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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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At least 1,117 records · Page 62

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NASA NTRS1998

Model Engine Performance Measurement From Force Balance Instrumentation

A large scale model representative of a low-noise, high bypass ratio turbofan engine was tested for acoustics and performance in the NASA Lewis 9- by 15-Foot Low-Speed Wind Tunnel. This test was part of NASA's continuing Advanced Subsonic Technology Noise Reduction Program. The low tip speed fan, nacelle, and an un-powered core passage (with core inlet guide vanes) were simulated. The fan blades and hub are mounted on a rotating thrust and torque balance. The nacelle, bypass duct stators, and core passage are attached to a six component force balance. The two balance forces, when corrected for internal pressure tares, measure the total thrust-minus-drag of the engine simulator. Corrected for scaling and other effects, it is basically the same force that the engine supports would feel, operating at similar conditions. A control volume is shown and discussed, identifying the various force components of the engine simulator thrust and definitions of net thrust. Several wind tunnel runs with nearly the same hardware installed are compared, to identify the repeatability of the measured thrust-minus-drag. Other wind tunnel runs, with hardware changes that affected fan performance, are compared to the baseline configuration, and the thrust and torque effects are shown. Finally, a thrust comparison between the force balance and nozzle gross thrust methods is shown, and both yield very similar results.

Jeracki, Robert J.↗

NASA NTRS2013

Modeling Commercial Turbofan Engine Icing Risk With Ice Crystal Ingestion

The occurrence of ice accretion within commercial high bypass aircraft turbine engines has been reported under certain atmospheric conditions. Engine anomalies have taken place at high altitudes that have been attributed to ice crystal ingestion, partially melting, and ice accretion on the compression system components. The result was degraded engine performance, and one or more of the following: loss of thrust control (roll back), compressor surge or stall, and flameout of the combustor. As ice crystals are ingested into the fan and low pressure compression system, the increase in air temperature causes a portion of the ice crystals to melt. It is hypothesized that this allows the ice-water mixture to cover the metal surfaces of the compressor stationary components which leads to ice accretion through evaporative cooling. Ice accretion causes a blockage which subsequently results in the deterioration in performance of the compressor and engine. The focus of this research is to apply an engine icing computational tool to simulate the flow through a turbofan engine and assess the risk of ice accretion. The tool is comprised of an engine system thermodynamic cycle code, a compressor flow analysis code, and an ice particle melt code that has the capability of determining the rate of sublimation, melting, and evaporation through the compressor flow path, without modeling the actual ice accretion. A commercial turbofan engine which has previously experienced icing events during operation in a high altitude ice crystal environment has been tested in the Propulsion Systems Laboratory (PSL) altitude test facility at NASA Glenn Research Center. The PSL has the capability to produce a continuous ice cloud which are ingested by the engine during operation over a range of altitude conditions. The PSL test results confirmed that there was ice accretion in the engine due to ice crystal ingestion, at the same simulated altitude operating conditions as experienced previously in flight. The computational tool was utilized to help guide a portion of the PSL testing, and was used to predict ice accretion could also occur at significantly lower altitudes. The predictions were qualitatively verified by subsequent testing of the engine in the PSL. The PSL test has helped to calibrate the engine icing computational tool to assess the risk of ice accretion. The results from the computer simulation identified prevalent trends in wet bulb temperature, ice particle melt ratio, and engine inlet temperature as a function of altitude for predicting engine icing risk due to ice crystal ingestion.

