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Reference-Free, Projection Background-Oriented Schlieren

A projection background-oriented schlieren (P-BOS) system is developed and demonstrated. Instead of a background that has a speckle pattern printed, painted, or otherwise deposited onto its surface, and can thus not be altered, the pattern here is projected onto the background. This allows for changes to the speckle pattern without replacement of the background material, which can be time-consuming and expensive. Reference images are acquired simultaneously with flow images. A pre-test transformation between the reference and flow images allows for on-the-fly changes to the speckle pattern during a test without requiring a stoppage of the flow, allowing for optimization of the BOS signal. Using a programmable LCD screen as the speckled optic allows for remote control of the speckle pattern. Because the background is not speckled, the system can be easily transformed to acquired shadowgraph images by removing the speckled optic and closing the aperture of the light source, which is useful for achieving measurements with higher spatial resolution. The system can be nearly as compact as a conventional BOS system, and can be assembled with polarized optics to reduce or eliminate window reflections and glare, making this system particularly well-suited for wind tunnel testing.

Joshua M Weisberger↗

Atmospheric Pressure Method and Apparatus for Removal of Organic Matter with Atomic and Ionic Oxygen

A gas stream containing ionic and atomic oxygen in inert gas is used to remove organic matter from a substrate. The gas stream is formed by flowing a mixture of gaseous oxygen in an inert gas such as helium at atmospheric pressure past a high voltage, current limited, direct current arc which contacts the gas mixture and forms the ionic and atomic oxygen. The arc is curved at the cathode end and the ionic oxygen formed by the arc nearer to the anode end of the arc is accelerated in a direction towards the cathode by virtue of its charge. The relatively high mass to charge ratio of the ionic oxygen enables at least some of it to escape the arc before contacting the cathode and it is directed onto the substrate. This is useful for cleaning delicate substrates such as fine and historically important paintings and delicate equipment and the like.

Banks, Bruce A.↗

Atmospheric Pressure Method and Apparatus for Removal of Organic Matter with Atomic and Ionic Oxygen

A gas stream containing ionic and atomic oxygen in inert gas is used to remove organic matter from a substrate. The gas stream is formed by flowing a mixture of gaseous oxygen in an inert gas such as helium at atmospheric pressure past a high voltage, current limited, direct current arc which contacts the gas mixture and forms the ionic and atomic oxygen. The arc is curved at the cathode end and the ionic oxygen formed by the arc nearer to the anode end of the arc is accelerated in a direction towards the cathode by virtue of its charge. The relatively high mass to charge ratio of the ionic oxygen enables at least some of it to escape the arc before contacting the cathode and it is directed onto the substrate. This is useful for cleaning delicate substrates such as fine and historically important paintings and delicate equipment and the like.

Banks, Bruce A.↗

Dynamic Mode Decomposition of Unsteady Pressure-Sensitive Paint Measurements for the NASA Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel Tests

This paper describes the Dynamic Mode Decomposition (DMD) of the pressures on the scale model of the Space Launch System (SLS) Block 1 cargo vehicle with the Unsteady Pressure-Sensitive Paint (uPSP) measurements, which were collected in the Ascent Transient Aerodynamics Tests with the Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel 11-by-11-foot Transonic Wind Tunnel in September 2019 at NASA Ames Research Center. The work described in this paper is a part of NASA’s development of a new state-of-the-art uPSP capability in production wind tunnels. The conventional DMD algorithm is based on the Singular Value Decomposition (SVD) of the data matrix. For the matrix of the uPSP measurements of the SLS ATAT, the number of rows is equal to the number of nodes in the grid of the scale model, and the number of columns is equal to the number of frames in the videos taken with 4 Phantom high-speed cameras. In this paper, it is verified that, for the time series with zero mean value, the DMD is equivalent to the decomposition with the Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT). Considering the uPSP is mainly used in the assessment of the unsteady, aerodynamic phenomena, the DMD of the uPSP measurements can be implemented in two steps: (1) subtract the mean value from the uPSP measurement on each of the grid nodes; (2) apply the Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) on the resulting zero-mean time series. The DMD of the uPSP measurements with FFT has two advantages: (1) the computational complexity of FFT is O(N*logN), where N is the length of the time series; (2) compared to the SVD-based DMD algorithm, the DMD with FFT can be easily implemented in parallel processing. A sample matrix of uPSP measurements, at the size of 341 grid nodes and 128 frames, is generated. Figures 1 and 2 show the eigenvalues and the ratios of the eigenvectors, respectively, of the sample matrix, without and with the mean value removed on each of the grid nodes, computed with the SVD-based DMD and the FFT. The figures demonstrate the equivalence of the SVD-based DMD and the decomposition with DFT/FFT for the time series with zero mean value. The results of DMD of the uPSP measurements of the SLS ATAT in September 2019 are presented in the paper. The DMD modes at different frequencies are shown, the aerodynamic phenomena (e.g. shockwave and vortex shedding) are demonstrated and the correlation of the DMD modes with the test configuration parameter (e.g., the Mach Number) is discussed. Figure 3 shows a software tool to visualize the DMD modes. The code to implement the algorithm described in this paper was written in C, with libraries of FFTW for FFT and MPI/OpenMP for parallel processing, and executed on the NASA Pleiades supercomputer. Funding for this research was provided by the NASA Aerosciences Evaluation and Test Capabilities Project.

