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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
NASA NTRS2002

A Ground-Based Profiling Differential Absorption LIDAR System for Measuring CO2 in the Planetary Boundary Layer

Ground-based LIDAR observations can potentially provide continuous profiles of CO2 through the planetary boundary layer and into the free troposphere. We will present initial atmospheric measurements from a prototype system that is based on components developed by the telecommunications industry. Preliminary measurements and instrument performance calculations indicate that an optimized differential absorption LIDAR (DIAL) system will be capable of providing continuous hourly averaged profiles with 250m vertical resolution and better than 1 ppm precision at 1 km. Precision increases (decreases) at lower (higher) altitudes and is directly proportional to altitude resolution and acquisition time. Thus, precision can be improved if temporal or vertical resolution is sacrificed. Our approach measures absorption by CO2 of pulsed laser light at 1.6 microns backscattered from atmospheric aerosols. Aerosol concentrations in the planetary boundary layer are relatively high and are expected to provide adequate signal returns for the desired resolution. The long-term goal of the project is to develop a rugged, autonomous system using only commercially available components that can be replicated inexpensively for deployment in a monitoring network.

Andrews, Arlyn E.↗
NASA NTRS2003

Boundary-Layer Separation Control under Low-Pressure Turbine Airfoil Conditions using Glow-Discharge Plasma Actuators

Modem low-pressure turbines, in general, utilize highly loaded airfoils in an effort to improve efficiency and to lower the number of airfoils needed. Typically, the airfoil boundary layers are turbulent and fully attached at takeoff conditions, whereas a substantial fraction of the boundary layers on the airfoils may be transitional at cruise conditions due to the change of density with altitude. The strong adverse pressure gradients on the suction side of these airfoils can lead to boundary-layer separation at the latter low Reynolds number conditions. Large separation bubbles, particularly those which fail to reattach, cause a significant degradation of engine efficiency. A component efficiency drop of the order 2% may occur between takeoff and cruise conditions for large commercial transport engines and could be as large as 7% for smaller engines at higher altitude. An efficient means of of separation elimination/reduction is, therefore, crucial to improved turbine design. Because the large change in the Reynolds number from takeoff to cruise leads to a distinct change in the airfoil flow physics, a separation control strategy intended for cruise conditions will need to be carefully constructed so as to incur minimum impact/penalty at takeoff. A complicating factor, but also a potential advantage in the quest for an efficient strategy, is the intricate interplay between separation and transition for the situation at hand. Volino gives a comprehensive discussion of several recent studies on transition and separation under low-pressure-turbine conditions, among them one in the present facility. Transition may begin before or after separation, depending on the Reynolds number and other flow conditions. If the transition occurs early in the boundary layer then separation may be reduced or completely eliminated. Transition in the shear layer of a separation bubble can lead to rapid reattachment. This suggests using control mechanisms to trigger and enhance early transition. Gad-el-Hak provides a review of various techniques for flow control in general and Volino discusses recent studies on separation control under low-pressure-turbine conditions utilizing passive as well as active devices. As pointed out by Volino, passive devices optimized for separation control at low Reynolds numbers tend to increase losses at high Reynolds numbers, Active devices have the attractive feature that they can be utilized only in operational regimes where they are needed and when turned off would not affect the flow. The focus in the present paper is an experimental Separation is induced on a flat plate installed in a closed-circuit wind tunnel by a shaped insert on the opposite wall. The flow conditions represent flow over the suction surface of a modem low-pressure-turbine airfoil ('Pak-B'). The Reynolds number, based on wetted plate length and nominal exit velocity, is varied from 50,000 to 300,000, covering cruise to takeoff conditions. Low (0.2%) and high (2.5%) Gee-stream turbulence intensities are set using passive grids. A spanwise-oriented phased-plasma-array actuator, fabricated on a printed circuit board, is surface- flush-mounted upstream of the separation point and can provide forcing in a wide frequency range. Static surface pressure measurements and hot-wire anemometry of the base and controlled flows are performed and indicate that the glow-discharge plasma actuator is an effective device for separation control. of active separation control using glow discharge plasma actuators.