Jorgenson, Philip C. E.↗

NASA NTRS1979

Combined pressure and temperature distortion effects on internal flow of a turbofan engine

An additional data base for improving and verifying a computer simulation developed by an engine manufacturer was obtained. The multisegment parallel compressor simulation was designed to predict the effects of steady-state circumferential inlet total-pressure and total-temperature distortions on the flows into and through a turbofan compression system. It also predicts the degree of distortion that will result in surge of the compressor. The effect of combined 180 deg square-wave distortion patterns of total pressure and total temperature in various relative positions is reported. The observed effects of the combined distortion on a unitary bypass ratio turbofan engine are presented in terms of total and static pressure profiles and total temperature profiles at stations ahead of the inlet guide vanes as well as through the fan-compressor system. These observed profiles are compared with those predicted by the complex multisegment model. The effects of relative position of the two components comprising the combined distortion on the degree resulting in surge are discussed. Certain relative positions required less combined distortion than either a temperature or pressure distortion by itself.

Braithwaite, W. M.↗

NASA NTRS1979

Identification and dual adaptive control of a turbojet engine

The objective of this paper is to utilize the design methods of modern control theory to realize a dual-adaptive feedback control unit for a highly nonlinear single spool airbreathing turbojet engine. Using a very detailed and accurate simulation of the nonlinear engine as the data source, linear operating point models of unspecified dimension are identified. Feedback control laws are designed at each operating point for a prespecified set of sampling rates using sampled-data output regulator theory. The control system sampling rate is determined by an adaptive sampling algorithm in correspondence with turbojet engine performance. The result is a dual-adaptive control law that is functionally dependent upon the sampling rate selected and environmental operating conditions. Simulation transients demonstrate the utility of the dual-adaptive design to improve on-board computer utilization while maintaining acceptable levels of engine performance.

Merrill, W.↗

NASA NTRS1996

Dynamic Modeling and Simulation Study for the Galileo Spacecraft Pulsed-Mode Spinup/400 N Main Engine Burn/Spindown Maneuvers

Two Galileo dynamic models were developed to simulate the spinup/400-N main engine burn/spindown maneuvers for the critical events of Jupiter Orbit Insertion (JOI) and Perijove Raise Maneuver (PRM). The dynamic interaction among the spin thruster pulsing frequency science/magnetometer (SCI/MAG) boom flexible modes, and the propellant slosh modes were studied.

Galileo orbit insertion planetary spacecraft↗

NASA NTRS1980

Durability testing at 5 atmospheres of advanced catalysts and catalyst supports for gas turbine engine combustors

The durability of CATCOM catalysts and catalyst supports was experimentally demonstrated in a combustion environment under simulated gas turbine engine combustor operating conditions. A test of 1000 hours duration was completed with one catalyst using no. 2 diesel fuel and operating at catalytically-supported thermal combustion conditions. The performance of the catalyst was determined by monitoring emissions throughout the test, and by examining the physical condition of the catalyst core at the conclusion of the test. Tests were performed periodically to determine changes in catalytic activity of the catalyst core. Detailed parametric studies were also run at the beginning and end of the durability test, using no. 2 fuel oil. Initial and final emissions for the 1000 hours test respectively were: unburned hydrocarbons (C3 vppm):0, 146, carbon monoxide (vppm):30, 2420; nitrogen oxides (vppm):5.7, 5.6.

Olson, B. A.↗

NASA NTRS2009

Sea-Level Flight Demonstration and Altitude Characterization of a LO2/LCH4 Based Accent Propulsion Lander

A 1,500 lbf thrust-class liquid oxygen (LO2)/Liquid Methane (LCH4) rocket engine was developed and tested at both sea-level and simulated altitude conditions. The engine was fabricated by Armadillo Aerospace (AA) in collaboration with NASA Johnson Space Center. Sea level testing was conducted at Armadillo Aerospace facilities at Caddo Mills, TX. Sea-level tests were conducted using both a static horizontal test bed and a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) test bed capable of lift-off and hover-flight in low atmosphere conditions. The vertical test bed configuration is capable of throttling the engine valves to enable liftoff and hover-flight. Simulated altitude vacuum testing was conducted at NASA Johnson Space Center White Sands Test Facility (WSTF), which is capable of providing altitude simulation greater than 120,000 ft equivalent. The engine tests demonstrated ignition using two different methods, a gas-torch and a pyrotechnic igniter. Both gas torch and pyrotechnic ignition were demonstrated at both sea-level and vacuum conditions. The rocket engine was designed to be configured with three different nozzle configurations, including a dual-bell nozzle geometry. Dual-bell nozzle tests were conducted at WSTF and engine performance data was achieved at both ambient pressure and simulated altitude conditions. Dual-bell nozzle performance data was achieved over a range of altitude conditions from 90,000 ft to 50,000 ft altitude. Thrust and propellant mass flow rates were measured in the tests for specific impulse (Isp) and C* calculations.