Pressure-Sensitive Paint↗

Optical Signature Analysis of Tumbling Rocket Bodies via Laboratory Measurements

The NASA Orbital Debris Program Office has acquired telescopic lightcurve data on massive intact objects, specifically spent rocket bodies, in order to ascertain tumble rates in support of the Active Debris Removal (ADR) task to help remediate the LEO environment. Rotation rates are needed to plan and develop proximity operations for potential future ADR operations. To better characterize and model optical data acquired from ground-based telescopes, the Optical Measurements Center (OMC) at NASA/JSC emulates illumination conditions in space using equipment and techniques that parallel telescopic observations and source-target-sensor orientations. The OMC employs a 75-watt Xenon arc lamp as a solar simulator, an SBIG CCD camera with standard Johnson/Bessel filters, and a robotic arm to simulate an object's position and rotation. The light source is mounted on a rotary arm, allowing access any phase angle between 0 -- 360 degrees. The OMC does not attempt to replicate the rotation rates, but focuses on how an object is rotating as seen from multiple phase angles. The two targets studied are scaled (1:48), SL-8 Cosmos 3M second stages. The first target is painted in the standard government "gray" scheme and the second target is primary white, as used for commercial missions. This paper summarizes results of the two scaled rocket bodies, each rotated about two primary axes: (a) a spin-stabilized rotation and (b) an end-over-end rotation. The two rotation states are being investigated as a basis for possible spin states of rocket bodies, beginning with simple spin states about the two primary axes. The data will be used to create a database of potential spin states for future works to convolve with more complex spin states. The optical signatures will be presented for specific phase angles for each rocket body and shown in conjunction with acquired optical data from multiple telescope sources.

Cowardin, H.↗

A Summary of Results from Two Full-Scale Fokker F28 Fuselage Section Drop Tests

During 2017, two vertical drop tests were conducted on two partial sections removed from a Fokker F28 MK4000 aircraft as a part of a joint NASA / Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) effort to investigate the crashworthiness characteristics of Transport Category Aircraft, as defined by 14 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 25. The first test was a pure vertical drop test of a relatively uniform forward section, which included an underfloor area for luggage. The second test was a canted drop test onto a sloped surface of a portion of the fuselage representing the wingbox stiffened structure. In both tests, accelerometers were installed on the floor, seat track, luggage, and overhead bin to measure responses in the two airframe sections. In addition, ten Anthropomorphic Test Devices (ATDs, a.k.a. crash test dummies) were included in each test to measure the potential of onboard occupant injury. Self-contained data recorders, logging accelerations and rotational rates, were also used on the seat tracks and lower structure for evaluation as potential crash recording devices in future tests. Finally, the starboard side of each section was painted with a stochastic black and white speckle pattern for use in full field photogrammetric imaging techniques. The results collected show notable differences in the Forward and Wingbox Section responses. The Forward Section floor accelerations showed a relatively uniform response of approximately 7 g throughout the impact event. This section exhibited large amounts of subfloor crushing, floor stiffener failures and seat deformation upon impact. These results are contrasted by the Wingbox Section accelerations, which showed large differences when comparing accelerations recorded from either the rear or the front portion of the section reaching peaks of 39 g in some locations. Additionally, the Wingbox Section test induced a forward motion caused from the rotation at impact. With the exception of the lower cavity, there was minimal deformation in the Wingbox Section, and ATD responses were consistently higher than those for the Forward Section. A complete set of results are presented for the airframe, seat, ATD, overhead bin, and subfloor regions for each section. The ATD results are compared to current injury criteria, and determinations will be made on the likelihood of injury. Additional results for cargo-hold stored luggage are presented in an attempt to provide a component-level characterization for better understanding of under-floor loading. Finally, a discussion of the relevance of the results for a proposed airframe level crashworthiness guideline are presented.