Hultgren, Lennart S.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Computational Investigation of Fluidic Counterflow Thrust Vectoring

A computational study of fluidic counterflow thrust vectoring has been conducted. Two-dimensional numerical simulations were run using the computational fluid dynamics code PAB3D with two-equation turbulence closure and linear Reynolds stress modeling. For validation, computational results were compared to experimental data obtained at the NASA Langley Jet Exit Test Facility. In general, computational results were in good agreement with experimental performance data, indicating that efficient thrust vectoring can be obtained with low secondary flow requirements (less than 1% of the primary flow). An examination of the computational flowfield has revealed new details about the generation of a countercurrent shear layer, its relation to secondary suction, and its role in thrust vectoring. In addition to providing new information about the physics of counterflow thrust vectoring, this work appears to be the first documented attempt to simulate the counterflow thrust vectoring problem using computational fluid dynamics.

Hunter, Craig A.↗
NASA NTRS2004

Demonstration of Separation Delay with Glow-Discharge Plasma Actuators

Active flow control of boundary-layer separation using glow-discharge plasma actuators is studied experimentally. Separation is induced on a flat plate installed in a closed-circuit wind tunnel by a shaped insert on the opposite wall. The flow conditions represent flow over the suction surface of a modern low-pressure-turbine airfoil. The Reynolds number, based on wetted plate length and nominal exit velocity, is varied from 50,000 to 300,000, covering cruise to takeoff conditions. Low (0.2 percent) and high (2.5 percent) free-stream turbulence intensities are set using passive grids. A spanwise-oriented phased-plasma-array actuator, fabricated on a printed circuit board, is surface-flush-mounted upstream of the separation point and can provide forcing in a wide frequency range. Static surface pressure measurements and hot-wire anemometry of the base and controlled flows are performed and indicate that the glow-discharge plasma actuator is an effective device for separation control.

Hultgren, Lennart S.↗
NASA NTRS2005

Interplanetary Sample Return Missions Using Radioisotope Electric Propulsion

Solar electric propulsion (SEP) is being used for a variety of planetary missions sponsored by ESA, JAXA, and NASA and nuclear electric propulsion (NEP) is being considered for future, flagship-class interplanetary missions. Radioisotope electric propulsion (REP) has recently been shown to effectively complement SEP and NEP for missions to high-AU targets with modest payload requirements. This paper investigates the application of an advanced REP for a sample return from the comet Tempel 1. A set of mission and system parameters are varied with the goal of quantifying their impact on total mission payload. Mission parameters considered include trip-time and Earth return entry interface speed of the sample return system. System parameters considered include launch vehicle, power level of spacecraft at beginning of mission, and thruster specific impulse. For the baseline case of Atlas 401 and REP power level of 750 W, the mission time was 12 years, the payload was 144 kg, and the missions optimized to a single specific impulse generally within Hall ion thruster range. Other cases were investigated in support of graduate studies, and include the larger Atlas 551 launch vehicle and extended power level to 1 kW. The Atlas 551 cases tended to optimize dual specific impulses generally in the Hall ion thruster range for both legs of the mission. A power level of at least 1-kW and trip-time of approximately 11 years was required to obtain a total science payload close to 320 kg for the Atlas 401 launch vehicle. An Atlas 551 launch vehicle yielded a science payload of approximately 540 kg for the case of 1-kW of power and an 11-year trip time, and nearly 250 kg of science payload for the case of 1-kW of power and a 6-year trip time. Results are also reported indicating the performance ramifications of meeting a reduced Earth entry interface velocity constraint.

