Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “dynamic failure”

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.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 163 records · Page 9

Effect of Transverse Compression on the Dielectric Breakdown of Power Cable with Ethylene Propylene Rubber Insulation

Understanding of the failure mechanisms of submarine dynamic power cables (SDPC) is critical for innovative design to meet the 2035 cost reduction target of U.S. DOE Floating Offshore Wind Shot. This is important because the current design suffers a significant failure rate in the field. This project explored a multiphysics approach and conducted systematic electro-thermo-mechanical (ETM) experimental study on the power cores extracted from a 15 kV power cable. The power cable had three cores of copper conductor and ethylene propylene rubber (EPR) insulation. An ETM testing system with transverse compression capability was developed. Mechanical loading induced dielectric breakdown. Increasing temperature from room temperature (RT, 22 degrees Celsius) to 90 degrees Celsius resulted in the 67% decrease in the failure mechanical load as defined by the dielectric breakdown. With the same temperature rise, the creep mechanical load was reduced by 70% at a given dielectric breakdown time. The post-test measurement revealed an impressive recovery of electrical resistance, although the dielectric breakdown occurred in the ETM test that would not be captured without the use of ETM testing.

Wang, Hong [ORNL] (ORCID:0000000201730545)↗

MoorDyn V2: New Capabilities in Mooring System Components and Load Cases

MoorDyn, an open-source mooring dynamics model, is being expanded with capabilities for additional mooring system features and load cases. As floating wind turbine technology matures, mooring systems are becoming more sophisticated and more complex scenarios need to be considered in the design process. Mooring systems may have synthetic line materials, ballast/buoyancy bodies along the lines, or interconnections between platforms. Failure modes may involve multiple cascading line failures that depend on mooring system dynamics. Features recently added to MoorDyn aim to address these emerging needs. MoorDyn’s linear elasticity model has been supplemented to support user-defined stress-strain curves, which can be adjusted to represent synthetic mooring materials. Rigid six-degree-of-freedom bodies in the mooring system can now be modeled using two new model objects. “Rod” objects provide an option for rigid cylindrical bodies. They use the existing Morison equation-based hydrodynamics model and can be connected to mooring lines at either end. “Body” objects provide a generic six-degree-of-freedom rigid-body representation based on a lumped-parameter model of translational and rotational properties. Rod objects can be added to Body objects and mooring lines can be attached at any location, allowing a wide variety of submerged structures to be integrated into the mooring system. Lastly, a means of dynamically simulating mooring line failures has been implemented. These new features, currently in the C++ version of MoorDyn, are described and then demonstrated on a two-turbine shared-mooring array. A qualitative view of the results suggests the new features are functioning as expected.

49 EE - Wind and Water Power Program - Wind (EE-4W↗

MoorDyn V2: New Capabilities in Mooring System Components and Load Cases: Preprint

MoorDyn, an open-source mooring dynamics model, is being expanded with capabilities for additional mooring system features and load cases. As floating wind turbine technology matures, mooring systems are becoming more sophisticated and more complex scenarios need to be considered in the design process. Mooring systems may have synthetic line materials, ballast/buoyancy bodies along the lines, or interconnections between platforms. Failure modes may involve multiple cascading line failures that depend on mooring system dynamics. Features recently added to MoorDyn aim to address these emerging needs. MoorDyn’s linear elasticity model has been supplemented to support user-defined stress-strain curves, which can be adjusted to represent synthetic mooring materials. Rigid six-degree-of-freedom bodies in the mooring system can now be modeled using two new model objects. “Rod” objects provide an option for rigid cylindrical bodies. They use the existing Morison equation-based hydrodynamics model and can be connected to mooring lines at either end. “Body” objects provide a generic six-degree-of-freedom rigid-body representation based on a lumped-parameter model of translational and rotational properties. Rod objects can be added to Body objects and mooring lines can be attached at any location, allowing a wide variety of submerged structures to be integrated into the mooring system. Lastly, a means of dynamically simulating mooring line failures has been implemented. These new features, currently in the C++ version of MoorDyn, are described and then demonstrated on a two-turbine shared-mooring array. A qualitative view of the results suggests the new features are functioning as expected.

