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At least 91 records · Page 5

Direct simulation of diatomic gases using the generalized hard sphere model

The generalized hard sphere model which incorporates the effects of attraction and repulsion is used to predict flow measurements in tests involving extremely low freestream temperatures. For the two cases considered, a Mach 26 nitrogen shock and a Mach 20 nitrogen flow over a flat place, only rotational excitation is deemed important, and appropriate modifications for the Borgnakke-Larsen procedure are developed. In general, for the cases considered, the present model performed better than the variable hard sphere model.

Hash, D. B.↗

Flow velocity measurements with stimulated Rayleigh-Brillouin-gain spectroscopy

Using stimulated Rayleigh-Brillouin-gain spectroscopy, velocity measurements in an atmospheric-pressure subsonic nitrogen flow with 10 percent uncertainty have been conducted. It is shown that the accuracy of the velocity measurements increases with gas pressure, making this spectroscopic technique ideal for measuring velocity and other parameters of high-pressure (greater than 1-atm) atomic or molecular flows.

Herring, G. C.↗

Two phase choke flow in tubes with very large L/D

Data were obtained for two phase and gaseous choked flow nitrogen in a long constant area duct of 16200 L/D with a diverging diffuser attached to the exit. Flow rate data were taken along five isotherms (reduced temperature of 0.81, 0.96, 1.06, 1.12, and 2.34) for reduced pressures to 3. The flow rate data were mapped in the usual manner using stagnation conditions at the inlet mixing chamber upstream of the entrance length. The results are predictable by a two phase homogeneous equilibrium choking flow model which includes wall friction. A simplified theory which in essence decouples the long tube region from the high acceleration choking region also appears to predict the data resonably well, but about 15 percent low.

Hendricks, R. C.↗

Measurement and analysis of a small nozzle plume in vacuum

Measurements of Pitot pressure and flow angle were made in the plume of a nozzle flowing nitrogen and exhausting to a vacuum. The measurements were compared to results from a numerical simulation of the flow that was based on kinetic theory and used the direct-simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) method. Numerical results were compared with measurements made in the plume at various axial and radial stations. Total pressure measurements were made with Pitot tubes sized for specific regions of the plume. Flow angle measurements were made with a conical probe. The measurement area for flow angle extended to 160 mm (5 exit diameters) downstream of the nozzle exit plane and radially to 60 mm (1.9 exit diameters) from the plume axis. The total pressure measurements extended 480 mm (16 exit diameters) downstream and radially to 60 mm. Comparisons of computed results from the DSMC method with measurements of flow angle displayed improved agreement with increasing distance from the exit plane. Pitot pressures computed from the DSMC method were in reasonably good agreement with experimental results over the entire measurement area.

Penko, Paul F.↗

Some flow characteristics of conventional and tapered high pressure drop simulated seals

The leak rates through shaft seals with large pressure drops were simulated using gaseous hydrogen, or nitrogen flowing through an annulus with a nonrotating centerbody. The flows were choked. For concentric or eccentric position of the rotor and parallel or convergent tapered flow passages, data and analysis revealed that mass flux or leak rate can be determined from a relation whose normalizing parameters depend on the thermodynamic critical constants of the working fluid and an average flow area expressed in terms of the inlet and exit cross-sectional areas. Using these normalized relations, the flow data for parallel and three convergent tapered shaft seal configurations are in good agreement. Generalization to any simple gas or gas mixture is implied and demonstrated.

Hendricks, R. C.↗

Velocity visualization in gas flows using laser-induced phosphorescence of biacetyl

Visualization of a two-dimensional velocity field by means of laser-induced phosphorescence is demonstrated in a nitrogen flow at room temperature. A pulsed dye laser is used to excite seeded biacetyl molecules along a line in the flow. Two successive exposures of the emitted phosphorescence are recorded with an intensified 100 x 100 element photodiode array camera. Velocities are determined from the distance traveled in the time interval between exposures. Important factors in connection with the phosphorescence of biacetyl are discussed.

Hiller, B.↗

Some flow characteristics of conventional and tapered high-pressure-drop simulated seals

The leak rates through shaft seals with large pressure drops were simulated using gaseous hydrogen, or nitrogen flowing through an annulus with a nonrotating centerbody. The flows were choked. For concentric or eccentric position of the rotor and parallel or convergent tapered flow passages, data and analysis revealed that mass flux or leak rate can be determined from a relation whose normalizing parameters depend on the thermodynamic critical constants of the working fluid and an average flow area expressed in terms of the inlet and exit cross-sectional areas. Using these normalized relations, the flow data for parallel and three convergent, tapered, shaft-seal configurations are in good agreement. Generalization to any simple gas or gas mixtures is implied and demonstrated in part.