Williams, R.↗
NASA NTRS2008

Photogrammetric Measurements of CEV Airbag Landing Attenuation Systems

High-speed photogrammetric measurements are being used to assess the impact dynamics of the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) for ground landing contingency upon return to earth. Test articles representative of the Orion capsule are dropped at the NASA Langley Landing and Impact Research (LandIR) Facility onto a sand/clay mixture representative of a dry lakebed from elevations as high as 62 feet (18.9 meters). Two different types of test articles have been evaluated: (1) half-scale metal shell models utilized to establish baseline impact dynamics and soil characterization, and (2) geometric full-scale drop models with shock-absorbing airbags which are being evaluated for their ability to cushion the impact of the Orion CEV with the earth s surface. This paper describes the application of the photogrammetric measurement technique and provides drop model trajectory and impact data that indicate the performance of the photogrammetric measurement system.

Barrows, Danny A.↗
NASA NTRS2010

International Space Station Major Constituent Analyzer On-Orbit Performance

The Major Constituent Analyzer is a mass spectrometer based system that measures the major atmospheric constituents on the International Space Station. A number of limited-life components require periodic changeout, including the analyzer (ORU 02) and the verification gas assembly (ORU 08). The longest lasting ORU 02 was recently replaced after a record service length of 1033 days. The comparatively high performance duration may be attributable to a reduced inlet flow rate into the analyzer, resulting in increased ion pump lifetime; however, there may be other factors as well. A recent schedule slip for delivery of replacement verification gas led to a demonstration that the calibration interval could be extended on a short-term basis. An analysis of ORU 08 performance characteristics indicates that it is possible to temporarily extend the calibration interval from 6 weeks to 12 weeks if necessary.

Gardner, Ben D.↗
NASA NTRS2012

Motion-Base Simulator Evaluation of an Aircraft Using an External Vision System

Twelve air transport-rated pilots participated as subjects in a motion-base simulation experiment to evaluate the use of eXternal Vision Systems (XVS) as enabling technologies for future supersonic aircraft without forward facing windows. Three head-up flight display concepts were evaluated -a monochromatic, collimated Head-up Display (HUD) and a color, non-collimated XVS display with a field-of-view (FOV) equal to and also, one significantly larger than the collimated HUD. Approach, landing, departure, and surface operations were conducted. Additionally, the apparent angle-of-attack (AOA) was varied (high/low) to investigate the vertical field-of-view display requirements and peripheral, side window visibility was experimentally varied. The data showed that lateral approach tracking performance and lateral landing position were excellent regardless of AOA, display FOV, display collimation or whether peripheral cues were present. However, the data showed glide slope approach tracking appears to be affected by display size (i.e., FOV) and collimation. The monochrome, collimated HUD and color, uncollimated XVS with Full FOV display had (statistically equivalent) glide path performance improvements over the XVS with HUD FOV display. Approach path performance results indicated that collimation may not be a requirement for an XVS display if the XVS display is large enough and employs color. Subjective assessments of mental workload and situation awareness also indicated that an uncollimated XVS display may be feasible. Motion cueing appears to have improved localizer tracking and touchdown sink rate across all displays.

Kramer, Lynda J.↗
NASA NTRS2014

Calibration of the NASA Glenn Research Center 16 in. Mass-Flow Plug

The results of an experimental calibration of the NASA Glenn Research Center 16 in. Mass-Flow Plug (MFP) are presented and compared to a previously obtained calibration of a 15 in. Mass-Flow Plug. An ASME low-beta, long-radius nozzle was used as the calibration reference. The discharge coefficient for the ASME nozzle was obtained by numerically simulating the flow through the nozzle from the WIND-US code. The results showed agreement between the 15 and 16 in. MFPs for area ratios (MFP to pipe area ratio) greater than 0.6 but deviate at area ratios below this value for reasons that are not fully understood. A general uncertainty analysis was also performed and indicates that large uncertainties in the calibration are present for low MFP area ratios.