49 EE - Wind and Water Power Program - Wind (EE-4W↗

Exact-Factorization-Based Surface Hopping for Multistate Dynamics

A surface-hopping algorithm recently derived from the exact factorization approach, SHXF, introduces an additional term in the electronic equation of surface hopping that couples electronic states through the quantum momentum. Furthermore, this term not only provides a first-principles description of decoherence, but here we show it is crucial to accurately capture nonadiabatic dynamics when more than two states are occupied at any given time. Using a vibronic coupling model of the uracil cation, we show that the lack of this term in traditional surface-hopping methods, including those with decoherence corrections, leads to failure to predict the dynamics through a three-state intersection, while SHXF performs similarly to the multiconfiguration time-dependent Hartree quantum dynamics benchmark.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗

Improving Excited-State Potential Energy Surfaces via Optimal Orbital Shapes

In this work, we demonstrate that, rather than resorting to high-cost dynamic correlation methods, qualitative failures in excited-state potential energy surface predictions can often be remedied at no additional cost by ensuring that optimal molecular orbitals are used for each individual excited state. This approach also avoids the weighting choices required by state-averaging and dynamic weighting and obviates their need for expensive wave function response calculations when relaxing excited-state geometries. Although multistate approaches are of course preferred near conical intersections, other features of excited-state potential energy surfaces can benefit significantly from our single-state approach. In three different systems, including a double bond dissociation, a biologically relevant amino hydrogen dissociation, and an amino-to-ring intramolecular charge transfer, we show that state-specific orbitals offer qualitative improvements over the state-averaged status quo.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Structural Dynamic Assessment of the GN2 Piping System for NASA's New and Powerful Reverberant Acoustic Test Facility

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Glenn Research Center (GRC) has led the design and build of the new world-class vibroacoustic test capabilities at the NASA GRC's Plum Brook Station in Sandusky, Ohio, USA from 2007 to 2011. SAIC-Benham has completed construction of a new reverberant acoustic test facility to support the future testing needs of NASA's space exploration program and commercial customers. The large Reverberant Acoustic Test Facility (RATF) is approximately 101,000 cubic feet in volume and was designed to operate at a maximum empty chamber acoustic overall sound pressure level (OASPL) of 163 dB. This combination of size and acoustic power is unprecedented amongst the world s known active reverberant acoustic test facilities. Initial checkout acoustic testing was performed on March 2011 by SAIC-Benham at test levels up to 161 dB OASPL. During testing, several branches of the gaseous nitrogen (GN2) piping system, which supply the fluid to the noise generating acoustic modulators, failed at their T-junctions connecting the 12 in. supply line to their respective 4 in. branch lines. The problem was initially detected when the oxygen sensors in the horn room indicated a lower than expected oxygen level from which was inferred GN2 leaks in the piping system. In subsequent follow up inspections, cracks were identified in the failed T-junction connections through non-destructive evaluation testing. Through structural dynamic modeling of the piping system, the root cause of the T-junction connection failures was determined. The structural dynamic assessment identified several possible corrective design improvements to the horn room piping system. The effectiveness of the chosen design repairs were subsequently evaluated in September 2011 during acoustic verification testing to 161 dB OASPL.

McNelis, Mark E.↗

Future climate doubles the risk of hydraulic failure in a wet tropical forest

Summary Future climate presents conflicting implications for forest biomass. We evaluate how plant hydraulic traits, elevated CO 2 levels, warming, and changes in precipitation affect forest primary productivity, evapotranspiration, and the risk of hydraulic failure. We used a dynamic vegetation model with plant hydrodynamics (FATES‐HYDRO) to simulate the stand‐level responses to future climate changes in a wet tropical forest in Barro Colorado Island, Panama. We calibrated the model by selecting plant trait assemblages that performed well against observations. These assemblages were run with temperature and precipitation changes for two greenhouse gas emission scenarios (2086–2100: SSP2‐45, SSP5‐85) and two CO 2 levels (contemporary, anticipated). The risk of hydraulic failure is projected to increase from a contemporary rate of 5.7% to 10.1–11.3% under future climate scenarios, and, crucially, elevated CO 2 provided only slight amelioration. By contrast, elevated CO 2 mitigated GPP reductions. We attribute a greater variation in hydraulic failure risk to trait assemblages than to either CO 2 or climate. Our results project forests with both faster growth (through productivity increases) and higher mortality rates (through increasing rates of hydraulic failure) in the neo‐tropics accompanied by certain trait plant assemblages becoming nonviable.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Vibration detection of component operability

In order to prevent catastrophic failure and eliminate unnecessary periodic maintenance in the Space Shuttle Orbiter dynamic components, instrumentation for detecting incipient failure in these components is required. This study investigated the utilization of vibrational phenomena as one of the principal physical parameters on which to base the design of this instrumentation. Baseline vibration data was collected from three aircraft type fans and two aircraft type pumps over a frequency range from a few Hertz to greater than 300 kHz. The baseline data included spectrum analysis of the vibration and detected carrier signals, as well as several non-spectrum parameters. Several defects were introduced into the five test items, and all defects were detected by at least one of the parameters with a margin of at least 2:1 over the worst case baseline.