Littell, Justin D.↗

Making Macroscopic Assemblies of Aligned Carbon Nanotubes

A method of aligning and assembling single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) to fabricate macroscopic structures has been invented. The method entails suspending SWNTs in a fluid, orienting the SWNTs by use of a magnetic and/or electric field, and then removing the aligned SWNTs from suspension in such a way as to assemble them while maintaining the alignment. SWNTs are essentially tubular extensions of fullerene molecules. It is desirable to assemble aligned SWNTs into macroscopic structures because the common alignment of the SWNTs in such a structure makes it possible to exploit, on a macroscopic scale, the unique mechanical, chemical, and electrical properties that individual oriented SWNTs exhibit at the molecular level. Because of their small size and high electrical conductivity, carbon nanotubes, and especially SWNTs, are useful for making electrical connectors in integrated circuits. Carbon nanotubes can be used as antennas at optical frequencies, and as probes in scanning tunneling microscopes, atomic-force microscopes, and the like. Carbon nanotubes can be used with or instead of carbon black in tires. Carbon nanotubes are useful as supports for catalysts. Ropes of SWNTs are metallic and, as such, are potentially useful in some applications in which electrical conductors are needed - for example, they could be used as additives in formulating electrically conductive paints. Finally, macroscopic assemblies of aligned SWNTs can serve as templates for the growth of more and larger structures of the same type. The great variety of tubular fullerene molecules and of the structures that could be formed by assembling them in various ways precludes a complete description of the present method within the limits of this article. It must suffice to present a typical example of the use of one of many possible variants of the method to form a membrane comprising SWNTs aligned substantially parallel to each other in the membrane plane. The apparatus used in this variant of the method (see figure) includes a reservoir containing SWNTs dispersed in a suspending agent (for example, dimethylformamide) and a reservoir containing a suitable solvent (for example, water mixed with a surfactant). By use of either pressurized gas supplied from upstream or suction from downstream, the suspension of SWNTs and the solvent are forced to mix and flow into a tank. A filter inside the tank contains pores small enough to prevent the passage of most SWNTs, but large enough to allow the passage of molecules of the solvent and suspending agent. The filter is oriented perpendicular to the flow path. A magnetic field parallel to the plane of the filter is applied. The success of the method is based on the tendency of SWNTs to become aligned with their longitudinal axes parallel to an applied magnetic field. The alignment energy of an SWNT increases with the length of the SWNT and the magnetic-field strength. In order to obtain an acceptably small degree of statistical deviation of SWNTs of a given length from alignment with a magnetic field, one must make the field strong enough so that the thermal energy associated with rotation of an SWNT away from alignment is less than the alignment energy.

