Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “TENSION”

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.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 73 records · Page 4

H 0 and S 8 tensions necessitate early and late time changes to Λ CDM

An only early or only late time alteration to Λ⁢ CDM has been inadequate at resolving both the H 0 and S 8 tensions simultaneously; however, a combination of early and late time alterations to Λ⁢ CDM can provide a solution to both tensions. As an illustration, we examine a combined early dark energy, decaying dark matter model. While early dark energy has the ability to resolve the H 0 tension, it leads to a discrepancy in S 8 measurements. We show that the addition of decaying dark matter helps resolve the S 8 discrepancy that would otherwise be enhanced in an early dark energy model, while the latter is able to relieve the H 0 disagreement to within the 95th percentile interval. Finally, our results show a preference for the combined model over Λ⁢ CDM with Δ⁢AIC = –6.72, hinting that both early and late Universe modifications may be necessary to address the cosmological tensions.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Role of the Hubble scale in the weak lensing versus CMB tension

Here, we explore a reparametrization of the lensing amplitude tension between weak lensing (WL) and cosmic microwave background (CMB) data and its implications for a joint resolution with the Hubble tension. Specifically, we focus on the lensing amplitude over a scale of 12 Mpc in absolute distance units using a derived parameter S 12 and show its constraints from recent surveys in comparison with Planck 2018. In WL alone, we find that the absolute distance convention correlates S 12 with H 0 . Accounting for this correlation in the 3D space S 12 ×w m ×ℎ reproduces the usual levels of 2~3⁢σ tension inferred from S 8 ×Ω m . Additionally, we derive scaling relations in the S 8 ×ℎ and S 12 ×ℎ planes that are allowed by Λ⁢CDM and extrapolate target scalings needed to solve the H 0 and lensing-amplitude tensions jointly in a hypothetical beyond-Λ⁢CDM model. As a test example, we quantify how the early dark energy scenario compares with these target scalings. Useful fitting formulas for S 8 and S 12 as a function of other cosmological parameters in Λ⁢CDM are provided, with 1% precision.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Converting dark matter to dark radiation does not solve cosmological tensions

Tensions between cosmological parameters (in particular the local expansion rate H 0 and the amplitude of matter clustering S8) inferred from low-redshift data and data from the cosmic microwave background (CMB) and large-scale structure (LSS) experiments have inspired many extensions to the standard cosmological model, LCDM. Models which simultaneously lessen both tensions are of particular interest. We consider one scenario with the potential for such a resolution, in which some fraction of the dark matter has converted into dark radiation since the release of the CMB. Such a scenario encompasses and generalizes the more standard "decaying dark matter" model, allowing additional flexibility in the rate and time at which the dark matter converts into dark radiation. In this paper, we constrain this scenario with a focus on exploring whether it can solve (or reduce) these tensions. We find that such a model is effectively ruled out by CMB data, in particular by the reduced peak-smearing due to CMB lensing on the power spectrum and the excess integrated Sachs--Wolfe (ISW) signal caused by the additional dark energy density required to preserve flatness after dark matter conversion into dark radiation. Thus, such a model does not have the power to reduce these tensions without further modifications. This conclusion extends and generalizes related conclusions derived for the standard decaying dark matter model.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Splines under tension in integral transfer problems

Splines under tension are used to develop an interpolatory representation of integral radiation operators. A quantitative measure of the stability of this representation is derived and approximated in terms of local grid lengths and the tension parameter. Cubic splines (zero tension parameter) are shown to be approximately stable when the ratio of successive grid lengths lies within a specific range. Scaling procedures for determining the tension constant from the structure of the grids and the characteristics of the problem are discussed, and the utility of these procedures is illustrated by application to the formation of resonance lines in two-dimensional media with exponential height variation of opacity.

Jones, H. P.↗

Tension waves in tethered satellite cables

A one-degree-of-freedom simulation of the Tethered Satellite System (TSS) was programmed using a distributed system model of the tether based on the one-dimensional wave equation. This model represents the time varying tension profile along the tether as the sum of two traveling waves of tension moving in opposite directions. A control loop was devised which combines a deployment rate command with the measured tension at the deployer to produce a smooth, stable rate of deployment of the subsatellite. Simulation results show a buildup of periodic bursts of high frequency oscillation in tension. This report covers the mathematical modelling and simulation results and explains the reason for the observed oscillations. The design of a possible vibration damping device is discussed.