Baird, B.↗

A Simulated Evaluation of Powder Flowability Through a Partially Obstructed Consumable in Blown Powder Directed Energy Deposition Systems

Abstract In the interest of continued industrialization of metal additive manufacturing in modern production environments, cost is often referenced as a primary deterrent to new adopters. Conventional economic models for additive systems, processes, and supply chains often focus on specific process applications with little generalizability, or they neglect significant costs associated with production such as machine maintenance and consumable part replacement. Compounding the latter issue are substantial knowledge gaps in consumable part wear characterization for additive and other convergent manufacturing systems. In coaxial blown powder directed energy deposition systems, gas atomized metal powder is wasted during material deposition at a rate that is partly dependent on present wear phenomena in a consumable nozzle housed in the cladding head assembly. The price and lead time required to replace the nozzle incentivizes its reuse even when visibly worn. Often this initiates a process quality decline in the form of underbuilt geometry and internal defects due to losses in powder catchment efficiency. While depositing H13 steel using a hybrid manufacturing machine tool equipped with such a deposition system, a unique partial clog with a bridge-like structure formed at the consumable nozzle exit when supporting argon gas flows failed mid-process. To further understand coaxial multi-phase powder flow in the event of support gas failure, a computational fluid dynamics simulation is tailored to relevant process parameters, H13 powder material profile, and machine operator observations collected after the incident. The resulting differences in powder flow compared to control gas flow parameters is presented and discussed. The powder flowability and performance of the clogged nozzle is then assessed by using an optical profilometer to extract the profile of the clog and recreate the clog geometry within the simulation environment. In past work this simulation has been experimentally validated for a 316L steel powder material profile and used specifically for analyzing powder stream geometry and catchment efficiency. After the initial powder flow characterization, the clog is removed, and the nozzle is reprofiled. After removing the obstructing clog, the newly unobstructed nozzle geometry, the original off the shelf nozzle geometry, and additional nozzle profiles exploring different consumable refurbishment strategies are reevaluated in the simulation. Powder catchment efficiency for all variant nozzle geometries and relevant flow variables are compared and discussed, along with potential mitigation strategies for optimizing powder flowability with worn consumables. This work expands on the known morphology of blown powder obstructions and wear defects present in consumable coaxial nozzles while discussing pragmatic simulation driven responses to unanticipated subsystem failure in hybrid manufacturing machining platforms.

DeWitte, Lisa↗

Full-Scale Crash Test and Finite Element Simulation of a Composite Prototype Helicopter

A full-scale crash test of a prototype composite helicopter was performed at the Impact Dynamics Research Facility at NASA Langley Research Center in 1999 to obtain data for validation of a finite element crash simulation. The helicopter was the flight test article built by Sikorsky Aircraft during the Advanced Composite Airframe Program (ACAP). The composite helicopter was designed to meet the stringent Military Standard (MIL-STD-1290A) crashworthiness criteria and was outfitted with two crew and two troop seats and four anthropomorphic dummies. The test was performed at 38-ft/s vertical and 32.5-ft/s horizontal velocity onto a rigid surface. An existing modal-vibration model of the Sikorsky ACAP helicopter was converted into a model suitable for crash simulation. A two-stage modeling approach was implemented and an external user-defined subroutine was developed to represent the complex landing gear response. The crash simulation was executed with a nonlinear, explicit transient dynamic finite element code. Predictions of structural deformation and failure, the sequence of events, and the dynamic response of the airframe structure were generated and the numerical results were correlated with the experimental data to validate the simulation. The test results, the model development, and the test-analysis correlation are described.