Hendricks, R. C.↗

BOILING HEAT TRANSFER TO LIQUID HYDROGEN AND NITROGEN IN FORCED FLOW

Boiling heat transfer to liquid hydrogen and nitrogen was investigated experimentally. Results are presented from a study of bulk boiling inside a cylindrical tube under vertically upward forced-flow conditions. A 0.555-inch-inside-diameter and 16 (1/8)-inch-long electrically heated stainless-steel tube was used. The range of variables studied for hydrogen were mass velocity of 2850 to 17,000 pounds per hour per square foot, local heat flux of 3600 to 40,000 Btu per hour per square foot, inlet pressure of 30 to 74 pounds per square inch absolute, and inlet subcooling of 0° to 9° R. Nitrogen test conditions were mass velocity of 15,000 to 56,000 pounds per hour per square foot, local heat flux of 2300 to 40,000 Btu per hour per square foot, inlet pressure of 47 to 56 pounds per square inch absolute, and inlet sub cooling of 1° to 6° R. The axial distribution of the tube-wall temperatures is presented. A transition in the type of boiling heat transfer was obtained. The critical heat flux corresponding to this transition was determined over a range of flow and heating rates and local qualities. At specific combinations of flow and transition location, a range of critical-heat-flux values was obtained and maximum values were determined. The maximum critical heat flux increased with increasing fluid-flow rate and decreased with increasing length of tube before transition. Similar variations of the maximum critical heat flux have been reported for water. The tube-inner-wall temperatures upstream of transition were essentially uniform and were only slightly greater than the fluid saturation temperature. The Wall-temperature profiles downstream of transition generally resembled those obtained in film-boiling studies and appeared to be strongly dependent upon local quality at the point of transition. Maximum wall temperatures of 9000 and 18000 R were obtained with hydrogen and nitrogen, respectively. Fluctuations of pressure, flow rate, and temperature occurred during some of the boiling tests. Under some conditions, maximum critical-heat-flux values were attained during steady-state operation with fluctuations. In other cases the fluctuations became uncontrolled, and critical-flux values less than the maximum values were obtained upon restabilization of the test conditions. No measurable pressure drop across the test section was obtained at any condition.

LIQUID HYDROGEN↗

Measurement and analysis of a small nozzle plume in vacuum

Pitot pressures and flow angles are measured in the plume of a nozzle flowing nitrogen and exhausting to a vacuum. Total pressures are measured with Pitot tubes sized for specific regions of the plume and flow angles measured with a conical probe. The measurement area for total pressure extends 480 mm (16 exit diameters) downstream of the nozzle exit plane and radially to 60 mm (1.9 exit diameters) off the plume axis. The measurement area for flow angle extends to 160 mm (5 exit diameters) downstream and radially to 60 mm. The measurements are compared to results from a numerical simulation of the flow that is based on kinetic theory and uses the direct-simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) method. Comparisons of computed results from the DSMC method with measurements of flow angle display good agreement in the far-field of the plume and improve with increasing distance from the exit plane. Pitot pressures computed from the DSMC method are in reasonably good agreement with experimental results over the entire measurement area.

Penko, P. F.↗

Synthesis, Structure, Characterization, and Decomposition of Nickel Dithiocarbamates: Effect of Precursor Structure and Processing Conditions on Solid-State Products