Davis, David O.↗
NASA NTRS2012

Calibration of the NASA GRC 16 In. Mass-Flow Plug

The results of an experimental calibration of the NASA Glenn Research Center 16 in. Mass-Flow Plug (MFP) are presented and compared to a previously obtained calibration of a 15 in. Mass-Flow Plug. An ASME low-beta, long-radius nozzle was used as the calibration reference. The discharge coefficient for the ASME nozzle was obtained by numerically simulating the flow through the nozzle from the WIND-US code. The results showed agreement between the 15 in. and 16 in. MFPs for area ratios (MFP to pipe area ratio) greater than 0.6 but deviate at area ratios below this value for reasons that are not fully understood. A general uncertainty analysis was also performed and indicates that large uncertainties in the calibration are present for low MFP area ratios.

Davis, David O.↗
NASA NTRS2015

Exprimental Results of the First Two Stages of an Advanced Transonic Core Compressor Under Isolated and Multi-Stage Conditions.

NASA's Environmentally Responsible Aviation (ERA) Program calls for investigation of the technology barriers associated with improved fuel efficiency for large gas turbine engines. Under ERA, the highly loaded core compressor technology program attempts to realize the fuel burn reduction goal by increasing overall pressure ratio of the compressor to increase thermal efficiency of the engine. Study engines with overall pressure ratio of 60 to 70 are now being investigated. This means that the high pressure compressor would have to almost double in pressure ratio while keeping a high level of efficiency. NASA and GE teamed to address this challenge by testing the first two stages of an advanced GE compressor designed to meet the requirements of a very high pressure ratio core compressor. Previous test experience of a compressor which included these front two stages indicated a performance deficit relative to design intent. Therefore, the current rig was designed to run in 1-stage and 2-stage configurations in two separate tests to assess whether the bow shock of the second rotor interacting with the upstream stage contributed to the unpredicted performance deficit, or if the culprit was due to interaction of rotor 1 and stator 1. Thus, the goal was to fully understand the stage 1 performance under isolated and multi-stage conditions, and additionally to provide a detailed aerodynamic data set for CFD validation. Full use was made of steady and unsteady measurement methods to understand fluid dynamics loss source mechanisms due to rotor shock interaction and endwall losses. This paper will present the description of the compressor test article and its measured performance and operability, for both the single stage and two stage configurations. We focus the paper on measurements at 97% corrected speed with design intent vane setting angles.

transonic compressors↗
NASA NTRS2015

Shearlet Features for Registration of Remotely Sensed Multitemporal Images

We investigate the role of anisotropic feature extraction methods for automatic image registration of remotely sensed multitemporal images. Building on the classical use of wavelets in image registration, we develop an algorithm based on shearlets, a mathematical generalization of wavelets that offers increased directional sensitivity. Initial experimental results on LANDSAT images are presented, which indicate superior performance of the shearlet algorithm when compared to classical wavelet algorithms.

Science data processing↗
NASA NTRS2016

Modeling Forest Biomass and Growth: Coupling Long-Term Inventory and Lidar Data

Combining spatially-explicit long-term forest inventory and remotely sensed information from Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) datasets through statistical models can be a powerful tool for predicting and mapping above-ground biomass (AGB) at a range of geographic scales. We present and examine a novel modeling approach to improve prediction of AGB and estimate AGB growth using LiDAR data. The proposed model accommodates temporal misalignment between field measurements and remotely sensed data-a problem pervasive in such settings-by including multiple time-indexed measurements at plot locations to estimate AGB growth. We pursue a Bayesian modeling framework that allows for appropriately complex parameter associations and uncertainty propagation through to prediction. Specifically, we identify a space-varying coefficients model to predict and map AGB and its associated growth simultaneously. The proposed model is assessed using LiDAR data acquired from NASA Goddard's LiDAR, Hyper-spectral & Thermal imager and field inventory data from the Penobscot Experimental Forest in Bradley, Maine. The proposed model outperformed the time-invariant counterpart models in predictive performance as indicated by a substantial reduction in root mean squared error. The proposed model adequately accounts for temporal misalignment through the estimation of forest AGB growth and accommodates residual spatial dependence. Results from this analysis suggest that future AGB models informed using remotely sensed data, such as LiDAR, may be improved by adapting traditional modeling frameworks to account for temporal misalignment and spatial dependence using random effects.