Smalley, Richard E.↗

Moisture interaction and stability of ZOT (Zinc Orthotitanate) thermal control spacecraft coating

Two of the many performance requirements of the zinc orthotitanate (ZOT) ceramic thermal control paint covering parts of the Jupiter-bound Galileo spacecraft are that it be sufficiently electrically conductive so as to prevent electrostatic discharge (ESD) damage to onboard electronics and that it adhere to and protect the substrate from corrosion in terrestrial environments. The bulk electrical resistivity of ZOT on an aluminum substrate was measured over the ranges 22 C to 90 C and 0 percent RH to 100 percent RH, and also in soft (10 (minus 2) Torr) and hard (10 (minus 7) Torr) vacuums. No significant temperature dependence was evident, but measured resistivity values ranged over 9 orders of magnitude: 10 to the 5th power ohm-cm at 100 percent RH greater than 10 to the 12th power ohm-cm in a hard vacuum. The latter value violates the ESD criterion for a typical 0.019 cm thick coating. The corrosion study involved exposing typical ZOT substrate combinations to two moisture environments - 30 C/85 percent RH and 85 C/85 percent RH - for 2000 hours, during which time the samples were periodically removed for front-to-back electrical resistance and scratch/peel test measurements. It was determined that the ZOT/Al and ZOT/Mg systems are stable (no ZOT delamination), although some corrosion (oxide formation) and resistivity increases observed among the ZOT/Mg samples warrant that exposure of some parts to humid environments be minimized.

Mon, Gordon R.↗

Making a Metal-Lined Composite-Overwrapped Pressure Vessel

process has been devised for the fabrication of a pressure vessel that comprises a composite-material (matrix/fiber) shell with a metal liner on its inner surface. The use of the composite material makes it possible for the tank to be strong enough to withstand the anticipated operating pressure and yet weigh less than does an equivalent all-metal tank. The metal liner is used as a barrier against permeation: In the absence of such a barrier, the pressurized gas in the tank could leak by diffusing through the composite-material shell. The figure depicts workpieces at four key stages in the process, which consists of the following steps: 1. A mandrel that defines the size and shape of the pressure vessel is made by either molding or machining a piece of tooling wax. 2. Silver paint is applied to the surface of the mandrel to make it electrically conductive. 3. The ends of the mandrel are fitted with metal bosses. 4. The mandrel is put into a plating bath, wherein the metal liner is electrodeposited. Depending on the applications, the liner metal could be copper, nickel, gold, or an alloy. Typical liner thicknesses range from 1 to 10 mils (0.025 to 0.25 mm). 5. The wax is melted from within, leaving the thin metal liner. 6. A hollow shaft that includes holes and fittings through which the liner can be pressurized is sealed to both ends of the liner. The liner is pressurized to stiffen (and hence stabilize) it for the next step. 7. The pressurized liner is placed in a filament-winding machine, which is then operated to cover the liner with multiple layers of an uncured graphite-fiber/epoxy-matrix or other suitable composite material. 8. The composite-overwrapped liner is cured in an oven. 9. The pressure is relieved and the shaft is removed. The tank is then ready for use. The process as described above accommodates variations: a) The mandrel could be made of a wax that melts at a higher temperature and not removed until the tank is cured in the oven. b) The tank need not be cylindrical or axisymmetric, as long as the filament-winding machine can accommodate the chosen shape. c) Shallow grooves could be formed on the surface of the mandrel to give the liner a bellows-like character for reinforcement and/or to accommodate expansion and contraction.

DeLay, Tom↗

Pressure-Sensitive Paint Investigation of Double-Delta Wing Vortex Flow Manipulation

A pressure-sensitive paint (PSP) technique was applied in a wind tunnel experiment in the NASA Langley Research Center 8-Foot Transonic Pressure Tunnel to quantify the effect of wing fillets on the global vortex-induced surface static pressure field about a sharp leading-edge 76o/40o double delta wing, or strake-wing, model at subsonic and transonic speeds. Global calibrations of the PSP were obtained at M = 0.50, 0.70, 0.85, 0.95, and 1.20, a Reynolds number per unit length of 2.0 million, and angles of attack from 10 degrees to 20 degrees using an in-situ method featuring the simultaneous acquisition of electronically-scanned pressures (ESP) at discrete locations on the model. The mean error in the PSP measurements relative to the ESP data was approximately 2 percent or less at M = 0.50 to 0.85 but increased to several percent at M =0.95 and 1.20. The PSP pressure distributions and pseudo-colored planform view pressure maps clearly revealed the vortex-induced pressure signatures at all Mach numbers and angles of attack. Small fillets having a parabolic or diamond planform situated at the strake-wing intersection were designed to manipulate the vortical flows by, respectively, removing the leading-edge discontinuity or introducing additional discontinuities. The fillets caused global changes in the vortex-dominated surface pressure field that were effectively captured in the PSP measurements. The vortex surface pressure signatures were compared to available off-surface vortex cross-flow structures obtained using a laser vapor screen (LVS) flow visualization technique. The fillet effects on the PSP pressure distributions and the observed leading-edge vortex flow characteristics were consistent with the trends in the measured lift, drag, and pitching moment coefficients.

