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DOE OSTI2016

Large-scale optimal control of interconnected natural gas and electrical transmission systems

We present a detailed optimal control model that captures spatiotemporal interactions between gas and electric transmission networks. We use the model to study flexibility and economic opportunities provided by coordination. A large-scale case study in the Illinois system reveals that coordination can enable the delivery of significantly larger amounts of natural gas to the power grid. In particular, under a coordinated setting, gas-fired generators act as distributed demand response resources that can be controlled by the gas pipeline operator. This enables more efficient control of pressures and flows in space and time and overcomes delivery bottlenecks. We demonstrate that the additional flexibility not only can benefit the gas operator but can also lead to more efficient power grid operations and results in increased revenue for gas-fired power plants. We also use the optimal control model to analyze computational issues arising in these complex models. We demonstrate that the interconnected Illinois system with full physical resolution gives rise to a highly nonlinear optimal control problem with 4400 differential and algebraic equations and 1040 controls that can be solved with a state-of-the-art sparse optimization solver. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Chiang, Nai-Yuan↗

NASA NTRS1985

A comparison between implicit and hybrid methods for the calculation of steady and unsteady inlet flows

Numerical simulation of steady and unsteady transonic diffuser flows using two different computer codes are discussed and compared with experimental data. The codes solve the Reynolds-averaged, compressible, Navier-Stokes equations using various turbulence models. One of the codes has been applied extensively to diffuser flows and uses the hybrid method of MacCormack. This code is relatively inefficient numerically. The second code, which was developed more recently, is fully implicit and is relatively efficient numerically. Simulations of steady flows using the implicit code are shown to be in good agreement with simulations using the hybrid code. Both simulations are in good agreement with experimental results. Simulations of unsteady flows using the two codes are in good qualitative agreement with each other, although the quantitative agreement is not as good as in the steady flow cases. The implicit code is shown to be eight times faster than the hybrid code for unsteady flow calculations and up to 32 times faster for steady flow calculations. Results of calculations using alternative turbulence models are also discussed.

Coakley, T. J.↗

NASA NTRS1996

Computational Pollutant Environment Assessment from Propulsion-System Testing

An asymptotic plume growth method based on a time-accurate three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics formulation has been developed to assess the exhaust-plume pollutant environment from a simulated RD-170 engine hot-fire test on the F1 Test Stand at Marshall Space Flight Center. Researchers have long known that rocket-engine hot firing has the potential for forming thermal nitric oxides, as well as producing carbon monoxide when hydrocarbon fuels are used. Because of the complex physics involved, most attempts to predict the pollutant emissions from ground-based engine testing have used simplified methods, which may grossly underpredict and/or overpredict the pollutant formations in a test environment. The objective of this work has been to develop a computational fluid dynamics-based methodology that replicates the underlying test-stand flow physics to accurately and efficiently assess pollutant emissions from ground-based rocket-engine testing. A nominal RD-170 engine hot-fire test was computed, and pertinent test-stand flow physics was captured. The predicted total emission rates compared reasonably well with those of the existing hydrocarbon engine hot-firing test data.

Wang, Ten-See↗

NASA NTRS2014

Numerical Simulation of Boundary Layer Ingesting (BLI) Inlet-Fan Interaction

Future civil transport designs may incorporate engine inlets integrated into the body of the aircraft to take advantage of efficiency increases due to weight and drag reduction. Additional increases in engine efficiency are predicted if the inlet ingests the lower momentum boundary layer flow. Previous studies have shown, however, that efficiency benefits of Boundary Layer Ingesting (BLI) ingestion are very sensitive to the magnitude of fan and duct losses, and blade structural response to the non-uniform flow field that results from a BLI inlet has not been studied in-depth. This paper presents an effort to extend the modeling capabilities of an existing rotating turbomachinery unsteady analysis code to include the ability to solve the external and internal flow fields of a BLI inlet. The TURBO code has been a successful tool in evaluating fan response to flow distortions for traditional engine/inlet integrations, such as the development of rotating stall and inlet distortion through compressor stages. This paper describes the first phase of an effort to extend the TURBO model to calculate the external and inlet flowfield upstream of fan so that accurate pressure distortions that result from BLI configurations can be computed and used to analyze fan aerodynamics and structural response. To validate the TURBO program modifications for the BLI flowfield, experimental test data obtained by NASA for a flushmounted S-duct with large amounts of boundary layer ingestion was modeled. Results for the flow upstream and in the inlet are presented and compared to experimental data for several high Reynolds number flows to validate the modifications to the solver. Quantitative data is presented that indicates good predictive capability of the model in the upstream flow. A representative fan is attached to the inlet and results are presented for the coupled inlet/fan model. The impact on the total pressure distortion at the AIP after the fan is attached is examined.