Lallman, F. J.↗

Rational-spline approximation with automatic tension adjustment

An algorithm for weighted least-squares approximation with rational splines is presented. A rational spline is a cubic function containing a distinct tension parameter for each interval defined by two consecutive knots. For zero tension, the rational spline is identical to a cubic spline; for very large tension, the rational spline is a linear function. The approximation algorithm incorporates an algorithm which automatically adjusts the tension on each interval to fulfill a user-specified criterion. Finally, an example is presented comparing results of the rational spline with those of the cubic spline.

Schiess, J. R.↗

Theoretical Studies of the Surface Tension of Liquid Metal System

A major goal of this project is to understand the surface tension and other thermophysical properties of liquid metals and alloys from a fundamental viewpoint. The approach is to calculate these quantities by a first principles technique which combines the statistical-mechanical theory of the liquid state with an electronic pseudopotential theory of electrons in metals. The inhomogeneity of the surface is treated using an ionic-density-functional formalism developed with the support of NASA. Of particular interest are the variation of surface tension with temperature and impurity concentration: such variations strongly influence the types of convection which make take place in a low-gravity environment. Some progress has already been achieved in computing the reduction of surface tension due to the presence of low-surface-tension impurities, and the corresponding surface segregation of such impurities. In the coming year, it is planned to concentrate on the surface properties of materials of particular interest to the MSA program: Si, Ga and GaSn alloys. An additional goal is to gain some theoretical understanding of the high temperature thermophysical properties of liquid metals, particularly high melting point materials which have not been studied extensively from a theoretical viewpoint.

Stroud, D. G.↗

Interfacial tension measurement of immiscible liq uids using a capillary tube

The interfacial tension of immiscible liquids is an important thermophysical property that is useful in the behavior of liquids both in microgravity (Martinez et al. (1987) and Karri and Mathur (1988)) and in enhanced oil recovery processes under normal gravity (Slattery (1974)). Many techniques are available for its measurement, such as the ring method, drop weight method, spinning drop method, and capillary height method (Adamson (1960) and Miller and Neogi (1985)). Karri and Mathur mention that many of the techniques use equations that contain a density difference term and are inappropriate for equal density liquids. They reported a new method that is suitable for both equal and unequal density liquids. In their method, a capillary tube forms one of the legs of a U-tube. The interfacial tension is related to the heights of the liquids in the cups of the U-tube above the interface in the capillary. Our interest in this area arose from a need to measure small interfacial tension (around 1 mN/m) for a vegetable oil/silicon oil system that was used in a thermocapillary drop migration experiment (Rashidnia and Balasubramaniam (1991)). In our attempts to duplicate the method proposed by Karri and Mathur, we found it quite difficult to anchor the interface inside the capillary tube; small differences of the liquid heights in the cups drove the interface out of the capillary. We present an alternative method using a capillary tube to measure the interfacial tensions of liquids of equal or unequal density. The method is based on the combined capillary rises of both liquids in the tube.

Rashidnia, N.↗

Crack-mouth displacements for semielliptical surface cracks subjected to remote tension and bending loads

The exact analytical solution for an embedded elliptical crack in an infinite body subjected to arbitrary loading was used in conjunction with the finite element alternating method to obtain crack-mouth-opening displacements (CMOD) for surface cracks in finite plates subjected to remote tension. Identical surface-crack configurations were also analyzed with the finite element method using 20-noded element for plates subjected to both remote tension and bending. The CMODs from these two methods generally agreed within a few percent of each other. Comparisons made with experimental results obtained from surface cracks in welded aluminum alloy specimens subjected to tension also showed good agreement. Empirical equations were developed for CMOD for a wide range of surface-crack shapes and sizes subjected to tension and bending loads. These equations were obtained by modifying the Green-Sneddon exact solution for an elliptical crack in an infinite body to account for finite boundary effects. These equations should be useful in monitoring surface-crack growth in tests and in developing complete crack-face-displacement equations for use in three-dimensional weight-function methods.

