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NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Shock-Wave/Boundary-Layer Interaction (SWBLI) Experiments in the Presence of Transition-to-Turbulence on a Flat Plate Model in the NASA LaRC 31-Inch Mach 10 Air Tunnel

Historically, there have been a limited number of studies involving Transitional Shock-Wave/Boundary-Layer Interactions (XSWBLI) in hypersonic flows, the majority of which have been performed at Mach Numbers of 7.5 and below. Additionally, there have been even fewer such experiments which incorporate non-intrusive and optical diagnostics. NASA Langley Research Center (NASA LaRC), in collaboration with The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) and The University of Tennessee Space Institute (UTSI), is currently planning and preparing for a series of experimental aerodynamic tests using the NASA LaRC 31-inch Mach 10 Air Tunnel. The experiments will primarily focus on studying the dynamics of Shock-Wave/Boundary-Layer Interactions (SWBLI) in the presence of transition (XSWBLI) and turbulence (SWTBLI) on a large, flat plate model at a freestream Mach number of 10. Besides continued interest in understanding the flow at high Mach numbers, executing such tests at Mach 10 avoids some known concerns and will aid in solving new problems. XSWBLI are a highly unsteady phenomena and the generation of XSWBLI at lower Mach numbers can prove to be a significant challenge. This concern will be somewhat mitigated in the Mach 10 flow, as boundary layers become increasingly stabilized, but some difficulty in achieving transition is still expected. Modelling SWBLI in the presence of transitional and turbulent boundary layers has also proven to be difficult, so a high-Mach number experiment which applies non-intrusive and optical diagnostics will aid in solving a unique problem as well as advancing the understanding and characterization of an aerodynamic surface at Mach 10.The NASA LaRC 31-inch Wind Tunnel incorporates a test section having a cross-section of 31-inches × 31-inches and provides optical access to the test section via three (3) ultra-violet (UV) transmitting windows on the top, side, and bottom. The Mach 10 operating conditions will consist of pressures (P0) ranging from 2.4 to 10MPa (348 to 1,450 psi) at a temperature (T0) of 1,000 K (1,800 °R). The NASA LaRC 31-inch wind tunnel will deliver 1-minute blow-down runs, of which 30-45 seconds will be consumed to reach the aforementioned test conditions. The pump down time between runs will be approximately 45-60 minutes, which will provide for 6-10 test runs per day over the course of a weeklong entry. The proposed flat plate model will be constructed of stainless steel with geometry consisting of a10-inch × 30-inch upper surface and a 2-inch thickness. The model will be designed to support multiple leading-edge inserts in order to examine blunt, round, and sharp leading edges at Mach 10. Adjustments will be made to manage boundary layer thickness as well as the strength and size of the shock interaction region for each test. Measurements and diagnostics will be performed though high-speed Schlieren, on-body high-speed pressure transducers, IR thermography, and oil flow visualization. Hypersonic vehicle applications have and will continue to emerge at the forefront of aerospace. The NASA-UTSA-UTSI team realizes the value of characterizing SWBLI, XSWBLI, and SWTBLI behaviors well beyond single-digit hypersonic Mach numbers. As hypersonic vehicle speed capabilities continue to increase, measurement and diagnostic methods for Mach numbers of 10 and beyond will provide the foundation for a firm understanding of flow field behavior which will directly influence the advancement of technologies towards the design and manufacturing of high-speed aerodynamic surfaces, controls, thermal protection systems, acoustic treatments, and structural components. The use of non-intrusive and optical diagnostic methods in such experimentation is pivotal in developing the visualization and empirical data necessary to advance the aforementioned technology areas.

Shockwave/Boundary-Layer Interactions↗
NASA NTRS1988

Euler/Navier-Stokes zonal scheme with applications to separated and isolated-vortex flows

An Euler/Navier-Stokes zonal scheme with boundary-layer compatibility conditions is developed to economically compute separated and vortex flows. The scheme is based on dividing the flow region into zones, where different levels of mathematical approximations of the governing equations are used in each zone. The scheme is applied to two specific problems: the two dimensional flow over a blunt leading-edge plate and the quasi-axisymmetric flow of an isolated vortex core. In the first problem, the computational domain is divided into inner and outer zones where the Navier-Stokes and Euler equations are used, respectively. On the downstream boundary of the computational domain, boundary-layer compatibility conditions are used. In the second problem, boundary-layer-like equations for slender, compressible, vortex flows are developed. A compatibility condition has been used to ensure consistency of the boundary and initial conditions. The outer boundary conditions of the flow are derived from Euler equations for a stream surface.