Single-crystal X-ray structures of four nickel dithiocarbamate complexes, the homoleptic mixed-organic bis-dithiocarbamates Ni[S2CN(isopropyl)(benzyl)]2, Ni[S2CN(ethyl)(n-butyl)]2, and Ni[S2CN(phenyl)(benzyl)]2, as well as the heteroleptic mixed-ligand complex NiCl[P(phenyl)3][(S2CN(phenyl)(benzyl)], were determined. Synthetic, spectroscopic, structural, thermal, and sulfide materials studies are discussed in light of prior literature. The spectroscopic results are routine. A slightly distorted square-planar nickel coordination environment was observed for all four complexes. The organic residues adopt conformations to minimize steric interactions. Steric effects also may determine puckering, if any, about the nickel and nitrogen atoms, both of which are planar or nearly so. A trans-influence affects the Ni-S bond distances. Nitrogen atoms interact with the CS2 carbons with a bond order of about 1.5, and the other substituents on nitrogen display transoid conformations. There are no strong intermolecular interactions, consistent with prior observations of the volatility of nickel dithiocarbamate complexes. Thermogravimetric analysis of the homoleptic species under inert atmosphere is consistent with production of 1:1 nickel sulfide phases. Thermolysis of nickel dithiocarbamates under flowing nitrogen produced hexagonal or -NiS as the major phase; thermolysis under flowing forming gas produced millerite (-NiS) at 300 C, godlevskite (Ni9S8) at 325 and 350 C, and heazlewoodite (Ni3S2) at 400 and 450 C. Failure to exclude oxygen results in production of nickel oxide. Nickel sulfide phases produced seem to be primarily influenced by processing conditions, in agreement with prior literature. Nickel dithiocarbamate complexes demonstrate significant promise to serve as single-source precursors to nickel sulfides, a quite interesting family of materials with numerous potential applications.

microscopy↗

Measurements of temperature, density, pressure, and their fluctuations in supersonic turbulence using laser-induced fluorescence

A laser-induced fluorescence method has been developed that provides simultaneous measurements of temperature, density, and their fluctuations owing to turbulence in unheated compressible flows. Pressure and its fluctuations are also deduced using the equation of state. Fluorescence is induced in nitric oxide that has been seeded into a nitrogen flow in concentrations of 100 ppm. Measurements are obtained from each laser pulse, with a spatial resolution of 1 mm and a temporal resolution of 125 ns. The method was applied to a supersonic, turbulent, boundary-layer flow with a free-stream Mach number of 2. For stream conditions in the range from 150-300 K and 0.3-1 atm, temperature is measured with an uncertainty of approximately 1 percent rms, while density and pressure uncertainties are approximately 2 percent rms.

Gross, K. P.↗

DSMC calculations for the double ellipse

The direct simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) method involves the simultaneous computation of the trajectories of thousands of simulated molecules in simulated physical space. Rarefied flow about the double ellipse for test case 6.4.1 has been calculated with the DSMC method of Bird. The gas is assumed to be nonreacting nitrogen flowing at a 30 degree incidence with respect to the body axis, and for the surface boundary conditions, the wall is assumed to be diffuse with full thermal accommodation and at a constant wall temperature of 620 K. A parametric study is presented that considers the effect of variations of computational domain, gas model, cell size, and freestream density on surface quantities.

Moss, James N.↗

Wall-Jet Evolution During Plume-Surface Interaction Using PLIF Imaging

Planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF) flow visualization was used to examine the spatial evolution for the wall-jet formed by an impinging supersonic jet in a large-scale vacuum environment. This canonical configuration is representative of the plume-surface interaction induced by a rocket exhaust plume impinging on the planetary surface at lunar-relevant and Martian-relevant environments. PLIF flow visualization of the very low-density environment (as low as ~0.006% of standard atmospheric density) was performed using seeded nitric oxide in a nitrogen flow at three test conditions. Two conditions are representative of the lunar environment, and one is representative of the Martian environment. The combined images from two simultaneous PLIF views were used to construct a 2D slice of the flowfield spanning approximately 150 mm in height (determined by the laser sheet) and 500 mm in width (determined by the camera views). The three test conditions showed different behavior for the wall-jet, largely due to the different levels of lifting above the surface and the appearance of a physical process similar to a Kelvin–Helmholtz instability for the Martian-relevant case, which appeared to create a dramatic expansion of the wall-jet height with increased radial distance.

PSI↗

Wall-Jet Evolution During Plume-Surface Interaction Using PLIF Imaging

Planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF) flow visualization was used to examine the spatial evolution for the wall-jet formed by an impinging supersonic jet in a large-scale vacuum environment. This canonical configuration is representative of the plume-surface interaction induced by a rocket exhaust plume impinging on the planetary surface at lunar-relevant and Martian-relevant environments. PLIF flow visualization of the very low-density environment (as low as ~0.006% of standard atmospheric density) was performed using seeded nitric oxide in a nitrogen flow at three test conditions. Two conditions are representative of the lunar environment, and one is representative of the Martian environment. The combined images from two simultaneous PLIF views were used to construct a 2D slice of the flowfield spanning approximately 150 mm in height (determined by the laser sheet) and 500 mm in width (determined by the camera views). The three test conditions showed different behavior for the wall-jet, largely due to the different levels of lifting above the surface and the appearance of a physical process similar to a Kelvin–Helmholtz instability for the Martian-relevant case, which appeared to create a dramatic expansion of the wall-jet height with increased radial distance.