Jackson, Karen E.↗

Comparison of Kill Switch Toxins in Plant-Beneficial Pseudomonas fluorescens Reveals Drivers of Lethality, Stability, and Escape

Kill switches provide a biocontainment strategy in which unwanted growth of an engineered microorganism is prevented by expression of a toxin gene. A major challenge in kill switch engineering is balancing evolutionary stability with robust cell killing activity in application relevant host strains. Understanding host-specific containment dynamics and modes of failure helps to develop potent yet stable kill switches. To guide the design of robust kill switches in the agriculturally relevant strain Pseudomonas fluorescens SBW25, we present a comparison of lethality, stability, and genetic escape of eight different toxic effectors in the presence of their cognate inactivators (i.e., toxin–antitoxin modules, polymorphic exotoxin–immunity systems, restriction endonuclease–methyltransferase pair). We find that cell killing capacity and evolutionary stability are inversely correlated and dependent on the level of protection provided by the inactivator gene. Decreasing the proteolytic stability of the inactivator protein can increase cell killing capacity, but at the cost of long-term circuit stability. By comparing toxins within the same genetic context, we determine that modes of genetic escape increase with circuit complexity and are driven by toxin activity, the protective capacity of the inactivator, and the presence of mutation-prone sequences within the circuit. Here, the results of our study reveal that circuit complexity, toxin choice, inactivator stability, and DNA sequence design are powerful drivers of kill switch stability and valuable targets for optimization of biocontainment systems.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

Elastic interaction-induced anisotropic growth of dislocation loop arrays

The elastic interactions and reactions of dislocations lead to the formation of complex dislocation substructures, which is critical to the strain hardening and fatigue failure. Phase field dislocation dynamics simulations are conducted as a first step to understand the elastic interactions between dislocation loops. When the interloop spacing is small, the elastic interactions with neighboring loops become strong, rendering the edge segments strongly pinned, while allowing for the screw segments to propagate more easily. The interactions are found to result in an anisotropic stress distribution around the dislocation loops, leading to the formation of arrays of long, straight edge dislocations that could act as barriers to subsequent slip. Furthermore, the effect of initial loop size and applied strain rate on the elastic interaction-induced anisotropic pinning effect is investigated and discussed. Furthermore, the results are important for coarse-graining dislocation substructures formation into continuum level models of deformation in crystalline solids.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Adaptive age replacement.

Loss structure models concerning age replacement policies, discussing mathematical aspects of maintenance with dynamic programming formulation

COST ESTIMATE↗

Boundary layers in centrifugal compressors

The utility of boundary-layer theory in the design of centrifugal compressors is demonstrated. Boundary-layer development in the diffuser entry region is shown to be important to stage efficiency. The result of an earnest attempt to analyze this boundary layer with the best tools available is displayed. Acceptable prediction accuracy was not achieved. The inaccuracy of boundary-layer analysis in this case would result in stage efficiency prediction as much as four points low. Fluid dynamic reasons for analysis failure are discussed with support from flow data. Empirical correlations used today to circumnavigate the weakness of the theory are illustrated.

Dean, R. C., Jr.↗

An active nutation damper for spacecraft

An active nutation damping device, consisting of an angular accelerometer, a dc-motor-driven flywheel, and associated electronics, developed for spacecraft use is described. This damping system was used on the LAGEOS spacecraft to control nutation buildup during the long coast period (approximately 75 minutes) after the third stage separation. The damper package was evaluated and proven on a three-axis gas-bearing simulator that duplicated the LAGEOS spacecraft critical flight dynamics. In addition, a failure analysis of the damper assembly was performed. Performance of the damper during the LAGEOS flight has confirmed the preflight evaluation and analysis.

Abercrombie, R. A.↗

Reliable communication in the presence of failures

The design and correctness of a communication facility for a distributed computer system are reported on. The facility provides support for fault-tolerant process groups in the form of a family of reliable multicast protocols that can be used in both local- and wide-area networks. These protocols attain high levels of concurrency, while respecting application-specific delivery ordering constraints, and have varying cost and performance that depend on the degree of ordering desired. In particular, a protocol that enforces causal delivery orderings is introduced and shown to be a valuable alternative to conventional asynchronous communication protocols. The facility also ensures that the processes belonging to a fault-tolerant process group will observe consistant orderings of events affecting the group as a whole, including process failures, recoveries, migration, and dynamic changes to group properties like member rankings. A review of several uses for the protocols is the ISIS system, which supports fault-tolerant resilient objects and bulletin boards, illustrates the significant simplification of higher level algorithms made possible by our approach.

Birman, Kenneth P.↗