Kandil, Osama A.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Boundary layer crossflow stabilization of high subsonic speed LFC transport airplanes

With a view to the elaboration of the design of Mach 0.83 and 0.97 cruise-speed long-range aircraft employing LFC, a study is conducted of the laminar flow characteristics of supercritical airfoils of blunt leading-edge X88 type, for the case of lightly loaded wings that dispense with leading-edge flaps for low-speed operations. The boundary layer crossflow in the front acceleration zone of these airfoils' upper surface is optimally stabilized by suction in the upstream portion of the zone, yielding a crossflow that is neutrally stable.

Pfenninger, W.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Separation-bubble flow solution using Euler/Navier-Stokes zonal approach with downstream compatibility conditions

The two-dimensional flow over a blunt leading-edge plate is simulated on the basis of an Euler/Navier-Stokes zonal scheme. The scheme uses an implicit upwind finite-volume scheme, which is based on the van Leer flux-vector splitting. It is shown that the Euler/Navier-Stokes zonal scheme with downstream boundary-layer compatibility conditions is accurate and efficient.

Liu, C. H.↗
NASA NTRS1952

Analytical and Experimental Investigation of Inlet-engine Matching for Turbojet-powered Aircraft at Mach Numbers up to 2.0

An analysis of inlet-turbojet-engine matching for a range of Mach numbers up to 2.0 indicates large performance penalties when fixed-geometry inlets are used. Use of variable-geometry inlets, however, nearly eliminates th The analysis was confirmed experimentally by investigating at Mach numbers of 0, 0.63, and 1.5 to 2.0 two single oblique-shock-type inlets of different compression-ramp angles, which simulated a variable-geometry configuration. The experimental investigation indicated that total-pressure recoveries comparable withose attainable with well designed nose inlets were obtained with the side inlets when all the boundary layer ahead of the inlets was removed. Serious drag penalties resulted at a Mach number of 2.0 from the use of blunt-cowl leading edges. However, sharp-lip inlets produced large losses in thrust for the take-off condition. These thrust penalties which are associated with the the low-speed operation of the sharp-lip inlet designs can probably be avoided without impairing the supersonic performance of the inlet by the use of auxiliary inlets or blow-in doors.

Esenwein, Fred T↗
NASA NTRS2021

Wake Instability Behind Isolated Trip Near the Leading Edge of the BOLT-II Configuration

The BOLT-II (Holden Mission) configuration is an extended version of the BOLT flight article and depicts hypersonic boundary-layer transition in the presence of multiple and potentially interacting instability mechanisms. Several numerical studies of the boundary-layer instabilities over these configurations have been reported in the recent literature, including our previous studies of the modal instability characteristics of boundary-layer streaks adjacent to the minor-axis symmetry plane of the BOLT configuration and the wake instabilities behind a diamond planform (“pizza-box”) trip along the symmetry plane on the secondary side of the BOLT-II configuration. The present work extends the latter study to a scaled version of the same trip that is located in the region of nonzero crossflow in the vicinity of the leading edge at X/L = 0.5. Collectively, the trips along the symmetry plane and near the leading edge are the focus of the NASA roughness experiment on the secondary side of the BOLT-II configuration. The laminar basic state computation at the nominal flight design condition of Re ∞ = 5.44 x 10 6 /m and Re ∞ = 2.5 x 10 6 /m shows that the leading-edge trip with k/δ ≈ 0.70 and planform-side-length-to-height ratio of b/k = 3.0 induces multiple asymmetric, longitudinal streaks within the trip wake. The most prominent streak among these resembles a finite amplitude crossflow vortex, and it supports the amplification of multiple families of unstable modes. The application of multi-dimensional instability analysis to the wake flow reveals that the most amplified unstable mode can achieve a peak N-factor of up to 20 by X/L = 0.80, indicating that the onset of transition is more than likely to occur within eighty percent of the model length. To the best of our knowledge, the present study represents the first analysis including nonparallel and curvature effects on hypersonic tripwake instabilities in the presence of boundary-layer crossflow over a three-dimensional configuration.

Boundary layer transition↗
NASA NTRS1959

The Effect of Leading-Edge Sweep and Surface Inclination on the Hypersonic Flow Field Over a Blunt Flat Plate

An investigation of the effects of variation of leading-edge sweep and surface inclination on the flow over blunt flat plates was conducted at Mach numbers of 4 and 5.7 at free-stream Reynolds numbers per inch of 6,600 and 20,000, respectively. Surface pressures were measured on a flat plate blunted by a semicylindrical leading edge over a range of sweep angles from 0 deg to 60 deg and a range of surface inclinations from -10 deg to +10 deg. The surface pressures were predicted within an average error of +/- 8 percent by a combination of blast-wave and boundary-layer theory extended herein to include effects of sweep and surface inclination. This combination applied equally well to similar data of other investigations. The local Reynolds number per inch was found to be lower than the free-stream Reynolds number per inch. The reduction in local Reynolds number was mitigated by increasing the sweep of the leading edge. Boundary-layer thickness and shock-wave shape were changed little by the sweep of the leading edge.

