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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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NASA NTRS1984

On the effect of using the Shapiro filter to smooth winds on a sphere

Spatial differencing schemes which are not enstrophy conserving nor implicitly damping require global filtering of short waves to eliminate the build-up of energy in the shortest wavelengths due to aliasing. Takacs and Balgovind (1983) have shown that filtering on a sphere with a latitude dependent damping function will cause spurious vorticity and divergence source terms to occur if care is not taken to ensure the irrotationality of the gradients of the stream function and velocity potential. Using a shallow water model with fourth-order energy-conserving spatial differencing, it is found that using a 16th-order Shapiro (1979) filter on the winds and heights to control nonlinear instability also creates spurious source terms when the winds are filtered in the meridional direction.

Takacs, L. L.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Shuttle Tethered Aerothermodynamics Research Facility (STARFAC) Instrumentation Requirements

The instrumentation requirements for the Shuttle Tethered Aerothermodynamic Research Facility (STARFAC) are presented. The typical physical properties of the terrestrial atmosphere are given along with representative atmospheric daytime ion concentrations and the equilibrium and nonequilibrium gas property comparison from a point away from a wall. STARFAC science and engineering measurements are given as are the TSS free stream gas analysis. The potential nonintrusive measurement techniques for hypersonic boundary layer research are outlined along with the quantitative physical measurement methods for aerothermodynamic studies.

Wood, George M.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Vertical structure of the wind field during the Special Observing Period I of the Global Weather Experiment

The vertical structure of the global atmosphere is analyzed for selected periods of the Special Observing Period I (SOP-I) for the Global Weather Experiment (GWE). The analysis consists of projection of the stream-function and velocity potential at 200 and 850 mb on spherical harmonics and of the wind and height fields on the normal modes of a linearized form of the primitive equations for a basic state at rest. The kinematic vertical structure is discussed in terms of correlation coefficients of the 200 mb and 850 mb winds and analysis of the internal and external normal modes of the primitive equations. The reliability of the results is checked by applying the same analysis methods to data sets obtained from three different institutions: Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL), European Center for Medium Range Weather Forecasting (ECMWF), and Goddard Laboratory for the Atmospheres (GLA). It is found that, on a global basis, vertically reversing circulations are as important as the equivalent barotropic structures. For the verticaly reversing components, the gravity and mixed Rossby-gravity modes have contributions of the same order of magnitude as those of the Rossby modes in tropical latitudes.

Paegle, J. N.↗

NASA NTRS1990

An atlas of ECMWF analyses (1980-1987). Part 1: First moment quantities

This document is an atlas of the European Center for Medium Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) initialized analyses for 1980 to 1987. Various first moment quantities are presented for monthly, seasonal, and annual averages on a global cylindrical projection, as well as, cross section maps of zonal averages. Global maps of winds, temperature, stream function, and velocity potential are presented at 850 and 200 mb. In addition, global maps of the 300 mb height field (total and eddy), the 500 mb vertical velocity, the 850 mb moisture field, and sea level pressure are presented. The average seasonal cycle and anomalies during the 8 year period are presented for selected quantities.

Schubert, S.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Electrostatic dry powder prepregging of carbon fiber

Ultrafine, 5-10 micron polymer-matrix resin powders are directly applied to carbon fiber tows by passing then in an air or nitrogen stream through an electrostatic potential; the particles thus charged will strongly adhere to grounded carbon fibers, and can be subsequently fused to the fiber in a continuously-fed radiant oven. This electrostatic technique derived significant end-use mechanical property advantages from the obviation of solvents, binders, and other adulterants. Additional matrix resins used to produce prepregs to date have been PMR-15, Torlon 40000, and LaRC TPI.

Throne, James L.↗

NASA NTRS1994

The streaming-trapped ion interface in the equatorial inner magnetosphere

Spacecraft measurements of core ions on L=4-7 field-lines typically show trapped ion distributions near the magnetic equator, and frequently indicate field-aligned ion streams at higher latitudes. The nature of the transition between them may indicate both the microphysics of hot-cold plasma interactions and overall consequences for core plasma evolution. We have undertaken a statistical analysis and characterization of this interface and its relation to the equatorial region of the inner magnetosphere. In this analysis, we have characterized such features as the equatorial ion flux anisotropy, the penetration of field-aligned ionospheric streams into the equatorial region, the scale of the transition into trapped ion populations, and the transition latitude. We found that most transition latitudes occur within 13 deg of the equator. The typical values of equatorial ion anisotropies are consistent with bi-Maxwellian temperature ratios of T(sub perpendicular)/T(sub parallel) in the range of 3-5. The latitudinal scales for the edges of the trapped ion populations display a rather strong peak in the 2-3 deg range. We also found that there is a trend for the penetration ratio, the anisotropy half width, and the transition scale length to decrease with a higher equatorial ion anisotropy. We may interpret these features in terms of Liouville mapping of equatorially trapped ions and the reflection of the incoming ionospheric ion streams from the equatorial potential peaks associated with such trapped ions.

