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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 73 records · Page 4

Megamechanics research Consortium

The mechanical behavior of large space lattice systems is investigated. Continuum modeling methods such as the Load Correction Method (LCM) and finite element operations aid in solving structural analysis problems. Static analysis of frames and trusses, dynamic analysis of trusses, analysis of thermal and mechanical loads on frames and trusses, and load corrections for three dimensional complex geometries is possible by using the LCM. The finite element method and the LCM are used to extend Saint-Venant's principle via the Boussinesq problem into the regime of large repetitive lattice systems.

Broome, T. H., Jr.↗

HITCAN for actively cooled hot-composite thermostructural analysis

A computer code, high temperature composite analyzer (HITCAN), was developed to analyze/design hot metal matrix composite structures. HITCAN is a general purpose code for predicting the global structural and local stress-strain response of multilayered (arbitrarily oriented) metal matrix structures both at the constituent (fiber, matrix, and interphase) and the structural level, including the fabrication process effects. The thermomechanical properties of the constituents are considered to be nonlinearly dependent on several parameters, including temperature, stress, and stress rate. The computational procedure employs an incremental iterative nonlinear approach utilizing a multifactor-interaction material behavior model, i.e., the material properties are expressed in terms of a product of several factors that affect the properties. HITCAN structural analysis capabilities (static, load stepping - a multistep static analysis with material properties updated at each step, modal, and buckling) for cooled hot structures are demonstrated through a specific example problem.

Chamis, C. C.↗

Investigation of the Finite Element Software Packages at KSC

The useful and powerful features of NASTRAN and three real world problems for the testing of the capabilities of different NASTRAN versions are discussed. The test problems involve direct transient analysis, nonlinear analysis, and static analysis. The experiences in using graphics software packages are also discussed. It was found that MSC/XL can be more useful if it can be improved to generate picture files of the analysis results and to extend its capabilities to support finite element codes other than MSC/NASTRAN. It was found that the current version of SDRC/I-DEAS (version VI) may have bugs in the module 'Data Loader'.

Lu, Chu-Ho↗

HITCAN for actively cooled hot-composite thermostructural analysis

A computer code, high temperature composite analyzer (HITCAN), was developed to analyze/design hot metal matrix composite structures. HITCAN is a general purpose code for predicting the global structural and local stress-strain response of multilayered (arbitrarily oriented) metal matrix structures both at the constituent (fiber, matrix, and interphase) and the structural level, including the fabrication process effects. The thermomechanical properties of the constituents are considered to be nonlinearly dependent on several parameters, including temperature, stress, and stress rate. The computational procedure employs an incremental iterative nonlinear approach utilizing a multifactor-interaction material behavior model, i.e., the material properties are expressed in terms of a product of several factors that affect the properties. HITCAN structural analysis capabilities (static, load stepping - a multistep static analysis with material properties updated at each step, modal, and buckling) for cooled hot structures are demonstrated through a specific example problem.

Chamis, C. C.↗

IKOS: Sound Static Program Analysis

IKOS (Inference Kernel for Open Static Analyzers) is a static analyzer for C/C++ based on the theory of Abstract Interpretation. It can detect or prove the absence of runtime errors (e.g, buffer overflows, integer overflows, null pointer dereferences, etc.) in the source code. IKOS uses Abstract Interpretation techniques to compute an over-approximation of all the reachable states of the program, thus it cannot miss a bug. In this talk, I will give an overview of the tool, then show how to apply it to a large software. I will present ikos-view, a web interface to examine the analysis results. I will discuss about methods to improve the analysis, such as adding code annotations, modeling library functions, and avoiding specific code patterns.

Arthaud, Maxime↗

Software Verification Toolkit (SVT): Survey on Available Software Verification Tools and Future Direction

Writing software is difficult. However, writing complex, well tested and designed, and functionally correct software is incredibly difficult. An entire field of study is devoted to the validation and verification of software to address this problem, and in this paper we analyze the landscape of currently available third party software. We have divided our analyses into three separate subsections with regards to software validation: formal methods, static analysis, and test generation. Formal verification is the most complex method in which to validate software correctness, but also the most thorough as it truly validates the mathematical validity of the source code. Static analysis generally is relegated to abstract syntax tree traversal techniques to find errors related to faulty software such as memory leaks or stack overflow issues. Automatic test generation is similar in implementation to static analysis, but pushes a bit further in verifying the boundedness of function inputs and outputs with regards to annotated or parsed criteria. The crux of this report is to analyze and describe the software tools that implement these techniques to validate and verify software. Pros and cons related to installation, utilization, and capabilities of the frameworks are described, and reproducible examples are provided with a focus on usability. The initial survey concluded that the most interesting tools of note are Z3, Isabelle/HOL, and TLA+ with regards to formal verification; and Infer, Frama-C, and SonarQube with regards to static analysis. With these tools in mind, a final conjecture is provided that describes future avenues of utilizing these tools for developing a verification framework to assist in validating existing software at Sandia National Laboratories.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

A New Modular Approach for Tightly Coupled Fluid/Structure Analysis

Static aeroelastic computations are made using a C++ executive suitable for closely coupled fluid/structure interaction studies. The fluid flow is modeled using the Euler/Navier Stokes equations and the structure is modeled using finite elements. FORTRAN based fluids and structures codes are integrated under C++ environment. The flow and structural solvers are treated as separate object files. The data flow between fluids and structures is accomplished using I/O. Results are demonstrated for transonic flow over partially flexible surface that is important for aerospace vehicles. Use of this development to accurately predict flow induced structural failure will be demonstrated.