Inlet Fan Interactions↗

NASA NTRS1973

Overall and blade-element performance of a transonic compressor stage with multiple-circular-arc blades at tip speed of 419 meters per second

A 50-centimeter-diameter axial-flow transonic compressor stage with multiple-circular-arc blades was designed and tested to study the effects of blade shape on efficiency and stall margin. At design speed, peak efficiency of 0.80 occurred at an equivalent weight flow of 29.0 kilograms per second. Measured total pressure ratio and total temperature ratio at peak efficiency were 1.69 and 1.20, respectively. The stall margin at design speed and an equivalent weight flow of 29.0 kilograms per second was 9 percent. The measured stall margin at design weight flow and speed was 15 percent. A comparison of rotor performance made with and without the stator showed a decrease in pressure ratio, peak efficiency, and maximum weight flow with the addition of the stator.

Kovich, G.↗

NASA NTRS2005

Analysis of Coupled Seals, Secondary and Powerstream Flow Fields in Aircraft and Aerospace Turbomachines

Higher power, high efficiency gas turbine engines require optimization of the seals and secondary flow systems as well as their impact on the powerstream. This work focuses on two aspects: 1. To apply the present day CFD tools (SCISEAL) to different real-life secondary flow applications from different original equipment manufacturers (OEM s) to provide feedback data and 2. Develop a computational methodology for coupled time-accurate simulation of the powerstream and secondary flow with emphasis on the interaction between the disk-cavity and rim seals flows with the powerstream (SCISEAL-MS-TURBO). One OEM simulation was of the Allison Engine Company T-56 turbine drum cavities including conjugate heat transfer with good agreement with data and provided design feedback information. Another was the GE aspirating seal where the 3-D CFD simulations played a major role in analysis and modification of that seal configuration. The second major objective, development of a coupled flow simulation capability was achieved by using two codes MS-TURBO for the powerstream and SCISEAL for the secondary flows with an interface coupling algorithm. The coupled code was tested against data from three differed configurations: 1. bladeless-rotor-stator-cavity turbine test rig, 2. UTRC high pressure turbine test rig, and, 3. the NASA Low-Speed-Air Compressor rig (LSAC) with results and limitations discussed herein.

Athavale, M. M.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Transonic Navier-Stokes wing solutions using a zonal approach. Part 2: High angle-of-attack simulation

A computer code is under development whereby the thin-layer Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations are to be applied to realistic fighter-aircraft configurations. This transonic Navier-Stokes code (TNS) utilizes a zonal approach in order to treat complex geometries and satisfy in-core computer memory constraints. The zonal approach has been applied to isolated wing geometries in order to facilitate code development. Part 1 of this paper addresses the TNS finite-difference algorithm, zonal methodology, and code validation with experimental data. Part 2 of this paper addresses some numerical issues such as code robustness, efficiency, and accuracy at high angles of attack. Special free-stream-preserving metrics proved an effective way to treat H-mesh singularities over a large range of severe flow conditions, including strong leading-edge flow gradients, massive shock-induced separation, and stall. Furthermore, lift and drag coefficients have been computed for a wing up through CLmax. Numerical oil flow patterns and particle trajectories are presented both for subcritical and transonic flow. These flow simulations are rich with complex separated flow physics and demonstrate the efficiency and robustness of the zonal approach.

