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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 127 records · Page 7
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
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 NTRSDate not supplied

Advancements in Force and Angle Measurement by the NFMTC

The National Force Measurement Technology Capability (NFMTC) is a nationwide partnership established in 2008 and sponsored by NASA’s Aeronautics Evaluation and Test Capabilities (AETC) project to maintain and further develop force and angle measurement capabilities primarily for NASA’s ground test facilities. One of the NFMTC’s primary objectives is to develop new force and angle measurement capabilities to meet the needs of researchers testing in NASA’s ground test facilities. This work will highlight several new capabilities that are either at or near operational readiness. A new six-component flow-through balance was designed and fabricated to support an upcoming retropropulsion test campaign at the NASA Langley Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel. The balance employs membranes in place of bellows, which have historically been used, and passes the flow through load bearing parts of the balance. Flow through the balance is optimized via the addition of flow guides, which are manufactured as separate parts, and attached to the balance. Calibration of this new flow-through balance demonstrates that it can suitably characterize the load and pressure ranges it was designed for, which provides aero researchers a new tool to directly measure retropropulsion performance of powered descent vehicles. Balances used in NASA’s ground test facilities are typically either single-piece balances or floating-frame balances. Historically, these two types of balances have generally used different front-end (model) attachments. Single-piece balances generally have a cylindrical front end that is forward of any measuring sections and at a reduced diameter relative to the balance outer diameter. Floating-frame balances generally have front end fits that extend over one or more measuring sections and that engage at the balance outer diameter. Recently, the NFMTC fabricated a single-piece balance with a front end fit that is compatible with the hardware used to calibrate floating-frame balances. Calibration results evaluating this front end fit will be presented. From a recent survey of angle measurement needs, the development of smaller angle measurement packages was identified as one area of improvement. Micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) are continually being refined to provide high performance accelerometers that are a fraction of the volume of the quartz flexure based accelerometers that are standard in wind tunnels. A survey of commercial off-the-shelf MEMS accelerometers was conducted, and it identified the Safran Colibrys MS lines to be of adequate performance. Single-axis test boards and tri-axis rigid-flex production boards were designed and fabricated with a volume of approximately .18 cubic inches. The boards were designed to provide all the necessary conditioning for the MEMS accelerometers at levels to meet or exceed all requirements for the MS line sensors. Preliminary testing of these assembled sensor packages has demonstrated acceptable performance for wind-tunnel angle measurement. Several new rotating balances are at various stages of completion for NASA Glenn Research Center’s fan drive rigs. These balances provide direct measurement of thrust and torque of a driven fan or fan section to provide an estimate of fan efficiency and net thrust. Three two-component balances have been recently completed, and one six-component balance is in active development. A custom rotating telemetry system has been developed to support testing with these balances, and the telemetry system is integrated into the forward end of each one. The telemetry system is designed to remove mechanical sliprings by using an optical ethernet-based slipring for data transmission.

Force measurement↗
NASA NTRS2004

Measurement of Force Balance Repeatability and Reproducibility in the NTF

A recently published statistical approach for measuring and evaluating wind tunnel force balance repeatability and reproducibility is applied to three check standard tests in the National Transonic Facility at NASA Langley Research Center. Two different airframe models and force balances were used. The short-term repeatability and within-test reproducibility are separately estimated and correlations with tunnel parameters are carried out. Conjectures are presented for the development of scaling laws for predicting the repeatability and reproducibility of other force balance tests in the tunnel.

Hemsch, M. J.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Acoustic radiation force on a rigid sphere in a resonance chamber

The acoustic radiation force on a rigid sphere has been measured in a resonance chamber for a range of pressures, positions, sizes, and for various gases. In the low to medium intensity region of less than 150 dB, the measured force is consistent with King's theory (1934) when analyzed in terms of the fundamental pressure. However, in the high intensity region of greater than 150 dB, the measured force starts to deviate systematically from King's calculations.

Leung, E.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Development of a dual strain gage balance system for measuring light loads

A strain-gage-balance (SGB) force-measurement system is described which was designed to meet light-load requirements for an airfoil model tested in the NASA Langley low-turbulence pressure tunnel (LTPT). This system was developed to obtain direct force data needed to verify calculated pressure/force correlations used in previous aerodynamic tests. The three-component force-measurement system was designed so that the SGBs would simultaneously support and measure the following loads: weight of the airfoil (approximately 3.0 lbf); 8.0 lbf of lift; 0.5 lbf of drag; and 16.0 in. lbf of pitching moment. In addition to these design loads, the system was required to withstand 100-percent overload on all three components. The system comprises an airfoil, two SGBs, a thermal flexure, and a mounting plate. The installation of the system in the LTPT is also discussed.