Raju, Ivatury S.↗

Design, analysis, and fabrication of a pressure box test fixture for tension damage tolerance testing of curved fuselage panels

A pressure box test fixture was designed and fabricated to evaluate the effects of internal pressure, biaxial tension loads, curvature, and damage on the fracture response of composite fuselage structure. Previous work in composite fuselage tension damage tolerance, performed during NASA contract NAS1-17740, evaluated the above effects on unstiffened panels only. This work extends the tension damage tolerance testing to curved stiffened fuselage crown structure that contains longitudinal stringers and circumferential frame elements. The pressure box fixture was designed to apply internal pressure up to 20 psi, and axial tension loads up to 5000 lb/in, either separately or simultaneously. A NASTRAN finite element model of the pressure box fixture and composite stiffened panel was used to help design the test fixture, and was compared to a finite element model of a full composite stiffened fuselage shell. This was done to ensure that the test panel was loaded in a similar way to a panel in the full fuselage shell, and that the fixture and its attachment plates did not adversely affect the panel.

Smith, P. J.↗

Dynamic Nucleation of Supercooled Melts and Measurement of the Surface Tension and Viscosity

We investigate the phenomenon of acoustic pressure-induced nucleation by using a novel approach involving the large amplitude resonant radial oscillations and collapse of a single bubble intentionally injected into a supercooled liquid. Using a combination of previously developed and proven techniques, the bubble is suspended in a fluid host by an ultrasonic field which supplies both the levitation capability as well as the forcing of the radial oscillations. We observe the effects of an increase in pressure (due to bubble collapse) in a region no larger than 100 microns within the supercooled melt to rigorously probe the hypothesis of pressure-induced nucleation of the solid phase. The use of single bubbles operating in narrow temporal and spatial scales will allow the direct and unambiguous correlation between the origin and location of the generation of the disturbance and the location and timing of the nucleation event. In a companion research effort, we are developing novel techniques for the non-contact measurements of the surface tension and viscosity of highly viscous supercooled liquids. Currently used non-invasive methods of surface tension measurement for the case of undercooled liquids generally rely of the quantitative determination of the resonance frequencies of drop shape oscillations, of the dynamics of surface capillary waves, or of the velocity of streaming flows. These methods become quickly ineffective when the liquid viscosity rises to a significant value. An alternate and accurate method which would be applicable to liquids of significant viscosity is therefore needed. We plan to develop such a capability by measuring the equilibrium shape of levitated undercooled melt droplets as they undergo solid-body rotation. The experimental measurement of the characteristic point of transition (bifurcation point) between axisymmetric and two-lobed shapes will be used to calculate the surface tension of the liquid. Such an approach has already been validated through the experimental verification of numerical modeling results. The experimental approach involves levitation, melting, and solidification of undercooled droplets using a hybrid ultrasonic-electrostatic technique in both a gaseous as well as a vacuum environment. A shape relaxation method will be investigated in order to derive a reliable method to measure the viscosity of undercooled melts. The analysis of the monotonic relaxation to equilibrium shape of a drastically deformed and super-critically damped free drop has been used to derive interfacial tension of immiscible liquid combinations where one of the component has high viscosity. A standard approach uses the initial elongation of a droplet through shear flows, but an equivalent method could involve the initial deformation of a drop levitated in a gas by ultrasonic radiation pressure, electric stresses, or even solid body rotation. The dynamic behavior of the free drop relaxing back to equilibrium shape will be modeled, and its characteristic time dependence should provide a quantitative means to evaluate the liquid viscosity.

Trinh, E. H.↗

An Experimental Study of a Stitched Composite with a Notch Subjected to Combined Bending and Tension Loading

A series of tests was conducted to measure the strength of stitched carbon/epoxy composites containing through-thickness damage in the form of a crack-like notch. The specimens were subjected to three types of loading: pure bending, pure tension, and combined bending and tension loads. Measurements of applied loads, strains near crack tips, and crack opening displacements (COD) were monitored in all tests. The transverse displacement at the center of the specimen was measured using a Linear Variable Differential Transformer (LVDT). The experimental data showed that the outer surface of the pure tension specimen failed at approximately 6,000 microstrain, while in combined bending and tension loads the measured tensile strains reached 10,000 microstrain.