PSI↗

Numerical Modeling of Drying Residual RP-1 in Rocket Engines

When a Rocket Engine shuts down under a fuel rich environment, a significant amount of unburned RP-1 is trapped In the engine. It is necessary to clean the residual RP-1 prior to subsequent firing to avoid any explosion due to detonation. The conventional method is to dry RP-1 with inert gas such as Nitrogen or Helium. It is difficult to estimate the drying time unless the engine is adequately equipped with instruments to measure the trace of RP-1 during the drying process. Such instrumentation in flight hardware is often impractical and costly. On the other hand numerical modeling of the drying process can provide a good insight for a satisfactory operation of the process. A numerical model can provide answer to questions such as a) how long it takes to dry, b) which fluid is a better dryer for RP-1, c) how to reduce drying time etc. The purpose of the present paper is to describe a numerical model of drying RP-1 trapped in a cavity with flowing nitrogen or helium. The numerical model assumes one dimensional flow of drying fluid in contact with liquid pool of RP-1. An evaporative mass transfer takes place across the contact surface.

Majumdar, Alok↗

Assessment of three numerical methods for the computation of a low-density plume flow

Results from three numerical methods including one based on the Navier-Stokes equations, one based on kinetic theory using the DSMC method, and one based on the Boltzmann equation with a Krook-type collision term are compared to each other and to experimental data for a model problem of heated nitrogen flow in a conical nozzle expanding into a vacuum. The problem simulates flow in a resistojet, a low-thrust, electrothermal rocket. The continuum method is applied to both the internal flow and near-field plume. The DSMC and Boltzmann methods are applied primarily to the plume. Experimental measurements of Pitot pressure and flow angle, taken with an apparatus that duplicates the model nozzle flow, are used in the comparisons.

Penko, Paul F.↗

Spacecraft thermal blanket cleaning: Vacuum bake of gaseous flow purging

The mass losses and the outgassing rates per unit area of three thermal blankets consisting of various combinations of Mylar and Kapton, with interposed Dacron nets, were measured with a microbalance using two methods. The blankets at 25 deg C were either outgassed in vacuum for 20 hours, or were purged with a dry nitrogen flow of 3 cu. ft. per hour at 25 deg C for 20 hours. The two methods were compared for their effectiveness in cleaning the blankets for their use in space applications. The measurements were carried out using blanket strips and rolled-up blanket samples fitting the microbalance cylindrical plenum. Also, temperature scanning tests were carried out to indicate the optimum temperature for purging and vacuum cleaning. The data indicate that the purging for 20 hours with the above N2 flow can accomplish the same level of cleaning provided by the vacuum with the blankets at 25 deg C for 20 hours, In both cases, the rate of outgassing after 20 hours is reduced by 3 orders of magnitude, and the weight losses are in the range of 10E-4 gr/sq cm. Equivalent mass loss time constants, regained mass in air as a function of time, and other parameters were obtained for those blankets.

Scialdone, John J.↗

Spacecraft thermal blanket cleaning - Vacuum baking or gaseous flow purging

The mass losses and the outgassing rates per unit area of three thermal blankets consisting of various combinations of Mylar and Kapton, with interposed Dacron nets, were measured with a microbalance using two methods. The blankets at 25 deg C were either outgassed in vacuum for 20 hours, or were purged with a dry nitrogen flow of 3 cu. ft. per hour at 25 deg C for 20 hours. The two methods were compared for their effectiveness in cleaning the blankets for their use in space applications. The measurements were carried out using blanket strips and rolled-up blanket samples fitting the microbalance cylindrical plenum. Also, temperature scanning tests were carried out to indicate the optimum temperature for purging and vacuum cleaning. The data indicate that the purging for 20 hours with the above N2 flow can accomplish the same level of cleaning provided by the vacuum with the blankets at 25 deg C for 20 hours. In both cases, the rate of outgassing after 20 hours is reduced by 3 orders of magnitude, and the weight losses are in the range of 10E-4 gr/sq cm. Equivalent mass loss time constants, regained mass in air as a function of time, and other parameters were obtained for those blankets.

Scialdone, John J.↗