Roberts, Paul W.↗
NASA NTRS2000

A Factorial Data Rate and Dwell Time Experiment in the National Transonic Facility

This report is an introductory tutorial on the application of formal experiment design methods to wind tunnel testing, for the benefit of aeronautical engineers with little formal experiment design training. It also describes the results of a Study to determine whether increases in the sample rate and dwell time of the National Transonic Facility data system Would result in significant changes in force and moment data. Increases in sample rate from 10 samples per second to 50 samples per second were examined, as were changes in dwell time from one second per data point to two seconds. These changes were examined for a representative aircraft model in a range of tunnel operating conditions defined by angles of attack from 0 deg to 3.8 degrees, total pressure from 15.0 psi to 24.1 psi, and Mach numbers from 0.52 to 0.82. No statistically significant effect was associated with the change in sample rate. The change in dwell time from one second to two seconds affected axial force measurements, and to a lesser degree normal force measurements. This dwell effect comprises a "rectification error" caused by incomplete cancellation of the positive and negative elements of certain low frequency dynamic components that are not rejected by the one-Hz low-pass filters of the data system. These low frequency effects may be due to tunnel circuit phenomena and other sources. The magnitude of the dwell effect depends on dynamic pressure, with angle of attack and Mach number influencing the strength of this dependence. An analysis is presented which suggests that the magnitude of the rectification error depends on the ratio of measurement dwell time to the period of the low-frequency dynamics, as well as the amplitude of the dynamics The essential conclusion of this analysis is that extending the dwell time (or, equivalently, replicating short-dwell data points) reduces the rectification error.

DeLoach, R.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Improved Force-And-Torque Sensor Assembly

Improved sensor assembly measures forces and torques of interaction between supporting and supported object. Measures all three components of force and all three components of torque. Force measurements uncoupled from torque measurements. Price for improved measurement capability, complexity and flexibility, excessive in some applications.

Bamford, Robert M.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Sensitivity of Force Specifications to the Errors in Measuring the Interface Force

Force-Limited Random Vibration Testing has been applied in the last several years at NASA/GSFC for various programs at the instrument and system level. Different techniques have been developed over the last few decades to estimate the dynamic forces that the test article under consideration will encounter in the operational environment. Some of these techniques are described in the handbook, NASA-HDBK-7004, and the monograph, NASA-RP-1403. A key element in the ability to perform force-limited testing is multi-component force gauges. This paper will show how some measurement and calibration errors in force gauges are compensated for w en tie force specification is calculated. The resulting notches in the acceleration spectrum, when a random vibration test is performed, are the same as the notches produced during an uncompensated test that has no measurement errors. The paper will also present the results of tests that were used to validate this compensation. Knowing that the force specification can compensate for some measurement errors allows tests to continue after force gauge failures or allows dummy gauges to be used in places that are inaccessible.

Worth, Daniel↗
NASA NTRS2002

Room Temperature Characterization of a Magnetic Bearing for Turbomachinery

Open loop, experimental force and power measurements of a three-axis, radial, heteropolar magnetic bearing at room temperature for rotor speeds up to 20,000 RPM are presented in this paper. The bearing, NASA Glenn Research Center's and Texas A&M's third generation high temperature magnetic bearing, was designed to operate in a 1000 F (540 C) environment and was primarily optimized for maximum load capacity. The experimentally measured force produced by one C-core of this bearing was 630 lb. (2.8 kN) at 16 A, while a load of 650 lbs (2.89 kN) was predicted at 16 A using 1D circuit analysis. The maximum predicted radial load for one of the three axes is 1,440 lbs (6.41 kN) at room temperature. The maximum measured load of an axis was 1050 lbs. (4.73 kN). Results of test under rotating conditions showed that rotor speed has a negligible effect on the bearing's load capacity. A single C-core required approximately 70 W of power to generate 300 lb (1.34 kN) of magnetic force. The room temperature data presented was measured after three thermal cycles up to 1000 F (540 C), totaling six hours at elevated temperatures.

Montague, Gerald↗
NASA NTRS2008

Model Attitude and Deformation Measurements at the NASA Glenn Research Center

The NASA Glenn Research Center is currently participating in an American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) sponsored Model Attitude and Deformation Working Group. This working group is chartered to develop a best practices document dealing with the measurement of two primary areas of wind tunnel measurements, 1) model attitude including alpha, beta and roll angle, and 2) model deformation. Model attitude is a principle variable in making aerodynamic and force measurements in a wind tunnel. Model deformation affects measured forces, moments and other measured aerodynamic parameters. The working group comprises of membership from industry, academia, and the Department of Defense (DoD). Each member of the working group gave a presentation on the methods and techniques that they are using to make model attitude and deformation measurements. This presentation covers the NASA Glenn Research Center s approach in making model attitude and deformation measurements.

