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Planetary radiation and albedo effects on thermal balance of spacecraft orbiting Mars and Venus
Engine pressure spiking restart preignition products, determining hydrazine nitrate and dinitrate presence by spectrum analysis
Management simulation techniques offer training in management problems. Exercise was developed to provide experience in research and development project decision making from management rather than technological perspective. Program and documentation have been revised innumerable times in past. Described report is revised version as it exists to date.
A method of estimating the undistorted stall line for an axial-flow compressor by using the digital computer is presented. The method involves linearization of nonlinear dynamic equations about an operating point on a speed line, and then application of the first method of Lyapunov to determine the stability of the nonlinear system from the stability of the linear system. The method is applied to a simulation of the J85 compressor, which utilizes stage stacking and lumped volume techniques for the interstage regions to simulate steady-state and dynamic compressor performance. The stability boundary predicted by the digital simulation compares quite well with the stall line predicted by a dynamic simulation of the J85 compressor programmed on the analog computer. Since previous studies have shown that the analog-predicted stall line agrees well with the stall line of the compressor, the digital method presented is also a good means of estimating the stall line.
(Previously cited in issue 07, p. 1010, Accession no. A81-20598)
As turbofan engines become more complex, the development of controls necessitate the use of multivariable control techniques. A control developed for the F100-PW-100(3) turbofan engine by using linear quadratic regulator theory and other modern multivariable control synthesis techniques is described. The assembly language implementation of this control on an SEL 810B minicomputer is described. This implementation was then evaluated by using a real-time hybrid simulation of the engine. The control software was modified to run with a real engine. These modifications, in the form of sensor and actuator failure checks and control executive sequencing, are discussed. Finally recommendations for control software implementations are presented.
The blade root response due to ice impact on an engine blade is simulated using the NASA in-house code BLASIM. The ice piece is modeled as an equivalent spherical object impacting on the leading edge of the blade and has the velocity opposite to that of the aircraft with direction parallel to the engine axis. The effect of ice impact is considered to be an impulse load on the blade with its amplitude computed based on the momentum transfer principle. The blade response due to the impact is carried out by modal superposition using the first three modes. The maximum dynamic stresses at the blade root are computed at the quarter cycle of the first natural frequency. A combined stress failure function based on modified distortion energy is used to study the spanwise bending damage response at the blade root. That damage function reaches maximum value for very low ice speeds and increases steeply with increases in engine speed.
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Introduction: Sustained characterization efforts of lunar regolith simulant properties are not only integral for verification of commercially-produced material designed for a wide array of testing applications but are also necessary in establishing a comprehensive comparison to a lunar reference source. As a resource for the lunar science and engineering communities, the Simulant Development Lab (SDL) within the Astromaterials Research & Exploration Science (ARES) division at the Johnson Space Center (JSC) is actively pursuing closure of existing knowledge gaps in fundamental simulant attributes, including chemistry, mineralogy, particle size distribution, particle geometry, bulk and relative density, magnetic susceptibility, and shear strength (i.e., cohesion and angle of internal friction), as well as producing Figures of Merit for comparison of lunar simulants to Apollo regolith samples.
With NASA’s goal to land the next human on the lunar surface in the next few years, it has become vitally important that we have a better understanding of how future landing spacecraft will interact with the unique properties of regolith¬¬––the layer of loose, unconsolidated dust and rock on the lunar surface¬¬––which can cause hazards like visual obstructions, particulate clouds, and cratering of the landing zone. Researchers from the Fluid Dynamics Branch at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center are performing plume-surface interaction (PSI) simulations between lander engine plumes and unprepared regolith surfaces, and have developed new tools to provide predictive PSI environments for various NASA projects and missions, including the Human Lander System (HLS), Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS), and future Mars landers. These tools allow the researchers to determine how to best meet the simulation and time requirements for each project by varying model fidelity. The highest fidelity tool is the Gas Granular Flow Solver (Loci/GGFS) that models gas-particle multi-phase interactions to predict regolith cratering and ejection of particles into the immediate surroundings of the lander. At its highest fidelity, it can model microscopic regolith particle interactions with a particle size/shape distribution that statistically replicates actual regolith, however, to be most effective with today’s computing resources, it is currently run using only one to three equivalent particle sizes/shapes. The team also incorporated engineering models into their software suite to create production-ready hybrid tools with reduced fidelity. At the lowest fidelity, the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code Loci/CHEM+DIGGEM can predict crater depth over time by relating local CFD-predicted surface shear stresses to a model of erosion mass flux.