Guruswamy, Guru↗

Static Aeroelastic Analysis with an Inviscid Cartesian Method

An embedded-boundary, Cartesian-mesh flow solver is coupled with a three degree-of-freedom structural model to perform static, aeroelastic analysis of complex aircraft geometries. The approach solves a nonlinear, aerostructural system of equations using a loosely-coupled strategy. An open-source, 3-D discrete-geometry engine is utilized to deform a triangulated surface geometry according to the shape predicted by the structural model under the computed aerodynamic loads. The deformation scheme is capable of modeling large deflections and is applicable to the design of modern, very-flexible transport wings. The coupling interface is modular so that aerodynamic or structural analysis methods can be easily swapped or enhanced. After verifying the structural model with comparisons to Euler beam theory, two applications of the analysis method are presented as validation. The first is a relatively stiff, transport wing model which was a subject of a recent workshop on aeroelasticity. The second is a very flexible model recently tested in a low speed wind tunnel. Both cases show that the aeroelastic analysis method produces results in excellent agreement with experimental data.

Aeroelastic↗

Computer program for nonlinear static stress analysis of shuttle thermal protection system: User's manual

User documentation is presented for a computer program which considers the nonlinear properties of the strain isolator pad (SIP) in the static stress analysis of the shuttle thermal protection system. This program is generalized to handle an arbitrary SIP footprint including cutouts for instrumentation and filler bar. Multiple SIP surfaces are defined to model tiles in unique locations such as leading edges, intersections, and penetrations. The nonlinearity of the SIP is characterized by experimental stress displacement data for both normal and shear behavior. Stresses in the SIP are calculated using a Newton iteration procedure to determine the six rigid body displacements of the tile which develop reaction forces in the SIP to equilibrate the externally applied loads. This user documentation gives an overview of the analysis capabilities, a detailed description of required input data and an example to illustrate use of the program.

Giles, G. L.↗

Application of Quasi-Static Modal Analysis to an Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle Test

Bolted structural joints often exhibit load-dependent stiffness and energy dissipation that leads to nonlinear, amplitude dependent frequency and damping in the structure. As an alternative to direct integration of the nonlinear equations of motion, quasi-static modal analysis (QSMA) determines the dependence of frequency and damping on response amplitude using loading behavior from nonlinear static analyses. QSMA has previously been demonstrated to substantially reduce computational cost and maintain accuracy relative to full nonlinear dynamic simulation. This work explores the applicability of QSMA to a complex, large-scale aerospace structure. QSMA is employed to analyze a nonlinear model of test hardware developed to support the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle program, which exhibited nonlinear behavior during dynamic testing at flight-like load levels. In addition to the extraction of amplitude-dependent frequency and damping curves, a Bouc-Wen hysteresis model was used in conjunction with the quasi-static results to develop nonlinear, uncoupled, time-domain modal equations of motion for the structure. Excellent agreement was observed between the reduced and full-order nonlinear models, encouraging future employment of QSMA to support accurate and efficient model reduction of structures with bolted joint nonlinearities.

QSMA↗

Static structural analysis of shell-type structures

Shell analysis manual provides methods for determining static deflections and internal load and stress distributions in shells under various loading conditions, and methods of analyzing static instability of shell structures. Also included are methods for determining the lightest shell wall for various constructions.

Baker, E. H.↗

Dynamic and static modeling of the shuttle orbiter's thermal protection system

The dynamic and static analysis methods used to model the nonlinear structural behavior of the Shuttle Orbiter's tile/pad thermal protection system are discussed. The structural evaluation of the tile/pad system is complicated by the nonlinear stiffening, hysteresis and viscosity exhibited by the pad material. Application of the analysis to square tiles subject to sinusoidal and random excitation is presented along with appropriate test data. Correlation is considered good. In order to treat the stress analysis of thousands of individual tiles, a nonlinear static analysis was developed which utilizes equivalent static loads derived from the dynamic environment. Tensile stress at the bondline is examined in thousands of unique tiles.

Housner, J. M.↗

Precise and Scalable Static Program Analysis of NASA Flight Software

Recent NASA mission failures (e.g., Mars Polar Lander and Mars Orbiter) illustrate the importance of having an efficient verification and validation process for such systems. One software error, as simple as it may be, can cause the loss of an expensive mission, or lead to budget overruns and crunched schedules. Unfortunately, traditional verification methods cannot guarantee the absence of errors in software systems. Therefore, we have developed the CGS static program analysis tool, which can exhaustively analyze large C programs. CGS analyzes the source code and identifies statements in which arrays are accessed out of bounds, or, pointers are used outside the memory region they should address. This paper gives a high-level description of CGS and its theoretical foundations. It also reports on the use of CGS on real NASA software systems used in Mars missions (from Mars PathFinder to Mars Exploration Rover) and on the International Space Station.