Chaderjian, N. M.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Transonic Navier-Stokes wing solutions using a zonal approach. Part 2: High angle-of-attack simulation

A computer code is under development whereby the thin-layer Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations are to be applied to realistic fighter aircraft configurations. This transonic Navier-Stokes code (TNS) utilizes a zonal approach in order to treat complex geometries and satisfy in-core computer memory constraints. The zonal approach was applied to isolated wing geometries in order to facilitate code development. The TNS finite difference algorithm, zonal methodology, and code validation with experimental data is addressed. Also addressed are some numerical issues such as code robustness, efficiency, and accuracy at high angles of attack. Special free-stream-preserving metrics proved an effective way to treat H-mesh singularities over a large range of severe flow conditions, including strong leading edge flow gradients, massive shock induced separation, and stall. Furthermore, lift and drag coefficients were computed for a wing up through CLmax. Numerical oil flow patterns and particle trajectories are presented both for subcritical and transonic flow. These flow simulations are rich with complex separated flow physics and demonstrate the efficiency and robustness of the zonal approach.

Chaderjian, Neal M.↗

NASA NTRS1994

A three-dimensional structured/unstructured hybrid Navier-Stokes method for turbine blade rows

A three-dimensional viscous structured/unstructured hybrid scheme has been developed for numerical computation of high Reynolds number turbomachinery flows. The procedure allows an efficient structured solver to be employed in the densely clustered, high aspect-ratio grid around the viscous regions near solid surfaces, while employing an unstructured solver elsewhere in the flow domain to add flexibility in mesh generation. Test results for an inviscid flow over an external transonic wing and a Navier-Stokes flow for an internal annular cascade are presented.

Tsung, F.-L.↗

NASA NTRS1973

Performance of transonic fan stage with weight flow per unit annulus area of 178 kilograms per second per square meter (6.5(lb/sec)/(sq ft))

The overall and blade-element performances are presented over the stable flow operating range from 50 to 100 percent of design speed. Stage peak efficiency of 0.834 was obtained at a weight flow of 26.4 kg/sec (58.3 lb/sec) and a pressure ratio of 1.581. The stall margin for the stage was 7.5 percent based on weight flow and pressure ratio at stall and peak efficiency conditions. The rotor minimum losses were approximately equal to design except in the blade vibration damper region. Stator minimum losses were less than design except in the tip and damper regions.

Moore, R. D.↗

DOE OSTI2016

A concentrated solar cavity absorber with direct heat transfer through recirculating metallic particles

A recirculating flow solar particle cavity absorber (receiver) is modeled to investigate the flow behavior and heat transfer characteristics of a novel developing concept. It features a continuous recirculating flow of non-reacting metallic particles (black silicon carbide) with air which are used as a thermal enhancement medium. The aim of the present study is to numerically investigate the thermal behavior and flow characteristics of the proposed concept. The proposed solar particle receiver is modeled using two phase discrete particle model (DPM), RNG k-flow model and discrete ordinate (DO) radiation model. Numerical analysis is carried out considering a solar receiver with only air and the mixture of non-reacting particles and air as a heat transfer as well as heat carrying medium. The parametric investigation is conducted considering the incident solar flux on the receiver aperture and changing air flow rate and recirculation rate inside the receiver. A stand-alone feature of the recirculating flow solar particle receiver concept is that the particles are directly exposed to concentrated solar radiation monotonously through recirculating flow inside the receiver and results in efficient irradiation absorption and convective heat transfer to air that help to achieve high temperature air and consequently increase in thermal efficiency. This paper presents, results from the developed concept and highlights its flow behavior and potential to enhance the heat transfer from metallic particles to air by maximizing heat carrying capacity of the heat transfer medium. The imposed milestones for the present system will be helpful to understand the radiation absorption mechanism of the particles in a recirculating flow based receiver, the thermal transport between the particles, the air and the cavity, and the fluid dynamics of the air and particle in the cavity.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

NASA NTRS2003

Momentum and Heat Flux Measurements in the Exhaust of VASIMR using Helium Propellant