Lin, J.↗

NASA NTRS1944

Gas Jets

A brief summary of the contents of this paper is presented here. In part I the differential equations of the problem of a gas flow in two dimensions is derived and the particular integrals by which the problem on jets is solved are given. Use is made of the same independent variables as Molenbroek used, but it is found to be more suitable to consider other functions. The stream function and velocity potential corresponding to the problem are given in the form of series. The investigation on the convergence of these series in connection with certain properties of the functions entering them forms the subject of part II. In part III the problem of the outflow of a gas from an infinite vessel with plane walls is solved. In part IV the impact of a gas jet on a plate is considered and the limiting case where the jet expands to infinity changing into a gas flow is taken up in more detail. This also solved the equivalent problem of the resistance of a gaseous medium to the motion of a plate. Finally, in part V, an approximate method is presented that permits a simpler solution of the problem of jet flows in the case where the velocities of the gas (velocities of the particles in the gas) are not very large.

Chaplygin, S.↗

NASA NTRS2008

Heat Exchanger/Humidifier Trade Study and Conceptual Design for the Constellation Space Suit Portable Life Support System Ventilation Subsystem

As development of the Constellation Space Suit Element progresses, designing the most effective and efficient life support systems is critical. The baseline schematic analysis for the Portable Life Support System (PLSS) indicates that the ventilation loop will need some method of heat exchange and humidification prior to entering the helmet. A trade study was initiated to identify the challenges associated with conditioning the spacesuit breathing gas stream for temperature and water vapor control, to survey technological literature and resources on heat exchanger and humidifiers to provide solutions to the problems of conditioning the spacesuit breathing gas stream, and to propose potential candidate technologies to perform the heat exchanger and humidifier functions. This paper summarizes the results of this trade study and also describes the conceptual designs that NASA developed to address these issues.

Paul, Heather L.↗

NASA NTRS2009

Heat Exchanger/Humidifier Trade Study and Conceptual Design for the Constellation Space Suit Portable Life Support System Ventilation Subsystem

Paul, Heather L.↗

NASA NTRS2014

Novel Catalysts and Processing Technologies for Production of Aerospace Fuels from Non-Petroleum Raw Materials

Transportation fuels production (including aerospace propellants) from non-traditional sources (gases, waste materials, and biomass) has been an active area of research and development for decades. Reducing terrestrial waste streams simultaneous with energy conversion, plentiful biomass, new low-cost methane sources, and/or extra-terrestrial resource harvesting and utilization present significant technological and business opportunities being realized by a new generation of visionary entrepreneurs. We examine several new approaches to catalyst fabrication and new processing technologies to enable utilization of these nontraditional raw materials. Two basic processing architectures are considered: a single-stage pyrolysis approach that seeks to basically re-cycle hydrocarbons with minimal net chemistry or a two-step paradigm that involves production of supply or synthesis gas (mainly carbon oxides and H2) followed by production of fuel(s) via Sabatier or methanation reactions and/or Fischer-Tröpsch synthesis. Optimizing the fraction of product stream relevant to targeted aerospace (and other transportation) fuels via modeling, catalyst fabrication and novel reactor design are described. Energy utilization is a concern for production of fuels for either terrestrial or space operations; renewable sources based on solar energy and/or energy efficient processes may be mission enabling. Another important issue is minimizing impurities in the product stream(s), especially those potentially posing risks to personnel or operations through (catalyst) poisoning or (equipment) damage. Technologies being developed to remove (and/or recycle) heteroatom impurities are briefly discussed as well as the development of chemically robust catalysts whose activities are not diminished during operation. The potential impacts on future missions by such new approaches as well as balance of system issues are addressed.

space processing↗

NASA NTRS2014

Novel Catalysts and Processing Technologies for Production of Aerospace Fuels from Non-Petroleum Raw Materials