Collins, Jacob↗

NASA NTRS1975

SSME-HAS dynamic load simulators

The space shuttle main engine propellant valve actuators (SSME) were designed to simulate the loads reflected into the SSME by the chamber coolant valve, the fuel preburner, and the oxidizer. The design, and functional description are included along with a list of the drawings. The load fixture control transform, friction torque, and flow calculations are reported.

Source record↗

NASA NTRS2016

Performance and Durability of Environmental Barrier Coatings on SiC/SiC Ceramic Matrix Composites

This presentation highlights advanced environmental barrier coating (EBC) and SiC-SiC Ceramic Matrix Composites (CMC) systems for next generation turbine engines. The emphasis will be placed on fundamental coating and CMC property evaluations; and the integrated system performance and degradation mechanisms in simulated laboratory turbine engine testing environments. Long term durability tests in laser rig simulated high heat flux the rmomechanical creep and fatigue loading conditions will also be presented. The results can help improve the future EBC-CMC system designs, validating the advanced EBC-CMC technologies for hot section turbine engine applications.

Environment and Fatigue↗

NASA NTRS1979

Investigation of wing shielding effects on CTOL engine noise

A full scale engine wing shielding investigation was conducted at the Lewis Research Center using a 97,900-N (22,000 lb) thrust turbofan engine and a simulated wing section sized around a conventional-take-off type four-engine narrow body airplane. Sound data were obtained for the wing placed at seven positions in a plane parallel to the engine axis, and were compared to data obtained without the wing at both take off and approach power. In addition, the engine was operated with and without extensive acoustic treatment, including a sonic inlet in order to evaluate wing shielding effectiveness with a highly suppressed engine. The wing shielding effectiveness was also calibrated using a 3.8 cm diam air nozzle as a second source. Results indicated that even though about 10 dB broad band shielding was achieved, the equivalent flyover noise reduction was less than 3.0 EPNdB for most configurations.

Bloomer, H. E.↗

NASA NTRS1979

Investigation of wing shielding effects on CTOL engine noise

A full scale engine wing shielding investigation was conducted at the Lewis Research Center using a 97,900-N (22,000 lb) thrust turbofan engine and a simulated wing section sized around a conventional-take-off type four-engine narrow body airplane. Sound data were obtained for the wing placed at seven positions in a plane parallel to the engine axis, and were compared to data obtained without the wing at both take off and approach power. In addition the engine was operated with and without extensive acoustic treatment including a sonic inlet in order to evaluate wing shielding effectiveness with a highly suppressed engine. The wing shielding effectiveness was also calibrated using a 3.8 cm diam air nozzle as a sound source. Results indicated that even though about 10 dB broad band shielding was achieved, the equivalent flyover noise reduction was less than 3.0 EPNdB for most configurations.

Bloomer, H. E.↗

NASA NTRS1982

Recent tests on the Carter small reciprocating steam engines

The Jay Carter Enterprises (JCE) Paratransit Vehicle steam engine was tested over a range of conditions which might be experienced by the power converter subsystem of the Small Community Solar Thermal Power Experiment. Some difficulties were encountered getting the engine ready for testing. These difficulties were related to the five year dormancy of the entire system and to incomplete development work that had been going on at the time of cessation of steam engine work at JCE. Other difficulties were related to the fact that the particular expander being tested never ran before and possessed some manufacturing defects. Nevertheless, the engine was operated successfully and results of testing do verify results of computer simulations of the engine in regard to the effect of temperature and power level variations. Engine efficiency was good but generally lower than expected and performance dropped as testing continued. The effect of change in expansion ratio was not demonstrated because of deterioration in engine performance. Post-test inspection revealed numerous correctable defects.