Interplanetary travel requires propulsion systems that can provide high specific impulse (Isp), while also having sufficient thrust to rapidly accelerate large payloads. One such propulsion system is the Variable Specific Impulse Magneto-plasma Rocket (VASIMR), which creates, heats, and ejects plasma to provide variable thrust and Isp, designed to optimally meet the mission requirements. The fraction of the total energy invested in creating the plasma, as compared to the plasma's total kinetic energy, is an important factor in determining the overall system efficiency. In VASIMR, this 'frozen flow loss' is appreciable when at high thrust, but negligible at high Isp. The loss applies to other electric thrusters as well. If some of this energy could be recovered through recombination processes, and reinjected as neutral kinetic energy, the efficiency of VASIMR, in its low Isp/high thrust mode may be improved. An experiment is being conducted to investigate the possibility of recovering some of the energy used to create the plasma by studying the flow characteristics of the charged and neutral particles in the exhaust of the thruster. This paper will cover the measurements of momentum flux and heat flux in the exhaust of the VASIMR test facility using helium as the propellant where the heat flux is comprised of both kinetic and plasma recombination energy. The flux measurements also assist in diagnosing and verifying the plasma conditions in the existing experiment.

Chavers, D. Gregory↗

NASA NTRS1987

Forced flow evaporator for unusual gravity conditions

Low efficiency heat transfer in evaporators subject to unusual gravitational conditions is avoided through the use of a spiral evaporator conduit 12 receiving at an inlet 14 a vaporizable coolant at least partly in the liquid phase. Flow of the coolant through the conduit 12 demists the coolant by centrifuging the liquid phase against a pressurre wall 44 of the conduit 12. Vapor flow 40 induces counterrotating vortices 46, 48 which circulate the liquid phase coolant around the interior of the conduit 12 to wet all surfaces thereof.

Niggemann, Richard E.↗

NASA NTRS1948

Performance of J-33-A-21 Turbojet-Engine Compressor I - Over-All Performance Characteristics at Equivalent Impeller Speeds from 6000 to 13,400 RPM

The NACA is investigating a series of J-33 turbojet-engine compressors to determine the over-all and component performances and to improve theories of flow through large centrifugal compressors, The production model J-33-A-21 was operated over a range of inlet temperatures from 80 to -40 F and inlet pressures from 14 to 5 inches mercury absolute for equivalent impeller speeds from 6000 to 13,400 rpm. At the equivalent design speed of 11,500 rpm, the compressor had a peak pressure ratio of 3.98 at an equivalent weight flow of 73.4 pounds per second and an adiabatic temperature-rise , efficiency of 0.701. When the compressor speed was reduced from the design speed to 6000 rpm, the adiabatic temperature-rise efficiency increased to 0.747. At the maximum equivalent speed investigated (13,400 rpm), a peak pressure ratio of 5.09 was obtained at an adiabatic temperature-rise efficiency of 0.617 and an equivalent weight flow of 66.O pounds per second. An increase in inlet pressure from 5.5 to 14 inches mercury absolute, with a consequent increase in Reynolds number index, improved the pressure ratio but had no apparent effect on the ratio of temperature rise through the compressor to inlet temperature. The variation of the peak adiabatic temperature-rise efficiency with inlet pressure is in the direction that would be expected from a Reynolds number effect. Decrease in the inlet temperature from 80 to -40 F, with a consequent increase in Reynolds number index, resulted in scatter of the pressure-ratio data and increased values of temperature ratio. The variation of the adiabatic temperature-rise efficiency with inlet temperature is probably the result of heat-transfer effects and scatter in the pressure ratio.

Beede, William L.↗

NASA NTRS1990

Relative efficiency and accuracy of two Navier-Stokes codes for simulating attached transonic flow over wings

In the present study, two codes which solve the three-dimensional Thin-Layer Navier-Stokes (TLNS) equations are used to compute the steady-state flow for two test cases representing typical finite wings at transonic conditions. Several grids of C-O topology and varying point densities are used. After a description of each code and test case, standards for determining code efficiency and accuracy are defined and applied to determine the relative performance of the two codes in predicting turbulent transonic wing flows. Comparisons of computed surface pressure distributions with experimental data are made.