Transportation fuels production (including aerospace propellants) from non-traditional sources (gases, waste materials, and biomass) has been an active area of research and development for decades. Reducing terrestrial waste streams simultaneous with energy conversion, plentiful biomass, new low-cost methane sources, and/or extra-terrestrial resource harvesting and utilization present significant technological and business opportunities being realized by a new generation of visionary entrepreneurs. We examine several new approaches to catalyst fabrication and new processing technologies to enable utilization of these non-traditional raw materials. Two basic processing architectures are considered: a single-stage pyrolysis approach that seeks to basically re-cycle hydrocarbons with minimal net chemistry or a two-step paradigm that involves production of supply or synthesis gas (mainly carbon oxides and hydrogen) followed by production of fuel(s) via Sabatier or methanation reactions and/or Fischer-Tropsch synthesis. Optimizing the fraction of product stream relevant to targeted aerospace (and other transportation) fuels via modeling, catalyst fabrication and novel reactor design are described. Energy utilization is a concern for production of fuels for either terrestrial or space operations; renewable sources based on solar energy and/or energy efficient processes may be mission enabling. Another important issue is minimizing impurities in the product stream(s), especially those potentially posing risks to personnel or operations through (catalyst) poisoning or (equipment) damage. Technologies being developed to remove (and/or recycle) heteroatom impurities are briefly discussed as well as the development of chemically robust catalysts whose activity are not diminished during operation. The potential impacts on future missions by such new approaches as well as balance of system issues are addressed.

propellants↗

NASA NTRS2012

A PIV Study of Slotted Air Injection for Jet Noise Reduction

Results from acoustic and Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) measurements are presented for single and dual-stream jets with fluidic injection on the core stream. The fluidic injection nozzles delivered air to the jet through slots on the interior of the nozzle at the nozzle trailing edge. The investigations include subsonic and supersonic jet conditions. Reductions in broadband shock noise and low frequency mixing noise were obtained with the introduction of fluidic injection on single stream jets. Fluidic injection was found to eliminate shock cells, increase jet mixing, and reduce turbulent kinetic energy levels near the end of the potential core. For dual-stream subsonic jets, the introduction of fluidic injection reduced low frequency noise in the peak jet noise direction and enhanced jet mixing. For dual-stream jets with supersonic fan streams and subsonic core streams, the introduction of fluidic injection in the core stream impacted the jet shock cell structure but had little effect on mixing between the core and fan streams.

Henderson, Brenda S.↗

NASA NTRS1977

Slender streams with gravity - Outer asymptotic expansions. I, II

The steady, three-dimensional, potential flow (neglecting surface tension) of a slender stream of fluid in the presence of gravity is considered and a description is presented of the first part of an asymptotic theory of such a flow. The theory will provide the ingredients for the construction of the solution to many flow problems involving slender streams. The flows and their boundaries are represented as asymptotic power series in the slenderness ratio of the stream. Attention is given to the formulation of the outer expansion problems, first approximations for a jet, a first approximation for pipe flow, and a first approximation for channel flow.

Geer, J.↗

NASA NTRS2013

Contemplating Synergistic Algorithms for the NASA ACE Mission

ACE is a proposed Tier 2 NASA Decadal Survey mission that will focus on clouds, aerosols, and precipitation as well as ocean ecosystems. The primary objective of the clouds component of this mission is to advance our ability to predict changes to the Earth's hydrological cycle and energy balance in response to climate forcings by generating observational constraints on future science questions, especially those associated with the effects of aerosol on clouds and precipitation. ACE will continue and extend the measurement heritage that began with the A-Train and that will continue through Earthcare. ACE planning efforts have identified several data streams that can contribute significantly to characterizing the properties of clouds and precipitation and the physical processes that force these properties. These include dual frequency Doppler radar, high spectral resolution lidar, polarimetric visible imagers, passive microwave and submillimeter wave radiometry. While all these data streams are technologically feasible, their total cost is substantial and likely prohibitive. It is, therefore, necessary to critically evaluate their contributions to the ACE science goals. We have begun developing algorithms to explore this trade space. Specifically, we will describe our early exploratory algorithms that take as input the set of potential ACE-like data streams and evaluate critically to what extent each data stream influences the error in a specific cloud quantity retrieval.

precipitation↗

NASA NTRS1985

Studies on the interference of wings and propeller slipstreams

The small disturbance potential flow theory is applied to determine the lift of an airfoil in a nonuniform parallel stream. The given stream is replaced by an equivalent stream with a certain number of velocity discontinuities, and the influence of these discontinuities is obtained by the method of images. Next, this method is extended to the problem of an airfoil in a nonuniform stream of smooth velocity profile. This model allows perturbation velocity potential in a rotational undisturbed stream. A comparison of these results with numerical solutions of Euler equations indicates that, although approximate, the present method provides useful information about the interaction problem while avoiding the need to solve the Euler equations.

Prabhu, R. K.↗

NASA NTRS1987

Measurements of the free stream fluctuations above a turbulent boundary layer

This paper investigates the velocity fluctuations in the free stream above an incompressible turbulent boundary layer developing at constant pressure. It is assumed that the fluctuations receive contributions from three statistically independent sources: (1) one-dimensional unsteadiness, (2) free stream turbulence, and (3) the potential motion induced by the turbulent boundary layer. Measurements were made in a wind tunnel with a root-mean-square level of the axial velocity fluctuations of about 0.2 percent. All three velocity components were measured using an X-wire probe. The unsteadiness was determined from the spanwise covariance of the axial velocity, measured using two single wire probes. The results show that it is possible to separate the contributions to the r.m.s. level of the velocity fluctuations, without resorting to the dubious technique of high-pass filtering. The separation could be extended to the spectral densities of the contributions, if measurements of sufficient accuracy were available. The Appendix provides a general guide for the measurement of small free stream fluctuation levels.

