (2012) focused on fractured media analogs such as stacked glass slides, the current task focused directly on fractured saltstone. For this task, four sample types with differing fracture geometries were considered: 1) intact saltstone, 2) intact saltstone with a single saw cut, smooth surface fracture, 3) micro-fractured saltstone (induced by oven drying), and 4) micro-fractured saltstone with a single, fully-penetrating, rough-surface fracture. Each sample type was tested initially for saturated hydraulic conductivity following method ASTM D 5084 using a flexible wall permeameter. Samples were subsequently tested using the transient outflow extraction method to determine cumulative outflow as a function of time and applied pressure. Of the four sample types tested, two yielded datasets suitable for analysis (sample types 3 and 4). The intact saltstone sample (sample type 1) did not yield any measureable outflow over the pressure range of the outflow test (0-1000 cm H 2 O). This was expected because the estimated air entry pressure for intact saltstone is on the order of 100,000 cm H 2 O (Dixon et al., 2009). The intact saltstone sample with a single saw cut smooth surface fracture (sample type 2) did not produce useable data because the fracture completely drained at less than 10 cm H 2 O applied pressure. The cumulative outflow data from sample types 3 and 4 were analyzed using an inverse solution of the Richard’s equation for water flow in variably saturated porous media. This technique was implemented using the computer code Hydrus-1D (Šimunek et al., 2008) and the resulting output included the van Genuchten-Mualem water retention and relative permeability parameters and predicted saturated hydraulic conductivity (Van Genuchten, 1980; Van Genuchten et al., 1991). Estimations of relative permeability and saturated conductivity are possible because the transient response of the sample to pressure changes is recorded during the multi-step outflow extraction test. Characteristic curves were developed for sample types 3 and 4 based on the results of the transient outflow method and compared to that of intact saltstone previously reported by Dixon et al. (2009). The overall results of this study indicate that the outflow extraction method is suitable for measuring the hydraulic properties of micro-fractured porous media. The resulting cumulative outflow data can be analyzed using the computer code Hydrus-1D to generate the van Genuchten curve fitting parameters that adequately describe fracture drainage. The resulting characteristic curves are consistent with blended characteristic curves that combine the behaviors of low pressure drainage associated with fracture flow with high pressure drainage from the bulk saltstone matrix.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