Palmer, Susan O.↗

Transverse Tension Fatigue Life Characterization Through Flexure Testing of Composite Materials

The transverse tension fatigue life of S2/8552 glass-epoxy and IM7/8552 carbon-epoxy was characterized using flexure tests of 90-degree laminates loaded in 3-point and 4-point bending. The influence of specimen polishing and specimen configuration on transverse tension fatigue life was examined using the glass-epoxy laminates. Results showed that 90-degree bend specimens with polished machined edges and polished tension-side surfaces, where bending failures where observed, had lower fatigue lives than unpolished specimens when cyclically loaded at equal stress levels. The influence of specimen thickness and the utility of a Weibull scaling law was examined using the carbon-epoxy laminates. The influence of test frequency on fatigue results was also documented for the 4-point bending configuration. A Weibull scaling law was used to predict the 4-point bending fatigue lives from the 3-point bending curve fit and vice-versa. Scaling was performed based on maximum cyclic stress level as well as fatigue life. The scaling laws based on stress level shifted the curve fit S-N characterizations in the desired direction, however, the magnitude of the shift was not adequate to accurately predict the fatigue lives. Furthermore, the scaling law based on fatigue life shifted the curve fit S-N characterizations in the opposite direction from measured values. Therefore, these scaling laws were not adequate for obtaining accurate predictions of the transverse tension fatigue lives.

OBrien, T. Kevin↗

Surface Tension and Viscosity of SCN and SCN-acetone Alloys at Melting Points and Higher Temperatures Using Surface Light Scattering Spectrometer

Succinonitrile has been and is being used extensively in NASA's Microgravity Materials Science and Fluid Physics programs and as well as in several ground-based and microgravity studies including the Isothermal Dendritic Growth Experiment (IDGE). Succinonitrile (SCN) is useful as a model for the study of metal solidification, although it is an organic material, it has a BCC crystal structure and solidifies dendriticly like a metal. It is also transparent and has a low melting point (58.08 C). Previous measurements of succinonitrile (SCN) and alloys of succinonitrile and acetone surface tensions are extremely limited. Using the Surface Light Scattering technique we have determined non invasively, the surface tension and viscosity of SCN and SCN-Acetone Alloys at different temperatures. This relatively new and unique technique has several advantages over the classical methods such as, it is non invasive, has good accuracy and measures the surface tension and viscosity simultaneously. The accuracy of interfacial energy values obtained from this technique is better than 2% and viscosity about 10 %. Succinonitrile and succinonitrile-acetone alloys are well-established model materials with several essential physical properties accurately known - except the liquid/vapor surface tension at different elevated temperatures. We will be presenting the experimentally determined liquid/vapor surface energy and liquid viscosity of succinonitrile and succinonitrile-acetone alloys in the temperature range from their melting point to around 100 C using this non-invasive technique. We will also discuss about the measurement technique and new developments of the Surface Light Scattering Spectrometer.

Tin, Padetha↗

Sensing the Tension

Spanning over 4 decades, NASA's bolt tension monitoring technology has benefited automakers, airplane builders, and other major manufacturers that rely on the devices to evaluate the performance of computerized torque wrenches and other assembly line mechanisms. In recent years, the advancement of ultrasonic sensors has drastically eased this process for users, ensuring that proper tension and torque are being applied to bolts and fasteners, with less time needed for data analysis. Langley Research Center s Nondestructive Evaluation Branch is one of the latest NASA programs to incorporate ultrasonic sensors within a bolt tension measurement instrument. As a multi-disciplined research group focused on spacecraft and aerospace transportation safety, one of the branch s many commitments includes transferring problem solutions to industry. In 1998, the branch carried out this obligation in a licensing agreement with Micro Control, Inc., of West Bloomfield, Michigan. Micro Control, an automotive inspection company, obtained the licenses to two Langley patents to provide an improved-but-inexpensive means of ultrasonic tension measurement.

