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Nonsimilar solution of incompressible turbulent boundary layer by integral matrix method
The boundary layer drag on a 0.28 m x 0.91 m flat-plate was measured to evaluate the performance of smooth-wall drag reducing outer-layer devices in rough-wall boundary layers up to a chord Reynolds number, Re(c) of 17,000. The devices were a pair of thin flat ribbons placed in tandem. The wall conditions examined were smooth, transverse-groove roughnesses having cavity width/depth ratios of 0.7 (d-type) and 3 (k-type), and sandpaper roughness (k-type) of grit sizes 180, 50 and 36. The area-averaged wall-drag was reduced compared to the respective normal levels for all wall conditions. All k-type rough walls exhibited a comparable level of drag reduction (about 7 percent) which was lower than that in the smooth-wall. The d-type rough-wall exhibited a transitional behavior in that the drag reduction dropped from the smooth-wall level to that of the k-type roughnesses with increase in the flow speed. In further experiments on a 6 meter long sandpaper roughened wall and with a pair of symmetric airfoil devices in tandem at an Re(c) of 77,500, it was possible to recover the device drag penalty fully, but no net drag reduction was achieved. The apparent loss of performance of the devices in a rough-wall is explained in terms of their inability to alter the pressure component of the drag in a significant way.
Turbulent boundary layer measurements on axisymmetric hypersonic nozzle walls
Accelerated boundary layers classified in terms of integral balance of pressure, inertia, wall friction forces and entrainment momenta
Turbulent boundary layer velocity profiles with favorable pressure gradients
A boundary layer created on an infinite flat plate by a time-dependent freestream velocity vector whose magnitude is independent of time but whose direction changes at a constant angular velocity is theoretically studied using Reynolds-number scaling laws and numerical simulations performed over a range of Reynolds numbers. Results obtained with a higher-order version of existing theories of the Ekman layer are shown to agree well with the numerical results at three Reynolds numbers. The present results can be extrapolated to the case of high Reynolds numbers. The Reynolds-averaged equations reduce to a one-dimensional steady problem, making possible the easy and accurate testing of turbulence models.
Boundary layer soundings show the diurnal variation of California coastal stratochumulus. During the period of solar heating, cloud base rises and the cloud layer thins, while the subcloud layer becomes more stable, suggesting some daytime upcoupling of the cloud layer from the surface.
Blasius boundary layer evolution is studies by means of bicoherence calculations. The layer is acoustically excited at the T-S frequency to provide a controlled transition. Measurements are made using a smooth surface as well as various roughness patterns. The bicoherence calculations are used to determine the extent to which frequency resonant velocity fluctuation waves can participate in energy exchange. The emphasis is on downstream variation of the individual interactions among harmonic modes. A limited picture of the role of quadratic wave interactions is revealed.
Marine boundary layer (MBL) clouds are important components of the earth's climate system. These clouds drastically reduce the amount of solar radiation absorbed by the earth, but have little effect on the emitted infrared radiation on top of the atmosphere. In addition, these clouds are intimately involved in regulating boundary layer turbulent fluxes. For these reasons, it is important that general circulation models used for climate studies must realistically simulate the global distribution of the MBL. While the importance of these cloud systems is well recognized, many physical processes involved in these clouds are poorly understood and their representation in large-scale models remains an unresolved problem. The present research aims at the development and improvement of the parameterization of these cloud systems and an understanding of physical processes involved. This goal is addressed in two ways. One is to use regional modeling approach to validate and evaluate two-layer marine boundary layer models using satellite and ground-truth observations; the other is to combine this simple model with a high-order turbulence closure model to study the transition processes from stratocumulus to shallow cumulus clouds. Progress made in this effort is presented.
A turbulent boundary layer on the fuselage of a glider was used to excite a Helmholtz resonator. The resonator orifice was flush with the surface and smaller than the boundary layer thickness. Resonator frequencies were chosen so they would tune with different portions of the boundary layer wall pressure spectrum. The resonators were excited at both the Helmholtz frequency and a standing wave frequency. The results show a shift in the Helmholtz frequency when the boundary layer is present. This shift indicates the degree to which the turbulence interacts with the acoustic motion in the orifice and modifies the end correction. Four of the nine resonators tested were 'strongly' excited and radiated considerable acoustic sound. This phenomenon occurs when turbulent eddies about the size of the orifice are convected past the orifice with the proper velocity to impose a frequency that matches a resonant frequency of the resonator. Turbulent eddies which are either smaller or larger than the orifice will not produce strong excitation.