Woike, Mark R.↗
NASA NTRS2018

Using Pressure Sensitive Paint to Measure Aerodynamic Forces on a Rotor Blade in Hover

This report will present details of a Pressure Sensitive Paint (PSP) system for measuring global surface pressures on rotorcraft blades in hover at the Rotor Test Cell located in the 14- by 22-Foot Subsonic Tunnel complex at the NASA Langley Research Center. This work builds upon previous entries and focused on collecting measurements from the upper and lower surface simultaneously. From these results, normal force (F (sub z)) values can be obtained. To date, this is the first time that the Pressure Sensitive Paint technique has been used for these types of measurements on rotor blades. In addition, several areas of improvement have been identified and are currently being developed for future testing.

Watkins, Anthony Neal↗
NASA NTRS1972

Adhesion of metals to a clean iron surface studied with LEED and Auger emission spectroscopy.

Discussion of the results of adhesion experiments conducted with various metals contacting a clean iron surface. The metals included gold, silver, nickel, platinum, lead, tantalum, aluminum, and cobalt. Some of the metals were examined with oxygen present on their surface as well as in the clean state. The results indicate that, with the various metals contacting iron, the cohesively weaker will adhere and transfer to the cohesively stronger. The chemical activity of the metal also influenced the adhesive forces measured. With oxygen present on the metal surface, the adhesive forces measured could be correlated with the binding energy of the metal to oxygen.

Buckley, D. H.↗
NASA NTRS1972

Measurement Technology

New and improved materials, equipment, and techniques in measurement technology, developed by the aerospace industry, are presented for economic development in other industries. The developments are grouped as follows: (1) surface measurement, (2) alignment and orientation of bodies, (3) fluid measurement, (4) linear and angular measurements, and (5) force measurements.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1985

ICIASF '85 - International Congress on Instrumentation in Aerospace Simulation Facilities, 11th, Stanford University, CA, August 26-28, 1985, Record

Developments related to laser Doppler velocimetry are discussed, taking into account a three-component dual beam laser-Doppler-anemometer to be operated in large wind tunnels, a new optical system for three-dimensional laser-Doppler-anemometry using an argon-ion and a dye laser, and a two-component laser Doppler velocimeter by switching fringe orientation. Other topics studied are concerned with facilities, instrumentation, control, hot wire/thin film measurements, optical diagnostic techniques, signal and data processing, facilities and adaptive wall test sections, data acquisition and processing, ballistic instrument systems, dynamic testing and material deformation measurements, optical flow measurements, test techniques, force measurement systems, and holography. Attention is given to nonlinear calibration of integral wind tunnel balances, a microcomputer system for real time digitized image compression, and two phase flow diagnostics in propulsion systems.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1933

Measurement of the Differential and Total Thrust and Torque of Six Full-Scale Adjustable-Pitch Propellers

Force measurements giving total thrust and torque, and propeller slip stream surveys giving differential thrust and torque were simultaneously made on each of six full-scale propellers in the 20-foot propeller-research tunnel of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics. They were adjustable-pitch metal propellers 9.5 feet in diameter; three had modified Clark Y blade sections and three had modified RAF-6 blade sections. This report gives the differential thrust and torque and the variation caused by changing the propeller tip speed and the pitch setting. The total thrust and torque obtained from integration of the thrust and torque distribution curves are compared with those obtained by direct force measurements.

Stickle, George W↗
NASA NTRS1989

Drag measurements on a laminar-flow body of revolution in the 13-inch magnetic suspension and balance system

Low speed wind tunnel drag force measurements were taken on a laminar flow body of revolution free of support interference. This body was tested at zero incidence in the NASA Langley 13 in. Magnetic Suspension and Balance System (MSBS). The primary objective of these tests was to substantiate the drag force measuring capabilities of the 13 in. MSBS. The drag force calibrations and wind-on repeatability data provide a means of assessing these capabilities. Additional investigations include: (1) the effects of fixing transition; (2) the effects of fins installed in the tail; and (3) surface flow visualization using both liquid crystals and oil flow. Also two simple drag prediction codes were used to assess their usefulness in estimating overall body drag.

Dress, David A.↗
NASA NTRS2000

Sensitivity of Force Specifications to the Errors in Measuring the Interface Force

Force-Limited Random Vibration Testing has been applied in the last several years at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) and other NASA centers for various programs at the instrument and spacecraft level. Different techniques have been developed over the last few decades to estimate the dynamic forces that the test article under consideration will encounter in the flight environment. Some of these techniques are described in the handbook, NASA-HDBK-7004, and the monograph, NASA-RP-1403. This paper will show the effects of some measurement and calibration errors in force gauges. In some cases, the notches in the acceleration spectrum when a random vibration test is performed with measurement errors are the same as the notches produced during a test that has no measurement errors. The paper will also present the results Of tests that were used to validate this effect. Knowing the effect of measurement errors can allow tests to continue after force gauge failures or allow dummy gauges to be used in places that are inaccessible to a force gage.

Worth, Daniel↗