Source record↗

What is (and Isn't) Wrong with Both the Tension and Shear Failure Models for the Formation of Lineae on Europa

An unresolved problem in the interpretation of lineae on Europa is whether they formed as tension- or shear-fractures. Voyager image analyses led to hypotheses that Europan lineaments are tension cracks induced by tidal deformation of the ice crust. This interpretation continued with Galileo image analyses, with lineae being classified as crust- penetrating tension cracks. Tension fracturing has also been an implicit assumption of nonsynchronous rotation (NSR) studies. However, recent hypotheses invoke shear failure to explain lineae development. If a shear failure mechanism is correct, it will be necessary to re-evaluate any models for the evolution of Europa's crust that are based on tensile failure models, such as NSR estimates. For this reason, it is imperative that the mechanism by which fractures are initiated on Europa be unambiguously unraveled. A logical starting point is an evaluation of the pros and cons of each failure model, highlighting the lines of evidence that are needed to fully justify either model.

Kattenhorn, S. A.↗

Onset of Convection Due to Surface Tension Variations in Multicomponent and Binary Fluid Layers

Under certain conditions, such as in thin liquid films or microgravity, surface tension variations along a free surface can induce convection. Convection onset due to surface tension variation is important to many terrestrial technological processes in addition to microgravity materials processing applications. Examples include coating, drying crystallization, solidification, liquid surface contamination, and containerless processing. In double-diffusive and multicomponent systems, the spatial variations of surface tension are associated with two or more stratifying agencies, respectively. For example, both temperature and species (concentration) gradients are associated with convection in the solidification of binary alloys or salt ponds. The direction of the two (or more) gradients has a profound effect on the nature of the flow at or slightly beyond the onset of convection. Our recent work at the NASA Lewis Research Center focused on characterizing surface-tension-induced onset of convection, often referred to as Marangoni-Benard convection. Exact solutions for the stationary neutral stability of multicomponent fluid layers with interfacial deformation were derived. These solutions also permit the computation of a boundary curve that separates the long and finite wavelength instabilities. Computing points along this boundary using the exact solution (when possible) is more efficient than the typical numerical approaches, such as finite difference or spectral methods. Above the curve, a long wavelength instability was predicted, suggesting that convection would occur principally through one large flow cell in the layer, whereas below the curve, finite wavelength instabilities occur which suggest multiple finite-sized circulation cells. For many common liquids with layer depths greater than 100 mm, finite wave instability is predicted under terrestrial conditions; however, with little exception, long wavelength instability is predicted in microgravity for the identical fluid systems.

Skarda, J. Raymond Lee↗

Influence of Turbulence on the Restraint of Liquid Jets by Surface Tension in Microgravity Investigated

Microgravity poses many challenges to the designer of spacecraft tanks. Chief among these are the lack of phase separation and the need to supply vapor-free liquid or liquidfree vapor to the spacecraft processes that require fluid. One of the principal problems of phase separation is the creation of liquid jets. A jet can be created by liquid filling, settling of the fluid to one end of the tank, or even closing a valve to stop the liquid flow. Anyone who has seen a fountain knows that jets occur in normal gravity also. However, in normal gravity, the gravity controls and restricts the jet flow. In microgravity, with gravity largely absent, surface tension forces must contain jets. To model this phenomenon, a numerical method that tracks the fluid motion and the surface tension forces is required. Jacqmin has developed a phase model that converts the discrete surface tension force into a barrier function that peaks at the free surface and decays rapidly away. Previous attempts at this formulation were criticized for smearing the interface. This can be overcome by sharpening the phase function, double gridding the fluid function, and using a higher order solution for the fluid function. The solution of this equation can be rewritten as two coupled Poisson equations that also include the velocity. After the code was implemented in axisymmetric form and verified by several test cases at the NASA Glenn Research Center, the drop tower runs of Aydelott were modeled. Work last year with a laminar model was found to overpredict Aydelott's results, except at the lowest Reynolds number conditions of 400. This year, a simple turbulence model was implemented by adding a turbulent viscosity based on the mixing-length hypothesis and empirical measurements of previous works. Predictions made after this change was implemented have been much closer to experimentally observed flow patterns and geyser heights. Two model runs is shown. The first, without any turbulence correction, breaks through the free surface and strikes the far end of the tank. In the second, the turbulence spreads the jet momentum over more of the free surface, enabling the surface tension forces to turn the jet back into the bulk liquid. The model geyser height with the second model is 1.1 cm. This is quite close to the 1.5-cm geyser height measured by Aydelott.

Chato, David J.↗