Bonhaus, Daryl L.↗

DOE OSTI2024

Beyond conventional batteries: a review on semi-solid and redox targeting flow batteries-LiFePO{sub 4} as a case study.

Clean and sustainable energy is becoming increasingly crucial to tackle the current energy crisis. However, the intermittent nature of renewable energy sources presents a challenge for their effective implementation. Redox flow batteries (RFBs) have emerged as a promising solution to this problem, as they can help enhance the stability of grid networks and promote the use of renewable energy sources. RFBs are highly modular and scalable systems that can be customized to meet the power and energy requirements of different renewable energy plants. Moreover, they offer several advantages over conventional battery technologies, including cost and safety concerns. However, conventional RFBs have limited energy densities due to the low solubility of their active species in electrolyte. To overcome this limitation, semi-solid (SSRFBs) and redox targeting (RTFBs) flow batteries have been proposed. These systems feature high concentrations of active species and impressive energy densities, making them highly attractive for renewable energy applications. LiFePO4 (LFP) is a highly promising active material for semi-solid and targeting flow batteries. One of the key advantages of LFP is its low raw materials cost, as it is composed of Earth-abundant elements such as iron and phosphorus. This makes it an attractive option for large-scale battery production. The recent developments in SSRFBs and RTFBs using LFP as catholyte hold great promise for the future of sustainable energy storage. The combination of LFP's low cost, safety, durability, and high energy density with the modularity and scalability of flow battery systems make for a compelling solution to the challenges of intermittent renewable energy sources. Ongoing research and development in this area will likely yield even further improvements in the performance and efficiency of LFP-based flow batteries, opening exciting new possibilities for sustainable energy storage.

El Halya, Nabil↗

DOE OSTI2018

An Embedded 3D Fracture Modeling Approach for Simulating Fracture-Dominated Fluid Flow and Heat Transfer in Geothermal Reservoirs

An efficient modeling approach is described for incorporating arbitrary 3D, discrete fractures, such as hydraulic fractures or faults, into modeling fracture-dominated fluid flow and heat transfer in fractured geothermal reservoirs. This technique allows 3D discrete fractures to be discretized independently from surrounding rock volume and inserted explicitly into a primary fracture/matrix grid, generated without including 3D discrete fractures in prior. An effective computational algorithm is developed to discretize these 3D discrete fractures and construct local connections between 3D fractures and fracture/matrix grid blocks of representing the surrounding rock volume. The constructed gridding information on 3D fractures is then added to the primary grid. This embedded fracture modeling approach can be directly implemented into a developed geothermal reservoir simulator via the integral finite difference (IFD) method or with TOUGH2 technology This embedded fracture modeling approach is very promising and computationally efficient to handle realistic 3D discrete fractures with complicated geometries, connections, and spatial distributions. Compared with other fracture modeling approaches, it avoids cumbersome 3D unstructured, local refining procedures, and increases computational efficiency by simplifying Jacobian matrix size and sparsity, while keeps sufficient accuracy. Several numeral simulations are present to demonstrate the utility and robustness of the proposed technique. Our numerical experiments show that this approach captures all the key patterns about fluid flow and heat transfer dominated by fractures in these cases. Thus, this approach is readily available to simulation of fractured geothermal reservoirs with both artificial and natural fractures.

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY↗

NASA NTRS1990

BASG thermomechanical pump helium 2 transfer tests

The purpose of the effort described was to perform experiments and calculations related to using a thermomechanical pump in the space-based resupply of the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF) with Helium 2. Thermomechanical (fountain effect) pumps have long been suggested as a means for pumping large quantities of Helium 2. The unique properties of Helium 2 have made it useful for cooling space instruments. Several space science missions, including SIRTF, are now being planned which would benefit greatly from on-orbit resupply of Helium 2. A series of experiments were performed to demonstrate that large volumes of Helium 2 can be transferred with a thermomechanical pump at high flow rates and at high efficiency from one dewar to another through valves and lines that are similar to the plumbing arrangement that would be necessary to accomplish such a transfer on-orbit. In addition, temperature, pressure, and flow rate data taken during the tests were used to verify and refine a computer model which was developed.

Mills, G. L.↗