Babcock, Chad↗
NASA NTRS2016

A Distant Mirror: Solar Oscillations Observed on Neptune by the Kepler K2 Mission

Starting in 2014 December, Kepler (K2) observed Neptune continuously for 49 days at a 1-minute cadence. The goals consisted of studying its atmospheric dynamics, detecting its global acoustic oscillations, and those of the Sun, which we report on here. We present the first indirect detection of solar oscillations in intensity measurements. Beyond the remarkable technical performance, it indicates how Kepler would see a star like the Sun. The result from the global asteroseismic approach, which consists of measuring the oscillation frequency at maximum amplitude max velocity and the mean frequency separation between mode overtones delta velocity, is surprising as the max velocity measured from Neptune photometry is larger than the accepted value. Compared to the usual reference max velocity of the sun equal to 3100 microhertz, the asteroseismic scaling relations therefore make the solar mass and radius appear larger by 13.8 plus or minus 5.8 percent and 4.3 plus or minus 1.9 percent, respectively. The higher max velocity is caused by a combination of the value of max velocity of the sun, being larger at the time of observations than the usual reference from SOHO/VIRGO/SPM (Variability of solar IRradiance and Gravity Oscillations / on board SOHO (Solar and Heliospheric Observatory) / Sun PhotoMeters) data (3160 plus or minus 10 microhertz), and the noise level of the K2 time series, being 10 times larger than VIRGO's. The peak-bagging method provides more consistent results: despite a low signal-to-noise ratio (S/N), we model 10 overtones for degrees iota equal 0, 1, 2. We compare the K2 data with simultaneous SOHO/VIRGO/SPM photometry and Bison (Birmingham Solar-Oscillations Network) velocity measurements. The individual frequencies, widths, and amplitudes mostly match those from VIRGO and BiSON within 1 sigma, except for the few peaks with the lowest S/N.

planets and satellites: individual (Neptune) – s↗
NASA NTRS2015

Shearlet Features for Registration of Remotely Sensed Multitemporal Images

We investigate the role of anisotropic feature extraction methods for automatic image registration of remotely sensed multitemporal images. Building on the classical use of wavelets in image registration, we develop an algorithm based on shearlets, a mathematical generalization of wavelets that offers increased directional sensitivity. Experimental results on multitemporal Landsat images are presented, which indicate superior performance of the shearlet algorithm when compared to classical wavelet algorithms.

Science Data Processing↗
NASA NTRS2015

Shearlet Features for Registration of Remotely Sensed Multitemporal Images

We investigate the role of anisotropic feature extraction methods for automatic image registration of remotely sensed multitemporal images. Building on the classical use of wavelets in image registration, we develop an algorithm based on shearlets, a mathematical generalization of wavelets that offers increased directional sensitivity. Experimental results on multitemporal Landsat images are presented, which indicate superior performance of the shearlet algorithm when compared to classical wavelet algorithms.

Science Data Processing↗
NASA NTRS2018

Toughness Testing for Liquid Hydrogen And Helium Temperatures - Validation of Austenitic Stainless Steels for 4K (-452F) Use

This presentation is an Existing Code Requirement: Charpy impact test at a temperature no higher than the design minimum temperature. The Current Practice: is not clear, the indications are that testing is sometimes performed at -320F (liquid nitrogen or "LN2") for that and all lower temperatures. In some cases testing is probably not performed and CGA indicated successful operation of systems at -453F without required test. The Ballot activity: C&S Connect Record 13-341, Ballot 13-1746, initially proposed Charpy testing (lateral expansion criteria) at -320F to validate use at -425 (liquid helium or "LHe"). and PTCS Proposal..

Greulich, Owen R.↗