Erickson, Gary E.↗

Pressure-Sensitive Paint Investigation of Double-Delta Wing Vortex Flow Manipulation

A pressure-sensitive paint (PSP) technique was applied in a wind tunnel experiment in the NASA Langley Research Center 8-Foot Transonic Pressure Tunnel to quantify the effect of wing fillets on the global vortex-induced surface static pressure field about a sharp leading-edge 76 deg/40 deg double delta wing, or strake-wing, model at subsonic and transonic speeds. Global calibrations of the PSP were obtained at M = 0.50, 0.70, 0.85, 0.95, and 1.20, a Reynolds number per unit length of 2.0 million, and angles of attack from 10 degrees to 30 degrees using an in-situ method featuring the simultaneous acquisition of electronically-scanned pressures (ESP) at discrete locations on the model. The mean error in the PSP measurements relative to the ESP data was approximately 2 percent or less at M = 0.50 to 0.85 but increased to several percent at M = 0.95 and 1.20. The PSP pressure distributions and pseudo-colored planform view pressure maps clearly revealed the vortex-induced pressure signatures at all Mach numbers and angles of attack. Small fillets having a parabolic or diamond planform situated at the strake-wing intersection were designed to manipulate the vortical flows by, respectively, removing the leading-edge discontinuity or introducing additional discontinuities. The fillets caused global changes in the vortex-dominated surface pressure field that were effectively captured in the PSP measurements. The vortex surface pressure signatures were compared to available off-surface vortex cross-flow structures obtained using a laser vapor screen (LVS) flow visualization technique. The fillet effects on the PSP pressure distributions and the observed leading-edge vortex flow characteristics were consistent with the trends in the measured lift, drag, and pitching moment coefficients.

Erickson, Gary E.↗

Sample Curation in Support of the OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample Return Mission