Kiceniuk, T.↗

NASA NTRS2004

Intelligent, Robust Control of Deteriorated Turbofan Engines via Linear Parameter Varying Quadratic Lyapunov Function Design

A method for accommodating engine deterioration via a scheduled Linear Parameter Varying Quadratic Lyapunov Function (LPVQLF)-Based controller is presented. The LPVQLF design methodology provides a means for developing unconditionally stable, robust control of Linear Parameter Varying (LPV) systems. The controller is scheduled on the Engine Deterioration Index, a function of estimated parameters that relate to engine health, and is computed using a multilayer feedforward neural network. Acceptable thrust response and tight control of exhaust gas temperature (EGT) is accomplished by adjusting the performance weights on these parameters for different levels of engine degradation. Nonlinear simulations demonstrate that the controller achieves specified performance objectives while being robust to engine deterioration as well as engine-to-engine variations.

Turso, James A.↗

NASA NTRS1998

Multiphysics Code Demonstrated for Propulsion Applications

The utility of multidisciplinary analysis tools for aeropropulsion applications is being investigated at the NASA Lewis Research Center. The goal of this project is to apply Spectrum, a multiphysics code developed by Centric Engineering Systems, Inc., to simulate multidisciplinary effects in turbomachinery components. Many engineering problems today involve detailed computer analyses to predict the thermal, aerodynamic, and structural response of a mechanical system as it undergoes service loading. Analysis of aerospace structures generally requires attention in all three disciplinary areas to adequately predict component service behavior, and in many cases, the results from one discipline substantially affect the outcome of the other two. There are numerous computer codes currently available in the engineering community to perform such analyses in each of these disciplines. Many of these codes are developed and used in-house by a given organization, and many are commercially available. However, few, if any, of these codes are designed specifically for multidisciplinary analyses. The Spectrum code has been developed for performing fully coupled fluid, thermal, and structural analyses on a mechanical system with a single simulation that accounts for all simultaneous interactions, thus eliminating the requirement for running a large number of sequential, separate, disciplinary analyses. The Spectrum code has a true multiphysics analysis capability, which improves analysis efficiency as well as accuracy. Centric Engineering, Inc., working with a team of Lewis and AlliedSignal Engines engineers, has been evaluating Spectrum for a variety of propulsion applications including disk quenching, drum cavity flow, aeromechanical simulations, and a centrifugal compressor flow simulation.

Lawrence, Charles↗

NASA NTRS2017

Application of Background Oriented Schlieren for Altitude Testing of Rocket Engines

A series of experiments was performed to determine the feasibility of using the Background Oriented Schlieren, BOS, flow visualization technique to image a simulated, small, rocket engine, plume under altitude test conditions. Testing was performed at the NASA Glenn Research Centers Altitude Combustion Stand, ACS, using nitrogen as the exhaust gas simulant. Due to limited optical access to the facility test capsule, all of the hardware required to conduct the BOS were located inside the vacuum chamber. During the test series 26 runs were performed using two different nozzle configurations with pressures in the test capsule around 0.3 psia. No problems were encountered during the test series resulting from the optical hardware being located in the test capsule and acceptable resolution images were captured. The test campaign demonstrated the ability of using the BOS technique for small, rocket engine, plume flow visualization during altitude testing.