Brat, G.↗

Deciphering Discrepancies: A Comparative Analysis of Docker Image Security

As the use of microservices continues to grow and become a foundational approach to architecting software solutions, ensuring the security of microservices is paramount. Docker images have emerged as the predominant solution to containerize microservices–and thus, Docker images are becoming a large attack surface. Thus, reducing vulnerabilities in Docker images will reduce microservice cyberattacks. A common way to find vulnerabilities in Docker images employs static analysis tools like Trivy and Grype. However, these tools frequently generate disparate vulnerability reports when analyzing the same Docker image, thus causing uncertainty in tool selection. We collected 927 Docker images, analyzed them with Trivy and Grype, and compared the vulnerabilities reported in each image. Among the 865 images found to have vulnerabilities, Trivy and Grype disagreed on both the number of vulnerabilities and the vulnerability IDs found therein. Since both tools interface with external vulnerability databases, some discrepancies can be attributed to how the tools interface with these external resources. The external vulnerability databases partially overlap and frequently contradict one another, thereby creating challenges for static analysis tool developers and end users alike. This New Ideas and Emerging Results (NIER) study contains new and critical information that practitioners need for selecting and using static analysis tools–given that increases in the use of Docker technologies means increases in the size of the attack surfaces.

Boles, Brittany [Montana State University]↗

Statistical analysis of static shape control in space structures

The article addresses the problem of efficient analysis of the statistics of initial and corrected shape distortions in space structures. Two approaches for improving efficiency are considered. One is an adjoint technique for calculating distortion shapes: the second is a modal expansion of distortion shapes in terms of pseudo-vibration modes. The two techniques are applied to the problem of optimizing actuator locations on a 55 m radiometer antenna. The adjoint analysis technique is used with a discrete-variable optimization method. The modal approximation technique is coupled with a standard conjugate-gradient continuous optimization method. The agreement between the two sets of results is good, validating both the approximate analysis and optimality of the results.

Burdisso, Ricardo A.↗

Static aeroelastic analysis and tailoring of missile control fins

A concept for enhancing the design of control fins for supersonic tactical missiles is described. The concept makes use of aeroelastic tailoring to create fin designs (for given planforms) that limit the variations in hinge moments that can occur during maneuvers involving high load factors and high angles of attack. It combines supersonic nonlinear aerodynamic load calculations with finite-element structural modeling, static and dynamic structural analysis, and optimization. The problem definition is illustrated. The fin is at least partly made up of a composite material. The layup is fixed, and the orientations of the material principal axes are allowed to vary; these are the design variables. The objective is the magnitude of the difference between the chordwise location of the center of pressure and its desired location, calculated for a given flight condition. Three types of constraints can be imposed: upper bounds on static displacements for a given set of load conditions, lower bounds on specified natural frequencies, and upper bounds on the critical flutter damping parameter at a given set of flight speeds and altitudes. The idea is to seek designs that reduce variations in hinge moments that would otherwise occur. The block diagram describes the operation of the computer program that accomplishes these tasks. There is an option for a single analysis in addition to the optimization.

Mcintosh, S. C., Jr.↗

Static Aeroelastic Analysis of Transonic Wind Tunnel Models Using Finite Element Methods

A computational method for accurately predicting the static aeroelastic deformations of typical transonic transport wind tunnel models is described. The method utilizes a finite element method (FEM) for predicting the deformations. Extensive calibration/validation of this method was carried out using a novel wind-off wind tunnel model static loading experiment and wind-on optical wing twist measurements obtained during a recent wind tunnel test in the National Transonic Facility (NTF) at NASA LaRC. Further validations were carried out using a Navier-Stokes computational fluid dynamics (CFD) flow solver to calculate wing pressure distributions about several aeroelastically deformed wings and comparing these predictions with NTF experimental data. Results from this aeroelastic deformation method are in good overall agreement with experimentally measured values. Including the predicted deformations significantly improves the correlation between CFD predicted and experimentally measured wing & pressures.

Hooker, John R.↗

Damage Prediction Models for Advanced Materials and Composites

In the present study, the assessment and evaluation of various acoustic tile designs were conducted using three-dimensional finite element analysis, which included static analysis, thermal analysis and modal analysis of integral and non-integral tile design options. Various benchmark specimens for acoustic tile designs, including CMC integral T-joint and notched CMC plate, were tested in both room and elevated temperature environment. Various candidate ceramic matrix composite materials were used in the numerical modeling and experimental study. The research effort in this program evolved from numerical modeling and concept design to a combined numerical analysis and experimental study. Many subjects associated with the design and performance of the acoustic tile in jet engine exhaust nozzle have been investigated.

Xie, Ming↗