Creager, Marcus O.↗
NASA NTRS1957

Some Effects of Bluntness on Boundary-Layer Transition and Heat Transfer at Supersonic Speeds

Large downstream movements of transition observed when the leading edge of a hollow cylinder or a flat plate is slightly blunted are explained in terms of the reduction in Reynolds number at the outer edge of the boundary layer due to the detached shock wave. The magnitude of this reduction is computed for cones and wedges for Mach numbers to 20. Concurrent changes in outer-edge Mach number and temperature occur in the direction that would increase the stability of the laminar boundary layer. The hypothesis is made that transition Reynolds number is substantially unchanged when a sharp leading edge or tip is blunted. This hypothesis leads to the conclusion that the downstream movement of transition is inversely proportional to the ratio of surface Reynolds number with blunted tip or leading edge to surface Reynolds number with sharp tip or leading edge. The conclusion is in good agreement with the hollow-cylinder result at Mach 3.1.

Moeckel, W E↗
NASA NTRS1956

Boundary-layer Transition at Supersonic Speeds

Recent results of the effects of Mach number, stream turbulence, leading-edge geometry, leading-edge sweep, surface temperature, surface finish, pressure gradient, and angle of attack on boundary-layer transition are summarized. Factors that delay transition are nose blunting, surface cooling, and favorable pressure gradient. Leading-edge sweep and excessive surface roughness tend to promote early transition. The effects of leading-edge blunting on two-dimensional surfaces and surface cooling can be predicted adequately by existing theories, at least in the moderate Mach number range.

Low, George M↗
NASA NTRS2002

Effect of Variable Chord Length on Transonic Axial Rotor Performance Investigated

During the life of any gas turbine, blade erosion is present, especially for those units that are exposed to unfiltered air, such as aviation turbofan engines. The effect of this erosion is to reduce the blade chord progressively from the midspan to the tip region and to roughen and distort the blade surface. The effects of roughness on rotor performance have been documented by Suder et al. and Roberts. These papers indicate that the penalty for leading-edge roughness and erosion can be significant. Turbofan operators, therefore, restore chord length at routine maintenance intervals to regain performance before deterioration is too severe to salvage blades. As the rotor blades erode, the leading edge becomes rough - blunt and distorted from the nominal shape - and the aerodynamic performance suffers. Nominal performance can be recovered by recontouring the leading edges. This process, which inherently shortens the blade chord, can be used until the blade chord erodes to the stall limit. Below this chord length, which varies among engine-compressor types, a decrease of stall margin is likely. After compressor blade rework that includes leading edge recontouring, the blades have different chord lengths, ranging from blades that are near nominal chord length down to those near the stall chord limit. Furthermore, as blades erode below the stall limit, they must be replaced with new blades that have the full nominal chord length. Consequently, a set of compressor blades with varying chord lengths will be installed into each turbofan engine that goes through a complete maintenance cycle. The question arises, "Does fan or compressor performance depend on the order in which mixed-chord blades are installed into a fan or compressor disk?"

Suder, Kenneth L.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Prediction and Assessment of Reynolds Number Sensitivities Associated with Wing Leading-Edge Radius Variations

The primary objectives of this study were to expand the data base showing the effects of LE radius distribution and corresponding . sensitivity to Rn at subsonic and transonic conditions, and to assess the predictive capability of CFD for these effects. Several key elements led to the initiation of this project: 1) the necessity of meeting multipoint design requirements to enable a viable HSCT, 2) the demonstration that blunt supersonic leading-edges can be associated with performance gain at supersonic speeds , and 3) limited data. A test of a modified Reference H model with the TCA planform and 2 LE radius distributions was performed in the NTF, in addition to Navier-Stokes analysis for an additional 3 LE radius distributions. Results indicate that there is a tremendous potential to improve high-lift performance through the use of a blunt LE across the span given an integrated, fully optimized design, and that low Rn data alone is probably not sufficient to demonstrate the benefit.