Supersonic boundary-layer receptivity to freestream acoustic disturbances is investigated by solving the Navier–Stokes equations for Mach 3.5 flow over a 7 deg half-angle cone. The freestream disturbances are generated from a wavy wall placed at the nozzle wall. The freestream acoustic disturbances radiated by the wavy wall are obtained by solving the linearized Euler equations. The results show that no noticeable instability modes are generated when the acoustic disturbances impinge the cone obliquely. The results show that the perturbations generated inside the boundary layer by the acoustic disturbances are the response of the boundary layer to the external forcing. The amplitude of the forced disturbances inside the boundary layer are about 2.5 times larger than the incoming field for zero azimuthal wave number, and they are about 1.5 times for large azimuthal wave numbers.
Supersonic boundary-layer receptivity to freestream acoustic disturbances is investigated by solving the Navier-Stokes equations for Mach 3.5 flow over a sharp flat plate and a 7-deg half-angle cone. The freestream disturbances are generated from a wavy wall placed at the nozzle wall. The freestream acoustic disturbances radiated by the wavy wall are obtained by solving the linearized Euler equations. The results for the flat plate show that instability modes are generated at all the incident angles ranging from zero to highly oblique. However, the receptivity coefficient decreases by about 20 times when the incident angle increases from zero to a highly oblique angle of 68 degrees. The results for the cone show that no instability modes are generated when the acoustic disturbances impinge the cone obliquely. The results show that the perturbations generated inside the boundary layer by the acoustic disturbances are the response of the boundary layer to the external forcing. The amplitude of the forced disturbances inside the boundary layer are about 2.5 times larger than the incoming field for zero azimuthal wavenumber and they are about 1.5 times for large azimuthal wavenumbers.
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Boundary Layer Integral Matrix Procedure (BLIMPJ) has been identified by the propulsion community as the rigorous boundary layer program in connection with the existing JANNAF reference programs. The improvements made to BLIMPJ and described herein have potential applications in the design of the future Orbit Transfer Vehicle engines. The turbulence model is validated to include the effects of wall roughness and a way is devised to treat multiple smooth-rough surfaces. A prediction of relaminarization regions is examined as is the combined effects of wall cooling and surface roughness on relaminarization. A turbulence model to represent the effects of constant condensed phase loading is given. A procedure is described for thrust decrement calculation in thick boundary layers by coupling the T-D Kinetics Program and BLIMPJ and a way is provided for thrust loss optimization. Potential experimental studies in rocket nozzles are identified along with the required instrumentation to provide accurate measurements in support of the presented new analytical models.
Bifurcation approximation for binary and thermal diffusion coefficients, mixture viscosity, and thermal conductivity of laminar boundary layer
A turbulent boundary layer on the fuselage of a glider is used to excite a Helmholtz resonator whose openings are comparable in size to the turbulent eddies in the boundary layer. The resonator was excited at both the Helmholtz frequency and a standing wave frequency. The level of the resonator response and the response frequency are the major results. A shift in the response frequency, compared to acoustic excitation, indicates an interaction of turbulent and acoustic motions and a modification of the orifice end correction. A strong excitation phenomenon occurs when the resonator and boundary layer are tuned, in which case turbulent eddies of about the orifice diameter in size flow past the orifice and impose a frequency equal to one of the resonant frequencies of the resonator.
Boundary layer ingesting propulsion systems have the potential to significantly reduce fuel burn for future generations of commercial aircraft, but these systems must be designed to overcome the challenge of high dynamic stresses in fan blades due to forced response. High dynamic stresses can lead to high cycle fatigue failures. High-fidelity computational analysis of the fan aeromechanics is integral to an ongoing effort to design a boundary layer ingesting inlet and fan for a wind-tunnel test. An unsteady flow solution from a Reynoldsaveraged Navier Stokes analysis of a coupled inlet-fan system is used to calculate blade unsteady loading and assess forced response of the fan to distorted inflow. Conducted prior to the mechanical design of a fan, the initial forced response analyses performed in this study provide an early look at the levels of dynamic stresses that are likely to be encountered. For the boundary layer ingesting inlet, the distortion contains strong engine order excitations that act simultaneously. The combined effect of these harmonics was considered in the calculation of the forced response stresses. Together, static and dynamic stresses can provide the information necessary to evaluate whether the blades are likely to fail due to high cycle fatigue. Based on the analyses done, the overspeed condition is likely to result in the smallest stress margin in terms of the mean and alternating stresses. Additional work is ongoing to expand the analyses to off-design conditions, on-resonance conditions, and to include more detailed modeling of the blade structure.
Predictions of mixing length by Pletcher's (1976) method (using a two-layer eddy viscosity model for a turbulent boundary layer at low Reynolds numbers) are compared to some values derived from turbulent boundary-layer profiles by other authors. The model is incorporated into a finite-difference scheme, to accurately predict low Reynolds number skin friction in supersonic flow.