Wood, David H.↗

NASA NTRS2003

Double Layers in Expanding Plasmas and Their Relevance to the Auroral Plasma Processes

When a dense plasma consisting of a cold and a sufficiently warm electron population expands, a rarefaction shock forms [Bezzerides et al., 1978]. In the expansion of the polar wind in the magnetosphere, it has been previously shown that when a sufficiently warm electron population also exists, in addition to the usual cold ionospheric one, a discontinuity forms in the electrostatic potential distribution along the magnetic field lines [Barakat and Schunk, 1984]. Despite the lack of spatial resolution and the assumption of quasi-neutrality in the polar wind models, such discontinuities have been called double layers (DLs). Recently similar discontinuities have been invoked to partly explain the auroral acceleration of electrons and ions in the upward current region [Ergun et al., 2000]. By means of one-dimensional Vlasov simulations of expanding plasmas, for the first time we make here the connection between (1) the rarefaction shocks, (2) the discontinuities in the potential distributions, and (3) DLs. We show that when plasmas expand from opposite directions into a deep density cavity with a potential drop across it and when the plasma on the high-potential side contains hot and cold electron populations, the temporal evolution of the potential and the plasma distribution generates evolving multiple double layers with an ,extended density cavity between them. One of the DLs is the rarefaction-shock (RFS) and it forms by the reflections of the cold electrons coming from the high-potential side; it supports a part of the potential drop approximately determined by the hot electron temperature. The other DLs evolve from charge separations arising either from reflection of ions coming from the low-potential side or stemming from plasma instabilities; they support the rest of the potential drop. The instabilities forming these additional double layers involve electron-ion (e-i) Buneman or ion-ion (i-i) two-stream interactions. The electron-electron two-stream interactions on the high-potential side of the RFS generate electron-acoustic waves, which evolve into electron phase-space holes. The ion population originating from the low-potential side and trapped by the RFS is energized by the e-i and i-i instabilities and it eventually precipitates into the high-potential plasma along with an electron beam. Applications of these findings to the auroral plasma physics are discussed.

Singh, Nagendra↗

NASA NTRS1994

Electrochemical Technology for Oxygen Removal and Measurement in the CELSS Test Facility, Engineering Development Unit

The Life Support Flight Program is evaluating regenerative technologies, including those that utilize higher plants, as a means to reduce resupply over long duration space missions. Constructed to assist in the evaluation process is the CELSS Test Facility Engineering Development Unit (CTF-EDU) an environmentally closed (less than 1% mass and thermal leakage) technology test bed. This ground based fully functional prototype is currently configured to support crop growth, utilizing the power, volume and mass resources allocated for two space station racks. Sub-system technologies were selected considering their impact on available resources, their ability to minimize integration issues, and their degree of modularity. Gas specific mass handling is a key sub-system technology for both biological and physical/chemical life support technologies. The CTF-EDU requires such a system to accommodate non-linear oxygen production from crops, by enabling the control system to change and sustain partial pressure set points in the growth volume. Electrochemical cells are one of the technologies that were examined for oxygen handling in the CTF-EDU. They have been additionally considered to meet other regenerative life support functions, such as oxygen generation, the production of potable water from composite waste streams, and for having the potential to integrate life support functions with those of propulsion and energy storage. An oxygen removal system based on an electrochemical cell was chosen for the EDU due to it's low power, volume and mass requirements (10W, 0.000027 cu m, 4.5 kg) and because of the minimal number of integration considerations. Unlike it's competitors, the system doesn't require post treatments of its byproducts, or heat and power intensive regenerations, that also mandate system redundancy or cycling. The EDUs oxygen removal system only requires two resources, which are already essential to controlled plant growth: electricity and water. Additionally, the amount of oxygen that is removed from the EDU is directly proportional to the cell input current via Faraday's constant, potentially allowing for a mol/electron measurement of photosynthetic rate. The currently operative oxygen removal system has maintained reduced oxygen set points within the EDU, and preparation is underway to verify of the accuracy of electrochemical measurement of oxygen production and hence, photosynthesis. This paper examines the working principles of the electrochemical cell, outlines the overall design of the oxygen removal system and its integration with other EDU subsystems, and summarizes test results obtained over crop growth cycles in the CTF-EDU.

Drews, Michael E.↗