The OSIRIS-REx asteroid sample return mission launched to asteroid Bennu Sept. 8, 2016. The spacecraft will arrive at Bennu in late 2019, orbit and map the asteroid, and perform a touch and go (TAG) sampling maneuver in July 2020. After sample is stowed and confirmed the spacecraft will return to Earth, and the sample return capsule (SRC) will land in Utah in September 2023. Samples will be recovered from Utah [2] and then transported and stored in a new sample cleanroom at NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston [3]. The materials curated for the mission are described here. a) Materials Archive and Witness Plate Collection: The SRC and TAGSAM were built between March 2014 and Summer of 2015, and instruments (OTES,OVIRS, OLA, OCAMS, REXIS) were integrated from Summer 2015 until May 2016. A total of 395 items were received for the materials archive at NASA-JSC, with archiving finishing ~30 days after launch (with the final archived items being related to launch operations)[4]. The materials fall into several general categories including metals (stainless steel, aluminum, titanium alloys, brass and BeCu alloy), epoxies, paints, polymers, lubricants, non-volatile-residue samples (NVR), sapphire, and various miscellaneous materials. All through the ATLO process (from March 2015 until late August 2016) contamination knowledge witness plates (Si wafer and Al foil) were deployed in the various cleanrooms in Denver and KSC to provide an additional record of particle counts and volatiles that is archived for current and future scientific studies. These plates were deployed in roughly monthly increments with each unit containing 4 Si wafers and 4 Al foils. We archived 128 individual witness plates (64 Si wafers and 64 Al foils); one of each witness plate (Si and Al) was analyzed immediately by the science team after archiving, while the remaining 3 of each are archived indefinitely. Information about each material archived is stored in an extensive database at NASA-JSC, and key summary information for each will be presented in an online catalog. b) Bulk Asteroid sample: The Touch and Go Sampling Mechanism (TAGSAM) head will contain up to 1.5 kg of asteroid material. Upon return to Earth, the TAGSAM head with the sample canister will be subjected to a nitrogen purge and then opened in a nitrogen cabinet in Houston. Once the TAGSAM head is removed from the canister, it will be dis-assembled slowly and carefully under nitrogen until the sample can be removed for processing in a dedicated nitrogen glovebox. Bennu surface samples are expected to be sub-cm sized, based on thermal infrared and radar polarization ratio measurements [1]. The upper limit on material collected by the TAGSAM head is ~2 cm. Therefore, we will be prepared to handle, subdivide, and characterize materials of a wide grain size (from ~10 m to 2 cm), and for both organic (UV fluorescence) and inorganic (SEM, FTIR, optical) properties. Representative portions of the bulk sample will be prepared for JAXA (0.5 %; see also [5]) and Canadian Space Agency (4%), with the remaining divided between the science team (<25%) and archived for future studies (NASA) (>75%). c) Contact Pad samples: The base of the TAGSAM head contains 24 contact pads that are designed to trap the upper surface layer of material and thus offer an opportunity to study asteroid samples that have resided at the very top surface of the regolith. Asteroid material is trapped on the pads in spring steel Velcro hooks, and material will have to be removed from these pads by curation specialists in the lab. d) Hardware: Some canister and SRC hardware items will contain information that will be important to understanding the collected samples, including the canister gas filter, temperature strips, flight witness plates, and the TAGSAM and canister parts that might have adhering dust grains. Some challenges remaining for both bulk sample and contact pad samples include: i) working with intermediate size range (200 to 500 micron) samples - a size range NASA has not previously worked in such detail; ii) techniques for removal of contact pad material from the spring steel hooks, iii) static electrical effects of dust sized particles during sample handling and curation is likely to be significant, and iv) the TAGSAM head and associated canister hardware will undoubtedly be coated with fine adhering dust grains from Bennu. In the case of collection of a large bulk sample mass, the adhering dust grains may be of lower priority. If a small sample mass is returned, the adhering dust may attain a higher priority, so recovery of adhering dust grains is an additional challenge to consider. In the year leading up to sample return we plan a variety of sample handling rehearsals that will enables the curation team to be prepared for many new aspects posed by this sample suite.

Righter, Kevin↗

Wind Tunnel Application of a Pressure-Sensitive Paint Technique to a Double Delta Wing Model at Subsonic and Transonic Speeds

A pressure-sensitive paint (PSP) technique was applied in a wind tunnel experiment in the NASA Langley Research Center 8-Foot Transonic Pressure Tunnel to study the effect of wing fillets on the global vortex induced surface static pressure field about a sharp leading-edge 76 deg./40 deg. double delta wing, or strake-wing, model at subsonic and transonic speeds. Global calibrations of the PSP were obtained at M(sub infinity) = 0.50, 0.70, 0.85, 0.95, and 1.20, a Reynolds number per unit length of 2.0 million, and angles of attack from 10 degrees to 20 degrees using an insitu method featuring the simultaneous acquisition of electronically scanned pressures (ESP) at discrete locations on the model. The mean error in the PSP measurements relative to the ESP data was approximately 2 percent or less at M(sub infinity) = 0.50 to 0.85 but increased to several percent at M(sub infinity) =0.95 and 1.20. The PSP pressure distributions and pseudo-colored, planform-view pressure maps clearly revealed the vortex-induced pressure signatures at all Mach numbers and angles of attack. Small fillets having parabolic or diamond planforms situated at the strake-wing intersection were respectively designed to manipulate the vortical flows by removing the leading-edge discontinuity or introducing additional discontinuities. The fillets caused global changes in the vortex-dominated surface pressure field that were effectively captured in the PSP measurements. The vortex surface pressure signatures were compared to available off-surface vortex cross-flow structures obtained using a laser vapor screen (LVS) flow visualization technique. The fillet effects on the PSP pressure distributions and the observed leading-edge vortex flow characteristics were consistent with the trends in the measured lift, drag, and pitching moment coefficients.

Erickson, Gary E.↗