Background Oriented Schlieren↗

NASA NTRS1996

Dynamic modelling and simulation study for the Galileo spacecraft pulsed-mode spinup/400 N main engine burn/spindown maneuvers

Two Galileo dynamic models were developed to simulate the spinup, the main engine burn and the spindown maneuvers for the critical events of the Jupiter orbit insertion and perijove raise maneuver. The dynamic interaction between the spin thruster pulsing frequency, the science magnetometer boom flexible modes and the propellant slosh modes were studied. The prediction of safe orbit insertion was validated in flight. For the perijove raise maneuver, the simulation results indicated that propellant unporting would occur if the original spin thruster duty cycle was not updated. Based on further simulation results, a new duty cycle was selected to prevent propellant unporting. Subsequent Galileo flight data indicated that the perijove raise maneuver was successfully executed.

Ih, Che-Hang Charles↗

NASA NTRS1978

Multivariable quadratic synthesis of an advanced turbofan engine controller

A digital controller for an advanced turbofan engine utilizing multivariate feedback is described. The theoretical background of locally linearized control synthesis is reviewed briefly. The application of linear quadratic regulator techniques to the practical control problem is presented. The design procedure has been applied to the F100 turbofan engine, and details of the structure of this system are explained. Selected results from simulations of the engine and controller are utilized to illustrate the operation of the system. It is shown that the general multivariable design procedure will produce practical and implementable controllers for modern, high-performance turbine engines.

Dehoff, R. L.↗

NASA NTRS2013

Software Tools to Support the Assessment of System Health

This presentation provides an overview of three software tools that were developed by the NASA Glenn Research Center to support the assessment of system health: the Propulsion Diagnostic Method Evaluation Strategy (ProDIMES), the Systematic Sensor Selection Strategy (S4), and the Extended Testability Analysis (ETA) tool. Originally developed to support specific NASA projects in aeronautics and space, these software tools are currently available to U.S. citizens through the NASA Glenn Software Catalog. The ProDiMES software tool was developed to support a uniform comparison of propulsion gas path diagnostic methods. Methods published in the open literature are typically applied to dissimilar platforms with different levels of complexity. They often address different diagnostic problems and use inconsistent metrics for evaluating performance. As a result, it is difficult to perform a one ]to ]one comparison of the various diagnostic methods. ProDIMES solves this problem by serving as a theme problem to aid in propulsion gas path diagnostic technology development and evaluation. The overall goal is to provide a tool that will serve as an industry standard, and will truly facilitate the development and evaluation of significant Engine Health Management (EHM) capabilities. ProDiMES has been developed under a collaborative project of The Technical Cooperation Program (TTCP) based on feedback provided by individuals within the aircraft engine health management community. The S4 software tool provides a framework that supports the optimal selection of sensors for health management assessments. S4 is structured to accommodate user ]defined applications, diagnostic systems, search techniques, and system requirements/constraints. One or more sensor suites that maximize this performance while meeting other user ]defined system requirements that are presumed to exist. S4 provides a systematic approach for evaluating combinations of sensors to determine the set or sets of sensors that optimally meet the performance goals and the constraints. It identifies optimal sensor suite solutions by utilizing a merit (i.e., cost) function with one of several available optimization approaches. As part of its analysis, S4 can expose fault conditions that are difficult to diagnose due to an incomplete diagnostic philosophy and/or a lack of sensors. S4 was originally developed and applied to liquid rocket engines. It was subsequently used to study the optimized selection of sensors for a simulation ]based aircraft engine diagnostic system. The ETA Tool is a software ]based analysis tool that augments the testability analysis and reporting capabilities of a commercial ]off ]the ]shelf (COTS) package. An initial diagnostic assessment is performed by the COTS software using a user ]developed, qualitative, directed ]graph model of the system being analyzed. The ETA Tool accesses system design information captured within the model and the associated testability analysis output to create a series of six reports for various system engineering needs. These reports are highlighted in the presentation. The ETA Tool was developed by NASA to support the verification of fault management requirements early in the Launch Vehicle process. Due to their early development during the design process, the TEAMS ]based diagnostic model and the ETA Tool were able to positively influence the system design by highlighting gaps in failure detection, fault isolation, and failure recovery.

Melcher, Kevin J.↗