Wahls, Richard A.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Prediction and Assessment of Reynolds Number Sensitivities Associated with Wing Leading-Edge Radius Variations

The primary objectives of this study were to expand the data base showing the effects of LE radius distribution and corresponding sensitivity to Rn at subsonic and transonic conditions, and to assess the predictive capability of CFD for these effects. Several key elements led to the initiation of this project: 1) the necessity of meeting multipoint design requirements to enable a viable HSCT, 2) the demonstration that blunt supersonic leading-edges can be associated with performance gain at supersonic speeds , and 3) limited data. A test of a modified Reference H model with the TCA planform and 2 LE radius distributions was performed in the NTF, in addition to Navier-Stokes analysis for an additional 3 LE radius distributions. Results indicate that there is a tremendous potential to improve high-lift performance through the use of a blunt LE across the span given an integrated, fully optimized design, and that low Rn data alone is probably not sufficient to demonstrate the benefit.

Wahls, Richard A.↗
NASA NTRS2022

Linear Disturbance Amplification Over Blunted Flat Plates in High-Speed Flows

Modal and nonmodal instability characteristics of cylindrically blunted flat plates with varying leading edge radii are described for Mach 4 and Mach 6 freestream conditions. The selection of leading edge radii and freestream parameters is informed by experimental conditions. The investigation of this 2D problem provides a slow entropy layer swallowing which allows for an isolated development of perturbations seeded upstream within different wall-normal regions of the flow. At both Mach numbers, a decrease in modal instability amplification was seen as the leading edge radius was increased. Nonmodal analysis reveals amplifying perturbations in the boundary layer as well as in the entropy layer. The medium bluntness regime exhibits the strongest amplification of nonmodal disturbances that is nonmonotonic in character. Small amplitude boundary forcing at the plate surface or volumetric forcing at various wall-normal heights was used to account for receptivity effects. While wall forcing effectively induced modal instabilities, only an actuation above the boundary layer captured disturbances that amplify within the entropy layer. The optimal nonmodal theory’s entropy-layer disturbance evolution exhibited outstanding agreement with controlled forcing, including receptivity effects. The evolution of entropy-layer disturbances from the optimal nonmodal theory showed excellent agreement with the results of receptivity to controlled forcing. Therefore, the nonmodal optimal growth analysis may provide a useful as well as efficient technique to identify the complete disturbance spectrum in blunt hypersonic configurations, where both modal and nonmodal disturbances can amplify in the boundary-layer and entropy-layer regions.

Boundary layer transition↗
NASA NTRS1997

Experimental Investigation of Unsteady Shock Wave Turbulent Boundary Layer Interactions About a Blunt Fin

A series of experiments were performed to investigate the effects of Mach number variation on the characteristics of the unsteady shock wave/turbulent boundary layer interaction generated by a blunt fin. A single blunt fin hemicylindrical leading edge diameter size was used in all of the experiments which covered the Mach number range from 2.0 to 5.0. The measurements in this investigation included surface flow visualization, static and dynamic pressure measurements, both on centerline and off-centerline of the blunt fin axis. Surface flow visualization and static pressure measurements showed that the spatial extent of the shock wave/turbulent boundary layer interaction increased with increasing Mach number. The maximum static pressure, normalized by the incoming static pressure, measured at the peak location in the separated flow region ahead of the blunt fin was found to increase with increasing Mach number. The mean and standard deviations of the fluctuating pressure signals from the dynamic pressure transducers were found to collapse to self-similar distributions as a function of the distance perpendicular to the separation line. The standard deviation of the pressure signals showed initial peaked distribution, with the maximum standard deviation point corresponding to the location of the separation line at Mach number 3.0 to 5.0. At Mach 2.0 the maximum standard deviation point was found to occur significantly upstream of the separation line. The intermittency distributions of the separation shock wave motion were found to be self-similar profiles for all Mach numbers. The intermittent region length was found to increase with Mach number and decrease with interaction sweepback angle. For Mach numbers 3.0 to 5.0 the separation line was found to correspond to high intermittencies or equivalently to the downstream locus of the separation shock wave motion. The Mach 2.0 tests, however, showed that the intermittent region occurs significantly upstream of the separation line. Power spectral densities measured in the intermittent regions were found to have self-similar frequency distributions when compared as functions of a Strouhal number for all Mach numbers and interaction sweepback angles. The maximum zero-crossing frequencies were found to correspond with the peak frequencies in the power spectra measured in the intermittent region.

Barnhart, Paul J.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Analyzing Flow Fields in Axial-Compressor Rotors and Stators

Computer program, BLADE3D, developed for analysis of inviscid threedimensional flow fields in single blade passage of axial-compressor rotor or stator. Applicable to arbitrary axial-compressor hub, tip, and blade geometries, including blades with part-span dampers. Also used for axial turbines but with lowered resolution of flows about blunt leading and trailing edges. Analysis method valid for subsonic, transonic and supersonic flows, including choked flows.

Thompkins, W. J., Jr.↗