A storage heat pump water heater (HPWH) comprises a vapor compression system and a hot water tank. It can lead to more than 70% energy saving, compared to electric resistance heating. HPWH usually uses a wrapped-tank coil as the water heater. The wrapped coil has a strong interaction with the water tank and impose a new challenge for the engineering design and simulation study. Based on the US DOE/ORNL Heat Pump Design Model (HPDM), a component-based thermal system modelling platform, a segment-to-segment wrapped-tank coil model and a one-dimensional stratified water tank model were developed, which facilitates modeling and design HPWHs having various configurations and components. In the paper, the new HPWH system design model was used to investigate effects of compressor size, refrigerant charge, water draw pattern, and refrigerant type, etc., for predicting 24-hour energy factors and first-hour rating. The HPWH system model was proved to be an effective equipment design tool.
The performance of a 24C-4 combustor was investigated with three different combustor baskets and five modifications of these baskets at conditions simulating static (zero-ram) operation of the 24C jet engine over ranges of altitude and engine speed to determine and improve the altitude operational limits of the 24C combustor. Information was also obtained regarding combustion characteristics, the fuel-flow characteristics of the fuel manifolds, and the combustor total-pressure drop. NACA modifications, which consisted of blocking rows of holes on the baskets, increased the minimum point on the altitude-operational-limit curve, which occurs at low engine speeds, for a narrow-upstream-end basket by 8000 feet (from 23, 000 to 31,000 ft_ and for a wide-upstream-end basket by 21,000 feet (from 12, 000 to 34,000 ft). These improvements were approximately maintained over the entire range of engine speeds investigated.
An approximately 0.25 scale model of the transition section of a tandem fan variable cycle engine nacelle was tested in the NASA Lewis Research Center 10-by-10 foot wind tunnel. Two 12-inch, tip-turbine driven fans were used to simulate a tandem fan engine. Three testing modes simulated a V/STOL tandem fan airplane. Parallel mode has two separate propulsion streams for maximum low speed performance. A front inlet, fan, and downward vectorable nozzle forms one stream. An auxilliary top inlet provides air to the aft fan - supplying the core engine and aft vectorable nozzle. Front nozzle and top inlet closure, and removal of a blocker door separating the two streams configures the tandem fan for series mode operations as a typical aircraft propulsion system. Transition mode operation is formed by intermediate settings of the front nozzle, blocker door, and top inlet. Emphasis was on the total pressure recovery and flow distortion at the aft fan face. A range of fan flow rates were tested at tunnel airspeeds from 0 to 240 knots, and angles-of-attack from -10 to 40 deg for all three modes. In addition to the model variables for the three modes, model variants of the top inlet were tested in the parallel mode only. These lip variables were: aft lip boundary layer bleed holes, and Three position turning vane. Also a bellmouth extension of the top inlet side lips was tested in parallel mode.
A series of computer programs are presented with full documentation which simulate the transient behavior of a modern 4 cylinder Siemens arrangement Stirling engine with burner and air preheater. Cold start, cranking, idling, acceleration through 3 gear changes and steady speed operation are simulated. Sample results and complete operating instructions are given. A full source code listing of all programs are included.
Tests have been conducted to determine the starting characteristics of a 50,000-pound-thrust rocket engine with the conditions of a quantity of fuel lying dormant in the simulated main thrust chamber. Ignition was provided by a smaller rocket firing rearwardly along the center line. Both alcohol-water and anhydrous ammonia were used as the residual fuel. The igniter successfully expelled the maximum amount of residual fuel (3 1/2 gal) in 2.9 seconds when the igniter.was equipped with a sonic discharge nozzle operating at propellant flow rates of 3 pounds per second. Lesser amounts of residual fuel required correspondingly lower expulsion times. When the igniter was equipped with a supersonic exhaust nozzle operating at a flow of 4 pounds per second, a slightly less effective expulsion rate was encountered.
Zn metal has shown promise as an anode material for grid-level energy storage, yet is challenged by dendritic growth and low Coulombic efficiency. Herein, an ultrafast, stable, and high-loading polymer anode for aqueous Zn-ion batteries and capacitors (ZIBs and ZICs) is developed by engineering both the electrode and electrolyte. The anode polymer is rationally prepared to have a suitable electronic structure and a large pi-conjugated structure, whereas the electrolyte is manufactured based on the superiority of triflate anions over sulfate anions, as analyzed and confirmed via experiments and simulations. This dual engineering results in an optimal polymer anode with a low discharge potential, near-theoretical capacity, ultrahigh-loading capability (approximate to 50 mg cm -2 ), ultrafast rate (100 A g -1 ), and ultralong lifespan (one million cycles). Further, its mechanism involves reversible Zn 2+ /proton co-storage at the carbonyl site. When the polymer anode is coupled with cathodes for both ZIB and ZIC applications, the devices demonstrate ultrahigh power densities and ultralong lifespans, far surpassing those of corresponding Zn-metal-based devices.